I want to help!

All of us in the VBC really enjoy what we do, and we appreciate the nearly instant and universal enthusiasm and gratitude our efforts seem to generate : ) We love Scouting, and our work with the troop here, and are SO appreciative of the ongoing help and partnerships we have made and are making around the world!

That said, there are some practical realities to our situation over here that must be addressed bluntly, so here we go:

1 - YOU ARE MANY, WE ARE FEW
There are only, at best, a couple dozen of us doing this volunteer work over here. Even if only a tiny fraction of the thousands of BSA troops and councils and supporters engages us, we can quickly become overwhelmed. We also represent only one (growing) troop, and have limited storage space, so unsolicited donations can also overwhelm us. To really help us, review the priority list below and consider carefully if and how you can impact it. Firm up a plan, then engage us with details and plan to execute quickly.

2 - OUR DAY JOBS ARE 24/7
The military joke of "overtime is authorized" is very much in play here in the combat zone. For most of us there are no weekends, no holidays, no days off. Many of us work 12-18 hrs days, 7 days a week, for a year or more straight. Key players may be out on mission or travel or (more to our liking) R&R leave. Responses may not be immediate, but on the flip side, we put much of our precious free time into troop activities. The best solutions are ones that don't involve a ton of input or time from us. We are usually hard pressed just to hold things together on a week to week basis, but somehow we always pull it off (so far!)

3 - WE ARE NOT IN THE USA
This has a couple of ramifications. We are not a council like a BSA council, we do not set policy for the Iraqis, we are partnered with them. We are not planting U.S. scouting among the Iraqis, we are fostering the (re)-growth of a vibrant Iraqi Scouting program. We have ENORMOUS cultural, practical, logistical and security constraints that we work under. Things that smack of "America" are generally avoided (e.g. BSA uniforms, American flagged items), but things that are SCOUT themed (e.g. Fleur De Lis) are good to go. Shipping to the US is also difficult, often involving up to an hour for each post office run. Consolidated orders for shirts and patches are key. Even better, we can authorize larger entities (US Councils or a really gung-ho troop) to direct purchase our fund-raiser items from the manufacturer and route the profits from the sales to the BSA World Friendship Fund with an earmark for Iraqi Scouting. The shipping issue also means that any supplies you wish to send us will 1-3 weeks to arrive, even using Priority Mail.

4 - FLARE AND FADE
It is hard for us to put time into planning and then have the plan die on the vine. Initial flares of interest and plans can fade away, we have found. Please be sure you have the energy to run the whole pass route and make the reception and score the touchdown. This is why we have the priority list and tag each one with an "owner" who has signed up with a date. This way, we can track it and if it stalls out, someone else can jump in. We are always struggling to firm up our calendar of events and if something is on the priority list it means we are ready to deliver a program as soon as someone can help us out, so you will have a very quick feedback once you engage an item on the list. Generally your support will be felt by the Scouts within a week of things arriving here, and you'll see it documented on this site.

*** EASY DONATION OPTION – Iraqi Scouting Program

To contribute directly to the "bottom line" of Iraqi Scouting (as we do with the profits from our fundraising) you can send a check to the BSA, made out to the "World Friendship Fund", with a note on the memo line that it is for "Iraqi Scouting/VBC". Address & Point of Contact for such donations is:
Janine Halverson
International Division - S221
Boy Scouts of America
P.O. Box 152079
1325 West Walnut Hill Lane
Irving, TX 75015-2079

Phone: 972-580-240 1Fax: 972-580-2413
Email: jhalvers@netbsa.org

If you wish to simply purchase a few shirts or patches, or make a larger order for a group, please contact our fundraising officer (information on the "STORE" page)

EASY SUPPLY OPTION – Victory Base Council (VBC)

We are always looking for Patrol based games and activities and scout crafts for our boys, and good craft projects or games for our girls. If you can come up with an idea, and package up the instructions and supplies to complete it, we have plenty of enthusiastic volunteers to execute the idea. This makes you part of our weekly program, see? Our biggest struggle is to research activities, scrounge up supplies, and pull it all together for each meeting. Depending on how many youths we bring in from outside the base, we can have between 30 and 80 boys and girls at each meeting.

If you have an idea but are not certain about it, please contact us with your plan, as fully described as possible, and we'll collaborate with you to firm it up. We are always grateful for help in keeping our program fresh and fun!

Please coordinate all fundraising and donations through the following contact.

SHIPPING ADDRESS:
Timothy Norwood
CACI/GENESIS III
09342 APO AE

Please email to confirm current Point of Contact, with all the drawdown and turnover, it is hard to keep this up to date : )

e-mail at:
timothy.norwood@iraq.centcom.mil

Our Current “TOP TEN” Priority List AS OF OCT 2010

WE REGRET TO SAY THAT LARGE DONATIONS OF CLOTHES AND RANDOM ITEMS CREATE MORE OF A PROBLEM THAN THEY SOLVE. WE HAVE LIMITED STORAGE AND OUR IRAQI FRIENDS MOSTLY HAVE CLOTHES. THERE ARE MANY THINGS THAT ARE IN SHORT (or NO) SUPPLY HERE, SO CERTAIN DONATIONS CAN BE HUGELY HELPFUL. PLEASE CONTACT BEFORE SHIPPING.

1 Uniform shirts (light blue, long sleeve, breast pockets, epaulettes)
2 Neckerchiefs (dark blue, silk-like)
3 Neckerchief slides
4 Berets (black)
5 Soccer goals
6 Volleyball nets *** DONATION IN HAND, THANKS!
7 Tennis racquets and balls
8 Ice Machine
9 Sturdy Foosball tables (2)
10 550 cord, multi colors

PREVIOUS LIST OF NEEDS:

1 - KITEMAKING SUPPLIES / KITS

2 - Girl Guides (Girl Scouts) Craft supplies
Lots of colors of pony beads and gymp to string them on. Iraq’s national colors are red, black, white and green, but all colors are in demand. This can also include design plans to make certain shapes. Also includes stick glue, glitter is a huge demand.

3 - Leatherworking
Tools, equipment and supplies for ongoing kit use. This should include hammers, punches, dies, etc. Kits for a craft, such as is sold in BSA Council Stores (wrist band, etc).

4 - Basic First Aid supplies we could use some common first aid items; such as band
aids, antibacterial cream, gauze and medical tape

5- Scout Crafts
Idea Books on how to make Scout related items. The items themselves, basketry, or coin pouches you stitch together, etc.

6 - Tie Dye project, needing dyes / bands / instructions and a bunch of white T-shirts in kids / young adult sizes.

7 - Every so often we take the children fishing, I'm
not looking for lures, but rather basic bait fishing items; such as,
hooks, swivels, slip shot sinkers, bobbers, and fishing line.

8 - "Cool stuff", such as balsa plane kits, or such things. Low cost but big response from the boys.

Past Donations – A Huge Thanks to All!!!
(is your donation not on here? TELL US, we may have lost track!)
(Issue / Owner)

Basic Camping Demo Set / The Postons
Delivered July 2008, put to use next meeting in Tent Demo.

Cooking/Camping gear / Coleman and SPIRIT of AMERICA
Delivered OCT 08, shared with Green Zone Council, in use.

School supplies – Too Large of a Group to Count!
Delivered OCT 08, from Greg H. and SPIRIT of AMERICA, provided to schools and in use.

Sports uniforms and clothing / Logan Miller & Keith Blackey and DHL
Delivered SEP 09 and distributed.

January 2010
Troop 325
Lancaster, NY
Woodworking craft supplies

January 2010
Home Depot
Lancaster, NY
Woodworking Helicopters

January 2010
Lowes
Lancaster, NY
Wood Working Drum Sets

March 2010
Ronald Kvale
Forest City, IA
Shirts, Sports equipment, craft projects