Happy 4th of July!

I hope everyone has had a wonderful 4th of July Celebration with family and friends.  I have not written for quite a while because I’ve been swamped — both with work (helping so many elder law and estate planning clients that we’ve had to bring in 3 new staff members this summer) and with summer activities that I’ve been involved with since Memorial Day.

I mainly use this forum to update you on important legal topics in the field of Elder Law and Estate Planning, including recent changes and developments in the law, and I don’t typically talk about my personal life in this blog.  However, since it’s the 4th of July and we’re all spending time with our friends and families, I’ve decided to talk a bit about what I’ve been doing in my family life that’s had me so busy this summer. 

The Independence Day holiday commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 and celebrates the birthday of the United States of America.  It’s a day of picnics and parades, a night of concerts and fireworks, and a celebration of American patriotism.  Much of my non-lawyer life is likewise spent in celebration of  American patriotism — as an adult volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America here in the BSA National Capital Area Council. 

First, there was the Centennial Camporee at Goshen Scout Reservation over the Memorial Day holiday, where our Council celebrated the 100th Anniversary of Scouting in America.  This was the largest event in the history of the BSA National Capital Area Council — with approximately 8,000 Scouts, Scout families, and Scout leaders in attendance!  As Chair of our Council’s Shooting Sports Committee and a member of the Centennial Camporee Steering Committee, I spent eighteen months (and hundreds of hours) helping to plan and prepare for this once-in-a-lifetime event.   Most of this preparation time was spent recruiting, scheduling and coordinating more than 65 range safety volunteers to run the dozen different target ranges (BBs, archery, rifle, shotgun, etc.) that were part of the fun and excitement for the three days of the Centennial Camporee.  Here is some of the media coverage of this historic event: TV Report from Roanoke Channel 7   /  NCAC Post-Event Press Release.

In June, at the NCAC Annual Business Meeting and Silver Beaver Award Ceremony, I was deeply honored to be one of the fifteen recipients of the Silver Beaver Award for outstanding service to youth in the National Capital Area Council.

Just yesterday, I returned with my family from Camp Marriott (part of Goshen Scout Reservation), where I spent a week with my son’s Troop at Boy Scout summer camp, where I also helped to train new adult leaders from around our Council.

Hopefully, now that all of this is complete, I’ll have more time to devote to legal updates and developments.

On the other hand, later this summer I’ll be spending a week and a half working at Fort AP Hill as a member of the archery staff at the BSA National Scout Jamboree . . . .