3 Rivers District - Serves parts of Richland County   District Chairman:                               Mark Cox   (803) 343-2285   District Commissioner:           Ernest Jones    (803) 318-2916   District Executive:   Wyndell Waldon   (803)260-7607   District Trainer:                      Nicholas Leitner   (803) 622-1783   Advancement Chairman:           Seth Peterson   (803)737-0597   Activities Chairman:            Angel Cruz   (803)609-5081   OA Advisor:       (803)   Camping & Outdoor Chairman:       (803)   Cub Scout Roundtable Commissioner:       (803)   Boy Scout Round Table Commissioner:       (803)   Day Camp Director:                                             September 1st-District Committee Meeting 9th-Roundtable Meeting 29th-Key 3 Meeting   October 2nd-Columbia Area Cuboree 6th-District Committee Meeting 8th & 9th-Quarterly Event-Congaree National Park 14th-Roundtable 14th-Program Specialist Meeting 23rd-Haunted Forest 27th-Key 3 Meeting   November 3rd-District Committee Meeting 11th-Roundtable 24th-Key 3 Meeting   December 1st-District Committee Meeting 9th-Roundtable Meeting 9th-Program Specialist Meeting 29th-Key 3 Meeting

Benefits of Scouting:
National Boy Scouts of America studies, conducted by Harris Interactive in 2005, demonstrate that boys with at least five years of Scouting are more likely than those who have never been Scouts to:

• Assume leadership roles in clubs and school organizations
• Have higher self-confidence
• Resist negative peer pressure
• Consider the needs of others first

Risk factors for disadvantaged youth

• Youth in low income families often have decreased parental involvement, due to single-parent homes or parents working multiple jobs.
• Youth are at-risk for failing grades, truancy and possible high school dropout.

• Adult mentors: Providing quality Scouting programs, led by a caring adult mentor
• Teaching youth valuable life lessons and decision-making skills enables them to be better prepared to handle life’s challenges.
• Creation of a 3 Rivers Emphasis District: serves concentrated areas of youth in Richland County.
• Program specialists, many being off-duty police officers, are hired as part-time unit leaders in areas where there is not an adult available to take this role.
• Council-wide, 3 Rivers units are started in underserved, low income neighborhoods and 3 Rivers youth participate in typical units as identified by unit leaders.
• Special Assistance is provided in the form of financial aid to low income youth to pay for uniforms, camp and activity scholarships, badges and other items as deemed necessary by the Scout leader to make the program possible for the Scout.

• Twenty-two ScoutReach units have been formed in the eight-county Council
• 2,007 youth and adults are being served as of the end of 2006
• 1,062 youth and adults received special assistance funding in 2006.
• New programs were started at Riverside Apartments located off of Broad River Road; Allen-Benedict Court, off of Harden Street and Hyatt Park Elementary School, near Columbia College.
• The Scoutreach District/3 Rivers celebrated its first Eagle Scout in 2006.
• Scouting programs were started at the Department of Juvenile Justice.
• An all-Hispanic pack and troop were chartered
• Scoutreach programs contributed hundreds of pounds of food to the Scouting for Food Drive in 2006, food that was delivered to Housing Authorities where Scouts lived.

• To increase the number of 3 Rivers units and youth served throughout the Council by partnering with local community organizations.
• To increase the number of volunteers serving in leadership roles in existing and new 3 Rivers units.
• To increase funding for the 3 Rivers program in order to continue to support existing units as well as grow the program Council-wide.