05/20/2020
Attention all 2020 Grey Wolf NYLT Registrants, Families, and Unit Leaders,
As you may have heard, in coordination with our key volunteers, Northern Star Scouting has made the difficult decision to delay the opening of our summer camp operations until July 5, 2020 for all overnight programs due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. This decision has impacted our scheduled Grey Wolf program. In addition to the nearly two month shutdown of in-person staff developments already experienced, this announcement impacts three of our scheduled four course weeks directly and has also impacted the ability for our 100% volunteer Grey Wolf Staff to complete the preparation needed to open in time to provide a quality program.
We have been working hard along the way to develop scenarios to ensure we are able to still offer this important experience to as many Scouts as possible this summer. We are currently evaluating staffing availability for alternative dates and are planning to still offer this Greyt program, albeit on a smaller scale. As we continue to wait for local and state health officials to release critical guidance that we will need to meet in order to reopen our overnight camps, we will be putting plans in place for a rescheduled program. Information regarding new program dates, how to register, and the refund process should your Scout not be able to attend the new dates will be available and sent to you by Friday, May 22, 2020.
The health and safety of our participants continues to be our top priority. We are actively working on key protocols (see below) for cleaning, sanitation and social distancing that will be necessary for our Grey Wolf program to open. We are also benchmarking our processes against those developed by industry experts for the American Camp Association and the CDC.
Examples of Changes to Grey Wolf 2020:
Heightened sanitation and cleaning – more frequent required handwashing, greater access to handwashing and hand sanitizer, additional cleaning of high touch surfaces, sanitizing program equipment between each use, elimination of self-serve dining and program supplies, additional screening protocols before travel and once arriving at camp.
Social distancing – course schedules will be simplified to reduce contact among attendees, large group gatherings in confined spaces will be avoided. Single person tenting will be encouraged, capacities will be reduced.
Thank you for your patience and understanding,
Brad Peterson
Northern Star Scouting
Volunteer Grey Wolf NYLT Coordinator