Pine Tree Council, Boy Scouts of America, Honor Maine Guardsmen with Distinguished Citizen Award

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The Adjutant General of Maine, Brig Gen. James D, Campbell along with Col. Amanda Birch, deputy director, Training Programs Management, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense, accepted awards.

PORTLAND, ME (11/13/2014)(readMedia)-- The Pine Tree Council, Boy Scouts of America, honored Maine National Guard service members for the work completed at Camp Hinds in Raymond, and Camp Bomazeen in Belgrade during the 2014 Distinguished Citizen Award ceremony Wednesday, November 12, 2014 at the Holiday Inn by the Bay.

Brig. Gen. James D. Campbell, the Adjutant General for the Maine National Guard, and Col. Amanda Birch, Deputy Director, Training Programs Management, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense accepted the award.

"It is an honor to accept this award on behalf of the Soldiers and Airmen who have worked diligently on these projects. As our missions overseas draw down, the service members of the Maine Guard are excited to continue support in their own communities," Campbell said.

The distinguished citizen award is the highest recognition that the Boy Scouts of America can bestow upon an individual, company, or organization. The Pine Tree Council presents this award annually at the Distinguished Citizen Award luncheon. Proceeds from this event will benefit the local Scouting programs of the Pine Tree Council.

Service members from the Maine National Guard completed work on the camps as part of the Department of Defense Innovative Readiness Training Program. Innovative Readiness Training provides real world training opportunities for our service members and units to prepare them for their wartime missions while supporting the needs of America's underserved communities.

"Innovative Readiness Training is a very important aspect of community engagement. [It] allows people in the community to see the work that the military is capable of, and the military can see the immediate impact they have made locally." Birch said.

The projects included building a new access road for emergency vehicles, seven cabins, a multipurpose field, and four shooting sports ranges, as well as information technology upgrades. "The work completed on the camps saved an estimated $2 million for the Pine Tree Council," John Cary, Assistant Scout Executive for the Pine Tree Council, said.

Please contact Mr. John Cary at 502-550-5715, or jocary@bsamail.org for more information about the Distinguished Citizen Award.