On June 10, 2018, three young men from BS Troop 50 of Lincoln, Maine were honored to become 4 Star Recipients following in the footsteps of their sisters and cousin (the girls earned their awards in 2013 as members of GS Troop 632 and BSA Venture Crew 5064).   There have only been 6 recipients from Maine since 2005, and 5 have come from First United Methodist Church.  The families have been friends since preschool. This picture captures a special moment in the lives of the church and these families.  May the shared journey of earning the P.R.A.Y. Four Star Award launch these young people into a lifetime of Christian discipleship!

More than 200 American Heritage Girls attended Summer Camp 2018 at Camp Tulakogee in Oklahoma. Girls came from troops in Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Missouri and Kansas. This summer was the fourth year in a row that the Love God program was presented to all the girls at the AHG Summer camp sponsored by the OK0412 Camp Committee. The Love God puzzle patch challenges girls to earn their religious emblem. Over 200 girls earned their first, second or third patch at camp this year, and more than 20 girls earned their 4th patch, meaning they had been at camp four years in a row.

The Love God patch requires girls to memorize Mark 12:29-31. Here are some AHG girls practicing the hand motions to help them memorize “Love the Lord with all your …. MIND…” Reciting Bible verses was mentioned as a way to stay positive in a wilderness survival situation for the Survival, Search and Rescue badge taught at that camp.

Patches were provided by the Asbury United Methodist Women in Tulsa, Oklahoma, who hold a huge garage sale each year to fund projects to help Christian women.

As a Wolf Cub Scout working on God and Me in 2010, Stephen set a personal goal to earn the P.R.A.Y. Four Star Award. Why? Because his Dad had only earned three (God and Me didn’t exist at the time his Dad was in Scouts). Eight years later, on May 31, 2018, Stephen achieved his goal and was recognized as a Four Star Recipient. According to Stephen, “The awards are not that hard if you apply yourself. The time is well spent as you grow closer to God while working through the program.” Congratulations to father and son for their strong tradition of Duty to God!

Girl Scouts from 3 different troops - all members of St. Luke's Lutheran Church in Bay Shore, NY - worked together with their P.R.A.Y counselor and their families on the God and Family program. It was a wonderful bonding for all parties, and it opened up better communication channels for these young ladies and their families. They enjoyed the closeness and understanding of Family and God's importance in their lives. It was a great experience for everyone!

On May 6, 2018, Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church (ELCA) in Apple Valley, Minnesota presented the Four-Star Award to 7 Scouts who completed all four of the P.R.A.Y. Protestant religious emblems.  They were among 35 total Scouts who received religious emblems at this year’s religious emblems award ceremony.

Since the church started offering religious emblems classes in 2002, a total of 490 boys and girls have earned a total of 700 religious emblems.  Of those 490 Scouts, 27 have earned the Four-Star Award.  This year’s group of 7 Four Stars is by far the largest in the history of Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran church.