This afternoon in Morrisville, the first round of our softball and basketball tournaments have kicked off strong. Games were played between the two cities of every county, with the winning cities moving on to the next round which will be held tomorrow. Tough competition and sportsmanship flooded the fields and courts as fellow Boys’ Staters … Continue reading
Tag Archives: American Legion Boy’s State
Citizens Starting Strong
The first day of New York Boy’s State 2022 began with a 0500 wake up. Marines instructed PT (Physical Training) and then citizens went to breakfast. Breakfast was pancakes, bacon, hash browns, eggs, cereal, fruit, and cinnamon rolls. Citizens returned to barracks and continued their respective city and county elections. Positions such as city mayor, … Continue reading
First Impressions
As I approached SUNY Morrisville, excitement and nervousness flowed through my body. I was uncertain of how I would fit in with the rest of the guys but found comfort in a familiar face while I walked up the steps, where I would wait for about forty-five minutes in the heat of the day to … Continue reading
What does it look like for the Boys?
I shared some pics from the viewpoint of the counselors yesterday. It’s been a challenge, but the fact that all the counselors are centralized has helped them do their work. For the Boy’s it’s different this year. Most of the work we are doing this week is done over Zoom. The day starts out each … Continue reading
It’s certainly different
Although things are certainly different this year, the boy’s are still getting the job done. For those of you not familiar with the program, the Citizens are assigned a notional city, county and political party. To start, at the city level, the parties (Nationalists and Federalists) nominate and elect a city level government (mayors, judges, … Continue reading
View from the trenches
I wanted to share some first impressions of what will be a very interesting week of virtual American Legion New York Boy’s State. Every year a very dedicate, hard working group of primarily Legionnaires volunteer to make NY Boy’s State happen. Seeing all the “old hands” and the “new faces” is always a highlight of … Continue reading
New York Boy’s State 2021 – Here we go!
We are days away from kicking off what will hopefully be the first and last virtual Boy’s State for New York’s American Legion Department. Although it’s disappointing not to be in person, we will make the best of it. There won’t be the flurry of activities, the marching and sports and music and other activities … Continue reading
Lessons Learned -Richard Marko – Class of 2008
My first year as a county counselor I was a little nervous about having an increased level of responsibility for the first time as Boy’s State. One thing that calmed my nerves was meeting the Marine that would be assisting me that year. Sgt Marko brought the professional demeanor of a solid NCO, but he … Continue reading
Return On Investment – Larry Waterman – Class of 1976
In the beginning it’s all about change. It seems the younger we are, the more we are surrounded by change. Younger folks embrace change, and are comfortable with change. “Growing up” is indeed a definition of personal change. Situations change, but often we miss the opportunity to look at the change within us. Boy’s State … Continue reading
Young Gun – Gunnar Haberl – Class of 2014
I’m going to start this post with a little introduction. In 2014 I was the County Counselor of Spafford and during that year there was some concern that we were a few Counselors short in the program. I was short a city counselor and after meeting my junior counselor I thought what the heck, let’s … Continue reading