About Me
I love Scouting. I come from a long line (well, a line of 4) of Scouts. My three older brothers are all Eagles and inspired me to earn my own Eagle distinction. Since my first camping experience in a tent by myself with a troop I didn't know, listening to the weird sounds of the woods and having spiders crawl who knows where, I learned a lot from Scouting. If anyone can do it, I can. Don't do it alone. Don't try to do it all at once. These are just a few of the life lessons that I have learned from Scouting.
Scouting is an exceptional place to learn leadership, cooperation, and how to make a difference in our community. But more importantly, I love the girls in my Troop. When I heard that the national United Methodist Church would no longer charter Scout Units, I was concerned about the future of my Troop. Sure, I was concerned for my own experience, but mostly I was concerned that so many of my friends, and other young men and women in my community, would miss out on the benefits of Scouting – a horrible result for each Scout and a terrible loss for our community.
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My goal in creating GLDN was simply to preserve the Scouting experience for future youth. Scouting has provided me with an exceptional exposure to my world and the confidence to fearlessly tackle life’s obstacles. I have learned from each of my amazing scouting experiences like various Eagle projects, fundraisers, service projects, camping trips, scouting summits, and lots of planning, playing, and learning. I want to make sure those experiences are available for the next cohort of young Scouts.
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I hope that, with the information in this website, that others can easily create a non-profit to charter other Scout units at risk of losing their charter.
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My trail of breadcrumbs
As some national organizations reconsider their charter relationship with Scouts BSA, many Scout Troops and Cub Packs are at risk. Many units must find new charters to remain active or risk dissolution. It is possible that other existing non-profits could accept the Scout unit charters. Fire Companies, churches, and community groups all frequently serve as charter organizations. However, in an area where Scout units are mature and established, many of those charter opportunities are already taken. So what can a Troop do if it is going to lose its charter? With a little bit of effort, there an easy way to pick up those charters and help continue Scouts important work of developing future leaders.
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In response to my Troop losing its charter, I started a non-profit called GLDN, the Growth and Leadership Development Network. It's sole purpose is to promote leadership development in youth.
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In this website, I will share the work product that I used to create my non-profit so others can create their own non-profit and help pick up Scout charters where national organizations are leaving off.
The very first step is to hire a good attorney. This website is not legal advice as I am not an attorney - I am only 14 years old. But the information contained here can help you think ahead about what you need to minimize the time required of your legal counsel.