Serving Otter Tail, Wilkin, Grant and Richland counties in Minnesota and North Dakota.

District 3 Top Leaders

District Chairman	Rod Scheel
District Vice-Chairman (Program)	Mark DeMartelaere	(218) 671-0588
District Commissioner	Mike Guck	(218) 849-2124
Asst. District Commissioner (West)	Teresa Pearson	(701) 640-7218
Asst. District Commissioner (East)	Mark DeMartelaere	(218) 736-7226
District Executive	Lindsay Aune	(701) 799-6753 cell
Director of Field Service	Darin Steindl	(701) 499-0646

 

Mailing Address:

Oxcart Trails District, Boy Scouts of America
P.O. Box 1007
Fergus Falls, MN 56538

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Webelos to Scout Transition

This time of year is an exciting time of year for many of our Arrow of Light Scouts. Not only are they completing their final Achievements in Cub Scouts, but the Arrow of Light Scouts are looking forward to their future years in Scouting. Mark Sundberg our District Webelos to Scout Transition Chair, has been working with the Scouts who are currently AOL and what their plans are after they have completed Cub Scouts. Many scouts are planning on crossing over to Scouts BSA, and we are excited to have them be apart of the older youth program! Make sure to have their transfer applications completed if they are crossing over to a troop, and turned in as soon as you can! Not only is this a great time for AOL scouts to crossover, but it is an excellent time to invite others to your Troop! Here are some excellent resources to help out with creating a Troop Open House!

Open House Form for Troops - This form will let us know when you plan on having your open house. Just fill it out and and Lindsay will get flyers to the school!

Council Resources - This has great information for anyone who wants more information on the Webelos to Scout Transition Process

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Program Planning

April Roundtable was all about Program Planning, and that is still happening as Troops and Packs are meeting! There are always so many great activities going on during the summer months, as that is one of the best times to be a Scout. So, put the Outing in Scouting, and make some great plans this summer to enjoy the great outdoors! Here are just a few of the great things that are happening this summer in the District and the Council: 

Spring Camporee
Day Camp
Fall Camporee
Cub Scout Leader Training
BALOO Training
Scout Day at the Redhawks

The Council has great resources on the Program Planning page with resources to share with your pack or troop when you are doing your unit program planning! This will help get the calendar planning process for your unit! And, if you weren't able to attend the April Program Planning Fair, make sure to get in touch with your Unit Commissioner or with Lindsay to get your Program Planning Guide to plan your 2019-2020 Scouting Adventure.

**Unit calendars should be completed and handed in either to your unit commissioner or to Lindsay by June 15th.** 

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Summertime Pack Award

The National Summertime pack award is a great way to get your pack moving, and active in the summer! Many packs already participate in the Summertime Pack award, but it is a great way to get more involvement from your Scouts in a summertime program, which is a great time to be a Cub Scout! The requirements are simple. They are: 

The pack can qualify for the certificate and streamer by planning and conducting three pack activities—one each in June, July, and August. 

• June Idea - Day Camp (June 15, 2019)
• July Idea - Picnic for the Pack
• August Idea - Scout Day at the Redhawks (August 3, 2019)

Dens with an average attendance of at least half their members at the three summer pack events are eligible for a colorful den participation ribbon. Scouts who participate in all three pack events are eligible to receive the National Summertime Pack Award pin, which they can wear on the right pocket flap of their uniform.

It  truly is an easy way to get activity from your Scouts in the summer, and many packs have done so! If you have any questions regarding this or any other activities, please contact Mark DeMartelaere.

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POPCORN SALE

The Northern Lights Council and Trails End Popcorn are proud to partner again this year for the 2019 popcorn sale. This year, there are a few things that are going to be different, starting with the timeline of the sale, and how the traditional kickoff events are held. The kickoff event for Oxcart Trails was held on JUNE 4th, 2019 at 7pm at Augustana Lutheran Church. If you weren't able to attend this session, there are other sessions that you can find listed here! 

There are other key changes that are happening with the sale that are listed here:

• Potential for units to earn up to 33% commission
• Availability of smart phone app to take orders and collect credit card payments (with no fees!)
• Earlier start date to the sale (August 1^st this year)
• Popcorn Academy for Scouts in each district
• New prize program
• AND MORE! 

All of the information, including the date changes (We are starting on August 1st and going through October 25th) can be found at nlcbsa.org/popcorn. If you have any questions regarding the popcorn Sale in our District, please contact either Ben Smith at (218) 791-7353 or Lindsay Aune at (701) 799-6753. 

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How do I make my Troop Stronger in the Fall?

There are five ways to strengthen your Scouts BSA Troop program.

1) Bridge the Arrow of Light Cub Scouts... When? NOW!

2) Get your Troop ready to go to Summer Resident Camp! All of the information for summer resident camp at Camp Wilderness can be found here! 

4) Have a Recruitment Night for New Scouts, and make sure they sign up to go to camp with your Troop this summer. Scouts who go to camp are more likely to stay involved in Scouting in the Fall. Talk to DE Lindsay Aune, she has flyers available to give you to promote your Scouts BSA Troop.

5) Start a Parallel Scouts BSA Troop for Girls. We have girls in Cub Scouts all over Oxcart Trails, and when they reach fifth grade they will be looking forward to continuing the great programming that we offer in Scouts BSA. We are seeing great growth in communities that have established Cub Scouts Dens for Boy and Girls. Nationwide we are already seeing great growth in Charter Organizations that have unit programming for the entire family from kindergarten to college.

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Open Houses 

Open houses can be an effective way to recruit new Scouts into your pack or troop, especially in the spring when outdoor activities are on the horizon! There are many great opportunities for all of our Scouts! From our great Day Camps or Cub Scout Resident Camp, or Resident Camp for Scouts BSA! 

Here are some great ways to do that! 

• Select a date, and set up a rally and troop or Pack Displays at your Meetings! 
• Make a presentation to the K-6th grade students to spark their interest, and allow them to participate in an hands-on activity as much as possible.
• Extend an invitation to attend an open house with their parents. The Council will provide the materials like the Fall Recruitment, just make sure to fill out the survey's so the information can get out when you want it to.
  • Troops fill this out
  • Packs fill this out

Tip: The open house should be a short, lively program with an explanation of the activities and a calendar of future events. Invite the parents, as well as the new Scout, to become a part of your unit!

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Fall Camporee

Oxcart Trails is proud to promote the 2019 Fall Camporee! This event is for Scouts BSA members from both Oxcart Trails District and Lakes District, being held on September 20-22 at Chippewa Park near Brandon, MN. With a multi-district event like this, participants will be able to teach, bond, and compete with more members to create a better program!

Although the itinerary of the weekend has some similar aspects to previous camporees, there are many parts of it that are newly-redesigned to make it a more memorable and worthwhile event for units in the area. Some of the events will be modeled after the Camp Wilderness summer program, such as the evening campfires, a Dutch oven cook off, and the presence of counselors from Camp Wilderness who will teach engaging merit badges such as Exploration, Wilderness Survival, and many others! Around 5-8 merit badge choices can be expected in the morning on Saturday. One of these badges is planned to be Aviation with a trip to the airport for rides in their Young Eagles planes!

The rest of Saturday will bring competitions between troops, open canoeing between the lakes, fishing, and other training cells on leadership development to give Scouts a taste for future trainings, such as NYLT. A Cub Scout Day Pass will also be offered, which will include two meals, open program opportunities around the camp, and the evening show/movie! Cub Scouts will get the chance to get around outdoors and visit with troops! The goal of the camporee is to promote youth-led units and high quality program! Questions can be directed to Ryan Hansen at (218) 770-7505 . 

If You Go:

Date: September 20-22, 2019

Where: Chippewa Park: 9461 County Hwy 108 NW, Brandon, MN

Scouts BSA Weekend Cost (Scouts and Adults): $15

Cub Scout Day Pass (Cubs and Parents): $10

 

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Oxcart Trails Youth Protection Champions

Jessica Gibble	New York Mills	(218) 402-0348
Jeffrey Krosch	New York Mills	((218) 639-3684
Jaime Brause	Fergus Falls, MN	(218) 205-4851
Stephen Herdan	Pelican Rapids, MN	(218) 671-0761
Gordy Przbylski	Perham, MN	(317)-946-7007
Ben Smith	Underwood, MN	(218) 791-7353
Teresa Pearson	Breckenridge, MN	(701) 640-7218
Tammy Miller	Colfax,ND	(701) 741-4355
Lindsay Aune	Fergus Falls, MN	(701) 799-6753
Mark DeMartelaere	Fergus Falls, MN	(218) 671-0588
Mike Guck	Battle Lake, MN	(218) 849-2124

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Update your BeAScout pin today, so future Scouting families can find your Units  

Today’s parents can do it all online. With a few taps on their tablet, they can buy school supplies, sign up for soccer or hire a babysitter.And, more and more these days, they’re finding out about Scouting online, too. Today’s parents want, and expect, to learn more about the BSA through a simple-to-use, nicely designed website.

BeAScout.org is that website. It is the first thing many prospective Scouting families see about the BSA, and it tells them what Scouting is, why it’s a good fit for their family and where they can find a Cub Scout pack, Scouts BSA troop, Venturing crew or Sea Scout ship near them.

That last part — the where — is where you come in. It’s time to update your unit’s listing on BeAScout.org, and I’ll tell you why.You see, when moms and dads visit BeAScout.org, they can enter their ZIP code to find all the Scout units near them.

These results show up as pins, with each representing a pack, troop, crew or ship nearby. If your unit is represented by one of those pins, you want that prospective Scout parent to have a direct line of communication to you. That way you can tell them all about how awesome Pack 123 is or what makes Troop 456 so great.

There’s just one problem: some units haven’t updated their pins, meaning there’s an extra obstacle between you and a new member of your unit.But don’t worry. Updating your pin is easy, and it’s well worth your time.

How to update your BeAScout.org pin

Updating your BeAScout.org pin is simple, and it’s a good way to make sure your information is current — that it doesn’t list last year’s Cubmaster or meeting time, for example. Access to update your pin is available to all unit leaders, including committee members in a unit.

To update your pin:

1. Go to My.Scouting.org
2. In the drop-down menu, go to Legacy Web Tools and select BeAScout.​
3. Choose “unit” (rather than council) under “Unit Pin Mode” to update the pin with your contact info.
4. Be sure to set pin status to “active.” If they want the “Apply Now” button on the pin, set “Apply Status” to “active.”
5. Note that it may take a few hours, or up to overnight, for the updated information to show up.
6. For Cub Scout packs: You’ll also want to go to Organization Manager and identify your pack’s gender: all-boy, all-girl or a mix of all-boy dens and all-girl dens. Under Organization Manager, find the settings tab and scroll to the bottom of the page. The default is Boys Dens, but you can change that. Be sure to enter an effective date or it will not update the pin.

Wendal, Bryan. "Update your BeAScout pin today, so future Scouting families can find you tomorrow", https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org, 28 Jan. 2019, https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2019/01/28/update-your-beascout-pin-today-so-future-scouting-families-can-find-you-tomorrow/. Accessed 11 June 2019.

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Monthly District Calendar