Page 17 - Traverse 50.3

2023 BSA

National Jamboree

By: David M. Collier –
First printed in the NSPS News & Views September 2023

The 2023 BSA National Jamboree was held at the Summit Bechtel
Reserve in West Virginia from July 18th until July 28th. The Sum-
mit Bechtel Reserve is over 10,600 acres and is also home to the
Paul R. Christen National High Adventure Base. Every state in the
nation was represented at the 2023 BSA National Jamboree and
several attendees from other countries also participated. There
were over 15,000 Scouts, Venturers, Explorers, staff, volunteers,
and local community members participating.

The Surveying Merit Badge Booth Coordinator was Kyle Schultze,
who is a PLS from Illinois. He attended the Jamboree from July
16th through July 28th, which includes two sessions. Kyle actively
participated with the NSPS Scout Committee zoom meetings
and was instrumental in the overall success that we had at the
event. He also worked hard to facilitate the equipment that was
donated for our use during by Parkland College and the Parkland
College Surveying Program. Other contributors and sponsors of
the booth were the National Society of Professional Surveyors frisbees, stickers and wooden nickels left over. I am sure they will
(NSPS), Seiler Geospatial, The Illinois Professional Land Surveyors be brought to the next Jamboree and used for some geocach-
Association and Illinois Professional Land Surveyors Founda- ing awards for making it to the surveying merit badge booth and
tion. Other counselors that came and participated during the first answering the question correctly.
week were James Jeffreys a PLS and PE from North Carolina,
Jeremy Hutchins a LS from Virginia and Matt Banton a PLS from There have been some changes since the previous Jamboree.
Oregon. Counselors that came and participated during the second These include rental costs for booth equipment and no tents are
week were Tom Silva a PLS from Ohio and NSPS director, Rob Da- supplied for Jamboree Service Team (JST) members. The cost this
vidson a PLS from Pennsylvania, Attorney and Eagle Scout, Kyle year for JST participants ranged anywhere from $700 to $1200
Allred a PLS from Illinois and Eagle Scout, and David Collier, who for those over 34, and from $400 to $675 for those aged 16 to 33
is a LS from New Hampshire, NSPS director and Eagle Scout. By (depending if you stayed for one or two sessions.) This included
the last count we had determined that 226 scouts had earned the Onsite Jamboree programming, food, a “comfortable” cot and a
Surveying Merit Badge during the Jamboree. NSPS provided chal- recognition package. This is a great event to promote the profes-
lenge coins, frisbees and wooden nickels that were passed out sion of surveying, and I would encourage any of you who may
to scouts that completed the surveying merit badge. NSPS also have thought about participating, to do so at the next event. Fi-
provided all the counselors with amazing STAFF shirts that has nancial contributions would also be appreciated and there is a link
the same logo on all the previous mentioned items. We still have on the NSPS website that can be utilized directly for the Scouting
program. This helps the NSPS to offer the items such as challenge
coins and to help some participants with reimbursements. This
year NSPS established a reimbursement program up to $500 per
individual that participate d as a counselor or helper. This support
is crucial to many of the helpers and it is a worthy cause.

For all scouts and the promotion of land surveying, please con-
sider becoming a surveying merit badge counselor. All too often
we heard from scouts that they could not find counselors to help
with surveying merit badge requirements. It is my opinion that
is one of the main reasons for this merit badge being one of the
lowest earned. I leave you with this quote from one of the scouts
that stopped by again later in the week to let us know he had now
earned all of the 138 merit badges: “Out of all of the merit badges
I have earned, this one was the coolest.”

The Nevada Traverse Vol.50, No.2, 2023 15