Letter from the Scout Executive – November 2024

Broad Creek Memorial Scout Reservation – Whose Camp is It? 

November 2024 Letter from the Scout Executive, Kenn Miller

Since 1948 the Baltimore Area Council has been fortunate to own and operate the 1,700-acre Broad Creek Memorial Scout Reservation. Did you know that last year over 23,000 scouts and others participated in events at Broad Creek? Just think of the hundreds of thousands of youths and adults that have attended Broad Creek over the past 76 years and the great memories that were made.

As a Scout, Scout leader, former participant, or Camp Staff member at Broad Creek, you are all vested members. I often think about those volunteers who came before us volunteering their time and resources to ensure that the trails, program areas and more than 40 buildings at Broad Creek were maintained to continue providing our Scouts with positive experiences.

As many of you know, we have reinvested in Broad Creek in a big way over the past few years through the investment of more than $8M raised in the Broad Creek Diamond Anniversary Capital Campaign. These capital projects are ongoing and will have a positive long-term impact on Broad Creek. We have already broke ground on our wastewater treatment plant and plan to have it paired with a fully functioning comfort station by Summer of 2025.

But it doesn’t stop there. Your help is needed and welcomed at Broad Creek to help maintain and improve this important Scouting resource. While our own Nentico Lodge – Order of the Arrow provides an incredible amount of volunteer work and funding for Broad Creek, this is not enough. Check out a few areas listed below where you can engage:       

• Jingle Bell Beaver Day: Saturday, December 14^th, 8:30AM – 5:00PM, lunch provided: This is a great opportunity to come out to Broad Creek and help with one of the many projects. Do you have a specific project that you would like to work on, or a specific skill set that can be used at camp? For a full list of projects, and to register for the event, go to: BAC-2024 Jingle Bell Beaver Day or, for additional information contact Senior Ranger Tom Wagner at (443) 463-0937 or Wagner@scouting.org

• Campmaster Program: To ensure a quality experience and the safety of our Scouts we have a volunteer Campmaster program each weekend. Through this program a group of 3-5 adult volunteers selects a weekend to stay at camp in the Rosenberg Welcome Center and check in and out any groups attending Broad Creek that weekend. If you would like more information on how to sign up as a Campmaster crew contact Council Camping Director Alex Stout at (304) 290-1485 or Stout@Scouting.org

• Company Volunteer Workdays: Many companies offer their staff a paid day of service to a local nonprofit. We have been extremely fortunate to host several corporate volunteer workdays annually at Broad Creek. We will work with you to select a project based on participation and skill. For more information contact Deputy Scout Executive Manny Fonseca at (443) 573-2502 or Fonseca@scouting.org

It is only through the support of volunteers and activities such as this that we can maintain Broad Creek while keeping the cost reasonable. Remember: those that came before you helped to maintain Broad Creek, now it’s your turn to give back to the next generation of Broad Creek campers.

As always, if you have any questions or comments let me know.