Hello all,

The Connecticut Rivers Council: Boy Scouts of America would first like to say we hope all our members and fellow Connecticut citizens stay safe and healthy during this turbulent time. We want to let you know we are with you and we will do our part during this national public crisis.

We would also like to formally introduce our new Exploring Executive, Heather Shepard. She has been with us as the Senior STEM Executive for 5 years and will now serve as the liaison between the Exploring units and Council. Heather has a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and a Master’s degree in Secondary Education to teach Biology. Her father served as a Police Officer for over 20 years and her mother is currently a nurse at New Milford Hospital, CT. Heather has an incredible passion for providing youth career opportunities and has been leading the nation in membership growth for the STEM Scouting program over the years.

Effective immediately, Heather will serve as the direct contact for questions, concerns, and support relating to all Exploring programs. Furthermore, we are establishing our very first Council wide Exploring Committee to help better serve existing Exploring units and brainstorm on how to create new ones. If you or someone you know is interested in participating in this very important mission, please contact us using her information below. We are also looking for ways to provide community service during this time and would like to encourage you to reach out regarding how we can help your community.

Heather Shepard

Heather.Shepard@scouting.org

Currently, our Council gathered all of our Camp's medical supplies and donated them to local medical support facilities. The items donated included masks, hospital gowns, gloves, and other PPE items. Using 3-D printers from our summer camps, we also produced N95 masks and face shields.

Our youth have been very busy giving back to their communities as well. Inspired by their Troop leader, who is an ICU nurse, Troop 180 out of Lebanon, CT started sewing masks. They have completed over 100 hand sewn masks to date. Troop 19 and Troop 2019 from New Hartford, CT used a home 3D-printer to print masks for a local medical facility. Troop and Pack 21 out of Putnam, CT have arranged a town wide food drive to support people in need. In Gales Ferry, CT Troop 12 has been running a food delivery program to the elderly in their community. In Simsbury, CT Troop 175 and 1175 has prototyped a number of different Face Shields. The full supply chain of materials (spanning three countries) and Scout training has been done with “on line” Zoom classes. We anticipate them to be in full production (at over 30 houses) this week, which will result in over 1,000 Face Shields. This is just the tip of the iceberg, we continue to get updates on how our Scouts are making a difference every day.

We will continue to live Scouting’s values including being helpful partners in our community and doing a good turn daily.

Yours in the Community,

Yours in Scouting,

Connecticut Rivers Council