Author: Carol Pilgrim

Wood Badge for the 21st Century Heart of Virginia Council Course S7-602-11-1

The Gilwell Gazette

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Day 2 Saturday March 12, 2011

DAY 2 SCHEDULE
7:00 AM Breakfast and Patrol Self-Assessment
8:00 AM Gilwell Field Assembly
8:30 AM Troop Meeting
9:45 AM Inter-Patrol Activity
10:15 AM Break
10:30 AM. Inclusiveness
11:00 AM Stages of Team Development
11:50 AM Break
12:00 PM Lunch
Patrol Leaders Council Meeting
Chaplain’s Aid Meeting
1:10 PM Photos
2:10 PM Communication (Patrol Presentation)
3:00 PM Break
3:10 PM Project Planning
3:40 PM Break
3:50 PM Inter-Patrol Activity / Reflection
5:20 PM Patrol Meeting
6:20 PM Dinner
7:00 PM Inter-Patrol Activities
9:00 PM Flag Retirement Ceremony
9:30 PM Cracker Barrel

Wood Badge has Five
Central Themes
The themes that follow encapsulate the course content of Wood Badge for the Twenty-First Century:
· Living the Values.
Values, mission, and vision.
Aims and Methods.
· Bringing the Vision to Life.
Listening to learn.
Communicating.
Giving and receiving feedback.
Valuing people and leveraging diversity.
Coaching and mentoring.
· Models for Success.
Team development model.
Situational Leadership.
· Tools of the Trade.
Project planning and problem solving.
Managing conflict.
Assessing team performance.
Managing change.
Celebrating team success.
· Leading to Make a Difference.
Leaving a legacy.
Learning the greatest leadership secret.

S7-602-11-1 Course Patch
Traditionally, each Wood Badge course staff creates a patch unique to their course. A course color, often prominent in the patch design, is chosen for the Activity Uniform, and is incorporated as the border on a special council strip, which is only given to Scouters participating in that course. The council strip with the blue border of S7-602-11-1 is unique to this course and is not available for sale elsewhere.
More stuff here not to be revealed until the patch is.

PROGRAM PATROL: Antelope
SERVICE PATROL: Bear

Thought for the Day
There are two days in every week we should never worry about, two days that should be kept free from fear and apprehension. One is yesterday, with its mistakes and cares, its aches and pains, its faults and blunders. Yesterday has passed forever beyond our control. All the money in the world cannot bring back yesterday. We cannot undo a single act we performed, nor erase a single word we've said. Yesterday is gone. The other day we should not worry about is tomorrow, with its impossible adversaries, its burden, its hopeful promise and unknown performance. Tomorrow is beyond our control. Tomorrow's sun will rise either in splendor or behind a mask of clouds—but it will rise. And until it does, we have no stake in tomorrow, for it is as yet unborn. This leaves only one day—today! Anyone can fight the battles of just one day. It is only when we add the burdens of yesterday and tomorrow that we break down. It is not the experience of today that drives people mad. It is the remorse of bitterness for something that happened yesterday, and the dread of what tomorrow may bring. Make TODAY the best day it can be, and live one day at a time!

New Course Numbering System
You may have noticed that the numbering system for this Wood Badge course is different than previous Council events. This year marks the beginning of a new way of designating major BSA events in the Southern Region, such as OA Conclaves or Wood Badge courses. Prior to this year, such events were identified with numbers beginning with SR (for Southern Region), such as Wood Badge course SR-917. This year a new numbering system was implemented, and this Wood Badge course is the first in the Southern Region to utilize this system. Our course number S7-602-11-1 indicates that we are in the Southern Region, Section 7 (S7), Heart of Virginia Council (602), the year 2011 (11) and the first event of this year (1). S7-602-11-1 is quite a mouthful, when you want to relay what Wood Badge course you participated in. Who knows how we will abbreviate this in the future. Perhaps you will say you were in Wood Badge course Eleventy-one? Whatever we call it, you are participating in the very first event in the Southern Region to use this new numbering system.

Pack 1 crosses over to Troop 1

You Might be a Wood Badger.... Take-off from Jeff Foxworthy's "You might be a Redneck":
If you have to go to the restroom and you start looking for a buddy . . .
You Might Be A Wood Badger!
If you've ever been driving at 60 MPH and suddenly slammed on the brakes because you thought you saw a Patrol critter at a yard sale …
You Might Be A Wood Badger! If someone asks for a volunteer and you find your hand is already in the air . . .
You Might Be A Wood Badger!
If the only thing you remember from your honeymoon is the herd of Antelope you drove by in Wyoming …
You Might Be A Wood Badger!

Crossover Signals Transition
In the Wood Badge course, the crossover signifies that as a participant you have completed a crucial phase of the Wood badge course. Though the Crossover ceremony occurs in the middle of the first day, the phase it represents actually spans several months. You began this phase when you first decided to attend course S7-602-11-1. There may have been additional training courses your needed to complete in order to qualify for attendance. You took the initiative to complete these courses and submit your registration.
Some time prior to the course you received a letter containing among other things, a list of 20 questions. These were introspective questions that you completed prior to arriving at Gilwell for S7-602-11-1. Additionally you made certain that all of the other required documents were completed and submitted, in many cases you secured time away from work, and perhaps had to schedule a visit to the doctor for an updated physical.
In completing all of the above, arriving at Gilwell and participating in the course you demonstrated initiative, personal responsibility, determination, and reliability. So you see, Crossover doesn’t just signify that you’ve completed the first half-day of Wood Badge. It signifies that you’ve proved to yourself and others that you have the attributes necessary to be a part of Wood Badge. It signifies a substantial vote of confidence in those abilities as you are invited to become a part of Troop 1 of Gilwell.

Planning and Preparation
Prevent Problems
"Suppose one of you wants to build a tower.
Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’"
Luke 14:28-30.
You’ll hear a lot in the coming weeks about planning. There are a number of course presentations that touch on project planning and, of course, we are in the midst of our own staff planning.
Good planning is good stewardship. Success in any endeavor requires careful preparation and planning. Without proper planning and preparation, failure is almost guaranteed.
Anyone who has ever undertaken a complex task already has learned the importance of careful planning. In sports we see many examples of the need to plan. Often this involves a “game plan”. A game plan is simply a series of steps which the team must follow in order to be able to accomplish its goal of winning the game. In fact, most winning teams are able to win, because they plan to win. Losing teams are often the team that had no game plan, or a poor plan at best. Failing to plan to win is the same as planning to lose. Or put another way, “Failing to plan is planning to fail”.
Good planning conserves resources, prevents wasted effort, and saves time and money. Good planning prevents small problems from becoming big problems.

PATROL REPORTS