First Full Day a Busy One

Today was the first full day of Jamboree for the Scouts and they took full advantage of it. Two sets of boys I spoke with were measuring their path on the map with a string and then comparing the string to the the map scale to determine how many miles they had walked. Graham Reinhard and Pepito Estrada determined they had walked 8.3 miles, while Zach Watts and Joe Love walked 5.4 miles! Late in the afternoon it clouded up, and a little rain blew in – just enough to make us close up tents and bring the humidity up to the level we are now quite used to! The flip side is that it did bring down the dust a little.

In the background I can hear a young staffer named Ryan working with some troop buglers to perfect their calls. Retreat, Reveille, To The Colors, Assembly, and more.

I am sitting in a Program meeting led by Michael Hendren. He is going over the in-camp offerings of a washers tournament, patrol flag competition and a geo-caching course. Prizes are awarded at subcamp and Jamboree-wide level. A 5K run will take place soon also. Program also has in-camp volleyball set up, Frisbees to check out, footballs and other sports equipment.

In a few minutes Michael and the Mobilization Specialist, Mike Perkins, will be covering the details of the big Arena Show mass mobilization that will take place tomorrow morning. Since our subcamp is the furthest from the Arena, it is the first to leave, stepping off at 6:45 a.m. (yes, a.m.) It will be a two hour walk, but happily, the event will take place in the morning when it is relatively cool, plus, the boys will end up being in what will likely be for most a new and unexplored area of camp. They will be encouraged to tank up on water, wear a hat, bring snacks, wear sunscreen and be prepared for a great opening show! Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (an Eagle Scout) and Miss America highlight the show. The Jamboree Scout Band will play a pre-show for the troops that come in early. There will be an F-15 flyover, a parachute jump by the Army’s Golden Knights and various videos and music as the scouts enter and take a seat in the 13 acre, capacity 100,000 area. Copious amounts of water will be distributed as required. I anticipate that the sheer volume of tan uniforms will be highly inspirational.

Big event today! This was the first issue day for the 2010 Scouting stamp! A ceremony was held at the Jamboree Headquarters Flag Plaza which featured the Scout Band and Chief Scout Executive Bob Mazucca. Following that, throngs of participants flocked to the nearby post office to buy and have postmarked commemorative envelopes and buy sheets of the new stamps.

I had several encounters with the boys who will be Hometown News correspondents. It is my job as Subcamp Communications Officer to direct these boys to the Hometown News headquarters and help them understand a little bit about what to expect there. These boys will work with the HT News staff to write and edit stories to send back to their hometown newspapers. This job comes with some nice perks; they are allowed to meet some of the celebrities that visit and get the opportunity to checkout a bike to get around. We hope those bikes will be available soon – they came in a little late and are still being assembled.

The meeting is still going on as I finish this up. It started at 8:00 and it is now 9:20. I’m betting another 10 minutes at least. SO many details. You would be amazed. Just imagine marching a small city a few miles in an organized fashion. 38,000 folks, remember?

I will be going to bed as early as possible tonight since we will be getting up early in the morning for the Arena Show. Hopefully the wifi will cooperate and I can get this to post. Goodnight for now!

Dear Followers, I apologize that I was unable to get this posted last night. The free wi-fi has has not been as reliable as it could be, so the blog would not save. Here is what I put together last night:

It is 10:15 p.m. and at this moment the contingent scoutmasters and senior patrol leaders are in a meeting learning about how the subcamp operates and some of the program opportunities for the week. The are all tired and ready to hit the hay as is the staff after a long day of entry and set up for the fabulous 2010 Jamboree. They have heard from the directors of program, communications, health and safety, commissary and the medical team. So much to cover !

For many of our commissioners the day began at 4:00 a.m. They helped set up the entry area for the troops. Other commissioners and draftees made the trip to the gate to greet each contingent bus and begin the check-in process. Each scoutmaster was quizzed about the current health of their group to be sure that no contagious illness entered camp. About half of our 65 troops checked in through medical without a hitch and went straight through registration. Others had relatively minor issues with forms and physicals and registration issues. But all and all it was a smooth process. (Well, except for the buses that were mistakenly sent to the wrong gate by a trying-to-be-helpful state trooper.)

The following slide show depicts the arrival/check-in and set-up process of the troops. The buses arrived of the buses at one of three or four gates. Some had equipment trailers already in camp, others had trucks awaiting their bus. The military uses this whole Jamboree experience as an "exercise". They don't expect to sniff out anything with their drug dog, or see any stowaways or explosives beneath the buses, but it is considered "practice" for them in case one day they needed such an operation. The commissioners on board fulfilled some pre-paperwork with the scoutmaster and directed the driver to the camp. The boys disembarked took off their uniform shirts and proceeded to unload and then make camp (this happens to be the Westark Area contingent from Arkansas). With this group there were no medical issues to contend with, so when Scoutmaster Chip Marrin presented the perfectly done paperwork for his troop he was bowed to! The medical staff had just checked in a troop with issues and were pleased to have an "easy" check in.

Always concerned with health and safety, the troops were instructed to drink a bottle of water right away and fill their water containers so they would have more. Along with that they were instructed to erect their kitchen flies so they would have some shade.

Each camp of course has a gateway, some Arkansas gateways are pictured here, along with the pirate-themed gateway for a Florida troop. I will try to get shots of some more, soon. Other photos show leaders checking in and staff adjusting check-in packets to reflect the right
numbers. And finally some of the Westark group having their first dinner in camp.

Things were cranking up all over camp. Many scouts ventured out to explore a bit before dinner. The post office received a huge number of packages and letters to be sorted.

Then this happened.....

This temporary disaster occurred late in the afternoon when a water hydrant was broken off. We had our own geyser for about 30 minutes while we scrambled to get the base maintenance folks to shut down the water for a bit. Unfortunately this event took place right at dinner time and caused somewhat of a headache as boys tried to refill their water to make dinner and wash dishes. Fortunately the fix took far less time to cap than the oil spill in the gulf! Sadly, the boys had to be kept away from the refreshing water plume because of power cords on the ground nearby. Too bad. Temps were "only" into the upper 80's, but that was hot enough, considering the work the boys had to do to set up.

Stay tuned for more excitement tomorrow as the boys get their first full day of exploring their new neighborhood!

The day started out clear and a pleasant 78ish. Worship services for several traditions were held in various places around the site. Several staff from our subcamp chose the Methodist service which was held just behind our tents and served communion. About 250 adults attended this service.

Did you know that the United Methodist Church and the BSA is leading an effort to eradicate mosquito-born disease in Africa called "Nothing But Nets"? They are providing long-lasting, insecticide-treated bed nets that are an easy and cost-effective method to help prevent malaria. Bed nets prevent malaria transmission by creating a protective barrier against mosquitoes at night, when the vast majority of transmissions occur. For more information about Nothing But Nets, visit www.NothingButNets.net.

As the day wore on the temperatures climbed again to 101 degrees. While I hesitate to say we have gotten used to the extreme heat, I will say that we have figured out ways to stay as cool as possible by finding shade, limiting activity and tanking up on water. Water coolers are all over camp and are kept filled with ice water all day by a band of youth staff, God bless 'em! It was so hot that staff from the Southern Region areas (us) were not allowed to go to the Staff Appreciation Arena Show (Navy jets, military jump teams, music, a magician/motivational speaker...). We weren't sure whether to be disappointed or grateful as the arena is about an hour and a half walk from here! A little while after that announcement a storm appeared to be imminent, complete with wind gusts and lightning and they canceled the show all together. As it turned out the storm blew by with a flurry and didn't drop a bit of rain. Figures.

Earlier in the day I took a walk around camp and visited with the various services that have been working all week to set up and be ready for tomorrow when the troops arrive. I visited our amazing, nine examining room medical facility first and interviewed physician Steve Cico, MD from Seattle, Washington and asked him to tell me about the facilities we have in camp.

Steve also told me that there are some 800 medical staff on hand at Jamboree to serve the 38,000 -- which grows to 75,000 on visiting days! And remember those tedious medical forms everyone filled out? You may think that nobody ever really reads them, but you would be wrong. A group of physicians reviewed everyone of the 38,000 forms and tagged those they had concerns about for further review upon arrival. That's a lot of late nights on personal time, folks!

The ladies below are responsible for keeping the medical records in order for the 2600 residents of Subcamp 20/21. Each scout and staff member has a name tag with his or her troop number and council. Each tag is bar coded and ties back to the Jambo computer system which is tied to the scout's BSA ID number as well as his/her Jamboree number. Everyone wears this tag everywhere they go. That way if anything happens and they end up in one of the 12 medical facilities all the medical personnel has to do is scan their tag to instantly gain access to their Jambo records - both personal information like parents contact information and of course their medical form with critical information needed to properly treat each patient. After treatment, the documentation is scanned back into the system so that it can be accessed anywhere on site. WOW. Again, just one more example of why this is "the best, most exciting, fun-filled, safest jamboree ever!"

And speaking of safety, a high tech alert system in case of emergency that is tied to cell phones and computers, plus there is a staff announcement system that is tied to cell phones allowing texting of important announcements (like, "the Staff Show at the arena is canceled for tonight.") They are taking advantage of technology in a big way! Awesome!

I visited the commissary next. This consists of a huge tent that stores and distributes food stuffs to the patrols for each troop. Based on a BSA provided menu (and you can find the menus on the Jambo site at http://www.bsajamboree.org/Food.aspx) the commissary staff divides the food into labeled bins for the patrols to retrieve. The patrols are issued the official menu and cooking instructions for the entire Jamboree. The commissary staff, which takes turns sleeping in the big tent, accepts the food for the next day at night, along with the all-important ice deliveries, between 11:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. (Sleeping is probably not the best description for what this over night person does!)

Each patrol gets a quantity of "staples" first - salt, pepper, Pam, paper towels, napkins, dish washing soap, water purification tablets to help insure sanitation, and last but not least...a big jar of peanut butter for both an alternate and supplement to the menu. A huge stack of propane tanks awaits distribution as well.

Here is Loren Kitterlin of Bella Vista, Arkansas, the Commissary Director, with William Ingram of Tulsa, OK, with a few more fascinating facts:

FUN FACT: The Commissary will distribute 520 10 pound bags of ice a day to the troops and we have been using about a 100 bags a day for staff water containers and food service. How would you like to have that ice concession?

Tomorrow is the BIG DAY as the troops will begin arriving at about 7:30 in the morning. I am excited that I will get to be one of the greeters to meet the Westark Area Council contingent which includes my husband and son! Tomorrow our big empty field -- along with others all across "The Hill" will metamorphose into a bustling city. I anticipate that the first 24-48 hours will be an exercise in "controlled chaos" as the scout troops check in, set up camp, take their first look around and prepare their first meals. It will take a couple days to embrace the routine of it all, but by the end of the 10-day Jamboree proper, they will have the system down pat.

Time to get to showered and wash off all the sticky (and subsequent dust that sticks to the sticky) and get to bed! As I get ready to sign off the temps are down to a relatively balmy 84 degrees. A huge relief from 100! Tomorrow is to be a high of 90 and low of 63. Awesome!

OH! One more thing, you can keep up with the happenings at Jambo through QBSA Radio at 102.9. It is being streamed through facebook at: http://www.christiannetcast.com/listen/dynamicasx.asp?station=bsa

Hot as a Pistol and Then Some!

This picture pretty well sums up the weather today at A.P. Hill. I think it was really "just" 102 or so ("Feels like" 109), but this picture was taken of a thermometer on the backpack of a staff member who was out in the sun. The black flag was flying today indicating we should all do very little work and just rest and hydrate. I for one, took that to heart and enjoyed some shady rest under a cedar tree in the relative comfort of my gravity recliner for a hour or so.

It is "only" 94 degrees right now at 9:30 p.m. according to Weather.com. While that may seem hot to you all, it is feeling pretty awesome to us. We were rather brain-fried earlier in the day. A heat advisory will continue to be in effect tomorrow, but by the time the troops start rolling in on Monday the temps will be back down into the lower 90's and upper 80's. Hallelujah! (Yes, the staffer pictured here IS wearing a fan around his neck and an ice bag on his head!)

Postmasters Tim Janacek and Chris Daughtrey have worked hard on getting the Subcamp Post Office set up. They needed something in which to sort mail and started pricing various things like small tubs, etc. In the process, the perfect Scout Thrifty solution arose! Ace Hardware in Bowling Green offered some old fastener display boxes - PERFECT for sorting mail! Those and a little signage and they were on their way. The first mail arrived yesterday and another load came today. Lots of packages from home. We are curious to know if they are full of cookies or forgotten gear!

I am happy to say that mosquitoes and other insects have not been a problem thus far in our campsite. There has been no need of putting up mosquito netting. However, one of our staffers was visited by this large green fellow in the night. He was crawling across him and he tossed him out of the tent. Later this morning he was found again crawling nearby and we had to take his picture. Pretty darned impressive! A little internet research revealed it to be the caterpillar of the cecropia moth. Here is what it will look like all grown up:

This morning I took a drive with Vance Lackey, our Subcamp Administrative Officer. We cruised the Jambo site and took a look at the progress being made in setting up the various areas. We visited the Southern Region Camp. They had an impressive
gateway and an even more impressive display of memorabilia which included a hiking staff that once belonged to B.P. himself! To top it off, they offered this "beautifully furnished" hospitality area, complete with a fountain, cushy furniture, microwave, cold water and coffee pot.

We saw the areas for sail boating, mountain boarding, archery; HUGE inflatable swimming pools for swimming and scuba; Buckskin games area (hawk throw, muzzle-loading and more); and SO much more. If you haven't checked out all that the boys will see, take a look at the Jambo Guide for Scouts. This pocket-sized guide will get the Scouts where they want to go and help them be sure they don't miss a thing. Here is the link: http://www.bsajamboree.org/filestore/jamboree/pdf/410-153.pdf Yeah, I know. I should have taken pictures. I will try and do that in the morning so that you can see some of the areas before they are thick with kids.

If you are wondering about what kind of "facilities" you boys will be using during their stay, let me assure you that they are fortunate indeed! They will be using trailer toilets --- the ones with AC like the staff has, along with the cool trailer showers. Supplemental porta-potties will be located on the fringes. OTHER subcamps will be using facilities like these:




I'll close tonight with a "before" view of the subcamp site (click to enlarge). It shows the white commissary and staff dining tents in the center left with the green staff tents left of that. The tall skinny tree with the trailer is where the Westark Area contingent will be camping. The grassy foreground shows the vast area that makes up the LARGEST subcamp at Jambo; nay, in the World. There will be 65 troops occupying this area come Monday. That's a total of 2600 people, including staff and a few other adults that are camped here from other areas. That's more than five times the population of your average elementary school. More on how all that will work in future installments.... Goodnight.

Reveille Sounds!

Reveille sounded at 6:00 a.m. for the staff this morning and a new day began. Breakfast was in camp and consisted of warm danish, cold cereal, coffee, juice and fruit. Shortly after staffers scattered to attend to their various duties.



This morning the Commissary (where patrols will retrieve their food stuffs for each meal) as well as the medical facility was set up. (We have been hearing sirens off and on and have been told that the hospital and emergency personnel are training for their jobs. Good to know.)

Several of us in the Subcamp have been trained as drivers as our jobs may require us to attend meetings across camp. So we had to register and get our special "driver" sticker so we could drive one of the 200 cars that Chevrolet has contributed for BSA use during the Jamboree. It is my understanding that each subcamp has ONE Jambo car assigned to them and may have two other cars in camp that display the proper credential.

Another trading post opened to a long line of excited Scouters. This one has a cool "Action Scout" air man out front putting on the moves. (See the movie below.) Consisting of two industrial-sized tarp buildings, this trading post has both Jamboree stuff and a huge "Scout Shop" with all the items listed in the catalog. Very impressive. One Staffer told us that they have 200 scouters staffing just this one Trading Post! I believe it, too. They were very helpful and have the system all worked out. You drop off your backpack, they hand you a number on a lanyard to put around your neck, along with a red "shopping bucket." When you check out they take your bucket -- along with all your money -- and give you back your backpack.



Across the street from the Trading Post was the Dunkin' Donuts kiosk. Up the road was a soon-to-be ice cream treat shop and one of the amazing AT&T air conditioned "Connection Zones" where the kids can email home and play a game or two. We've got it all, baby.

At camp we had a tree trimmed that had a couple "widow makers" hanging over staff tents. We were grateful. At the base of that same tree is the outlet for a bee hive of some variation (larger than a honey bee, smaller than a bumble bee). To keep Staff from accidentally discovering it, it was fenced off and a "Do Not Enter" sign posted.



Lunch at Jambo will be served all over camp. Staff and scouts will be given a voucher for each lunch (dated) in the form of a small plastic card that fits on each participants lanyard. Theoretically they can't lose it, right? Today's lunch is typical of what they we will have all week and is pictured here. What needed to be cold was cold. It was really very good quality and quite filling. (It is amazing to me how they do all this...)
Here is a shot down the row of staff tents in our subcamp. We are housing 201 Staffers, of which 110 are directly serving Subcamp 20/21... which is, by the way, the largest subcamp at Jamboree.


Finally, for now, on every name lanyard is a card that lists the Jambo safety rules and a guide to how much hydration is enough hydration based on the temperature of the day and activity level. Additionally, signs all over remind participants to drink up. Kudos to National BSA for doing EVERYTHING they possibly can to make this "The best, most exciting, fun-filled, SAFEST Jamboree ever!"

The Staff is moving in!

Our party of four from Arkansas arrived yesterday afternoon after a day and a half of driving. After a stop and tour of Appomattox Court House. We rolled in at 3:30 and were greeted by a raft of wonderful, smiling Scouters and military personnel.

Our first contact was with some super polite, professional military personnel who let us in the gate and then did a security check on our loaded-to-the-gills crew cab, long bed pickup with a topper. Three of the four of us in the truck were newbies to Jambo and we didn't pack very light! (Be Prepared!) Fortunately we didn't have to unload.

We drove on and were greeted by a Scouter acting as the traffic director who did a great job of being friendly and setting the tone for the event. We headed to the greeter tent to start our check-in process, then to medical review and registration where we were given our meal tickets, cool Jambo Staff belt buckle and assorted information before heading to Subcamp 20/21, our home for the duration.

Many folks had already arrived and were set up in the staff tents. We grabbed a cot, unpacked our gear and proceeded to nest. It was (and is) HOT. The tents are medium sized Army issue green tents. Sides roll up for the day and for the women, at least, down for the night. It sounds a little like a jet air field with all the fans running! We have about 10 amps of power to share, but fortunately that seems to run a large number much-appreciated fans!

One thing common to all cots is a sheet of plastic draped over the top. Apparently if it rains the tents might prove to be a little less than water tight! You also see a lot of tarp and wood floors. This is to keep gear off the grass "floor" when it rains.

Some very creative methods of nest building exist. Here is a little slide show of some of the more creative ways of maximizing space.

As campers we are used to lots of different bathroom situations -- some good, most not so good. I was pleased to note that the staff facilities are pretty darned nice by camp standards! Rather than latrines or porta-potties for our two and a half week stay, we have rather nice trailer facilities. One kind of trailer has flush toilets with stalls and running water for washing - it is air conditioned! The other kind of trailer has showers with private stalls and an outside sink area. Very nice and VERY appreciated at the end of a long, hot day.

We have had our meals in three different places across the entire Jambo site. Tomorrow our own dining hall opens with breakfast and we are pleased as we will have shorter lines and will be able to walk just across the road instead of drive a distance. Food has been great and plentiful. Water has been even more plentiful. Blue Gott water containers are everywhere you turn, along with reminders to stay hydrated -- excellent advice considering the hot forecast!

A highlight of the day was the opening of the first Trading Post just around the corner. Hard to say just how many thousands of dollars were dropped in just a few short hours as the staff took advantage of the shorter, scout-free lines! Lots of great, boy-friendly items there.

As I have been typing, the dining area has been set up and the supplies have been delivered to the medical tent. The kitchen has been preparing for work tomorrow and the medical staff have gone off to a meeting across the camp. Things are happening every minute and more and more information and instructions are being given. Soon we will be ready for the arrival of the our main customers --- THE BOYS. We can't wait!

Our subcamp site map has finally arrived!

The much anticipated Subcamp 20/21 site map was finally delivered via email to James Hendren, our Subcamp-Guy-In-Charge. I have posted it below as a jpg. You may also download a better copy from my business website. A not so great version of the overall site map is also uploaded there. Link to: http://laboroflovegraphics.com/download.htm