The Western Los Angeles County Council (WLACC) (#051) is one of five Boy Scouts of America councils in Los Angeles County, California. Headquartered in Van Nuys, the council services over 30,000 youth spanning six districts including the San Fernando Valley,

Santa Clarita Valley The Santa Clarita Valley (SCV) is part of the upper watershed of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. The valley was part of the Rancho San Francisco Mexican land grant. Located in Los Angeles County, its main population center is th ...

Antelope Valley The Antelope Valley is located in northern Los Angeles County, California, and the southeast portion of Kern County, California, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert. It is situated between the Tehachapi, Sierra Pelona, and t ...

, Malibu, and much of

West Los Angeles West Los Angeles is an area within the city of Los Angeles, California. The residential and commercial neighborhood is divided by the Interstate 405 freeway, and each side is sometimes treated as a distinct neighborhood, mapped differently by di ...

History

The Western Los Angeles County Council was formed in 1972 with the merger of the Crescent Bay Council (#026) and the San Fernando Valley Council (#050) to form the Great Western Council. The Great Western Council was renamed Western Los Angeles County Council in 1985. On May 7, 2013, the Western Los Angeles County Council of the Boy Scouts issued a declaration calling for a "true and authentic inclusion policy" that would allow gay adults to work as troop leaders or staff members. The Council's campaign "Inclusion Now for All Gay Boy Scouts and Leaders: Western LA County Council Sends Clear Message" in conjunction with Olmstead Williams Communications won a 2013 PRism Award from PRSA-Los Angeles.

Organization

The Western Los Angeles County Council is divided into six districts. * Antelope Valley District, Edwards Air Force Base to Santa Clarita Valley border * Balboa Oaks District, Central area of the San Fernando Valley: west of Sepulveda Boulevard and east of Corbin Avenue * Bill Hart District, Santa Clarita Valley * Campo De Cahuenga District, Eastern area of the San Fernando Valley: west of the City of Burbank to

Sepulveda Boulevard Sepulveda Boulevard is a major street and transportation corridor in the City of Los Angeles and several other cities in western Los Angeles County, California. The street parallels Interstate 405 for much of its route. Portions of Sepulveda Bou ...

* Crescent Bay District,

Mulholland Drive Mulholland Drive is a street and road in the eastern Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California. It is named after pioneering Los Angeles civil engineer William Mulholland. The western rural portion in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties is nam ...

south to

Playa Del Rey Playa del Rey (Spanish for "Beach of the King") is a seaside community in the Santa Monica Bay and the Westside region of Los Angeles, California. It has a ZIP code of 90293 and area codes of 310 and 424. As of 2018, the community had a populat ...

and Culver City, and from Ventura County line to Beverly Hills. * Reyes Adobe District, San Fernando Valley: west of Corbin to the

Ventura County Ventura County () is a County (United States), county in Southern California, the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, California ...

line at Westlake Village.

Camps

* Camp Emerald Bay, Santa Catalina Island has been operating since 1925, when it was first opened by the Crescent Bay Area Council. In addition to being a

summer camp A summer camp or sleepaway camp is a supervised program for children conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as ''campers''. Summer school is usually a part of the academ ...

, it offers year-round activities and has a great waterfront. * Camp Josepho, Pacific Palisades (1941–present) is a year-round camp owned and operated by the Western Los Angeles County Council of the Boy Scouts of America. The camp is located in the

Santa Monica Mountains The Santa Monica Mountains is a coastal mountain range in Southern California, next to the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Transverse Ranges. Because of its proximity to densely populated regions, it is one of the most visited natural areas in ...

in Los Angeles County and has been serving Scouting and community groups since 1941. The land on which Camp Josepho now lies was originally donated to the Crescent Bay Council in 1941 by Anatol Josepho and his wife Ganna. The camp quickly rose to the forefront of Scouting camps, becoming known as the ''West Point of Scouting''. The focal point of the camp is its large old western style lodge now named the Malibu Lodge after the Malibu Lodge #566 of the

Order of the Arrow The Order of the Arrow (OA) is the honor society of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), composed of Scouts and Scouters who best exemplify the Scout Oath and Law in their daily lives as elected by their peers. The society was created by E. Urner Go ...

. In January 2005, a flood washed out the main road into Camp Josepho. The camp remained closed for less than a month, reopening (to backpacking) in February 2005. The camp remained inaccessible to vehicular traffic while the road was studied by

civil engineers This list of civil engineers is a list of notable people who have been trained in or have practiced civil engineering. A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U ...

. As of July 2007, the road was open once again. * Camp Whitsett,

Sequoia National Forest Sequoia National Forest is located in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains of California. The U.S. National Forest is named for the majestic Giant Sequoia (''Sequoiadendron giganteum'') trees which populate 38 distinct groves within the boundari ...

is a summer camp in the

Giant Sequoia National Monument The Giant Sequoia National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in the southern Sierra Nevada in eastern central California. It is administered by the U.S. Forest Service as part of the Sequoia National Forest and includes 38 of the 3 ...

which has been operating since 1947. Its 'sister camp' is Sierra Expeditions, which offers

backpacking Backpacking may refer to: * Backpacking (travel), low-cost, independent, international travel * Backpacking (hiking), trekking and camping overnight in the wilderness * Ultralight backpacking, a style of wilderness backpacking with an emphasis on ...

and other high-adventure activities. In 2012 Camp Whitset was host to the BSA's tv show ''Are You Tougher Than a Boy Scout?'' which had six episodes. ;Past camps * Pardee Scout Sea Base,

Marina Del Rey Marina del Rey (Spanish language, Spanish for "Marina of the King") is an unincorporated area, unincorporated seaside community in Los Angeles County, California, with an eponymous harbor that is a major boating and water recreation destination ...

* Camp Jubilee (? – 2003) * Camp Slauson,

Topanga Canyon Topanga () (Tongva: ''Topaa'nga'') is a census-designated place (CDP) in western Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located in the Santa Monica Mountains, the community exists in Topanga Canyon and the surrounding hills. The narrow s ...

(1910 – late 1970s) * Camp Temescal, Pacific Palisades (? – 1930) * Camp Wolverton,

Sequoia National Park Sequoia National Park is an American national park in the southern Sierra Nevada east of Visalia, California. The park was established on September 25, 1890, and today protects of forested mountainous terrain. Encompassing a vertical relief ...

(1939–2012). It is apocryphally said to be the only Boy Scout camp in a National Park.

Order of the Arrow

The Malibu Lodge #566, chartered in 1972, serves 755 Arrowmen as of 2004. The lodge totem is a Pacific blue shark, and the name translates to "From the Mountains to the Sea" in the

Chumash Chumash may refer to: *Chumash (Judaism), a Hebrew word for the Pentateuch, used in Judaism *Chumash people, a Native American people of southern California *Chumashan languages, indigenous languages of California See also *Chumash traditional n ...

language. Malibu Lodge was created in 1972 from the merger of Tamet Lodge 225 and Walika Lodge 228.

References

{{coord, 34.2012536, -118.4929446 Boy Scout councils in California Buildings and structures in the San Fernando Valley Non-profit organizations based in Los Angeles 1972 establishments in California