Generations Connection: share your Scouting legacy

This week, Bob Mersereau, BSA National Director, 100th Anniversary Project, inspired thousands of Americans during a national audiocast  while launching another outstanding centennial celebration program called Generations Connection.

Generations Connection celebrates the legacy of Scouting by telling the compelling story of America's largest youth-based organization in a very unique way; one-family at a time. Think of it as Scouting's family tree. For first-generation Scouts, the program helps them realize the value of carrying Scouting traditions forward and can be a powerful recruiting tool for local councils. For veteran Scouting families, it provides them with a deep, meaningful way to convey individual appreciation for the impact BSA has had on the American family for the last 100 years.

Through a series of relevant events Generations Connection challenges local councils, such as Greater Yosemite Council in the Central Valley of California, to tell their story.  By engaging the local community and partnering with charters and civic organizations, the Generations Connection program can help local councils reach their goals of engaging new families into Scouting, keeping current families engaged and enhancing the profile of Scouting in the community.

Mersereau was joined by Kevin Sander, Corporate Partnerships Arbor Day Foundation, Eric Moore, Brand Manager for Boy Scouts of America, Nicole Selinger and Julie Bulthaus from Fleishman-Hillard for the webcast. Together the inspirational team motivated tuned-in Scouters in Lodi, Stockton, surrounding regions and across the nation to launch this impactful BSA program by defining the core components of the program:   

Symbolism of the family tree
The tree is an important symbol of the family. A family tree spans generations, much the same as does the legacy of Scouting. Through a partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation, official BSA 100th Anniversary trees are now being offered.

For each centennial tree sold and planted locally, another will be planted in a specially designated area of the Flathead National Forest near Glacier National Park in Montana known as the BSA Centennial Forest. 

Tree-plantings can be done in a very public ceremonial way or a private memorial. Developing an urban forest with BSA centennial trees is an excellent Eagle Scout or Troop project. So far more than 1,200 trees have been sold, resulting in 2,400 trees planted to-date. Interested individuals can contact their local council for more information.  There is a council locator hyperlink in the sidebar of this article.

Organizations such as Tree Lodi are excellent partners to contact for such events.  Joyce Harmon, president of the non-profit Tree Lodi, is herself a legacy Scouter. Her father is noted for being in the first Scout troop led by Lord Baden Powell. Generations Connection unearths stories like this all across America. 

Tell your story
BSA's 100th anniversary website is the designated space for scouts, scouters and families to memorialize the story of their personal Scouting legacy. Share your story with America and receive a generational scouting family certificate.  Read one of the many stories left on the site, to inspire and remind you of the lasting values Scouting bestows on the millions of youth it has served over the years. 

For More Information:
100th Anniversary Celebration Generations Connection Website
To order a Centennial Tree, click Arbor Day Foundation
To tell your story; leave your Scouting legacy
Download a Generations Connection Family Tree Official Certificate

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