Tom's Monthly Newsletter: December 2006

Hi Folks

     Well, there’s a lot going on now, right smack in the middle of the Holiday Season, which tends to run from Thanksgiving to the New Year.  Things get a little more difficult at this time of the year, because most people in the business world tend to have their minds on the Holidays. However, here at the Tracker School we can’t let that stand in our way, the dying of the Earth does not take a holiday, nor do we for very long. 

     Might I remind you that the Children of the Earth Foundation is running its annual Holiday for the Animals Program, which I started many years ago?  The program will be held at the Boy Scout Camp right after our Philosophy IV class this month.  During this program, we teach children how to Caretake the land and make food gifts for the animals as they are about to face the difficult winter season ahead.  My hope is that the children and adults who come year after year will make it a family tradition in their own home towns and spread the word to many others.  For more information and specific dates, take a look at the COTEF schedule, and I hope to see you and your children here in a few weeks. 

     My son T3, Tara and Skeet, just spent the Thanksgiving week with my family and me here in Florida.  During their visit, we swam in the Gulf, basked in the sun, explored Cabbage Key, which was built on an ancient Native American shell mound, and did a host of other things. And, though part of what I intended to do was to help them acclimate to the Florida weather, landscapes, and animals, that wasn’t my primary goal.  Our main purpose was to finalize preparations at the camp we’ll be using in Florida for “The Way of the Shaman” class, the “Florida Standard”, “The Advanced Tracking and Awareness” class, and the Advanced Pressure Release” class.  Until now, Tommy, Skeet and Tara had only seen photographs of the camp, and when they saw it in-person, they were truly impressed, just as I knew they would be.  The main building we’ll be using is brand new and more impressive than any facility that we’ve ever rented for the Tracker School programs.  The landscape is lush and filled with an abundance of wildlife.   They all agreed that running these classes during the sunny and warm Florida days will be epic.

Take a look at what I think is one of the most exciting intensive schedule’s we’ve ever put together.  What you’ll see is more than a dozen classes, some brand new and others building upon our past successes.  Each one is awesome in its own right.  The first batch of intensives are up now, check back in the next few months as I release more of the 2007 intensive schedule.

 “Tracker Search and Forensic Investigation” is the not-for-profit organization we are setting up, which will be running in a few months. Tracking Teams which will be formed throughout the country will be drawn from the graduates of the Search and Rescue Class.  These teams will be responsible for the entirety of Search and Investigations, as well as training local law enforcement groups in each of their areas. 

Finally on a down note; due to health issues, Eddie Starnader is leaving the Tracker School after years of great service.  Perhaps we will see him in the future, as a “visiting instructor”. Look to my future newsletters for exciting news on plans we are making as well as new staff positions which I believe will make 2007 classes epic.

All Good Medicine