Scouting in Utah

Scouting in Utah has a long history,^[1] from the 1910s to the present day, serving thousands of youth in programs that suit the environment in which they live.

History

Utah has one of the longest running scouting legacies in the country. The first known Boy Scout Troop was the Episcopalian Troop One led by Reverend Rice, a missionary to Utah. This troop assembled in 1907 and continued their meetings and camp-outs up through 1910.(http://www.gslc-bsa.org/programs/relationships-scouting-is-for-everyone/faith-based-partners/protestant/episcopalian) The second known Boy Scout Troop got its start in Logan, Utah in 1910.^[2][3] On 21 May 1913, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' 15-month-old "Mutual Improvement Association Scout" program was officially invited to join the Boy Scouts of America.^[4] This started the first widespread movement in Utah Scouting. By 1928, the LDS Church had designated Scouting as the official activity program for its young men.

The Ogden Council was in existence in 1919. In 1920, Scout Executive, G.A. Goates, led 85 boys and scoutmasters on a 14-day hike through Yellowstone National Park. According to the Department of the Interior, 3,800 feet of motion picture film was taken of the trip.^[5]

In 1919 the Great Salt Lake and Lake Bonneville Councils were formed. Later, in 1921 the Utah County Council was formed. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints remains a major sponsor of scouting in Utah,^[6] however churches of other faiths, and other non profit organizations are sponsors of Utah scouting programs. Most, if not all troops welcome those of all faiths to their program.

Up until the 1980s or 1990s, the Lake Bonneville Council and Cache Valley Council covered northern Utah. Those councils are now part of the Trapper Trails Council.

Boy Scouting in Utah today

There are five Boy Scouts of America local councils in Utah.

Great Salt Lake Council

Great Salt Lake Council serves northern Utah.

Great Southwest Council

The Great Southwest Council of the Boy Scouts of America is headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and provides Scouting to youth in northern New Mexico, northeast Arizona, Utah south of the Colorado River, and the Durango and Mesa Verde areas of Colorado.^[7]

Snake River Council

Snake River Council serves Scouts in Idaho and Nevada.^[8]

Trapper Trails Council

Trapper Trails Council serves Scouts in Utah, Wyoming, and Idaho.^[9]

Camps

• Camp Loll is located on Lake of the Woods in Wyoming near Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park.^[12][13]

• Camp Bartlett is located at southeastern Idaho 4 miles (6.4 km) up the road from Cache National Forest

• Hull Valley Scout Reservation is located near Preston, Idaho.

• Camp Hunt is located on Bear Lake near Garden City.

• Camp Kiesel is located about 25 miles (40 km) east of Ogden, Utah.

• Camp Fife is located on the Bear River near Cutler Dam, just outside Fielding, Utah

• Camp New Fork is located on the lower New Fork lake just outside Cora, Wyoming.

• Camp Browning is located in Huntsville, Utah, about 67.12 miles (108.02 km) from Salt Lake City.

Utah National Parks Council

Girl Scouting in Utah

Two Girl Scout councils serve Utah.

History

Girl Scouting in Utah started in 1920 in Ogden, Utah and the first troops registered in Salt Lake City in 1921. In 1961 the current major council in Utah, Girl Scouts of Utah, was founded by the merging of several smaller councils.

Girl Scouts-Arizona Cactus-Pine Council

In Utah, Girl Scouts-Arizona Cactus-Pine Council, headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, serves girls living on the Navajo Nation in southern Utah.^[20]

Girl Scouts of Utah

Girls Scouts of Utah, headquartered in Salt Lake City, serves over 9,000 girls in Utah and West Wendover, Nevada.^[21]

Service Centers

• Northern Utah Service Center in Riverdale, Utah
• Central Utah Service Center in Orem, Utah

Camps

• Camp Cloud Rim is 27 acres (0.11 km²) at over 9,000 feet (2,700 m) by Lake Brimhall in the Wasatch Mountains near Park City, Utah. It was built by the Utah Works Progress Administration in the early 1930s. Originally named Camp Pinar, it was renamed to Camp Cloud Rim in 1937. The Lodge was destroyed by fire in 1992 but rebuilt and named the Janet Quinney Lawson Lodge. The new lodge was dedicated on August 14, 1999, and Janet Quinney Lawson was in attendance for the ceremony.^[22] In 2013, the Girl Scouts of Utah council officially bought 236 acres of land just south of Cloud Rim from Silver Islet Lake Partners. The land has a conservation easement on all but 18 acres, so the Girl Scouts plan to build some rustic cabins, but will mostly preserve the land.^[23]
• Trefoil Ranch is 123 acres (0.50 km²) near Provo, Utah. It was built in 1943 by volunteers. In 2002, a new lodge was built and dedicated in 2003 featuring new restrooms, a classroom facility, and a new showerhouse.^[24]

Executive pay controversy

In 2007 it was disclosed that the leader of the Great Salt Lake Council received more than $200,000 a year in compensation.^[25][26] Executive pay became an issue again in 2011 during the annual Friends of Scouting campaign.^[27][28] During that time, a scout leader in an LDS ward distributed a disclaimer that the Friends of Scouting monies do not directly benefit the local Scout troop, but are used to pay expenses at the council and national level, including executive pay which he felt was excessive. The leader was subsequently removed from his scouting role by his ecclesiastical leaders.^[29]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Scouting in Utah.

References

Further reading

• Boren, Kerry Ross (2008). Lest We Forget: A Historical Review of the Great Salt Lake Council, Boy Scouts of America. BSA Great Salt Lake Council.