Venturer Advisors’ Forum - Voyageur Council

Notes of Meeting – April 6, 2010

National Boardroom - Scout Headquarters

Al McPhee	1^st Greely	Doug Zahody	3^rd Orleans
Alan Griffin	112^th Nepean	Greg McGinnis	2^nd Russell
Allan Yates	1^st Merrickville	Jan Stodola	7^th Kanata
Andrew Paterson	7^th Kanata	John Dougherty	DCC Program
Austin Sweezey	19^th Nepean	John Stalker	Valley Highlands/AC
Bill Bowman	1^st Nepean	Mike Harris	Rideau Rover Crew
Bob Sylvester	7^th Kanata	Mike Jowett	Council Commiss
Brenda Cumming	1^st Osgoode	Neil Rice	CYC/Nepean Rovers
Brett Budge	25^th Nepean	Nigel Ward	1^st Kanata
Brian McAuley	7^th Prescott	Patrick Megan	1^st Wakefield
Brien Taylor	1^st Greenwood	Paul McAuley	7^th Prescott
Bruce Morton	14^th Gloucester	Ray Renton	1^st Dunrobin
Cal Clupp	2^nd Gatineau	Richard Draper	4^th Orleans
Chris Tyler	1^st Manotick	Rod Wilson	1^st Manotick
Christiaan Burchell	1^st Nepean	Roger Aston	3^rd Ottawa
Christopher Provost	112^th Nepean	Scott Stanley	1^st Stittsville
Chuck Fraser	1^st Glen Cairn	Stephen Smye	1^st Wakefield
Cyndy Courtland	Carleton Place	Stewart Ross	DCC Recognition
David Laramee	2^nd Russel	Therese Desjardins	137^th Ottawa YES
Dean Smith	2^nd Orleans	Tim Harbinson	137^th Ottawa YES
Don Stalker	Nepean Rover Crew	Tim Redpath	1^st Stittsville
Doug MacKinnon	112^th Nepean	Tim Taylor	123^rd Ottawa
		Wally Gale	14^thGlster/VAFchair

Opening Remarks

Wally thanked Bill Bowman for chairing the March meeting. He also noted that Kathy Millar will provide a presentation about the new VAF archery equipment at 8:30 at the end of the regular VAF meeting.

Past Activities

LaserQuest2 Lockdown – Report by Mike Harris

LaserQuest was an awesome success with 78-79 participants at this 2^nd session – over capacity! The Rideau Rover Crew will run two events again next year. Thanks to the RRC for organizing this increasingly popular event

Upcoming Events

VenClimb2 (April 17-18) – Report by Christiaan Burchell

People interested in taking this advanced climbing training should contact Christiaan ASAP <xiaan_b@yahoo.com>. This is an opportunity to learn how to set up and run an autonomous climbing activity. It will be held at Camp Opemikon (catered) and is limited to 10 people.

On a related note, Christiaan reported that the sport of climbing in the Ottawa/Gatineau region was issued a blow recently. As part of the process for developing a new master plan for Gatineau Park, the NCC has decided to curtail 90% of the climbing routes on the Eardley Escarpment. The fall VenClimb weekend is now in jeopardy since the Home Cliff site is one of the only sites left that is suitable for introductory climbing and it must serve the whole community. The 2^nd VenClimb site (Western Coomb) will be off-limits. Christiaan belongs to the group that has lobbied in favour of the climbing community. Gatineauclimbingaccess.ca has posted a copy of the report outlining the NCC rationale.

Suggestions for actions that might help to reverse this NCC decision are solicited. Other sites within a few hours of Ottawa were discussed as options but none are as suitable as the Gatineau Park locations. Christiaan will keep the VAF informed of any developments.

OPE work weekend (April 23-25^th) – Report by Tim Taylor

There is still some room for additional groups but final numbers and related registration info (adult/youth and male/female numbers, accommodation requests etc) is required by the end of the week. A number of groups have not yet updated their preliminary estimates. The deadline for actual payment is Wednesday, April 21 in the Voyageur Office - credit card payment accepted by telephone.

Whitewater 1 Pre-training (April 25) - Report by Tim Taylor

There are 40 participants registered and 7 trainers signed up - always room for more of both. For those not registered for the Ope Work Weekend, lunch will be available for $3.50 and this will be accepted on-site on Sunday. Note that adult-sized PFDs are in short supply so it is best to bring your own. As for other activities, sign-up forms are available on the VAF website http://tinyurl.com/yd3vwc2.

RSVP (April 30 – May 2) - Report by Neal Rice

There are 40 youth registered - please get the registrations in. The deadline is a week before camp (April 22). The capacity is about 125 people but is flexible if the demand is great enough. New activities this year include Orienteering along with High Ropes and Archery with the new VAF equipment. The cost is $15 for participants and $10 for OOS, with payment to the Nepean Rover Crew.

Whitewater 1, 2, 3 – Report by Bill Bowman

Online registration is available on the VAF website (for use with Internet Explorer browser).

Summary for the 2 Weekends:

WW1 - May 28-30, Big Eddy Petawawa River, Canoe level 1- space still available, 33 registered

WW3 - May 28-30, Petawawa River, Canoe level 3 (ORCA certification) – space available – 13 registered

WW2 & mini WW1 - June 4-6, Madawaska River, Canoe 1&2 – available space on WW2 could be transferred to mini WW1 which otherwise would be full - 51 registered for WW2 & 10 registered for mini WW1

Kayak 1&2 – June 4-6, Madawaska River – full – 30 registrants

Kayak 1&2 - ***additional course now available May 28-30 at Palmer Rapids (site of WW2 but on WW1 weekend)

Bill will be away for awhile but will monitor email and online registration. Courses are filling up fast!

Reports

Joint Council - Report by Andrew and Jen

- March Coyote climbing activity was capped at 36 – had to turn some people away. With events filling up, it would be helpful if people would let the organizers know if they cannot make it after they have signed up so as many as possible are accommodated.

- The April Event is the Pineapple Rally scavenger hunt (April 10). Each group of 4 will need a digital camera, 1$ to buy the fruit, and a cell phone. Signup is at 12:30; start at 1 pm and end at 4 pm. Lisgar High School parking lot is the start point. There is 1 person registered so far and deadline is Friday for sign-up.

- May Camp (May 21-24) at Camp Opemikon. The registration form is available. Cost is 45$ including bus transport from Scout HQ or 40$ by personal transport. The registration form will be put up on the VAF website.

- 88 people attended the JC meeting tonight, 68% in uniform.

Training and Development

Wood Badge 1 for Senior Sections – Report by John Stalker

WB1 was cancelled since only 5 participants signed up. The next opportunity will be at Rovent. There will likely be a WB2 next year as well.

Wilderness/Advanced 1^st Aid Training – Report by Wally for Doug Proud

Plans are forming for a round of Wilderness First Aid, Advanced Wilderness First Aid and First Responder training. First Responder recertification to be included. A schedule will be set for all of the courses (start next fall).

Other Business

CN cycle for CHEO – Report by Wally

This long-standing annual CHEO charity biking event (old tour Nortel) is looking for volunteers to help with the actual roll-out of the biking activity. There may be a requirement for a waiver but we are looking into it. They require people to provide a lost children service at the central organizing point located at the War museum and are also looking for volunteers with basic first aid to help cheer people on and keep them on the designated route. Event takes place on Sunday morning May 2^nd 7 am – noon. Information is available at <cncycle.ca>.

RoVent Planning committee meeting(Feb 9) – Report by Doug Mckinnon

3^rd meeting next Tuesday. Information package will be available for the next VAF meeting. The theme has changed, to “Shakespeare”. Will be looking for volunteers to help run the camp. RoVent will be held Oct 15-17 2010 at Camp Opemikon.

OOS Council Cub Camp (June 4-6) – Report by Jocelyn Robinson

Offers of Service are still required for this upcoming Council cub camp. Contact Raymond Desjardins or Jocelyn Robinson if interested - looking for Ventures/Rovers and leaders/advisors to help.

English Explorer Group Request for Venturer Contact – Report by Neal Rice

This Venturer-age group from England would like to meet a Canadian Venturer company during their visit to Ottawa August 14-16. Their accommodation is already arranged along with a tour itinerary that includes lots of free time. Contact Neal at neal.rice@ymail.com if interested.

Camp Opemikon Senior Sections Adventures – Report by David and Bonnie

New programs are planned specifically for Venturer-age youth as part of the Camp Opemikon program this summer. There are 5 Venturer-level programs available: – White Water (4 days at Paddlers Co-op on the Madawaska River), Climbing at Kingston Mills combined with high Ropes, a 10 day canoe trip through Algonquin Park, and an Outdoor Skills & Leadership experience (4 day paddle + 3 day hike for ages 14-15 and a 4 week outdoor skills program with components of all of these combined with a counselor.-in-training placement for ages 15-16). Brochures are available – contact Marilyn. David Wielusiewicz (Camp Director) and Bonnie Boyd (Extreme Adventure Coordinator) described these exciting programs and mentioned the awesome summer jobs at Ope.

Canadian Museum of Nature Parade help (May 22) – Report by John Dougherty

The Canadian Museum of Nature is reopening after 5 years of renovations and requires volunteers to help with crowd/traffic control during their opening parade. The volunteers would be situated along the parade route (parade will go the wrong way down Metcalfe St) and would also hand out brochures. Contact John if interested -

mailto:dcc-councilprogram@voyageur.scouts.ca

Request for help with a scout camp (late July-early August) – Report by John Dougherty Three scouts from different Areas are requesting some Venturer help to organize and carry out a camp for scouts. The venue might be a camp such as Whispering Pines and the theme might be something like canoeing or raft building. Contact John if interested - mailto:dcc-councilprogram@voyageur.scouts.ca

Couch rally & Hope Volleyball Tournament – Report by Mike Harris

The Couch Rally is presently scheduled for the 2^nd Saturday in Sept (Sept. 11) – hopefully based at the A-Channel again if available or possibly City Hall. Plans are looking toward increasing the number of events and increasing the challenge. The registration package should be available by the next VAF meeting. Contact Mike with any questions -mikeoharris@gmail.com. Mike also noted that the Hope Volleyball Tournament for CHEO is looking for volunteers (ages 14-18) for set-up & tear-down.

Wilderness Tours Discount for Scouting – Report by Wally

The Ottawa River Rafting company, Wilderness Tours, sent a letter to Voyageur Council offering group discounts to youth (ages 7-19) for any of their activities (also offered to Guides and Cadets). For groups of 12 or more there is a 25% discount in May, June (except the 2^nd & 3^rd weekends) & September and a 15% discount in July & August – just need to mention “Scout” when making a reservation. [Update: the standard Scouting admin including Parent/Guardian Consent Form for Category 3 Activities and Out of Country Travel are acceptable and with this, Wilderness Tours would not require a signed waiver].

Scholarships – Report by Stewart Ross

Only 2 applications were received for the 4 scholarships available in Voyageur Council. These are open to youth entering or already involved in post-secondary education/training. [Update: deadline extended to the end of April].

VAF support for purchase of Climbing ropes – Report by Wally

The VAF has a budget available to help Venturer companies to purchase climbing ropes. Contact Wally by the Ope Work Weekend (April 25) or before if interested.

Presentation/Demo of new VAF Archery Equipment

– by Kathy Millar of South Nation Archery

Kathy described the equipment purchased by the VAF (Tim Harbinson) using a PowerPoint presentation and an actual bow. She talked about the proper methods of stringing and shooting/handling a bow, including safety considerations and technical names/features of this equipment. Whenever shooting a bow it is important to ensure a proper backstop or net designed for this purpose, and avoid loose clothing like neckars or shirt flaps/buttons (ie no formal scouting uniform). More information is available at http://www.fca.ca/ or https://www.oaa-archery.on.ca/index.php and Kathy sent a copy of her slides. The VAF equipment will be available for use at RSVP, with safety features in place.

Next Meeting: Tuesday May 4, 2010 at 7:30 pm If available, the CWMT trainer will be there to answer questions about the suite of wilderness 1^st aid training.

The Chair for the Venturer Advisor Forum is Wally Gale at vafchair@rogers.com. Please contact Wally for any notices to distribute or information of potential interest to the Voyageur VAF community.

If you find any omissions or errors, please contact …… Scouter Jocelyn Remus-Robinson at cascahawk@gmail.com or 613-592-4738

… and visit the VAF website for a goldmine of information, including present, past and future events