The Troop 1954
Wednesday Newsletter

Wednesday, December15, 2004

Announcements

1) We stand adjourned for the next two weeks.  Meetings resume on January 4.  All the best to everyone for the holidays and New Year.

2) Please remember that, if you have no money in your account, you need to pay $25 by January 11 to continue on our troop roster ($15 without Boy's Life or Scouting).

3) Merit Badge University.  We're coming to the end of the registration period.  All registration for MBU must be done by December 25.  If you've been putting it off, now's the time to act.  Remember two things: 1) there is no late registration.  If you miss it, we can't get you in.  2) You register on line but you must pay by check by January 1.  The address is on the website.  So, get that registration done.  You do it by going to www.utmbu.org and clicking on registration.  You then need to click the not yet registered link to sign up for a user name and password.  Fill in the form and be sure to remember the user name and password you pick (and keep in mind that both are case sensitive).  Then go back to the registration page and sign in.  You can then add classes, drop classes, and do other stuff.  The site asks for the Class ID number for each class, so be sure to look at the schedule first and write down the class ID numbers you want.  Then you should be able to register for your choice of classes. 

Ex-Boy Scout helps troops with $2 million Burnet man, 83, gives more than half the cost of regional headquarters

By Laura Heinauer, Austin American Statesman

Wednesday, December 15, 2004

A former Boy Scout from Burnet has donated $2 million toward a new Boy Scouts of America regional headquarters, the organization announced Tuesday.

Frank Fickett, an 83-year-old real estate developer who sits on the Scouts' Capitol Area Council executive board, made the lead donation for the planned $3.9 million, 25,000-square-foot facility, which will be named in his honor.

"It serves so many children throughout the entire area, and, after all, they are our future," Fickett said Tuesday.

A former Burnet City Council member, Fickett has lived in the Hill Country town for 12 years and has donated land to several projects, including the Austin steam train station in Burnet as well as the town's civic center and future City Hall.

The Capitol Area Council is searching for 2 to 5 acres in the Austin area for the headquarters and service center, council officials said Tuesday. It is expected to be three times as large as the current office at 7540 Ed Bluestein Blvd.

"Scouting in Central Texas has practically doubled since the early 1990s," said Tom Varnell, the council's chief executive officer and Scout executive. "Being that the region as a whole is projected to double in 20 years, we have to start preparing for that."

Unlike the current space, which is crowded and hard to find, the new administration building will need to be more convenient for current and future members, Varnell said. Plans for the center include a retail Scout Shop and meeting space for volunteer training and program planning.

"We literally outgrew our current location nearly a decade ago," Varnell said, adding that the organization is looking at properties along the North MoPac Boulevard (Loop 1), North Interstate 35 and North U.S. 183 corridors.

"We want to be somewhere that's easy to access with high visibility," Varnell said.

The 15-county Central Texas region, which has more than 7,000 volunteer leaders and serves more than 25,000 youths, continues to grow at a rate higher than the national average, Varnell said.

In recent months, however, the organization has had to deal with a revenue shift as a result of its policies that exclude homosexuals. The local chapter of the United Way decided last year that it would no longer allocate money to the Scouts because all partner agencies must serve people without regard to race, color, gender or sexual orientation.

Consequently, the Scouts have had to rely more on private and direct donations, Varnell said.

"We believe that others who believe in our oath and our law, like Frank, will come forward," he said. "They know what Scouting can do and will do for the youth of our community."

Sights and Sounds Shifts:

Below you'll find two charts that show who worked at Sights and Sounds and how many shifts they worked.  As you look at them, please keep the following in mind:

1) You can only earn credit for working if you are a registered member of 1954.  There were several people who worked who are not on our roster.  We thank them much, but they don't get any shares.

2) There are two charts.  The first is a listing of people whose names were printed on the official sign up roster and who signed in next to their names.  The second is a listing of people who either signed in on blank lines or who signed in elsewhere on the page.  Note that this listing includes both people who just showed up to work as well as several who were there for multiple shifts every night but who did not sign up so that others could take "official" spots.  Note as well that, in the end, there were 12 blank spots left on the sign in sheet and 14 extra shifts taken.  The Troop Committee will determine how much each share is worth and how to count shares at its meeting in January.

3) If you feel that anything on the chart is reported incorrectly, email me at r.warms@txstate.edu

September 9-11 Pedernales Falls Camp Out