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Frank Klassner of Philadelphia, Pa., records 360-degree images for the bsajamboree.org website. The Scouts are making full use of technology.
Taylor Smellie (right) of Preston, Utah, and fellow Scouts in Troop 926, (from left) Tanner Jacobson, Zac Roper,
Ben Fish, a Scout from the Great Alaska Council, looks over patches to trade on the opening day of the jamboree. Trading is a popular pastime.
Stephen Hensell, 15, of Stafford posts the American flag, as well as the National Capital Area Council flag.
Buses bring Scouts to the jamboree, which this year marks the 100th anniversary |
Caroline County got bigger yesterday.
Fort A.P. Hill became the 13th largest "city" in Virginia with nearly 45,000 Boy Scouts and Scout leaders staying at the Army post for the 10-day National Scout Jamboree.
Scouts came in from all over the country and as far away as Guam and Bangladesh to celebrate the Boy Scouts of America's 100th anniversary.
But what really pleased the BSA officials is that all Scouts arrived safely.
"We had a very good day," said Bob Dries, a BSA spokesman. "I'm sure there were some bumps during the day with buses being late, but overall, there haven't been any real issues."
Dries said they're living up to the goal of making it "the best, most exciting, fun-filled, safest jamboree ever."
"That's not just a marketing gimmick or a catchy phrase," he said "A lot of thought went into this."
They want to avoid a tragedy like the one that occurred at the last jamboree in 2005 when four Scout leaders were killed on move-in day.
The Scout leaders died July 25, 2005, when a pole for a large dining tent they were erecting struck a power line.
The victims were Michael J. Shibe, 49, Mike Lacroix, 42, and Ronald H. Bitzer, 58, all of Anchorage, Alaska, and Scott Edward Powell, 57, of Perrysville, Ohio. Shibe and Lacroix had sons participating in the jamboree. An Army investigation deemed the deaths accidental.
That tragedy didn't stop Alaskan Scoutmaster Wayne Watson from returning. He even recruited more Scouts to attend. Watson said 90 Scouts traveled to Virginia for the jamboree. That's compared to 72 Scouts in 2005.
There are no official plans to memorialize that day in 2005, but Watson said his contingent will do something privately to remember their late leaders. In Alaska, a granite memorial was built in their honor, Watson said.
Andrew Walther, 16, of Troop 744 in Alaska, said they are all just trying to move forward.
"They've advised us on what to do and what not to do to avoid that type of situation again," he said. "Now, we are focusing on just having fun."
And they did.
After setting up their tents in the western region area, Walther and other members of his troop met a Scout that had been setting up nearby.
"Where are you guys from?" the dark-haired boy asked.
"Alaska," the boys said in unison. "What about you?"
"Idaho," he said.
"Cool. Do you have a potato badge?" one of the Alaska boys asked.
They all laughed, and kept on walking.
A group of Scouts from Troop 720 in Oregon could go by the name Portland Pranksters. At the entrance to their camp, there's a red box with a screened top with the words "baby rattlers." But inside, instead of some snakes, there's a bunch of colored rattles for babies.
"We got a bunch of Scouts with that one," laughed 16-year-old John Schleining. They also built a lighthouse structure with a fake electrical outlet, used to trick some unsuspecting Scouts into thinking they can charge up their cell phones there.
"It's all in fun," Schleining said.
Oregon isn't the only state with jokesters.
Daniel Luzarraga and Andrew Vollavanh, both 15 and of New Jersey Troop 510, said, with a laugh, that their main reason for attending the jamboree was to meet girls. They said they were looking forward to meeting other Scouts and scuba diving.
Zarif Ajhan and Mehrah Ovi, both 14, are visiting the United States for the first time from Bangladesh.
"It feels so good to be here," Ovi said. "I will see lots of things and collect images by sightseeing. It's so beautiful."
While the Scouts got settled in safely yesterday, jamboree officials are gearing up for the arrival of visitors today. Between 200,000 and 400,000 visitors are expected in the coming days.
Dreis said they hope the rest of the jamboree goes as smoothly as yesterday.
"It's our 100th birthday," he said. "A good, fun jamboree would be a great birthday present."
Portsia Smith: 540/374-5419
Email: psmith@fredericksburg.com
