Important News from the Mount Diablo Silverado Council, Boy Scouts of America http://www.bsa-mdsc.org We are pleased to announce the release of the 100th anniversary Mt. Diablo Silverado Council shoulder patch. This is a limited edition patch and will only be available through February 2011 or while supplies last. The patch was designed by Cub Scout Derek S. of Pack 215. Special editions of the patch with gold and silver boarders are available from the Council. Get your 100th anniversary shoulder patch at the Scout Shop for only $3.00 today! http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/ As many of you know we were approached last year by a mobile service provider to place a cell tower on our Camp Herms property. The council’s volunteer leadership decided to explore this option because we felt it could help support Scouting in our community.

Throughout this process we’ve received input regarding the cell tower’s affect on the health and safety of Scouts and residents in the neighborhood and the potential impact on property values. The council greatly values this input. We have hired an independent consult to study health and safety issues and will certainly consider the results of these studies in our final decision.

At this point the council is still waiting on the summary from those findings and no final decisions have been made. When the studies are complete the executive committee will review the reports and input from the community and make a decision that is in the best interest of the council and the community. We expect to conclude this process in March. http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/ Dr. Henrik Mann, President, GenCom International, LLC and host of the talk zone program invited Lou Paulson to discuss how being a Scout affected his life and career. Lou is a dynamic Mt. Diablo Silverado Council Eagle Scout, Executive Board Member and President of the California Fire Fighter Association. Listen to Lou’s motivational interview. http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/outbound.php?link=http://www.talkzone.com/episodes/199/2145.html The council's Annual Recognition Dinner is held each year to recognize outstanding volunteers. This year's dinner was held on February 19, 2010, at the Walnut Creek Marriott Hotel. There the 2009 Silver Beaver recipients were recognized. Check out bios on each Silver Beaver and listen to their thoughts about the Silver Beaver Award and Scouting in general. http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/activities/dinner.php The 2010 Mt. Diablo Silverado Council Diablo Silverado Council Annual business meeting is scheduled for Monday, February 8,2010 at 7:00 pm all Chartered Organization reps and Board Members are eligible to attend. Please RSVP your attendance by contacting Leila Asadzadeh at 925-674-6101 or by email at Leila.asadzadeh@scouting.org by Wednesday February 3rd, 2010. http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/ The Leader Education and Discovery 2010 conference brings hundreds of Scouters from all branches together for one day under one location. It is a day of looking, listening, tasting, smelling, trying, touching, figuring out, asking questions, working with your hands and getting new ideas from one another. Registration for LEAD is now open and the cost is only $37. http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/training/lead/ The council’s Annual Recognition Dinner, chaired by Steve Phillips, is held each year to recognize outstanding volunteers. Next year’s dinner will be held on Friday, February 19, 2010, at the Walnut Creek Marriott Hotel. There the 2009 Silver Beaver recipients will be recognized. http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/activities/dinner.php Please join us, as the Mt. Diablo Silverado Council, Boy Scouts of America honors Edward M. Downer III, Chairman of the Board, Mechanics Bank, for his dedication to our youth and community. Every year the Distinguished Citizen Celebration recognizes individuals in our council who exemplify the Scout Oath and Law in their everyday lives, not only in Scouting, but in the community as whole. http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/finances/events/citizens.php This is a wonderful evening of fun, friendship and fellowship. We hold both a silent and live auction for many gift packages, getaways, individual gift items, and a long list of rare wines from featured wine makers from all over the greater Napa Valley area. There are also large prizes up for grabs for our opportunity drawing as well! http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/finances/events/auction.php When a boy becomes a member of the Boy Scouts of America, no matter at what age, one of the first questions is "How soon can I go camping?" The Mt. Diablo Silverado Council is proud to offer Cub Scouts and their families four weekends at Camp Lindblad and two Webelos Weekends at camp Wolfeboro this year. Upcoming Camp dates for 2009 are Old West: October 9th - 11th and Halloween Fest: October 23rd - 25th. Online registration is open for all 2009 camp dates. http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/activities/familycamp/ A council wide environmental day will kick off a year of celebration. On this "Patriots Day" weekend Scouts council wide will demonstrate that the Scouts have always been green. Scouts, parents, leaders and friends will conduct environmental projects to serve the needs of the district from clean up to tree planting. http://www.bsa-mdsc.org/program/anniversary/cleanup.php The adult application now includes a separate Disclosure/Authorization Form. Signing this form means you give the BSA and the reporting agency permission to procure consumer reports on you for as long as you remain a volunteer. This form is required in order to process the application. While separate Disclosure/Authorization forms are available, we recommend that units destroy any old applications that do not include the Disclosure/Authorization Form and use only the current version. The BSA Executive Board unanimously passed a resolution at the business meeting on May 22 to increase the traditional membership registration fee for all youth and adults to $15 from its current $10, effective Jan. 1, 2010. The last fee increase, which was from $7 to $10, was in 2003. The Exploring fee remains $10.