Coastal Plains District

April 28-30 & May 5-7, 2023 

Powder Horn is an action-packed, hands-on course held over two weekends that helps Scouts and Scouters learn how to implement high adventure activities into their troop, crew or ship.

Scouting leaders often face the dilemma of having a strong desire to provide challenging and fun outdoor programs to meet the needs of their older youth, while lacking the knowledge and/or resources to do so. Powder Horn responds to this quandary by exposing Scouts BSA and Venturing leaders to a wide range of outdoor/high-adventure activities. More importantly, Powder Horn provides participants with valuable resources and contacts to assist them in delivering the promise of Scouting’s high adventure. 

During Powder Horn, participants learn by doing with expert consultants who demonstrate the skills and explain where resources, such as equipment, facilities, guides, instructors, and certifications can be obtained. Learn how to expose Scouts in your troop, crew or ship to rock climbing, Dutch oven cooking, geocaching, canoeing, kayaking, sailing, paddle boarding, snorkeling, mountain biking, fly fishing, canoeing, wilderness first aid, astronomy, shooting sports (e.g., rifle, shotgun, handgun, archery), wilderness survival, National Youth Leadership Training (NYLT), Sea Scouts, the Kodiak Challenge, the BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award, Messenger of Peace, living history, Leave No Trace, vendors, the National Scout Jamboree, event planning, scuba diving, and more.

Powder Horn is offered once a year, so do not miss this chance to attend.  Set your sights on a course that maximizes Scouting skills while bringing adrenaline, new activity ideas, and leadership to your unit.  Powder Horn is designed to introduce and expose adults in troops, crews, and ships and the youth leaders to the activities, training, and resources necessary to manage a successful outdoor or high adventure unit-level program.  It is based on the eight-core requirements and eighteen electives found in the Venturing Ranger program.  It is intended to help leaders get out of the box in finding and using resources, and in the way, they lead their unit-level outdoor and high adventure programs.

Powder Horn trainers do not teach participants to be an expert or even to be self-sufficient in any aspect of outdoor skills.  Unit leaders will still need to find knowledgeable, trained, and certified individuals to help provide a safe and exciting outdoor high adventure program. The first weekend is being held at Bay Area Park (7500 Bay Area Boulevard Houston TX, 77058) and the second weekend will be held at Camp Strake (2020 Camp Strake Road Coldspring TX, 77331).

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Summer camp is a week-long council-organized overnight camp for Scouts BSA that operates under council-retained leadership. The program provides opportunities for Scouts to earn merit badges along their advancement trail.

Summer camp is held at Camp Strake, a first-class and state-of-the-art facility for Scouts and their leaders. Program areas include shooting sports (rifle, shotgun, archery, sporting arrows), climbing, rappelling, boating (canoeing, kayaking, rowing, paddle boarding), swimming, ATV riding, ziplining, cycling, merit badge classes and more. 

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Individual Scouts who can't attend summer camp with their unit, or want to attend a second week of camp can register individually for Super Troop. Super Troop is a temporary troop made up of Scouts from troops around the council.

April 21-22, 2023  |  Cockrell Scout Center

Understanding and Navigating Behaviors and Mental Health in Scouting

BSA's National Special Needs and Disabilities Committee is hosting a two-day conference on Understanding Behaviors and Mental Health in Scouting. The conference is designed for Scouters in leadership positions at all levels (pack, troop, crew, ship, district, council, camp staff), BSA professionals, parents/guardians, caregivers, and anyone interested in learning more about supporting Scouts with special needs or disabilities.  Several knowledgeable guest speakers are scheduled to present on various topics: • Ages and Stages • Scout Transitions • Scout Transitions • Anxiety & Depression • Managing Behaviors • Mental Health First Aid • Success Through Failure 

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July 19-28, 2023  |  Bechtel Summit, West Virginia

Scouting’s flagship event is one-of-a-kind. Over the course of 10 summer days, once every four years, the Boy Scouts of America comes together for a gathering of approximately 40,000 Scouts, leaders, and staff that showcases everything that is great about the BSA and its members. The result is the national Scout jamboree. To keep up with the latest information, visit the Summit website. Scouts and Scouters will explore all kinds of adventures—stadium shows, pioneer village, Garden Ground hikes, adventure sports, patch trading, and more—in the heart of one of nature’s greatest playgrounds. With 10,000 acres at the Summit to explore, there’s no shortage of opportunities to build Scouting memories.

The council will take approximately 200 Scouts to the national jamboree as part of the council contingent. The contingent will head to the Summit for 10 days of activities ranging from shooting sports, mountain biking, zip-lining, rock climbing, white water rafting and more!  The jamboree is open to youth who meet the participant qualifications, are physically fit, and agree to the jamboree code of conduct on a first come first serve basis. All Scouts BSA youth must be currently registered in a troop and be a minimum of age 12. All Venturers must be currently registered in a Venturing crew and meeting Venturing age requirements.

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BSA requires all Cub Scout shooting sports to be supervised by a BSA-certified range master. Range master training covers setting up a range, safety, handling equipment, using a bow stringer, care and operation of BB guns, range etiquette and safety, and instructing Scouts. Cub Scouts can shoot BB-gun rifles, slingshots, and archery in a council or district event only and is not approved as a unit event. Certified range masters are needed for day camp and district events. 

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Wood Badge is the Boy Scouts of America's ultimate leadership training designed to meet the advanced leadership needs of Scouters in all aspects of the BSA, whether unit, district, or council level – from assistant den leaders to Scoutmasters, from Cubmasters to Venturing Advisors, from committee members to commissioners. It is a fun, energetic and inspiring course guaranteed to infuse your unit with fun and meaning – all designed to fulfill the mission of the BSA, and ensure our youth is getting everything they are promised from the program.

Reflecting the best of nearly a century of Scouting experience, Wood Badge draws upon the most current leadership models used by corporate America, academic circles and successful organizations throughout the country. Participants can expect to develop skills in many areas, including leadership theory, team building, problem-solving, communication, project planning and more.  These skills can be taken back to packs, troops, crews and ships to help leaders guide youth in dynamic Scouting programs.  Scouters will find these skills invaluable in their business and personal lives as well.

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We would love to hear from you! Please send us your feedback on our website.  Let us know about information that we need to update, broken links, or even typos.

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Now you can support Scouting without lifting a finger — or at least not more than one. AmazonSmile, the simple and no-cost way to donate to the Sam Houston Area Council, now works on the Amazon Shopping app for iPhone and Android.

That means it’s easier than ever to support Scouting anytime, anywhere. Through its AmazonSmile program, Amazon donates 0.5% of eligible purchases to the charity of your choice — at no cost to you. You’ll get the same prices, selection and service found on Amazon.com, but now Amazon gives 0.5% of its cut to a good cause.

The Sam Houston Area Council is an eligible AmazonSmile charity. Individual packs, troops, posts, ships and crews are not eligible.

Previously, AmazonSmile required the user to shop using their browser — either on a desktop computer or through the mobile browser on a smartphone. That meant that when you shopped in the official Amazon app, you weren’t contributing to your chosen charity — even if you had already activated AmazonSmile. By adding AmazonSmile to its official app, Amazon is making the program available anytime, anywhere. So now when you buy a blender from the back seat or a printer from the patio — our council still gets that 0.5%.

If you aren’t yet an AmazonSmile member, sign up at smile.amazon.com using a web browser (mobile or desktop). You’ll sign in with your Amazon credentials, and the site will walk you through the process. Amazon will ask you to choose your favorite charity. This is where you search for “Sam Houston Area Council.”

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April 28-30, 2023

The Leave No Trace Trainer Course is a 16-hour, overnight course for individuals, ages 14 and up who wish to guide units in developing a culture that effectively demonstrates responsible outdoor choices that reduce impacts of Scouting activities. Leave No Trace Trainers, outdoor ethics guides, and outdoor ethics advisors are the backbone of Scouting’s outdoor ethics program, providing instruction to individuals and units wishing to adopt cutting-edge outdoor ethics into their unit programs.  Trainers are specially commissioned to teach the BSA Leave No Trace 101 Course. Each BSA Trainer course is taught by a recognized Leave No Trace Master Educator, so your Trainer standing is recognized nationally by BSA’s partner, the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics. Participants receive a Leave No Trace Trainer card from BSA, BSA Leave No Trace 101 Course Guide and Leave No Trace Trainer certificate from the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics.  The training is being held at Camp Brosig in Sealy, TX.

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To ensure that we promote our programs in a clear and Scout-like manner, it important to remind units to follow BSA Brand Guidelines and use approved materials from the BSA Brand Center in developing their recruiting materials. This includes following the requirements included in the Scouts BSA Branding Dos and Don’ts Guide and the associated Brand Training Guide.  

The Scouts BSA Brand Guidance Training is one of the efforts underway to be sure Scouters have a clear understanding of what they can do. This training should be shared with all volunteers to bring this understanding to all parts of our community.

BSA Brand Guidelines     BSA Brand Center    Scouts BSA Branding Dos and Don’ts Guide    Brand Training Guide

While our goal is to encourage youth to join our program, we must always be clear in our communications about the program they are joining.

• We are The Boy Scouts of America.
• The Boy Scouts of America and Girl Scouts of the USA are different organizations.
• We support all other youth organizations and do not disparage them.
• We encourage parents to enroll all youth in a character development program that meets their needs – and the BSA is certainly ready to welcome them.