Press release:
At its Annual Volunteer Awards Dinner held Saturday, Jan. 31, the Iroquois Trail Council, Boy Scouts of America honored three volunteers with the council’s highest award, the Silver Beaver Award. Honorees are Donald H. Morris (Batavia), Linda J. Wohlers (Clarendon), and John G. Maier (Lockport).
The Silver Beaver is a National BSA award that recognizes distinguished service to local youth. Each recipient is a long-tenured volunteer who has also made significant contributions by way of service to his or her local community. Linda Wohlers’ 20-year scouting history includes a variety of roles including Tiger Leader, Den Leader, Webelos Leader, Cubmaster, Commissioner, and Committee Member. John Maier’s Scouting history includes current roles as a Cubmaster, Troop Committee Member and Merit Badge counselor. A former Webelos leader, he is also an active member of the camp promotions team, district training team, and commissioner staff. Donald Morris has served the whole family of scouting with exemplary dedication. Over the past 40-plus years he has been involved in Scouting with three different local councils: Finger Lakes, New York; Blue Grass Council, Kentucky; and most recently Iroquois Trail.
The council was itself recognized by the Boy Scouts of America with the 2014 Journey to Excellence Gold Award for program excellence.
Local Cub Scout and Boy Scout leaders were recognized for program excellence in the areas of advancement, camping, membership recruitment and retention, and helping Scouts to meet their funding needs.
Several youth members were also recognized. Cub Scout Tyler Mutka (Corfu) topped the list with Popcorn Sales of more than $4,200. The sale raises money for Scout programs, and also qualifies Tyler for a national college scholarship program. This is Tyler’s fourth year as top seller among Scouts in a five-county area. Other Scouts who will be inducted into the scholarship program are Cameron Kreger (Lockport) and Ethan Nelson (Avon).
The Iroquois Trail Council provides development, leadership, and life skills to more than 3,000 youth in Orleans, Niagara, Genesee, Wyoming, and Livingston counties. To contact the council or enroll, visit www.itcbsa.org or call 585-343-0307.
More information after the jump:
2015 Silver Beaver Honorees
Three volunteers were honored with the Council’s highest award, the Silver Beaver Award. Honorees are Linda J. Wohlers (Clarendon), John G. Maier (Rapids), and Donald H. Morris (Batavia).
The Silver Beaver is a National BSA award presented by the local Council for distinguished service to youth. Each of this year’s recipients is a long-tenured volunteer who has also made significant contributions by way of service to his or her local community.
Linda Wohlers’ 20-year scouting history includes a variety of roles including Tiger Leader, Den Leader, Webelos Leader, Cubmaster, Commissioner, and Committee Member. Her experience and sure-handed leadership helped to ensure that the local Cub Scout program continued to thrive, even long after her own son had grown. As a testament to her effectiveness, the current Webelos leader had this to say: “…I knew that she would be a positive influence on our young son. Her demeanor and enthusiasm for Scouting influenced me to sign him up on the spot.” This leader’s admiration for our honoree has only grown over the past several years.
Beyond Local Scouting, she has served as a Unit Commissioner for more than a decade. In addition to providing coaching for her local pack and troop, as part of the commissioner team she helped to ease the transition when the district borders were realigned to create the Seneca District.
Outside of Scouting, she has played an active role in her community. At Disciples Methodist Church she has been a Youth Mentor, Sunday School Teacher, and a member of the Church Board. An active member of the Clarendon Historical Society, she has helped to coordinate several Eagle Scout and other Scouting service projects such as painting the "Old Schoolhouse" and other historic sites.
She is a past recipient of the Cubmaster Award, Den Leader Award, Commissioner Arrowhead, Commissioner’s Key, and Distinguished Commissioner Service Awards, as well as the District Award of Merit.
John Maier’s Scouting history includes current roles as a Cubmaster, Troop Committee Member and Merit Badge counselor. A former Webelos leader, he is also an active member of the camp promotions team, district training team, and commissioner staff.
His passion and dedication to the Cub Scout program has helped to ensure that his pack has achieved more than 20 percent membership growth in each of the past three years, and is now the largest pack in Towpath District; this is especially notable since local school enrollment and overall Cub Scout membership has declined over that time. In addition to his local pack leadership, he stepped in to help with a neighboring town’s struggling Cub program, and served for more than two years as their mentor. That pack is now on a solid footing and growing in membership under its own trained leadership. His support for other packs helped him to be selected as a 2012 recipient of the Towpath District Award of Merit.
An avid outdoorsman and Geocaching enthusiast, he has been a member of the Allied Sportsmen of WNY for 15 years, and served as a Hunter Safety Instructor for 10 years. He has used those skills to benefit Scouting as well, first as the BB range officer for Towpath Day Camp, and more recently as Director for the Towpath Day Camp for the past three seasons as well as the upcoming summer season. He has routinely inspired more than 75 percent of his own pack to attend camp, and has also lent a hand as an indispensible member of the camp promotions team, using his infectious enthusiasm to help other packs to get their Cub Scouts to camp, all of which has helped the Iroquois Trail Council to lead the Northeast Region Area 3 councils in Cub Scout camping participation.
His son Nathan is now a 1st Class Scout and his grandson is a member of the Cub Scout pack. Together with his wife MaryLou, son Nathan, and daughters Amanda and Bonnie, our recipient is sure to remain a vital member of the local Scouting family for many years to come.
Donald Morris has served the whole family of scouting with exemplary dedication. Over the past 40- plus years he has been involved in Scouting with three different local councils; Finger Lakes, New York; Blue Grass Council, Kentucky; and most recently Iroquois Trail. His service includes tenure as a Scoutmaster, Troop Committee Member, Commissioner, Order of the Arrow Advisor, National Jamboree Scoutmaster and Commissioner, and coordinator or staff member for weekend events too numerous to mention here.
Currently a Unit Commissioner, he is also an active member of the "DeWalt Crew," helping with various camp improvement projects. Over the past several years, our Cub Scouts at Resident Camp and our 3 Day Camps have all benefitted from his handiwork, as he has taken on the majority of the prep work for camp crafts including shields, catapults, and other woodworking projects.
His community service reaches well beyond Scouting. If you haven’t met him at camp, day camp, an Order of the Arrow activity or at a weekend event, it’s because he was either busy coordinating the Salvation Army Red Kettle drive or away from home together with his wife volunteering as a disaster relief worker after hurricanes and floods in Virginia, Florida, Texas, New York, or Alabama as part of the Salvation Army Disaster Team.
A member of the American Legion and active member of the Masonic Lodge, he also serves as a Trustee and Deacon of Batavia’s Emmanuel Baptist Church. In 2013 the Church recognized him with the Good Shepherd Religious Award.
A Wood Badge trained Scouter, he is a past recipient of the District Award of Merit, the Order of the Arrow Vigil Honor and Founders Award.
Iroquois Trail Council Celebrates Volunteer Service at Annual Dinner
At the January 31, 2015 Annual Awards Dinner the Iroquois Trail Council was pleased to recognize many individuals and units for their outstanding work to support our Scout youth.
Thanks to the efforts of our 1,300 Scouting volunteers, the Council has much to celebrate.
- The Council has earned the Gold Level 2014 National Journey to Excellence Award for service to youth and high program performance.
- Local Youth Retention rates and market share lead all upstate New York BSA councils.
- Summer Camp participation of local Cubs and Scouts leads all Upstate New York BSA councils.
- Trained Volunteer Leader percentage has had a double-digit increase in the past two years.
- Major investments in our camp properties continue to be fully privately funded.
- The Council is financially sound with a balanced operating budget and capital budget.
Local Scouting Units were recognized in several categories:
Membership
Highest Youth Retention Rate - 2014 Charter Renewal 100% Pack 3023 Middleport
Highest Youth Retention Rate - 2014 Charter Renewal 90% Troop 4070 Geneseo
90% Troop 6066 Indian Falls
Largest Growth in Troop Membership Troop 4054 Castile
Largest Growth in Pack Membership Pack 3023 Middleport
Honorable Mention - Pack Growth of 10 or more youth Pack 4027 Caledonia
Pack 3067 Wilson
Pack 3018 Gasport
Pack 3071 Rapids
Advancement
Highest Advancement Rate & Member Growth Troop 4748 Fillmore
Highest Advancement Rate & Member Growth Pack 3175 West Barre
Honorable Mention - High Advancement Rate Pack 3067 Wilson
Pack 3023 Middleport
Pack 3028 Medina
Camping
Highest Overall Percent Attendance at Summer Camps Pack 3004 Lockport
Highest Percent Attendance at Camp Dittmer Troop 28, Medina & Troop 6021, Le Roy
Highest Percent Attendance at Camp Sam Wood Pack 6650, Alexander & Pack 6066, Indian Falls
Honorable Mention - Overall Summer Camp Attendance > 90% Pack 3071, Rapids & 6069, Batavia
Popcorn Sales
Highest Average Sales per Youth Member: Pack 3004, Lockport with $490 per member
Troop 6067, Corfu with $507 per member
2014 marked the 8th consecutive year that Pack 3004 has set the pace for our youth members.
Pack 3004, Lockport also has the distinction of top sales of $22,000, which will go a long way to help them to fund an ideal year of Cub Scout program!
Pacesetters with the largest gain in sales: Pack 3006, Lockport; Pack 3071, Rapids; Pack 3062, Holley
High Sales Average Honorable Mention with sales of more than $300 per youth member:
Pack 3006, Lockport; Pack 3071, Rapids; Pack 6467, Pembroke; Pack 6069, Batavia
Webelos Scout Tyler Mutka (Pembroke Pack 6467) was recognized as our 2014 Top Popcorn Seller. Tyler’s sales of $4,238 have made him our top seller for four consecutive years. In addition to the dollars he raised for his Cub Scout program, Tyler is a member of the national “Trail’s End Scholarship Club.” A portion of his current and future sales will be invested by Trail’s End toward either college or technical education after high school.
14 local Scouts are now invested in the Trail’s End Scholarship Club. Cub Scout Ethan Nelson (Avon Pack 4026) and Cub Scout Cameron Kreger (Lockport Pack 3004) are newly enrolled in the scholarship program for their 2014 sales. Each had sales in excess of $2,500.
Friends of Scouting Pacesetters
Friends of Scouting Pacesetters: Pack 6019, Oakfield; 6017, Elba;
Troop 6067, Corfu; 4054, Castile; 164, Albion
Veteran Scouters
Many Scouters were recognized with Veteran Awards for their long-tenured Scouting membership, including David Hawley (Warsaw) – 60 years; Ronald Schmidt (Batavia) – 30 years; Peter Scarborough (Gasport) – 20 years; Joy Costello (Nunda) – 5 years.
Endowment – James E. West Awards
Council President Emeritus Dr. Thomas Madejski announced the upcoming launch of an Endowment Campaign. As a prelude to the campaign, Council President Robert Confer was pleased to recognize James Barrett with a James E. West Bronze award for an endowment gift in his honor. President Confer also presented Dr. Thomas and Sandra Madejski with the Gold Level James E. West award for their lead gift of $10,000 to the Endowment Fund.
Thank you to Eagle Scout Spencer Cottman (Pavilion Troop 6016) for serving as emcee for the Awards Dinner.
Silver Beaver Awards
Three volunteers were honored with the Council’s highest award, the Silver Beaver Award. Honorees are Linda J. Wohlers (Clarendon), John G. Maier (Rapids), and Donald H. Morris (Batavia).
The Silver Beaver is a National BSA award presented by the local Council for distinguished service to youth. Each of this year’s recipients is a long-tenured volunteer who has also made significant contributions by way of service to his or her local community.
Linda Wohlers’ 20-year scouting history includes a variety of roles including Tiger Leader, Den Leader, Webelos Leader, Cubmaster, Commissioner, and Committee Member.
John Maier’s Scouting history includes current roles as a Cubmaster, Troop Committee Member and Merit Badge counselor. A former Webelos leader, he is also an active member of the camp promotions team, district training team, and commissioner staff.
Donald Morris has served the whole family of scouting with exemplary dedication. Over the past 40-plus years he has been involved in Scouting with three different local councils: Finger Lakes, New York; Blue Grass Council, Kentucky; and most recently Iroquois Trail.
More detailed Scouting biographies are posted on the council Web site.
