It’s a fact that today’s youth spend considerably less time outdoors than their parents did as children. There are things that we learn outside like no other place – from peaceful solitude to seeing the character of God in creation.
Trail Life USA is a adventure, character, and leadership program for young men. Operating from Troops that are chartered through churches in 48 states, the K-12 program centers on outdoor experiences that build a young man’s skills and allow him to grow on a personal level and as a role model and leader for his peers.
Living the Trail Life is a journey established on timeless values derived from the Bible.
MOTTO
“Walk Worthy” Colossians 1:10 “… that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;…”
TRAIL LIFE USA & Troop 942 – , guide Trail men to honor God, lead with integrity, serve others and experience outdoor adventure.
Troop 942 which meets at Calvary Baptist Church which has a rich heritage in scouting and is excited to offer this new outdoor adventure program for the young “trail men” in our community.
This program is more than just experiencing the outdoors and changing boys to men. Trail Life seeks to develop character traits that last a lifetime. You might say it’s a living out of I Corinthians 13:11: When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put away childish things.
A healthy troop must have good leaders. In most cases, our “Trail guides” often move through the program with the youth they come in with – meaning there is regularly a need for new leaders. If you have a passion for the discipleship of young men, or are seeking a program for your young man, we would love to talk to you.
Trail Life Troop 942 of Winston-Salem will hold an Open House on Monday December 4th from 6:30-7:30PM at the Calvary Baptist Church Sechrist Building on 5000 Country Club Road.
For more information on Trail Life USA & Troop 942, visit the Ministry Of The Month link at wbfj dot fm.
It is always encouraging to see young men go from elementary school age to high schoolers and developing into mature young men. It is common to see younger boys that seem to be known for behavior problems join the troop, focus that energy into trail life, and then develop into mature young men.
In Trail life we tend to live out 1 Corinthians 13:11
When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.
Honor God: Trail Life USA has wonderful training with faith building courses but a Christian Worldview is built into a Trail men’s journey throughout his time in a troop.
Lord Robert Baden-Powell had a Christian belief in God. He stated so in his book Scouting for Boys: “We aim for the practice of Christianity in their everyday life and dealings, and not merely the profession of theology on Sundays…”
The carrots in the cake are not in big and obvious chunks, but are still present throughout the entire cake, as are the assumptions of a Christian worldview throughout the entire program.
Lead with integrity: We teach Leadership by mentoring, targeted training, and on the job training within the patrol method.
Patrol Method T.E.A.M Skill Training Method
Camping trips T ELL the trail men about the skill
Meal planning E XHIBIT the skill to the Trail man
Cooking A SSIST the Trail man on the skill.
Clean up M EASURE the Trail man’s success
Fire Tending Adventurers Council
Site Layout Meal with a Special Speaker
Serve others: A trail man is taught to be a leader you must serve first. A part of every trail life year comes with many service projects from planting trees, picking up trash to doing literacy projects in the local community.
What is a Leader?
Diakonos = Servant Mark 10:42-45 Vs. 43 Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant
Vs 44 to be great = be a servant, to be first = be a slave, the Son came to serve
How does a True Leader lead? A true leader serves first (John 13:4)
How does Leader lead well?
Knows the Way – Do you know what to do? (John 14:6)
Goes the Way – Do others trust you by seeing you do it? (1 Peter 2:21)
Shows the Way – Can you teach others to do it? (Matthew 7:29)
Experience outdoor adventure: Many national studies show a trend of US youth spending less and less time outdoors than their parents did as children. There are things we learn outside like no other place from peaceful solitude and new friendships to seeing the character of God in a new way. A trail men in a trail life troop not only will have the opportunity to experience outdoor adventure through many different camping trips but they also learn the outdoor skills so that they can enjoy the outdoors even more. Sometimes a young man might say he doesn’t like camping which might mean he doesn’t really know how to camp. We can teach him!
Trail Life USA is a Christ-centered outdoor adventure, leadership, and character development ministry.
STATEMENT OF VALUES
Purity // God calls us to lives of holiness, being pure of heart, mind, word and deed. We are to reserve sexual activity for the sanctity of marriage, a lifelong commitment before God between a man and a woman.
Service // God calls us to become responsible members of our community and the world through selfless acts that contribute to the welfare of others.
Stewardship // God calls us to use our God-given time, talents, and money wisely.
Integrity // God calls us to live moral lives that demonstrate an inward motivation to do what is biblically right regardless of the cost.
Piedmont – Triad region – Point Man Kevin Studebaker tl.usa.triad@gmail.com 336-671-9599 https://www.facebook.com/nctraillife/
NC-0942 Trail life since 2013- James B Sechrist Building 5000 Country Club Rd Winston-Salem, NC 27104 (Former BSA troop 942 founded in 1954 – 176 eagles through 2012) Alan Casey Troopmaster
336-575-9069 ajcasey99@triad.rr.com
NC-1130 First Christian Church 1130 N. Main Street Kernersville, NC 27284
NC-0007 Mt. Carmel United Methodist 361 Mount Carmel Church Road Reidsville, NC 27320
NC-0925 Pleasant Garden Baptist Church 1415 Neelley Rd Pleasant Garden, NC 27313
NC-4125 Community Bible Church 4125 Johnson Street High Point, NC 27265
NC-0121 Heath Church 1375 Heath Church Rd Lexington, NC 2729
NC-0128 Meadowview Presbyterian Reform 1 Graceway Drive Lexington, NC 27295
NC-0226 Outreach America 1897 Love Joy Rd Troy, NC 27371
NC-0316 Fancy Gap Baptist Church 1161 West Lebanon Street Mount Airy, NC 27030
NC-4031 Charity Baptist church 121 N.Wilson Road Lowgap, NC 27024
NC-0164 Celebration Church 164 Celebration Way North Wilkesboro, NC 28659
NC-0200 Westwood Baptist Church 970 Leasburg Road Roxboro, NC 27573
Trail Life USA basic Stats:
Trail life is a 5 year old youth organization How old is Trail Life? 4 years 1/1/13
700 troops 26,000 members in 48 states
North Carolina has 46 troops all across the state.
http://www.traillifeusa.com/whoweare
How old is troop 942? 60 – 63 years old, Our first Scout master was James Secrist in 1954 and in 1957 we award our 1st Eagle Scout. From 1957 – 2012 troop 942 has awarded 176 eagles.
Trail life troop 942 hopes to award quite few Horizon awards this year and maybe its first Freedom award maybe this year.
How old is Trail Life? 4 years 1/1/13
How many troops are there in NC. Around 46 with new charters every year.
How many Trail Life members are there? 26,000 & 700 troops , At least one troop in 48 states.
What is the Trail Life Motto? Walk Worthy
Trail man oath,
On my honor, I will do my best to serve God and my
country, to respect authority, to be a good steward of
creation, and to treat others as I want to be treated.
Scout Oath or Promise
On my honor I will do my best, To do my duty to God and my country
and to obey the Scout Law; To help other people at all times; To keep myself physically strong,
mentally awake, and morally straight.
Scout Law = A Scout is …
trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent.
Core Values
Understanding the Core Values and Culture of the Program
CHRIST-CENTERED
The carrots in the cake are not in big and obvious chunks, but are still present throughout the entire cake, as are the assumptions of a Christian worldview throughout the entire program.
CHURCH-OWNED AND OPERATED
The Charter Organizations (most commonly churches) in the TLUSA program do not merely allow the organization to use space to meet in their building.
OUTDOOR-FOCUSED
This enables our program to instill “Adventure, Character, and Leadership” traits in boys and young men.
SAFETY
Trail Life USA is committed to the health, welfare, and safety of our youth, volunteers, staff, and employees.
COURAGE
The morals and values of our country are deteriorating at an exponential rate and are becoming increasingly opposed to true Christian values. With this cultural pressure in mind, we will continually commit ourselves to the truths found in the scriptures, that we are to fear God and not man, and that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and understanding.
MALE-CENTERED ADULT LEADERSHIP
TLUSA is a program focused on turning boys into godly men. Our firm conviction is that this can only be done by allowing a boy the opportunity to interact, work with, and be mentored by and with other Christian men. All direct contact positions, other than in the Woodlands Trail program for younger boys 5-10 years old, must be filled by men.
VOLUNTEER-DRIVEN
Trail Life USA will be operated and supported by volunteers at every level..
PROGRAM FLEXIBILITY
The flexibility principle behind our program elements allows local Troops to adapt the program to fit the needs of their unit.
SHARED LEADERSHIP
Since the founding of the organization by a wide coalition of leaders in Louisville, Kentucky in June of 2013, TLUSA has operated under the principle of shared leadership.
YOUTH-CENTERED LEADERSHIP
The youth should be leading other youth. Our firm conviction is that the only way a young man is going to learn the art of true Christian leadership is to allow him to initiate, to lead, and even to make mistakes.
CHARACTER-FOCUSED, NOT AWARDS-FOCUSED
Some boys’ programs are very focused on helping the boy achieve as many awards as he can in the shortest period of time to achieve the highest rankings and awards the program has to offer. In contrast, TLUSA is more concerned with building character than with earning badges and ranks.
SERVANT LEADERSHIP
Leadership with a servant’s attitude by both adults and youth is a core value of TLUSA. Servant leadership is characterized by humility and the willingness to work alongside others and not just “boss” people around. Leading by example and sacrifice are also qualities of servant leadership.
FAMILY-ORIENTED
While this will not be the case in every location, ideally the goal would be to create a “family-centered” youth-enrichment experience where on one night, in one location, boys and their dads can participate in Trail Life USA, and girls and their moms can be involved with American Heritage Girls. There are many obvious strengths to this model, and those who are able to experience it will discover lasting impact and accelerated spiritual growth for every member of the family.
DECENTRALIZED DECISION-MAKING
Pursuant to the TLUSA By-Laws, after January 1, 2015, decisions regarding changes to the most important elements of the organization will be made by each Charter Organization casting a vote, and not by professionals or delegates chosen by professionals.
DEBT AVERSE
The National Board of Directors is committed to being debt averse. The organization will continue to be self-funded with the annual budget for operating expenses growing in direct proportion to fees generated by the growth of the membership.
WALK WORTHY!
“… that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;…”Colossians 1:10
Boy Scouts of America Should Let Boys be Boys 10/25/2017 1:00:00 PM by: Mark Hancock Original article appeared on Fox News website on 10/20/2017
Do the leaders of the Boy Scouts of America understand the first word of their organization’s name?
With its recent announcement that it will admit girls, the Boy Scouts organization has not simply shown a profound disregard for its admirable roots. It has further abandoned boys to a culture that values them less and less.
Dressed in the language of equality and fairness, the move by the Boy Scouts may seem harmless enough. But I believe it’s unhelpful at best and damaging at worst – to both boys and girls.
However much some may wish it were otherwise, the reality is that males and females are fundamentally different in many ways – physically, emotionally and in their relationships. Pretending otherwise in the name of progress or permissiveness might be culturally acceptable, but it does both sexes a disservice.
One of those differences, in most cases, is the way boys and girls learn. Girls are more likely to do well in the quiet control of a classroom, while boys squirm and struggle.
Daring, action and competition – potential strengths that rival focus, reflection, and consensus – are qualities that need to be fostered and filtered. Boys know that rough-and-tumble play – like playing with squirt guns and laser tag – does just that. Restrictions on this are alienating and downplay the natural tendencies of boys.
Boys need strong male role models. They also need a place for adventure and opportunities to test themselves in pursuit of awards that challenge and channel their innate drive and daring. In this way they can be helped to grow into men of true strength, real character, and genuine conviction – not Hollywood’s distorted version of manhood.
Sadly, the Boy Scouts appear to have bought into the idea that rather than being something to be celebrated and championed, boyhood is something to be watered down. They are discounting a historically male-focused experience that made presidents, astronauts and leaders of mere men. Indeed, making the inclusivity announcement on the International Day of the Girl Child could be considered the ultimate put-down.
Don’t misunderstand: I’m not inferring that girls are lesser or inferior. The Boy Scouts message is actually that boys are lesser and inferior because their uniqueness needs to be denied rather than directed, stifled rather than strengthened.
While I’m clarifying something, let me also emphasize that my conviction that we must provide space for “boys to be boys” does not mean I’m advocating a breeding ground for a future generation of sexual predators.
Indeed, I believe one of the main reasons we see the sort of indefensible behavior by men in power – like the actions Harvey Weinstein is accused of – is a lack of the kind of mentoring and coaching that models true manhood.
I’m talking about instilling in today’s boys a culture of respect, honor and integrity. Properly guided, the drive and daring tendencies in boys will lead them to become the determined, focused, winning men of tomorrow who appreciate the uniqueness and dignity of women.
You don’t have to look too far to see that at every level of society we are losing ground in areas as basic as kindness, self-control, respect, honor and purity. These should be taught and modeled for boys in an atmosphere designed for their unique temperament under the tutelage of men with the mettle to guide, alongside their peers.
Robert Baden-Powell would not now recognize the organization he founded in 1910. But while the Boy Scouts may have lost their way, they are not alone. They are just another group favoring trendy political correctness over time-honored principled convictions.
The results of all this are sadly too evident when it comes to our sons. Boys are losing out in any number of categories, from heightened special education involvement and ADHD diagnoses to lower high school rankings and college attendance.
While my dismay at the Boy Scouts decision centers on what this means for boys, I am also concerned about its impact on girls. What’s bad for the gander is equally bad for the goose.
Girls, though wired differently, equally need an environment that caters to their unique traits and qualities. You can’t deliver a program at a character-changing level with any real effectiveness in the same style to two different types of learners.
As Baden-Powell observed: “Girls should … take a real and not a visionary share in the welfare of the nation.”
But they shouldn’t be squeezed into a Boy Scout uniform.
One size does not fit all.
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