Good Sunday Morning Fellow Commissioner!
We welcome another new Unit Commissioner to our ranks - Bill Phillips. Bill will be working with Pack/Troop/Team and Crew 85 at the Lake Mary LDS Ward. Welcome Bill!
So this week, I tried something new. I decided that I would implement an idea that I heard about when I attended the Central Region Area 2 Commissioners' College back in early April. So on Saturday, I held the first "Dish with Commish" which was announced in a special newsletter to Cub Scout Leaders (and local commissioners also received a copy). So, I stopped by the Panera in Altamonte Springs on Saturday (yesterday) morning at 8:15 a.m., announced my presence on Twitter and Facebook, and waited for Cub Leaders & Commissioners to join me for a casual chat. At 9:30, I decided that maybe trying this on a holiday weekend was not the best bet - so I cleaned up my spot, put my phone away, and headed home.
A failure you say? Nope. Just a minor set-back. We'll try it again on Saturday, June 25th. Maybe this time I will go up to the Lake Mary area so I will be more centrally located in the district. (The funny thing is, I live right behind the Panera Bread in Winter Springs / Tuskawilla / Casselberry area ...)
If you have not seen some of the excellent new videos that were released this week as part of the National Annual Meeting in San Diego, then check these out:
We Are Scouts
Prepared. For Life. Robert Gates
Be A Scout Big Freeze
A Man of Respect
Looking for the List of Commissioner Assignments? You can sort the page by any field shown, and you can download this list as a spreadsheet. If you see any changes or corrections, please, let me know.
Looking for the District and Council Calendar of Events?
Last week of May! End of the Month Health Check Time
Well, this is already the last week of May. So - time to make sure you have your unit contacts for the month in UVTS. Right now we show 100% of our units have been contacted during May, but only 71% received actual "visits" by a Unit Commissioner.
Another check of UVTS will be done on Wednesday the 1st.
So, I'd like to thank the following Commissioners for getting out there to see their units this month:
| Angie Francisco | Chris Clark | Don Martino |
| Eleanor Johnson | Gregory Demas | John Halter |
| Marv Rosen | Mike Beates | Paul Petracca |
| Keith Rimmer | Rob Reese | Harvey Francisco |
| Ridge Moreland | Ken Padyjasek | Joan Buchanan |
| Bob Dallas | Thomas Dills | Tex Lewis |
| Joel Peisner | Bill Prescott |
I really think that more units were "visited" in May - we just don't have those visits recorded in UVTS! You can either send me an email with your contacts, or, enter them in UVTS.
As you can see, since we have already surpassed the JTE goals for UVTS, I am now focusing on all commissioners getting "face time" with their units - which is an important requirement of the new "Commissioner Award of Excellence in Unit Service" (see "Participation" requirement #2) - and a key component to being an effective commissioner. I hope all our Commissioners will be working on this award over the next two years. (Sorry, no backdating allowed.)
Leadership Notes #6 - Servant Leadership Books from the Greenleaf Center
(This series of "notes" first appeared in the YahooGroup "VenturingList" and are written by Michael Brown. I thought that they were worth sharing with the Commissioner Corps.)
For those studying and learning servant leadership, checking out the Greenleaf Center for Servant-Leadership is a good idea (www.greenleaf.org). One of the resources they have is the various works on servant leadership they offer for sale in their shop, some of which they have published.
The Center has been publishing several small books on servant leadership in the last couple of years. These are all short, about 80-100 pages, and all are very good. At present, there are five volumes so far. They are "Stand Tall", "Servant-Institutions in Business", "The Case for Servant Leadership", "The Hine Bibliography", and "Start with Humility."
"The Case for Servant Leadership" was written to be a basic introduction to servant leadership. While several would recommend reading Greenleaf's initial article on servant leadership to begin, that work doesn't delve into the full aspects of servant leadership that has been worked out since it was written. There are some other articles that are good introductions, and some of the other books out there on servant leadership are good introductions, but no short, comprehensive work.
This work fills that gap. The book was written by Kent Keith, who is the CEO of the Greenleaf Center. I found it to be a good read, and touched on some aspects I hadn't considered.
Continue reading ...
Commissioner Basic Training
Seminole Springs District will be hosting Commissioner Basic Training on Saturday, June 18th from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. We are looking for individuals who would be interested in teaching one or more of the course modules that day. If you'd like to help with training, please, let me know.
The training will be held at the Winter Park Masonic Lodge, located at 1495 Grand Road Winter Park, FL 32792 (map). A Continental Breakfast and Lunch will be served. The cost for the course will be $8.00 to cover the continental breakfast and lunch. Online registration will be available shortly.
All new commissioners (Unit and Roundtable) in our District should plan on attending.
Memorial Day
Since our Nation's founding, America's sons and daughters have given their lives in service to our country. From Concord and Gettysburg to Marne and Normandy, from Inchon and Khe Sanh to Baghdad and Kandahar, they departed our world as heroes and gave their lives for a cause greater than themselves.
On Memorial Day, we pay tribute to those who have paid the ultimate price to defend the United States and the principles upon which America was founded. In honor of our country's fallen, I encourage all Americans to unite at 3:00 p.m. local time to observe a National Moment of Remembrance.
Today, Americans from all backgrounds and corners of our country serve with valor, courage, and distinction in the United States Armed Forces. They stand shoulder to shoulder with the giants of our Nation's history, writing their own chapter in the American story. Many of today's warriors know what it means to lose a friend too soon, and all our service members and their families understand the true meaning of sacrifice.
This Memorial Day, we express our deepest appreciation to the men and women in uniform who gave their last full measure of devotion so we might live in freedom. We cherish their memory and pray for the peace for which they laid down their lives. We mourn with the families and friends of those we have lost, and hope they find comfort in knowing their loved ones died with honor. We ask for God's grace to protect those fighting in distant lands, and we renew our promise to support our troops, their families, and our veterans. Their unwavering devotion inspires us all -- they are the best of America.
It is our sacred duty to preserve the legacy of these brave Americans, and it remains our charge to work for peace, freedom, and security. Let us always strive to uphold the founding principles they died defending; let their legacy continue to inspire our Nation; and let this solemn lesson of service and sacrifice be taught to future generations of Americans. - President Barack Obama, 2010
College of Commissioner Science
If you are were unable to attend the CFC College of Commissioner Science, you missed a great event, but, here are some dates from surrounding Councils where you can still attend their Commissioners' College:
- August 13th - North Florida Council - location TBD
Dates and such
* 
June 3-5 - OA Service Weekend - Camp La-No-Che
* 
June 7th - Council Commissioners' Meeting - 7:00 p.m. - Council Service Center
* June 8th - Scoutmaster's Dinner - 6:00 p.m. - Camp La-No-Che
June 9th - District Committee Meeting - 6:30 p.m. - Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Lake Mary
June 9th - Commissioners' Meeting - 7:30 p.m. - Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Lake Mary
June 10th - Council Annual Business Meeting 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. at the Buena Vista Palace Hotel - Flyer - Online Registration
June 10th - Council Annual Recognition Banquet 6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. at the Buena Vista Palace Hotel - Flyer - Online Registration
June 12-19 - Commissioner Training Week at Philmont Training Center - Conference Catalog
* June 15th - Scoutmaster's Dinner - 6:00 p.m. - Camp La-No-Che
June 16th - District Roundtable - 7:00 p.m. - Lake Mary LDS Ward
June 18th - Commissioner Basic Training - 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. - Location: Winter Park Masonic Lodge, 1495 Grand Road Winter Park, FL 32792 (map). A Continental Breakfast and Lunch will be served.
June 20-24 - District Cub Day Camp - Lake Mary LDS Ward
* June 22nd - Scoutmaster's Dinner - 6:00 p.m. - Camp La-No-Che
* June 25th - Dish with Commish - 8:30 - 10:00 a.m. Panera Bread, S Sun Dr, Lake Mary (map)
* June 29th - Scoutmaster's Dinner - 6:00 p.m. - Camp La-No-Che
July 3-8 - Air Conditioned Eagle Encampment at Camp Ithiel - Information - Online Registration
* July 6th - Scoutmaster's Dinner - 6:00 p.m. - Camp La-No-Che
* July 7th - Commissioners' and Committee Picnic - 7:00 p.m.
* July 13th - Scoutmaster's Dinner - 6:00 p.m. - Camp La-No-Che
* July 14th - District Roundtable - 7:00 p.m. - Lake Mary LDS Ward
* July 20th - Scoutmaster's Dinner - 6:00 p.m. - Camp La-No-Che
July 24-30 - Eagle Week at Camp La-No-Che
July 24-29 - NYLT at Camp La-No-Che
* July 27th - Scoutmaster's Dinner - 6:00 p.m. - Camp La-No-Che
August 1-6, OA Indian Summer - Online Registration
* August 3rd - Scoutmaster's Dinner - 6:00 p.m. - Camp La-No-Che
* August 18th - District Program Kick-off - 7:00 p.m. - Lake Mary LDS Ward
September 23-25, Fall Woodbadge Weekend I (S4-83-11-2) at Camp La-No-Che - Information - Online Registration
October 8th - District Training Day
October 7-9, Fall Woodbadge Weekend II (S4-83-11-2) at Camp La-No-Che - Information - Online Registration
October 14-15 - District Cub Family Camp-out
November 5th - Outdoor Leadership Skills for Webelos Leaders
* December 2-4 - Venturing Camporee at Downtown Camp La-No-Che
December 2-4 - Council Camporee at Camp La-No-Che "The Ranch" - Leader's Guide - Online Registration
December 10-11 - BALOO Training
December 21-30 - 1st Central Florida Council International Scouting Jamborette at Camp La-No-Che - Leader's Guide
December 26-29 - Winter Camp at Camp La-No-Che
January 28, 2012 - University of Scouting at Timber Creek High School (map)
* New additions to the calendar since the last issue.
"Boys can see adventure in a dirty old duck puddle, and if the Scoutmaster is a boys’ man he can see it, too." - Baden-Powell
CONTACT INFO:
Ron Blaisdell | 1060 Meadow Lake Way #103 | Winter Springs FL 32708 | 321-593-4704 | ron@blaisdell.com
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