Three Fires Council

Cub Scouts! The Three Fires Council is inviting you to its first Cub Scout Fall Campout.  This event is especially designed for those new to Scouting to introduce you to Cub Scout Camping.  However all Tiger Cubs, Cub Scouts, and Webelos plus their parent or adult partner are invited!  The event starts Friday evening, Sept. 24th and will last until noon on Saturday - Sept. 25th. Friday will feature snacks and a campfire program, Boy Scouts will be on hand to assist in setting up tents.   On Saturday, breakfast will be provided and fun games will take up the morning.  Cost is only $9 per person and includes program, Friday snack, Saturday breakfast and an event patch.  Choose from one of six convienent locations! For more information please see the Fall Cub Camping Webpage of this site.  Click Here for the 2010 Fall Cub Scout Campout Registration Form   
There are SIX different locations to choose from!    See the fact sheets for details and directions.    Plowman's Park - Big Rock / Tomo-Chi-Chi Knolls - Gilberts / Von Oven Scout Reservation - Naperville / Johnson's Mound - Blackberry Township / Cantigny - Winfield / Springbrook Nature Center - Itasca       

Fire Safety Month October 2010 — The Illinois Fire Inspectors, Fire Chiefs, Title Sponsor Wide Open West and Hero Sponsor, Nicor are excited to be working in partnership with the Boy Scouts on this initiative!  Fire Safety door hangers will be available in early August.  Angela Roza, along with Lori Watson and Sharon Grant at the Scout shops will assist in facilitating the door hangers for packs, troops, crews, and exploring posts. The new 2010 Fire Safety Door Hanger is in both English and Spanish and we have a new Hero Sponsor, Nicor!

We are required to distribute the door hangers in October, which is Fire Safety month.  It would be ideal to distribute them during Fire Safety Week, which is October 3-9th for PR purposes. Last year many Scouts sold popcorn while conducting the fire safety good turn. To learn more about how YOUR unit can participate, CLICK HERE!

Scout Surge 9/11 is a great activity that your Scouts can collectively connect to, as they create their own ideas and social networks to commemorate and remember 9/11 as one of the most enduring human experiences in American history. 

Please promote this activity in your district, troop, post, or crew to make it as big and exciting as the Scouts want. This is a youth-driven event, & you can use Twitter, texting, e-mail, Facebook, and MySpace to help spread the word. Each group of Scouts should plan something meaningful to do on 9/11 & then get together & do it as an outing or a gathering. Be creative as you commemorate & remember the events of 9/11!

Youth safety is the No. 1 concern of the BSA. To increase awareness of this societal problem and to create even greater barriers to abuse than already exist today in Scouting, the Boy Scouts of America is implementing several important changes to further enhance its Youth Protection policies: Effective June 1, 2010: Youth Protection Training is required for all registered volunteers. New leaders are required to take Youth Protection Training before they submit their application for registration. The certificate of completion for this training must be submitted at the time application is made and before volunteer service with youth begins.  If a volunteer’s Youth Protection Training record is not current at the time of recharter, the volunteer will not be reregistered.

• Training is designed to provide all leaders and volunteers with proper information to create the safest environment possible for the Scouts in our program.  Online training for youth protection is available 24/7 and can be completed through the National BSA Online Learning Center— MyScouting.

Changes to the BSA’s Youth Protection Training Policies - Effective June 1, 2010

To find out more about the Youth Protection policies of the BSA and how to help Scouting keep your family safe, see the information available in any of the Cub Scouting or Boy Scouting handbooks, or go to Youth Protection at Scouting.org.

This special edition of our NEW Council CSP is now available! Come and visit our Scout Shops and pick one up. The patch features a large ghosted 2010 in the background. There are fleur di lis' ghosted in the middle of the three fireworks. The fireworks are done in metallic thread. The CSP was created to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Boy Scouts of America. We know that everyone will want at least one, so don't miss out!!

Join us and support the Scouts in your family and community by becoming a Friend of Scouting.   The Three Fires Council, Boy Scouts of America needs the support of the community, local busiensses, and Scouting families to help make the program available to all young people in the various communities that we serve.

Click to Donate ONLINE Today!      

The Norris Scout Center of Three Fires Council now hosts a community paper recycling program called the Paper Retriever.  It is not just for the building to use but for the whole community as well; and since we earn money for all the paper collected each month, we need your assistance. Please bring all of your magazines, mail, newspapers, catalogs and office papers to the green and yellow bin in our parking lot; but do not include cardboard or phone books.

The paper is recycled by AbitibiBowater and used to make new newsprint. The entire process, from the time our bin is picked up to the time the newspaper is printed, only takes about two weeks.  To celebrate Earth Day we can double our money in the month of April by recycling 2 tons (4,000 lbs.) of paper.  Looking at some of our desks this should be easy.  Please take advantage of this opportunity and do some spring cleaning and recycle the needless paper.

• Recycling Program Information - What can go into the Paper Retriever Bin?

CAMP FREELAND LESLIE NEWS: On-Line Payment is now available for those Troops Teams & Crews attending CFL Boy Scout Camp. Please Click on the appropriate link below to make your total or installment payments for your Scouts. You may return to this system as often as you need to, as you add Scouts going to camp. If you have not yet registered to attend CFL & wish to reserve a spot, please contact Pete Dillenburg to select your session or campsite BEFORE using this payment system.

• ONLINE PAYMENT - For Camp Freeland Leslie - Boy Scout Weeks 1-6
   

Annual Health and Medical Record

(Valid for 12 calendar months) This form replaces all Class 1,2 & 3 medical forms and is the only accepted form beginning 2010.

• Health & Medical Record - This form can be downloaded & filled out on the computer & saved.
  

Medical Information
The Boy Scouts of America recommends that all youth and adult members have annual medical evaluations by a certified and licensed health-care provider. In an effort to provide better care to those who may become ill or injured and to provide youth members and adult leaders a better understanding of their own physical capabilities, the Boy Scouts of America has established minimum standards for providing medical information
prior to participating in various activities. Those standards are offered below in one three-part medical form. Note that unit leaders must always protect the privacy of unit participants by protecting their medical information.

Parts A and C are to be completed annually by all BSA unit members. Both parts are required for all events that do not exceed 72 consecutive hours, where the level of activity is similar to that normally expended at home or at school, such as day camp, day hikes, swimming parties, or an overnight camp, and where medical care is readily available. Medical information required includes a current health history and list of medications. Part C also includes the parental informed consent and hold harmless/release agreement (with an area for notarization if required by your state) as well as a talent release statement. Adult unit leaders should review participants’ health histories and become knowledgeable about the medical needs of the youth members in their unit. This form is to be filled out by participants and parents or guardians and kept on file for easy reference.

Part B is required with parts A and C for any event that exceeds 72 consecutive hours, a resident camp setting, or when the nature of the activity is strenuous and demanding, such as service projects, work weekends, or high-adventure treks. It is to be completed and signed by a certified and licensed health-care provider—physician (MD, DO), nurse practitioner, or physician’s assistant as appropriate for your state. The level of activity ranges from what is normally expended at home or at school to strenuous activity such as hiking and backpacking. Other examples include tour camping, jamborees, and Wood Badge training courses. It is important to note that the height/weight chart must be strictly adhered to if the event will take the unit beyond a radius wherein emergency evacuation is more than 30 minutes by ground transportation, such as backpacking trips, high-adventure activities, and conservation projects in remote areas.

Risk Factors
Based on the vast experience of the medical community, the BSA has identified that the following risk factors may define your participation in various outdoor adventures.
• Excessive body weight
• Heart disease
• Hypertension (high blood pressure)
• Diabetes
• Seizures
• Lack of appropriate immunizations
• Asthma
• Sleep disorders
• Allergies/anaphylaxis
• Muscular/skeletal injuries
• Psychiatric/psychological and emotional difficulties
For more information on medical risk factors, visit Scouting Safely on www.scouting.org.

Prescriptions
The taking of prescription medication is the responsibility of the individual taking the medication and/or that individual’s parent or guardian. A leader, after obtaining all the necessary information, can agree to accept the responsibility of making sure a youth takes the necessary medication at the appropriate time, but BSA does not mandate or necessarily encourage the leader to do so. Also, if state laws are more limiting, they must be followed.
 

Food Allergies are a growing threat to the health and safety of everyone.

The number of youth affected by food allergies has increased by 18% between 1997 and 2007.  As of 2007, over 3,000,000 youth were affected by food allergies.  Allergic reactions may range anywhere from a mild discomfort (rash, stomach cramps, etc) to anaphylactic shock and even death.  The most common food allergies are to milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, soy beans, fish and shellfish.

Prepared foods have an ingredients list and any ingredients from these food families should be listed on the label. The label should also advise if the product is free from cross contamination.  Since many food items are prepared at facilities that process many different types of foods, the manufacturer is required to advise consumers if there is any possibility of this happening.

Foods prepared at homes of children without allergies are a real danger to those with food allergies because of cross contamination and unknown ingredients.

It is very important that leaders check the Annual BSA Health and Medical Record, Part A for each individual in their group to be aware of any food allergies.  Please note: this form is to be completed annually by all BSA unit members.  Copies of the form may be obtained at:  http://www.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/34605_Letter.pdf

You may obtain more information at www.kidswithfoodallergies.org.

• Food Allergies - Printable Information