Greater New York Councils

History

The Greater New York Council office is located in the Empire State Building. The council currently operates and maintains three year round Scout camp properties in; William H. Pouch Scout Camp, Alpine Scout Camp, and Ten Mile River Scout Camps.

Bronx Borough

Formerly:

OA Chapter - Uteney Gohkos

Brooklyn Borough

OA Chapter - Shu-Shu-Gah

Manhattan Borough

OA Chapter - Man-a-Hattin

Queens Borough

OA Chapters - Matinecock (Founders District) & Mespaetch (Pathfinder/Tomahawk District)

Staten Island Borough

OA Chapter – Aquehonga

Ten Mile River Scout Camps

Ten Mile River Scout Camps (TMR) is a 12,000-acre (4,856 ha) - roughly the size of Manhattan - camp near Narrowsburg, New York, has four miles of frontage on the Delaware River, and is owned and operated by the Greater New York Councils of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) since 1928. It is the principal Boy Scout camp serving New York City. In recent years, TMR is also now increasingly used by other councils in New York state. Over the years, prominent Americans have been instrumental in its history, including Franklin D. Roosevelt and New York mayor William O'Dwyer.

History

TMR was founded as the result of efforts by the New York City Boy Scout Foundation beginning in 1924 to develop a camp large enough to accommodate the burgeoning growth of Scouting in the New York metropolitan area during the 1920s, with a goal of providing camping for 3,500 Scouts at a time. Led by future New York governor and President of the United States Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR), who was president of the New York City Boy Scout Foundation, the group selected TMR's present site, oversaw the land acquisition process from multiple owners, and raised funds for the large camp's development.

In recognition of his pivotal role in the founding and development of TMR, then-Governor Roosevelt received Scouting's Silver Buffalo Award in a ceremony held at the camp on August 23, 1930. Later, as recently elected president of the U.S., FDR returned again to the camp in the summer of 1933 to be inducted into the Order of the Arrow. By the summer of 1936, 10,000 boys were attending the camp each summer, the New York Times reported.

In 1952, a Manhattan Boy Scout was recognized as the 250,000th Scout to attend TMR and given a special award by FDR's widow, Eleanor Roosevelt. At its peak in 1965, Ten Mile River operated eleven camps with a peak usage of nearly 12,000 boys. Following a decline in the 1970s, five of TMR's eleven camps closed. By the late 1990s, attendance had rebounded to 6,000 Scouts.

Present

TMR is heavily wooded with hills overlooking the Delaware River. It has a 15 lakes and ponds, including Half Moon, Crystal, Nianque, Turnpike, and Rock, for boating, swimming, sailing, canoeing, rowing, kayaking and other aquatic activities, as well as an Olympic size pool. In addition to specialty camps such as Aviation Camp, National Youth Leader Training, Trail to Eagle Camp, Shooting Sports Camp, and Aquatics Camp, TMR has a central headquarters area, a state-of-the-art outdoor amphitheater, a high ropes team-building course, three climbing towers, an ATV program, horseback riding, sports complex, family Camp, and three active youth camps, each offering different programs and activities:

Closed camps

Crystal Lake

Lake Nianque

Davis Lake

Rock Lake

Alpine Scout Camp

Greater New York Councils also operates Alpine Scout Camp, located in Alpine, New Jersey. The camp is used for short-term wilderness camping, as well as long-term platform tent camping. Various activity areas include orienteering courses, a climbing wall, archery range, BB range, a pool, an activity center with indoor games, as well as a network of trails. "Cub World" includes a representation of a Wild West frontier fort and a large "land ship" used for many youth activities. During the summer, "Cub World" offers week-long over night camping experiences for 6- to 10-year-old boys.

Pouch Scout Camp

Greater New York Councils also operates Pouch Scout Camp, located in the Greenbelt Trail on Staten Island, New York. William H. Pouch Scout Camp, located in Staten Island, is New York City's only Scout Camp. Pouch Camp is open year round for Scouting activities. The camp is approximately 143 acres, including several cabins with capacity to hold 14 to 22 Scouts and Scouters. The camp also includes 55 leantos, 20 tent sites, and a low-impact Camp-O-Ree field with an adjacent amphitheater. There are numerous Picnic Groves as well as a Chapel. GNYC operates a summer day camp designed especially for Cub Scouts drawn from the surrounding communities.

Order of The Arrow

Recently, the Greater New York Councils merged each of the five boroughs' OA Lodges (Ranachqua #4, Shu-Shu-Gah #24, Man-a-Hattin #82, Suanhacky #49 and Aquehongian Lodge #112) and formed Kintecoying Lodge #4 - the new Order of the Arrow Lodge for the Greater New York Councils, BSA.

For over 100 years the Order of the Arrow has played a significant role in the life of millions of Scouts, shaping them to be young men dedicated to the cheerful service of others and bound in brotherhood to their fellow man. Soon after Dr. E. Urner Goodman and Col. Carol A. Edson founded our Order at Treasure Island Scout Camp in 1915, word of the Wimachtendienk came to New York City. In 1920, four men were inducted into the Order and formed the 4th Order of the Arrow Lodge in the country. It was on that evening that the rich history of Brotherhood, Cheerfulness, and Service began in what we now know as the Greater New York Councils.

For 93 years, the Greater New York Councils chartered 5 lodges, one in each borough. Ranachqua Lodge #4 was founded in 1920 and served the Bronx. Shu-Shu-Gah Lodge #24 was founded in 1925 and served Brooklyn. Suanhacky Lodge #49 was founded in 1930 and served Queens. Man-A-Hattin Lodge #82 was founded in 1935 and served Manhattan. Aquehongian Lodge #112 was founded in 1938 and served Staten Island.

On August 30, 2012, after careful consideration over the course of many months, former Scout Executive Charles Rosser (1954-2014) announced the decision that combining the council’s five Order of the Arrow lodges into a single lodge will allow the OA to better fulfill the Mission of the Lodge and the Purpose of the Order of the Arrow. A committee of ten youth and 7 adults were tasked with transitioning the OA in the Greater New York Councils.

Members of the transition team were: Representing Ranachqua Lodge, Brenden DelBene (Lodge Chief), Matthew Thomas and Marc Messenger (Lodge Adviser). Representing Shu-Shu-Gah Lodge, Robert Rowley (Lodge Chief), Nicholas Goldrosen, and Anthony Bracciante (Lodge Adviser). Representing Suanhacky Lodge, Anthony Lectora (Lodge Chief), Andrew Sommer, and Michael Lectora (Adviser). Representing Man-A-Hattin Lodge, Alan Tang (Lodge Chief), Brendan Looi, and Michael O’Brien (Lodge Adviser). Representing Aquehongian Lodge, Allan Feldman (Lodge Chief), Christopher Sorensen, and John Perchiacca (Lodge Adviser). Lodge Staff Adviser Christopher Coscia, and Lodge Adviser Designate Colin Pinnavaia rounded out the committee.

The team met nine times between the fall of 2012 and the spring of 2013 to discuss how the lodge would be organized, the lodge name and totem, lodge committees, and chapter organization among other topics.

The Peregrine Falconhe Lodge name of Kintecoying comes from several modern day sources which claim that what we now know as Astor Place used to be named Kintecoying or, “Crossroads of Nations,” and was a pow-wow point for the Lenape tribes of Manhattan. At this spot, where the branches of the trails converged, the Lenapes traded with each other, exchanged news, and held spiritual ceremonies and tribal councils to settle disputes. The “Crossroads of Nations” also speaks to New York City’s role as the “Capital of the World” and a “Melting Pot” of peoples from many lands from around the globe. Although the national OA organization has stopped using lodge numbers to identify lodges, we believed that the tenure of service of the Order to our council is unique. In order to acknowledge the 93 years of Order of the Arrow history in New York City, the lodge decided to retain the use of the lodge number 4 - the first lodge number for Greater New York Councils.

The Peregrine Falcon was selected as the totem of Kintecoying Lodge. A native bird to New York City, the peregrine falcon is a symbol of strength, adventure, leadership and new beginnings. Peregrine Falcons are among the world’s most common birds of prey and live on all continents except Antarctica. They prefer wide-open spaces, and thrive near coasts where shorebirds are common, but they can be found everywhere from tundra to deserts. Peregrines are also found living on the bridges and skyscrapers of our city. Having been put on the endangered species list in the 1970s the peregrine falcon is making a strong comeback with Day One Event Logopopulation numbers on the rise worldwide.

The transition team decided that an inaugural lodge-wide fellowship event would be held in April 2013 to bring the GNYC OA Membership together and to officially form the new lodge. Kintecoying Lodge Day One was held on April 13, 2013 at Alpine Scout Camp. Brothers from across the city gathered to enjoy a day of fellowship, elect new lodge officers, and establish Kintecoying Lodge #4. The first lodge executive board was elected in the afternoon. Nicholas Goldrosen was elected Lodge Chief, Andrew Sommer was elected Vice-Chief of Inductions, James Maxham was elected Vice-Chief of Administration, Kirwin Seger was elected Secretary, and Patrick Machado was elected Treasurer.

Chapters were formed to administer the OA program in the local communities. Six chapters were formed. Uteney Gokhos Chapter for the Bronx River District, Shu-Shu-Gah Chapter for Breukelen and Lenape Bay Districts, Man-a-Hattin Chapter for the Big Apple District, Aquehonga Chapter for Aquehonga District, Mespaetch Chapter for Pathfinder and Tomahawk Districts, and Matinecock Chapter for Founders District.

On the weekend of June 7–9, 2013, Kintecoying served as the service lodge for the 2013 Section NE-2B Conclave held at Camp Keowa at Ten Mile River.

Kintecoying Lodge #4 can be found online on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter.