Connecticut Yankee Council cooks up new way of camping for scouts

Carson Tosta, an Eagle Scout from Guilford, sits in the tent he put up in his backyard.

Carson Tosta, an Eagle Scout from Guilford, sits in the tent he put up in his backyard.

Photo: Contributed Photo

Carson Tosta, an Eagle Scout from Guilford, sits in the tent he put up in his backyard.

Carson Tosta, an Eagle Scout from Guilford, sits in the tent he put up in his backyard.

Photo: Contributed Photo

Connecticut Yankee Council cooks up new way of camping for scouts

MILFORD —With school winding down and overnight camps canceled due to COVID-19, the Boy Scouts of America Connecticut Yankee Council is introducing a new way to camp this summer.

Camp Phoenix is a remote camping experience that allows scouts to safely camp from their backyards and connect remotely for official Scouting activities and programs.

"Camp Phoenix brings what scouts love from traditional camping to their backyards," said Michael Morrell, director of camping for the Connecticut Yankee Council.

"This is a creative and innovative way to camp and work on merit badges, accept Firebird challenges, join in camp lore and other official scout programs," Morrell said. "We may be physically apart, but this is a way to connect during these challenging times."

The Connecticut Yankee Council is the local chapter of the Boy Scouts of America, providing programs and services to more than 9,700 young people and 3,300 volunteers in Fairfield, New Haven and parts of Hartford counties in Connecticut.

Registered scouts can experience hikes, runs and walks as well as community service and other initiatives utilizing their Scout training to meet challenges and complete programs. scouts can choose from 60 merit badges to complete ranging from astronomy, photography, landscape architecture, music and more, the organization said.

"Our scouts were excited for camp this summer, and so were we, but the safety of our scouts, their families, leaders and our camp staff is our top priority," said Bob Brown, vice president for communications and marketing for the Connecticut Yankee Council.

"That said, our teams have been working hard to create a unique summer camp experience that is mostly offline activities, taking scouts off the computer as much as possible and getting them outdoors," Brown said. "We're looking forward to welcoming scouts to Camp Phoenix."

Through the program, scouts also will learn basic Scout Skills while working on advancement requirements, according to the organization. Topics of instruction include knots, first aid, physical activities and others. In addition, scouts will receive a creative "swag bag" a T-shirt, patch and other camp-related items, the organization said.

"Above all else, this is about having fun and enjoying the outdoors safely this summer versus being tethered to televisions, smart devices or video games," Morrell said. "In fact, up to 60 percent of the activities for Camp Phoenix take place offline."

Registration is now open, and camps run weekly starting June 28.

For more information and to register, visit: http://www.ctyankee.org/camp-phoenix.

For more information on the Boy scouts of America, visit www.Scouting.org.

william.bloxsom@hearstmediact.com Twitter: @blox354

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