U.S. Scouts to vote on gay youth ban
(CNN) — The eyes of the country will be upon Texas on Thursday.
That’s where 1,400 members of the Boy Scouts of America’s national council are expected to vote on whether to end the 103-year-old group’s outright ban on gay youths.
The outcome, to be announced late afternoon, follows months of intense debate among interest groups and within the ranks of scouting itself.
It comes down to a single sentence at the end of a resolution.
“No youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone.”
If the policy change is approved, the BSA will maintain its ban on openly gay adult leaders.
Boy Scouts of America is an organization that says it is focused on mentoring young men and helping them develop life skills. Here’s a look at BSA by the numbers. (Source: Boy Scouts of America).
102: The number of years since Boy Scouts of America was incorporated. Membership topped 20 million by 1952.
2.7 million: The number of youth members as of 2011. BSA also boasts 1.1 million adult members.
420,000: The number of youth members in units chartered by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the most of any faith-based organization. As of 2011, the United Methodist Church had the second strongest membership, followed by the Catholic Church.
181: The number of NASA astronauts that participated in Scouting. Neil Armstrong was an Eagle Scout, the highest ranking in the program.
206: Number of lawmakers in the current session of Congress that have participated in Boy Scouts. Fifteen current governors were Scouts or Scout volunteers.
18: The number of presidents that have served as honorary president of Boy Scouts of America. (That’s every president since BSA was founded).
161: The number of countries with Boy Scouts, as of 2010.
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Photos: Boy Scouts by the numbers
Boy Scouts consider ending gay ban
In February, the Boy Scouts’ national executive board postponed a vote on the issue and ordered a survey of its members. That survey showed an organization that is divided — by age and, in some cases, by region.
While most adults in the scouting community support the BSA current policy of “excluding open and avowed homosexuals, young parents and teens tend to oppose the policy.”
Survey: Should gay and straight Boy Scouts share a tent?
A BSA spokesman conceded the issue was “among the most complex and challenging issues facing the BSA and society today.”
A recent Washington Post-ABC News Poll showed that 63% of Americans support allowing gay youths to join the Boy Scouts.
But 61% of surveyed adult members say they support the current BSA policy, which excludes gay youths and adult leaders, the group said.
The vote comes more than a decade after a Supreme Court ruling that found the organization has the right to keep gays out, but also amid declining participation in the venerable American institution.
Membership in Boy Scouts has declined by about a third since 1999. About 2.7 million people now participate nationwide.
The Boy Scouts relies on “chartered organizations” to provide facilities and sponsorship for the individual units.
More than 70% of troops are affiliated with a church or religious groups. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Catholic Church sponsor 43% of Scout troops in the country.
In April, the Utah-based Mormons said, “while the church has not launched any campaign either to effect or prevent a policy change, we have followed the discussion and are satisfied that BSA has made a thoughtful, good-faith effort to address issues …”
The vote could have an impact in at least two Western states
If the policy proposal is approved, 97% of chartered organizations in the heavily Mormon populated states of Utah and Idaho would be likely to leave the organization, local councils say.
The Catholic Church in the United States says it will strive to maintain ties with the BSA, regardless of the outcome.
“We would hope that the Boy Scouts of America will continue to provide young people a formative experience grounded in virtue and directed by service to God and others,” the National Catholic Committee on Scouting said in February.
A full picture of opinions was not captured in the survey, according to the BSA.
“When the survey process was originally announced, several chartered organizations, including the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Baptist church, and many parents asked that their youth members not be contacted as part of the survey.”
There’s been no shortage of lobbying on the issue, which will be taken up at the BSA’s annual meeting in Grapevine, Texas.
“This (current) ban hurts kids and undermines key scouting values like helpfulness, friendliness and courteousness,” says the Human Rights Campaign. “It’s time to send a message of inclusion — not discrimination.”
James Dale, an Eagle Scout and former assistant troop leader who was kicked out of the Boy Scouts in 1990 because he is gay, said the issue is about fairness.
“Each of us has the power to make positive change,” he says in a video posted by GLAAD (The Gay Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation).
In an opinion piece for USA Today on Wednesday, BSA President Wayne Perry endorsed the policy change. “Parents, adults in the Scouting community and teens alike tend to agree that youth should not be denied the benefits of Scouting,” Perry wrote. “The resolution is not about adults; it is about what is best for young people.”
Conservative groups and some religious organizations have argued against making any change, saying it would dilute the Boy Scout message of morality and potentially destroy the organization.
The Family Research Council says the vote is “critically important to the future of the Scouts and the moral fiber of our nation.”
It urged people to visit OnMyHonor.net, a group opposing the policy change, to send their thoughts to scout leaders and executives.
That website reposted an article by the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, who said the BSA was “at the brink.”
“The culture wars came to the Boy Scouts many years ago. For the last few decades, the Boy Scouts have had to fight battles with both secularists and homosexual activists,” wrote R. Albert Mohler Jr.
“How, exactly, are openly gay boys to be included in the activities of scouting? We are talking about boys who will now be expected to participate in everything from camping trips to travel with boys who are openly gay,” says Mohler. “Boys of these ages just might be the least equipped of all God’s creatures to deal with the complexities of the situation. Most parents are likely to decide that, all things considered, this is just not something they want imposed on their sons.”
President Barack Obama has been become outspoken in his support of gay rights and same-sex marriage.
When asked about the BSA policy in February, White House spokesman Jay Carney said Obama believes the Boy Scouts is a valuable organization that has helped educate and build character in American boys
“He also, as you know, opposes discrimination in all forms. And as such, believes — that gay Americans ought to be able to participate in the Boy Scouts. But in terms of the process of their evaluation of their policies, I don’t have a comment.”
If approved, the new BSA rules would take effect January 1.
CNN’s Katia Hetter and Ed Payne contributed to this report.
Article source: http://edition.cnn.com/2013/05/23/us/boy-scouts-sexual-orientation/index.html?eref=edition
Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/NewsRipplesWeb/~3/WP7FWgK2TEI/u-s-scouts-to-vote-on-gay-youth-ban
A woman searches for belongings at a home in Moore, Oklahoma, on Wednesday, May 22, two days after it was destroyed by a tornado that ripped through the area. 
Michael Pritz swings a golf club while taking a break from helping his friend to salvage belongings on May 22.
Debris litters what remains of a classroom at Plaza Towers Elementary School on May 22. Seven children died at the school in Monday’s tornado.
A makeshift shelter stands next to a home destroyed by the tornado on May 22.
Casey Angle walks on the bunk bed she shared with her sister Sydney, who was among the students killed at Plaza Towers Elementary School during the tornado.
Tara McDonald shows some items salvaged from her home on May 22.
A swing set sits warped at Plaza Towers Elementary School on May 22. 
Plaza Towers Elementary School students Monica Boyd and Lavontey Rodriguez sit at the parking lot of their tornado devastated school.
Travis French and his wife, Amy, of Capitol Hill Baptist Church hand out fresh fruit, water and hygiene packs to Thomas and Kelcy Trowbridge.
Teachers from Fairview Elementary School help clean up former school counselor Kay Taylor’s home in south Oklahoma City on May 22, two days after an extremely powerful tornado tore through Moore, Oklahoma. 
Jake English, 12, cleans up retired school counselor Kay Taylor’s home on May 22 in south Oklahoma City, just west of Moore. The storm was part of a tornado outbreak that began in the Midwest and Plains on Sunday, May 19. 
A man talks on his cell phone in front of a destroyed house on May 22.
A man looks through a pile of clothing at a roadside relief camp on May 22 in Moore.
Volunteers form a chain to retrieve clothing and other household items on May 22.
Jon Booth moves a piece of debris from his mother’s destroyed home across the street from Plaza Towers Elementary School on May 22.
Matt Johnson salvages items from his grandparents’ home on Tuesday, May 21.
Two men fold an American flag found in the debris of a house on May 21 in Moore.
A young girl stands among the rubble outside Briarwood Elementary School on May 21.
A doll covered in dirt is among the rubble scattered throughout a neighborhood in Moore on May 21.
Bonnie Lolofie, left, and Ashley Do carry belongings from their apartment, which has no power, on May 21.
Residents salvage belongings from their demolished homes in Moore on May 21.
Kelli Kannady weeps after finding a box of photographs of her late husband in the rubble near where her home once stood in Moore on May 21.
Tufts of pink insulation hang from the rafters of a store in Moore on May 21 that was destroyed in the storm.
Natalie Johnson searches through her mother’s destroyed car outside Briarwood Elementary School in Moore on May 21.
Rescuers dig out a house in Moore on May 21. 
June Simson embraces her cat Sammi after she found him standing among the rubble of her destroyed home in Moore on May 21.
A man stands on the roof of a destroyed home in Moore on May 21.
A man helps move a resident’s belongings from a destroyed home on May 21 in Moore.
Air Force Airman First Class Justin Acord sifts through the rubble of his father-in-law’s home in Moore on May 21.
People recover belongings from the rubble of a home in Moore.
People sort through a leveled home in Moore on May 21.
Debris lies among headstones in the Moore Cemetery on May 21.
Workers clean up the Warren movie theater in Moore on May 21.
Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett surveys damage in Moore on May 21.
Piles of debris lie around the north side of Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore on May 21.
As dawn breaks, storm clouds roll in over a devastated neighborhood in Moore on May 21.
Members of the Oklahoma National Guard look for survivors in rubble in Moore on May 21.
A National Guardsman assists in the search for victims on May 21. 
A rescue worker leads a horse from the wreckage of a day care center and barns on Monday, May 20, in Moore.
Men tie an American flag on debris in a neighborhood off Telephone Road in Moore on May 20.
Children wait for their parents to arrive at Briarwood Elementary School in south Oklahoma City on May 20.
Teachers carry children away from Briarwood Elementary School on May 20.
Teachers lead children away from Briarwood Elementary School on May 20. 
A fire official drives through the rubble of Moore Medical Center on May 20.
Abby Madi, left, and Peterson Zatterlee comfort Zatterlee’s dog, Rippy, on Monday, May 20, in Moore.
A woman is treated for her injuries on May 20 at a triage area set up for the wounded.
Two girls stand in rubble in Moore. 
Rescue workers help free one of more than a dozen people who were trapped at a medical center in Moore on May 20.
Oklahoma City firefighters check on Gene Tripp on May 20 as he sits in his rocking chair where his home once stood.
A nurse helps an older man who suffered a head injury on May 20 in Moore.
Cars marked with an orange X, meaning they have been checked for occupants, are piled up in front of the entrance to the damaged Moore Medical Center on May 20.
Jim Routon hugs his neighbor, 7-year-old Hezekiah, after the tornado strikes on May 20. An earlier version of this caption incorrectly stated that Routon was Hezekiah’s teacher. 
People look through the wreckage of their neighborhood after a tornado struck Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20.
Dana Ulepich searches inside a room left standing at the back of her destroyed house in Moore on May 20.
Residents look through the debris in Moore on May 20.
A man looks through the remains of a home after the massive tornado struck Moore on May 20.
A woman is transported on a stretcher after she was rescued from the damaged medical center in Moore on May 20.
A woman walks through debris in Moore on May 20.
A man is taken away from the IMAX Theater in Moore that was used as a triage center on May 20.
A girl wraps herself in a blanket near the Moore Hospital on May 20.
A nurse walks by the destruction at a Moore hospital on May 20.
Destroyed cars scatter the landscape in Moore, Oklahoma, where hundreds of homes and buildings were put to ruin on May 20.
A woman with an arm injury is helped on May 20 in Moore.
Extensive damage from the tornado destroyed cars and demolished structures in Moore on May 20.
Onlookers stop to view a portion of the destruction left behind on May 20 in Moore.
Overturned cars are among the rubble from the tornado that hit Moore on May 20.
A woman is comforted after the May 20 tornado in Moore.
A shredded tree stands amid debris in the aftermath of the storm in Moore on May 20.
A shopping center parking lot is covered with debris and damaged cars on May 20.
Law enforcement officers block a roadway in Moore where there was extensive damage from the tornado.
A massive tornado approaches Moore on May 20. The storm first touched down to the west of the city near Newcastle, Oklahoma. Visit 
An aerial view of the destruction caused by the massive tornado that struck areas south of Oklahoma City on Monday, May 20, shows the magnitude of damage left in its path. The storm’s winds topped 200 mph as it 
The storm, which touched down near Newcastle, Oklahoma, spanned 1.3 miles. Some areas along the path were completely flattened.
Officials from the National Weather Service gave the tornado that hit Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20 a preliminary EF5 rating — the highest score on the scale that measures tornado intensities.
The tornado tore through the Oklahoma City suburbs, hitting the town of Moore the hardest. It packed winds that topped 200 mph.
A search-and-rescue effort to find survivors shifted Tuesday to one of recovery, officials said.
The devastation in Moore was so complete that the mayor said city officials were racing to print new street signs to help guide rescuers and residents through a suddenly twisted and unfamiliar landscape.
A group of homes was reduced to rubble.
Debris from homes and structures was strewn for miles around. 
In some areas, the homes of an entire street were destroyed.
Rescuers and first responders immediately began searching through the rubble of structures on May 20.
Large trees were uprooted and flattened.
Given its breadth and power, the tornado ranks among some of the strongest storms ever to strike the United States, CNN senior meteorologist Dave Hennen said.
Homes in some areas were relatively undamaged while others very nearby were destroyed.
Police, firefighters, volunteers and nearly 180 National Guard troops joined forces Tuesday in searching the rubble and securing areas hit by the storm.
In 1999 and then again in 2003, Moore took direct hits from tornadoes that took eerily similar paths to 2013′s twister. The 1999 storm packed the strongest wind speeds in history, Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb said.
A section of a bridge outside of Oklahoma City was blown off its foundation.
The path of the tornado is clearly visible with dirt and debris painting a wide path across the Oklahoma landscape.
The scene — block after block of flattened homes and businesses, the gutted remains of a hospital and hits on two elementary schools — left even seasoned veterans of Oklahoma’s infamous tornadoes reeling.
View more galleries: 
A woman searches for belongings at a home in Moore, Oklahoma, on Wednesday, May 22, two days after it was destroyed by a tornado that ripped through the area. View more photos of the aftermath in the region and another gallery of aerial shots of the damage.
Michael Pritz swings a golf club while taking a break from helping his friend to salvage belongings on May 22.
Debris litters what remains of a classroom at Plaza Towers Elementary School on May 22. Seven children died at the school in Monday’s tornado.
A makeshift shelter stands next to a home destroyed by the tornado on May 22.
Casey Angle walks on the bunk bed she shared with her sister Sydney, who was among the students killed at Plaza Towers Elementary School during the tornado.
Tara McDonald shows some items salvaged from her home on May 22.
A swing set sits warped at Plaza Towers Elementary School on May 22. 
Plaza Towers Elementary School students Monica Boyd and Lavontey Rodriguez sit at the parking lot of their tornado devastated school.
Travis French and his wife, Amy, of Capitol Hill Baptist Church hand out fresh fruit, water and hygiene packs to Thomas and Kelcy Trowbridge.
Teachers from Fairview Elementary School help clean up former school counselor Kay Taylor’s home in south Oklahoma City on May 22, two days after an extremely powerful tornado tore through Moore, Oklahoma. 
Jake English, 12, cleans up retired school counselor Kay Taylor’s home on May 22 in south Oklahoma City, just west of Moore. The storm was part of a tornado outbreak that began in the Midwest and Plains on Sunday, May 19. 
A man talks on his cell phone in front of a destroyed house on May 22.
A man looks through a pile of clothing at a roadside relief camp on May 22 in Moore.
Volunteers form a chain to retrieve clothing and other household items on May 22.
Jon Booth moves a piece of debris from his mother’s destroyed home across the street from Plaza Towers Elementary School on May 22.
Matt Johnson salvages items from his grandparents’ home on Tuesday, May 21.
Two men fold an American flag found in the debris of a house on May 21 in Moore.
A young girl stands among the rubble outside Briarwood Elementary School on May 21.
A doll covered in dirt is among the rubble scattered throughout a neighborhood in Moore on May 21.
Bonnie Lolofie, left, and Ashley Do carry belongings from their apartment, which has no power, on May 21.
Residents salvage belongings from their demolished homes in Moore on May 21.
Kelli Kannady weeps after finding a box of photographs of her late husband in the rubble near where her home once stood in Moore on May 21.
Tufts of pink insulation hang from the rafters of a store in Moore on May 21 that was destroyed in the storm.
Natalie Johnson searches through her mother’s destroyed car outside Briarwood Elementary School in Moore on May 21.
Rescuers dig out a house in Moore on May 21. 
June Simson embraces her cat Sammi after she found him standing among the rubble of her destroyed home in Moore on May 21.
A man stands on the roof of a destroyed home in Moore on May 21.
A man helps move a resident’s belongings from a destroyed home on May 21 in Moore.
Air Force Airman First Class Justin Acord sifts through the rubble of his father-in-law’s home in Moore on May 21.
People recover belongings from the rubble of a home in Moore.
People sort through a leveled home in Moore on May 21.
Debris lies among headstones in the Moore Cemetery on May 21.
Workers clean up the Warren movie theater in Moore on May 21.
Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett surveys damage in Moore on May 21.
Piles of debris lie around the north side of Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore on May 21.
As dawn breaks, storm clouds roll in over a devastated neighborhood in Moore on May 21.
Members of the Oklahoma National Guard look for survivors in rubble in Moore on May 21.
A National Guardsman assists in the search for victims on May 21. 
A rescue worker leads a horse from the wreckage of a day care center and barns on Monday, May 20, in Moore.
Men tie an American flag on debris in a neighborhood off Telephone Road in Moore on May 20.
Children wait for their parents to arrive at Briarwood Elementary School in south Oklahoma City on May 20.
Teachers carry children away from Briarwood Elementary School on May 20.
Teachers lead children away from Briarwood Elementary School on May 20. Read more about the photo.
A fire official drives through the rubble of Moore Medical Center on May 20.
Abby Madi, left, and Peterson Zatterlee comfort Zatterlee’s dog, Rippy, on Monday, May 20, in Moore.
A woman is treated for her injuries on May 20 at a triage area set up for the wounded.
Two girls stand in rubble in Moore. 
Rescue workers help free one of more than a dozen people who were trapped at a medical center in Moore on May 20.
Oklahoma City firefighters check on Gene Tripp on May 20 as he sits in his rocking chair where his home once stood.
A nurse helps an older man who suffered a head injury on May 20 in Moore.
Cars marked with an orange X, meaning they have been checked for occupants, are piled up in front of the entrance to the damaged Moore Medical Center on May 20.
Jim Routon hugs his neighbor, 7-year-old Hezekiah, after the tornado strikes on May 20. An earlier version of this caption incorrectly stated that Routon was Hezekiah’s teacher. See an interview with the pair. 
People look through the wreckage of their neighborhood after a tornado struck Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20.
Dana Ulepich searches inside a room left standing at the back of her destroyed house in Moore on May 20.
Residents look through the debris in Moore on May 20.
A man looks through the remains of a home after the massive tornado struck Moore on May 20.
A woman is transported on a stretcher after she was rescued from the damaged medical center in Moore on May 20.
A woman walks through debris in Moore on May 20.
A man is taken away from the IMAX Theater in Moore that was used as a triage center on May 20.
A girl wraps herself in a blanket near the Moore Hospital on May 20.
A nurse walks by the destruction at a Moore hospital on May 20.
Destroyed cars scatter the landscape in Moore, Oklahoma, where hundreds of homes and buildings were put to ruin on May 20.
A woman with an arm injury is helped on May 20 in Moore.
Extensive damage from the tornado destroyed cars and demolished structures in Moore on May 20.
Onlookers stop to view a portion of the destruction left behind on May 20 in Moore.
Overturned cars are among the rubble from the tornado that hit Moore on May 20.
A woman is comforted after the May 20 tornado in Moore.
A shredded tree stands amid debris in the aftermath of the storm in Moore on May 20.
A shopping center parking lot is covered with debris and damaged cars on May 20.
Law enforcement officers block a roadway in Moore where there was extensive damage from the tornado.
A massive tornado approaches Moore on May 20. The storm first touched down to the west of the city near Newcastle, Oklahoma. Visit CNN.com/impact for ways to help the victims.
MAY 23 – NEW DELHI, INDIA: A boy minds his family’s containers as people fill theirs with water. High temperatures are causing 
May 22 – VALPARAISO, CHILE: Demonstrators are dispersed by police water cannons during clashes in Valparaiso. Students in Chile have been demanding a fairer education system which would allow those from poorer backgrounds access to the best schools.
MAY 21 – MOORE, OKLAHOMA : Debris covers the ground after a powerful 
MAY 20 – SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA: Young South Koreans participate in a traditional Confucian coming-of-age ceremony in Seoul. The ceremony celebrates young people who have turned, or are going to turn, 20 this year and is meant to increase their awareness about the responsibilities of adulthood.
MAY 17 – SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA: Name cards with wishes of Buddhist followers are attached to lotus lanterns during a ceremony to celebrate the birthday of Buddha at Jogye temple. Buddhism is one of South Korea’s largest and most active religions with millions of followers. Although the exact date is unknown, Buddha’s official birthday is celebrated according to the lunisolar calendar, on the eighth day of the fourth month.
MAY 15 – NEW YORK, U.S.: The new “Rain Room” installation at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City creates a field of falling water that stops in the area where people walk through, allowing them to remain dry. The piece releases a 260-gallon of water per minute.
MAY 14 – POPOCATEPETL, MEXICO: Mexico’s Popocatepetl volcano has been rumbling with explosions and expulsions of ash and gas, prompting authorities to bar people from getting close to a crater that is within sight of Mexico City and many of its 19 million residents.
MAY 13 – WASHINGTON, D.C.: U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron meet in the White House to foster the 
MAY 11 – CAIRO, EGYPT: A supporter of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak holds his portrait outside the Egyptian police academy in Cairo, on the first day of the retrial on May 11, 2013. Mubarak is appealing against his conviction for the murder of hundreds of peaceful protesters during the 2011 uprising.
MAY 10 – LAHORE, PAKISTAN: Supporters of former Pakistani PM Nawaz Sharif stand on a wall overlooking the field where he held the closing rally of his campaign on May 9, 2013. 86 million voters are due to go to the polls on May 11; the election will be the first civilian-to-civilian transition of power in the country’s 66-year history.
MAY 09 – MOSCOW, RUSSIA: Russian soldiers march in Red Square during a Victory Day parade. Fighter jets scream overhead and heavy tanks rumble over cobblestones as Russia flexes its military muscle on the anniversary of its costly victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.
MAY 08 – LONDON, ENGLAND: Queen Elizabeth II arrives to the State Opening of Parliament in London. The monarch will mark the 60th anniversary of her coronation later this year and despite being 87 years of age, she’s shown no inclination to step down.
MAY 07 – NEW DELHI, INDIA: Om Dubey, 20, shows off his moves as elderly yoga practitioners sit in the courtyard of a mosque. India’s under-30s, comprising 60% of its 1.2 billion population, represent what experts call the “demographic dividend” of young workers that can help power the economy.
MAY 06 – KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: Prime Minister Najib Razak and his wife Rosmah Mansor cut a cake to celebrate the 
MAY 03 – SAVAR, BANGLADESH: A lady believes her missing relative may be trapped in the rubble of an eight-storey garment factory collapse in Savar on April 24. The rising death toll has surpassed 500 and the country’s PM says Western retailers are partly to blame. 
MAY 02 – KABUL, AFGHANISTAN: An Afghan woman takes part in a pro-democracy demonstration condemning the victory of former mujahideen groups that led to the start of Afghanistan’s 1992-1996 civil war. Tens of thousands of civilians were killed in the conflict.
MAY 01 – JAKARTA, INDONESIA : 
APRIL 30 – AMSTERDAM: 
Introducing Gypsy Rose II, a 12-meter pirate ship created by U.S. boat builder, Captain Tim Woodson.
The Gypsy Rose II is one of six pirate ships built by Woodson (pictured with girlfriend “Wench Maria”), and sailed along the Mississippi River as part of sightseeing cruises. 
Woodson uses old house boats as the base for his pirate ships, covering them in planks of wood and staining it in varnish to “make it look like something from 1689.”
Among Woodson’s six converted pirate ships is another 12-meter boat now lined with 18 bunk beds for school trips. “We can thank Pirates of the Caribbean and Captain Jack Sparrow for the renewed interest in pirates today,” he said. 
