Boy Scouts of America

The Scouting Facts

About Jim Wisely

Jim Wisely joined Troup 145 of Raytown, Missouri, shortly after his eleventh birthday and was active as a boy up through his college years.

As a Scout, he served as assistant patrol leader, patrol leader, assistant senior patrol leader, senior patrol leader, and junior assistant Scoutmaster.

He earned his God and Country award through the Episcopal Church when he was thirteen.

When he was fourteen, Jim was asked to give a speech on behalf of the 330 Scouts who received Eagle at the same time that he did when Eagle Courts of Honor in the Kansas City area were still held on a council-wide basis.

He spent four summers as a camper and seven summers as a member of the camp staff of the H. Roe Bartle Scout Reservation near Osceola, Missouri.

As an adult, he was a committe member of Boy Scout troops 335 and 469 in Raytown, Missouri, and attended camp with each troup for one summer.

Jim Wisely has NOT been active in the Boy Scouts of America anywhere for fifteen years.

Send Him to Camp!

The hills of Osceola
Are calling me today.
"Come back along the Scouting trail,"
Their voices seem to say.
I dream of woodland vallelys
And pathways that I knew
And answer, "Osceola hills,
I'm coming back to you."

1961-63 - Camper - Camp Sawmill

1964 - Camper - Camp Frontier (Now: Camp Piercing Arrow)

1965 - Staff - Camp Wigwam (Now: Camp Lone Star) Scoutcraft Instructor

(Taught Camping, Cooking, and Pioneering skills and merit badges.)

1966 - Staff - Camp Wigwam Scoutcraft Instructor

(Taught Camping, Cooking, and Pioneering merit badeges and second- and first-class skills.)

1967 - Staff - Camp Wigwam Scoutcraft Instructor

(Taught Camping, Cooking, and Pioneering merit bades and all Scoutcraft skills.)

1968 - Staff - Camp Sawmill Scoutcraft Counselor

(Supervised the Scoutcraft program area in Camp Sawmill and supervised four instructors [15-17 years])

1969 - Staff - Camp Wigwam Scoutcraft Counselor

(Supervised the Scoutcraft program in Wigwam, which had by then been merged with the Dan Beard Camping program: a three-day camput at an outpost camp where the Scoutcraft Counselor served as "Scoutmaster" of a "troup" of thirty-two scouts organized into four patrols of eight each.)

1970 - Staff - Camp Wigwam Scoutcraft Couneslor/Reservation Director of the three Scoutcraft areas/Dan Beard Director

(Served as Scoutcraft Counselor of Camp Wigwam and assumed the role of Reservation Director over all three Scoutcraft areas in the middle of the summer: ran the entire program at Dan Beard, serving as camp director, quartermaster, program director, etc.; and superrivsed the other two Scoutcraft counselors and their program areas and staffs.)

1971 - Staff - Reservation Director of Scoutcraft/Dan Beard Director

(Served as the director of the entire Scoutcraft program, with supervision over eighteen [16-17-years] staff members, three [19-21 years] counselors, and adult volunteers. Planned menus, wrote a ninety-page training manual for staff, designed safety and health procedures, and otherwise handled day-to-day supervision of the Dan Beard camp as well as supervised the programs of the three Scoutrcraft areas.)

Tribe of Mic-O-Say

The H. Roe Bartle Scout Reservation, located just outside of Osceola, Missouri, is one of the largest Boy Scout camps in the United States. It is actually three camps in one: Camp Lone Star, Camp Sawmill, and Camp Piercing Arrow. The three camps each run the same program simultaneously for six nine-day sessions each summer. Since merging with the Kaw Council in Kansas, the Heart of America Council has a second camp in Camp Nash.

Jim Wisely attended the H. Roe Bartle Scout Reservation for eleven summers, from the time he was eleven years old until his college years. His first four years were spent as a camper. His fourth year he was called out for the camp's honor camper program.

The Tribe of Mic-O-Say is similar to the national Boy Scout honor camper program of Order of the Arrow, which is offered by Camp Nash, in using American Indian customs and traditions to promote good citizenship skills. Mic-O-Say, created by former mayor of Kansas City and former head of the Kansas City area council of the Boy Scouts, H. Roe Bartle, was started before Order of the Arrow, but the latter organization was adopted by the national movement because it was more wide-spread.

Boys are called out for "brave" at around the age of fourteen. If they return another year, they may then be called out for "warrior." After that, boys are eligible for additional recognitions which are designated by the color of paint worn on the tips of the plastic claws that tribesmen wear. Boys may receive additional recognitiions up to the age of twenty-one.

After the age of twenty-one, "hardway warriors" are only eligible for Tribal Council recongitions, designated by the color of white on the end of their claws. Adult leaders may enter the tribe after the age of twenty-one as Honorary Warriors or Honored Women and are only eligible for Tribal Council responsibilities and higher.

Jim Wisely was called for "brave" as a camper and for "warrior" as a member of the camp staff. He earned additional recognitions during his staff years, indicated below, until he earned the Tribal Council designation of Sachem at twenty years of age. He returns to camp on occasion to counsel new tribesmen and to take part in tribal ceremonies and tradtions.

1964 - Brave

1965 - Warrior and Firebuilder

1966 - Tom-tom Beater and Runner

1967 - Keeper of the Sacred Bundle

1968 - Shaman

1970 - Sachem

"Softly falls the light of day

As our campfire fades away.

Silently, each Scout should ask,

'Have I done my daily task?

Have I kept my honor bright?

Can I guiltless sleep tonight?

Have I done and have I dared

Everything to be prepared?'"

"Tell me why the starlit sky.

Tell me why the oak trees high.

Tell me why the sunset hue

Tell me, Osceola, why we all love you.

"Because God made the starlit sky.

Because God made the oak trees high.

Because God made the sunset hue.

That's why, Osceola, why we all love you."

"On my honor, I'll do my best

To do my duty to God.

On my honor, I'll do my best

To serve my country as I may.

On my honor, I'll do my best

To do a good turn each day.

To keep my body strengthened

And keep my mind awakened.

To follow paths of righteousness--

On my honor, I'll do my best."