Circle Ten Council

Circle Ten Council
Circle 10 Council
Circle 10 Council
Owner Boy Scouts of America
Headquarters Dallas Texas
Location Texas, Oklahoma
Country United States
Founded 1910
Membership 70,000 youth
10,000 adults
President Sherwood Blount Jr.
Scout Executive Pat Currie
Website
http://www.circle10.org/
Scouting portal

Circle Ten Council is the main Boy Scouts of America (BSA) chartered council in central north Texas and a portion of Oklahoma. It encompasses all or parts of: Collin, Dallas, Ellis, Fannin, Grayson, Henderson, Hunt, Kaufman, Navarro, Rains, Rockwall and Van Zandt counties in Texas as well as Bryan County in Oklahoma. Founded in 1910 and based in Dallas, approximately 70,000 youth and 10,000 adults participate in Scouting through the council each year. The council has six camps; the Order of the Arrow is represented by Mikanakawa Lodge.

Contents

History

The Scouting movement came to Dallas in 1910, the same year the BSA was created in the United States, and by 1913 several troops were already in existence. In 1923 the council came into possession of its first camp. Donated by John S. Wisdom, also known as "Daddy Wisdom", to support the council he gave his farm as a permanent campsite.<[1] Since Wisdom's generous act, Circle 10 has acquired three more major camps: Constantin, James Ray, and Cherokee. J.L. Tarr, the Scout Executive of Circle 10 became Chief Scout Executive in 1979. In 1996 Circle 10 moved into its new home, The John D. Murchison Service Center, named after the National BSA President and Dallas area businessman/philanthropist who died in 1979 during the first year of his term.[2]

Organization

The council is administratively organized into districts:[3]:

Programs and activities

Circle 10 Council has strong International Scouting ties, particularly with Scouting Ireland with whom they have set-up a Scouting exchange program every summer. In the summer of 2005 a composite troop from Ireland toured the three Circle 10 summer camps and stayed with foster families for a time in Dallas. In 2006 Scouts from Circle 10 visited Larch Hill and went hiking and camping with Irish Scouts in the Southern part of Ireland. An Irish contingent is planned for 2007 with a return trip by Circle 10 already planned for 2008.

Camps

Circle 10 Council operates six year round camping grounds and three summer camps.

Camp Constantin

Camp Constantin
Coordinates 32°52′00″N 98°26′00″W / 32.866667°N 98.433333°W / 32.866667; -98.433333
Founded 1946
Constantin Aquatics area

Camp Constantin is the flagship campground for Circle 10. Located on 385 acres (1.6 km2) on the shores of Possum Kingdom Lake near Graford, Texas and containing 15 campsites, Constantin acts as both a regular camp open to Boy Scouts from all areas and as Circle 10's largest and longest-running summer camp hosting roughly 2,800 Scouts during the 7 weeks it's open during the summer. Constantin was acquired by the Boy Scouts in 1946 when Eugene Constantin donated it, after the death of his son in World War II, to the group that he decided best served the needs, morals, and values of young men. The camp recently celebrated its 60th birthday and regularly plays host to International scouts, most notably Scouting Ireland.[4]

Jack D. Furst Aquatics Base

Within Camp Constantin is a sea Aquatics Base that was established by a generous donation from Circle 10 board member and former Constantin staff member Jack D. Furst. The Aquatics area is the best maintained and most used Aquatics area within Circle 10 Council and one of the best in Texas. The Aquatics Base features a fleet of sailboats (consisting mainly of Sunfish and Hobie Cats), dozens of newly donated canoes, 5 ski boats, a two-year-old state-of-the-art swim dock, and two boat docks. Another popular feature are the two "Blobs" set out every summer. Because of Fursts' generosity and the area upkeep by staff members it is able to offer the Swimming, Rowing & Canoeing, Motorboating, Lifesaving, Sailing & Advanced Sailing, and Waterskiing merit badges as well as Lifeguard training. Its Water Odyssey program is unique to the camp and is designed solely for Eagle Scouts.[4]

James Ray Scout Reservation

James Ray Scout Reservation, formerly known as Camp Grayson, is located on the Texas side of Lake Texoma, near Pottsboro, occupying 540 acres (2.2 km2). Like Constantin, James Ray is a year round camp and a summer camp. During the summer months, James Ray utilizes its 12 campsites and is in operation for 5 weeks. During the 2005 summer, James Ray suffered a setback when a refrigerator fire damaged its electrical system. Some dedicated Circle 10 volunteers repaired the electrical system, which was back in operation within 48 hours. James Ray is home to the Sanford Aquatics Area which contains a 180,000 gallon, one-of-a-kind swimming pool. In and surrounding the pool is a beach-front entrance, two diving boards, two aqua jet systems, and a 141-foot (43 m) water slide.[5]

Camp Wisdom

Camp Wisdom is Circle 10 Council's original camp. Donated in 1923 by farmer John S. Wisdom, still known by his nickname "Daddy Wisdom", Camp Wisdom started at about 300 acres (1.2 km2). At one point, the camp grew to almost 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) through land donations.

Some of the original camp was purchased by Texas for the construction of Interstate 20. Since then, Wisdom has returned to much of its original size.

Wisdom is known for Cub World, Circle 10's primary Cub leader training site and Cub Scout camp ground. Wisdom also hosts leadership training for adults and youth owing, in part, to the easy access from the Dallas metropolitan area.[2] The camp lends its name to Camp Wisdom Road, a major east-west road near the camp.

Camp Wisdom has a unfortunate reputation of being noisy at all times due to proximity to two highways: Interstate 20 and Texas Spur 408. Also, lighted highway billboards shine into some campsites.

Clements Scout Ranch

Clements Scout Ranch houses two Boy Scout camps, Camp Cherokee and Camp Meisenbach. Named after former Texas Governor Bill Clements, a lifelong supporter of the BSA, the ranch comprises 3,300 acres (13 km2) of towering pines and four well-stocked fishing ponds.[6]

Camp Trevor Reese Jones

Camp Trevor Reese Jones (formerly Camp Cherokee), located near Athens, Texas, has sixteen campsites for weekend and week-long summer camp visitors. Cherokee is the second longest-running summer camp in Circle Ten Council at four weeks. Cherokee hosts one of two COPE courses in the Council and also features a 48 ft (15 m) climbing tower. The summer program also offers more than 50 merit badges, programs, and activitites for scouts and scouters alike. Cherokee's biggest draw is the horse program which is the only place in Circle ten to obtain the Horsemanship merit badge. In June 2008, Camp Cherokee was proud to open the Jim Tarr Dining Hall, a 14,000 sq ft (1,300 m2) airconditioned facility that also features a state-of-the-art kitchen, a scoutmaster's lounge, and a computer lab.

Another unique offering is the annual Winter Camp held there every winter from December 27–31. Like a summer camp, campers have the chance to earn merit badges, but unlike Summer Camp, campers must provide their own food.

Camp Meisenbach

Camp Meisenbach is the smaller of the two camps located on Clements Scout Ranch and is used exclusively for year-round camping. Meisenbach features eight campsites with two pavilions. Located on Murchison Lake, Meisenbach offers great fishing and canoeing programs. Camp Meisenbach currently has 13 miles (21 km) of hiking trails and three additional Philmont style campsites. Clements Scout Ranch is also very proud to host the "Goveners Trail" which has recently been renovated with a service grant from the National Order of the Arrow lodge.

Mikanakawa Lodge

Mikanakawa LodgE
Founded 1937
Founder L. L.Hotchkiss
Membership 2,500
Lodge Chief Kyle Miller
Lodge Adviser Tim Conard
Website
http://www.miki.org Mikanakawa Lodge

Mikanakawa Lodge is the local extension of the Order of the Arrow within Circle 10. It was founded in 1937 by L. L.Hotchkiss after Scouts from Circle 10 Council came back from the 1937 National Scout Jamboree. On April 26 Hotchkiss, himself a distinguished Arrowman, mailed a letter to the National OA Secretary about starting a Lodge. On June 22, final approval for the lodge was given and within seven days of the letter, the first Ordeal was held at Camp Wisdom. The lodge gained its name when the Mikanakawa Tribe, a group of Scouts acting outside of the Order of the Arrow but with similar activities, was merged by Circle 10 into the official Order of the Arrow lodge and allowed to keep the name Mikanakawa. The Lodge lacked the traditional "patch flap" until 1950 when it was designed by Bill Jordan in preparation for a trip to a National meeting. In 1994 the Mikanakawa Lodge acquired the Okiciyapi Lodge. Okiciyapi was allowed to keep its totem making Mikinakawa one of the few OA Lodges in the country to have two totems: the owl and the thunderbird.[7]

The lodge holds many events, including five annual ordeals, a Native American pow-wow, a fall fellowship, annual dinner, a leadership development conference and is charged each year with organizing and staffing the council's winter camp at Camp Cherokee. The lodge also sends delegates to the annual Southern Region Section 2-3 North Conclave and regularly sends at least 100 delegates to National Order of the Arrow Conference (NOAC)

Chapters

The lodge is administratevly divided into chapters matching each district:[8]:

  • Yanush— North Trail District
  • Eluwak— White Rock District
  • Wacondi Hatachi— White Buffalo District
  • Quatahemeltsh— Gray Owl District
  • Malia'Cones— Great Plains District
  • Okiciyapi— Texoma Valley District
  • Wichapi— Lone Star District
  • Ogequah— Tomahawk District
  • Wild Horse— Mustang District
  • Canupa— Cherokee District
  • Tonkawa— Tawakoni District
  • So Tsoh— Western Star District
  • Llanos— North District
  • Wabashi— Mountain Lake District
  • Lippoe— Wisdom Trail District
  • Woapalanne— Bluebonnet District
  • Waka Tanka- Southern Sky District

See also

References

  1. ^ Official Circle 10 website
  2. ^ a b Brief history of the BSA 1972–1979
  3. ^ List of Districts within Circle 10
  4. ^ a b Circle 10 page on Constantin
  5. ^ Circle 10 page on James Ray
  6. ^ Circle 10 page on Cherokee & Meisenbach
  7. ^ I go to prepare a trail for you by Peter McNabb
  8. ^ List of Chapters in the Miki Lodge

External links

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