Weekend #2 in the Can! - Day 4 Recap

The morning of October 10, 2009 dawned grey, wet and gloomy at Lake Towhee. The staff woke early and dressed in ponchos and rain jackets to meet our Patrols in the parking lot for the short hike to the Troop Camping area. As the patrol members arrived they were greeted by their Troop Guides and introduced to the Venturing Youth who would be their advisors for the next 2 days. As Patrols were complete, they set off on their hike and tour of a Leave No Trace campsite. Each Patrol was shown their home for the weekend.

At 09:00 SPL Mark (kudu-boy) Goldstein sounded the Kudu Horn to asemble the troop on Gilwell Field for opening assembly. Following assembly, the troop began to set up their campsites and at 10:30 gathered in Gilwell Pavilion for a presentation by Scribe Joe Luber on Leading Change. Following the presentation the Patrol Leader's Council met in Gilwell Pavilion while the rest of the troop began lunch preparations. Each patrol played host to a couple of staffers for lunch.

As lunch was wrapping up the clouds thinned and the sun began to break through. The troop gathered at Gilwell Outdoor Learning Center for a presentation on Valuing People & Leveraging Diversity by SA Facilities Gary Price. This spirited presentation and discussion was followed by a presentation on Problem Solving & Decision Making by Troop Guide/Historian/Quartermaster/Utility Infielder Mark Weiss. The patrols were then given the opportunity to put into practice what they'd just learned by doing a round-robin of team building challenges presented by the Venturing Crew. Following the games the patrols met in their sites for a presentation by their Troop Guides on Managing Conflict. Short Patrol Meetings were held while dinners were prepared. Dinners were a gastronomic tour d'force ranging from Beef Stew to London Broil to Seared Ahi Tuna with Ginger.

Each Staffer guest returned to the staff site bragging about what their host patrol had prepared. Following dinners, the patrols played the Diversity Game. They then began to gather at the Gilwell Campfire Circle for a troop campfire. The Bobwhite Patrol hosted the campfire and each patrol treated the troop to several songs, skits, a poem and a lot of enthusiasm. The campfire closing was a solemn and inspirational flag retirement ceremony of a flag that had flown on September 11, 2001 at a Coast Guard Facility. As the flag was laid to rest each member of the troop stood silently and saluted the symbol of our great land. All the members then made their way back to their respective sites to wind down and retire for the night.