User:Jedimasterbac/CNJC

Central New Jersey Council is the local Boy Scouts of America council that serves the central New Jersey area, spanning across the Counties of Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Warren. Created on January 1, 1999 after the merger of the former George Washington and Thomas A. Edison Councils, Central New Jersey Council offers year-round camping for local scout troops, as well as week-long summer camping at Kittatiny Mountain Scout Reservation. The council is currently split into five different districts, those being the Joyce Kilmer, Mercer Area, Pahaquarra, Raritan Bay and SEMEOS Districts.

Along with offering unit-related programs, Central New Jersey Council also contains the Order of the Arrow program. Order of the Arrow members in Central New Jersey Council are part of Sakuwit Lodge 2, which is part of Section NE-7A in the Northeast Region of the Order of the Arrow. The current Sakuwit Lodge Chief is Randy Breingan, Jr.

History
Central New Jersey Council was officially charted on January 1, 1999 after the merger of the former George Washington and Thomas A. Edison Councils. After the chartering, the council adopted two main camps, the first being Yards Creek Scout Reservation from the George Washington Council and the second being Kittatinny Mountain Scout Reservation from the Thomas A. Edison Council. Kittatinny was and is being used for summer camping and year-round short-term camping, whereas Yards Creek is used for short-term camping.

In 1999, the council sold the Edison, New Jersey office from the Thomas A. Edison Council and temporarily headquartered itself in Pennington, New Jersey until the renovation of the new and current office on Route 1 in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey was completed on June 12, 1999.

The council initially started operations with six internal districts, each of the two former council-areas having three districts. The Hunterdon Arrowhead, Jenny Jump and Mercer Area Districts were moved from George Washington Council and were essentially kept the same, although the districts from the former Thomas A. Edison Council were re-organized into the Middlesex, Raritan and SEMEOS Districts. In 2008, the Hunterdon Arrowhead and Jenny Jump Districts merged to form the Pahaquarra District, bringing the total number of districts to five.

Districts
Currently, Central New Jersey has five active districts. The Joyce Kilmer District serves the Milltown area and is headed by District Executive Paul Harmelin. The SEMEOS District covers the areas of South River, Edison, Metuchen, East Brunswick, Old Bridge and Spotswood, these areas being from which the district derives its name, and is led by Senior District Executive Jamie Lamprecht. The Raritan Bay District encompasses the area of the same name and is led by Pete Johnson. Pahaquarra District, led by Brian Dungan, covers Hunterdon and Warren Counties. Finally, the Mercer Area District covers all of Mercer County, and is led by Stephen Smith. These districts combined contain nearly two hundred units, including Boy Scout troops, Cub Scout packs and Venture crews.

Scout camps
Central New Jersey Council currently operates two camps in New Jersey, Kittatinny Mountain Scout Reservation and Yards Creek Scout Reservation. First opened in 1972, Yards Creek is a 510 acre camp located in the grounds of the Yards Creek Pumping Station in Blairstown, New Jersey near both the Appalachian Trail and the Delaware Water Gap. The camp is restricted to short-term use, specifically for units who take day trips to the Appalachian Trail and Delaware River and require the use of camp facilities for a short periods.

Located in Sandyston, New Jersey within walking distance of the Appalachian Trail, Kittatinny Mountain Scout Reservation, also called KMSR, is described a "complete camping facility" that can be used for summer camp and short term periods. Central New Jersey Council has stated that the camp offers ways to help create "better units, qualified scouters, and skillful, self-reliant boys and young men". The camp comprises over 500 acres in the Stokes State Forest.

Order of the Arrow lodge
Central New Jersey Council's Order of the Arrow lodge is Sakuwit Lodge 2, and including the former lodges merged into it, the lodge's history is the second oldest in the United States. The lodge was officially founded on September 2, 1999 after the mergers of Sanhican Lodge 2, of the George Washington Council, and Narraticong Lodge 9, of the Thomas A. Edison Council. The name "Sakuwit" translates to "from the mouth of two rivers", representing the merger of the two lodges and the lodge's proximity to the Delaware and Raritan Rivers. According to the Sakuwit Lodge website, the current Lodge Chief, or leader of the lodge, is Randy Breingan, Jr. Part of the Northeast Region of the Order of the Arrow, Sakuwit Lodge was originally part of Section NE-2B, although it is now part of Section NE-7A.