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Dear Green Mountain Council Family – As I begin my service as your Council President, one of my first responsibilities is to share some important news. After six years with the Green Mountain Council, Scout Executive Mark Saxon will be departing to join the Atlanta Area Council as Chief Growth Officer and Director of Field Service effective October 1, 2026.
Many of you will remember where this council was in 2020. Camp was shut down. Programs were disrupted. The national bankruptcy had cast real uncertainty over the future of Scouting. I have had the privilege of watching this council rebuild from that moment, first as counsel working closely with Mark, later as a board member, and now as Council President. Together with our volunteers, staff, and families, Mark helped navigate those challenges and leave us in a stronger position than before. We rebuilt our programs, strengthened the council financially, modernized how families find and join Scouting, and reestablished Eagle Scout Recognition Day at the State Capitol and the annual Veterans Parade after years of disruption. Mt. Norris Scout Reservation has just earned a five-year National Camp Authorization to Operate, and that milestone belongs to everyone who helped build the foundation under it.
Last fall at Mt. Norris, Mark was elevated to the Vigil Honor in the Order of the Arrow by Ajapeu Lodge and given the name “Innovative Servant Leader.” Anyone who has worked with Mark knows how well that fits. He serves as Committee Chair for Pack 630 in Essex Junction, where his youngest daughter, Abigail, is a Bear Scout. He didn’t just lead this council professionally. He showed up as a Scouting parent alongside the rest of us.
The work this community has done together over the past six years is something to be proud of. Mark has shared with me that serving this council has been the honor of a lifetime, and I know he means it. We are grateful for his partnership, and we remain hopeful you will join us in wishing him, Bethany, Abigail, and Riley every success as he returns to the city where he was born to give back.
The Executive Board has authorized the formation of a selection committee to begin identifying our next Scout Executive. CST 10 Director Stephen Hoitt will be advising the council through this transition, and we will share more information as the process moves forward.
Sincerely, |
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