Starting with this issue, I am going to attempt to provide an overview of what’s going on at the Council and hopefully provide meaningful communication. This first entry is probably going to be longer than future entries, but there is some catching up to do!

Introduction

First, my name is Jim Martin. I’ve been the Scout executive at Bay Lakes for almost 6 months at this point. It feels longer than that, but I mean that in a really good way. I was born and raised in Wisconsin. Home will always be Milwaukee, but I have been a resident of the Town of Blackwolf, just south of Oshkosh, for the last 25 years. My career started in Retail, where I worked for various iterations of The Boston Store, Bergner’s, Carsons, Proffitt’s, and ultimately Saks Department Store Group. When I left Saks, I was V.P. of Children’s. From there I joined Oshkosh B’Gosh in Oshkosh, WI. At B’Gosh I held various roles including SVP of Sales, SVP of Design/Merchandising, and EVP/General Manager. After that, I owned and ran my own Women’s Apparel company for 17 years. In 2022, I started thinking about doing non-profit work and I joined The Community Blood Center, where I held various roles. In 2025 I applied for and had the great honor of being chosen as the Scout Executive for the Bay-Lakes Council.

Why I’m Here

About 6 years ago I had the great fortune of having grandkids come into my life. Twins! A boy, Max, and a girl, Izzy. Shortly thereafter, Alex joined the club. Their involvement in my life shed light on just how hard it is to be a kid right now. More importantly, it showed me how hard it is to be young parent right now. When the S.E. position became open, I started researching what Scouts was about. What I found was that there was a very real problem that many parents were facing. That being, how to raise a good kid in an environment filled with roadblocks, distractions, conflicting messages, and serious time constraints. I also found that there was very real solution, Scouting. For over 100 years, Scouting had been providing the exact solution that many parents were looking for today. But for some reason, the Solution was not always reaching the folks who had the Problem. For me, that was simply a business problem. And I had spent my entire career solving business problems. In fact, I love business problems! So, I threw my hat in the ring, and here I am.

What I’ve Learned So Far

People frequently ask me, “What has been your biggest surprise since you came on board?”. The answer is simple. The Passion that people in Scouting have for Scouting. As someone who had no exposure to Scouting prior to coming to the BLC, this was my biggest surprise. The level of Commitment and Passion is well beyond anything I have seen before. It’s amazing. Second, has been how lucky I am to have the Team I have. From Volunteers through the Professional Staff and our Board, we have a good Team. This has been especially critical for me. As someone who needs to learn as much about Scouting as fast as I can, I am blessed to be surrounded by people who more than offset my deficiencies.

What I’ve Been Working On

“What have you been doing for the last 6 months” is probably the second most frequent question I get. Here are the key things I have been focused on:

1)   Building our Team for Growth and Success

2)  Assessing the Properties and helping develop a successful, sustainable property strategy that positions us as the leading camping destination in the Midwest and beyond.

3)  Working with our Board to solidify our near term and long term vision, refocus the Board energy on Governance as opposed to Operations, leverage existing expertise and knowledge while also adding newness, and position the BLC for growth.

4)  Begin to develop strategies for Membership growth. Included in this are a focus on unit programming, exploration of new membership opportunities, and rapidly expanded Corporate Partnerships.

All of these topics will be communicated in more detail in upcoming installments.

Housekeeping

With everything that has been going on, my communication to all levels has not been the best. I am going to try harder to improve that. One glaring example of poor communication on my part was Increased Membership Fees for 2026.  We made the decision to raise Membership from $12.00 to $15.00 per kid. The rationale was simple. Everything is more expensive and as a Council we need to absorb some of these increases, but we also need Membership Fees to go up as well.  It was a simple decision, but a big one. I apologize for the poor way this was communicated.

Final Thought

For 2026 we have established a two word mantra that is integral to everything we do.  Let’s Grow!  We have an incredible opportunity as a Council to grow.  We are in a good place financially. We have amazing camps, programming and an awesome Team. Now we need to leverage all of that, and craft our messaging to ensure that we solve a Problem. So I ask that all of you do the same thing that everyone here at the Council is doing. Every time you make a decision related to Scouting, ask yourself if it helps us grow. If the answer is YES, then you know you are on the right path.

Thank You

A sincere thank you to everyone for all that you do for Scouting. We can’t do this without you.

James Martin
Scout Executive/C.E.O.

Two opportunities to experience Maple Syrup making at Bear Paw Scout Camp this Spring!

Maple Syrup Days
Saturday, March 21 & Saturday, March 28 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Registration includes all activities, breakfast, and lunch. Activities are for Scouts aged 11-18.

Maple Syrup Days Open House

Saturday, April 11 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Registration includes all activities and brunch.

Open to the public, family friendly with activities for Cub Scout aged (5-10 years) children.

More details for Maple Syrup Days can be found here and at the Bear Paw Maple Syrup Days website.

Come outside and participate in the Bear Paw Spring Camporee, 5/1/26-5/3/26 at our Bear Paw Scout Camp in Mountain, WI!  We will have special Harry Potter themed events, along with a one-of-a-kind Harry Potter themed Camporee patch! This is your chance to complete a new merit badge or finish one that you started at summer camp or just come for the fun! 

PROGRAM DETAILS
Cost: $25.00 for youth and adults - includes lunch on Saturday, campsite reservations, patch, and all activity supplies.  All meals, except lunch on Saturday, are the responsibility of your unit to cook in your campsite. IOLS and ILST trainings will be offered. IOLS Adults looking to take this training, need to register at this link. Range & Target Activities will be open on Saturday!

Merit Badges offered (as of 2/10/26): Art, Bird Study, Dog Care, Fish & Wildlife, Fishing, Fly Fishing, Geocaching, Scouting Heritage, American Indian Culture, Orienteering, Painting, Reading, Veterinary Science, and Signs/Signals/and Codes.

*Archery, Rifle, and Shotgun ranges will be open on Saturday for those wanting to open shoot or to try to finish off one of those badges they started at summer camp.

Event link for more information, and registration will be opening soon here.

Join us on May 21, 2026, for the Bay-Lakes Golf Classic Event, held at The Bull at Pinehurst Farms in Sheboygan Falls. Warmer weather is just around the corner. This Jack Nichlaus signature designed course is beautiful and challenging. Come on out and support Scouting programs across Eastern Wisconsin. Ask your employer to sponsor and build your four-person team now.