For four decades, painted wooden signs have hung in Camp Medicine Bow’s dining hall, highlighting campsite names. There’s Minnikesu, Weemat and Wuttah, just to name a few … and this summer, Troop 399 of North Babylon, N.Y., added a new one.

The troop created all the campsite signs, each with the campsite name and its translated meaning from the Narragansett Native American language. For example, Wuttah means “heart.” The newest sign, decorated with books and birds, is emblazoned with the words “Red Wing,” and its meaning is “Storyteller,” the name for the Narragansett princess who published the Narragansett Dawn tribal newspaper.

The signs have lined the dining hall’s interior (and exterior for a brief period) for years, save for the offseason between 2005 and 2006 when the troop took them home to repaint them.

Camp Medicine Bow is one of three camps within Camp Yawgoog, which has more than 100 years of tradition welcoming Scouts to the beautiful wilderness on the southwestern side of Rhode Island.

Share your summer camp highlights

Scouts from across the country have been having amazing times at Scouting America’s council camps this summer. Troop 399’s addition to their camp’s collection was just one of many memories Scouts are creating.

If you’d like to share some of your Scouts’ memories, let us know and your unit might be featured in a future story. You can also email us at onscouting@scouting.org.

You can also contact Scout Life magazine to share your unit’s future outings, service projects or how your Scouts are making a difference in their communities.

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Nearly $340,000 in grants from the Rhode Island Foundation will be distributed among dozens of nonprofit organizations serving Newport County residents. The funding aims to support a diverse array of programs, ranging from educational initiatives for schoolchildren and disaster recovery preparation to food pantries and arts activities.

“We are grateful to be able to help these organizations carry out their crucial work,” said David N. Cicilline, the Foundation’s president and CEO. “We are fortunate to partner with passionate donors who make it possible for us to support nonprofits that are on the frontlines of serving the needs of their communities.”

The announcement, made Monday afternoon at the Newport County YMCA, gathered about 50 attendees. Among the 44 organizations receiving funding from the Foundation’s Newport County Fund are the YMCA, East Bay Community Action Program, and the Jamestown Arts Center.

The Newport County YMCA in Middletown was awarded $5,000 to support RhodySquash, an after-school program for middle school students that combines squash instruction with mentorship, tutoring, and character-building opportunities.

“The focus is on recruiting rising 5th graders who would otherwise be unable to access this program due to family financial constraints,” said Mike Miller, the Y’s CEO. “Through this program and with the support of funders, at-risk youth develop new skills and make connections that allow for a healthier and brighter future. In a community where after-school programs are lacking and often costly, RhodySquash provides a safe place for kids to play, learn, and thrive at no cost to families who need financial assistance.”

The East Bay Community Action Program in Newport received $10,000 for its Baby Steps program, which provides family education sessions and enrichment activities to engage family members as partners in the education of children through age four.

“Parents and caregivers are the most instrumental people in a child’s life, so developing effective parenting skills is vital,” said Rilwan Feyisitan Jr., president and CEO. “By promoting positive relationships and enhancing engagement, we can better prepare children and their families for the future.”

The Jamestown Arts Center was awarded $10,000 to support its Arts Experiences program, which offers a year-long series of free arts experiences, including artist-led workshops, Family Days, and public outdoor artworks. More than 500 Newport County residents are expected to participate in at least one of the activities.

“Our Arts Experience Initiatives open doors to creative expression and learning for all Newport County residents, particularly children and families,” said Christine Cocca, executive director. “By removing barriers and showcasing our many voices, we aim to foster a more inclusive and vibrant community where everyone has the opportunity to engage with arts experiences of the highest caliber.”

Other recipients include Aquidneck Community Table, the American Red Cross, Boys and Girls Clubs of Newport County, Conexion Latina Newport, FabNewport, Girl Scouts of Southeast New England, Jamestown Food Pantry, Katie Brown Educational Program, Little Compton Community Center, Live and Learn in Jamestown, Lucy’s Hearth, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, Newport Contemporary Ballet, newportFILM, Newport String Project, Rhode Island Black Storytellers, Rhode Island Slave History Medallions, Sail Newport, St. John’s Lodge Food Bank, St. Lucy’s Conference of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, Turning Around Ministries, and Washington Square Services Corporation.

The Newport County Fund awards grants of up to $10,000 to strengthen or expand established programs, support policy or advocacy efforts on behalf of community concerns, fund new projects addressing significant problems or opportunities, and leverage strategic collaborations and partnerships. An advisory committee comprised of residents from every community in Newport County assists in the funding decisions.

Established in 2002, the Fund has awarded over $6 million in grants for programs and services for residents of Jamestown, Little Compton, Middletown, Newport, Portsmouth, and Tiverton. It is one of the grant programs that enable the Foundation to serve Newport County communities. Since 2022, the Foundation has awarded more than $10.9 million in grants to Newport County nonprofits.

The Rhode Island Foundation is the largest and most comprehensive funder of nonprofit organizations in Rhode Island, working through civic leadership, fundraising, and grant-making activities to improve the lives of all Rhode Islanders. For more information, visit rifoundation.org.

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When the Most Rev. Richard Henning took over as bishop for the Diocese of Providence last year, many saw it as the start of a new era for the Catholic Church in Rhode Island. But now Henning is headed to Boston to become its next archbishop and try and replicate what he’s started in the Ocean State.

Henning, 59, will succeed Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley, who is a close ally of Pope Francis. 

“When I arrived in Rhode Island, I spoke about my delight in the state motto and the fact that I would now live in a state of hope,” said Henning, who first came to Providence from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre, New York, as coadjutor bishop in 2022, in a statement Monday. 

“Having now visited communities across Rhode Island, I say with great certainty that it is you, the people of this beautiful state — you are that hope! I will never cease to pray for you, and I hope for your prayers for me.“

O’Malley has led the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston since 2003.

Henning will be formally installed as Boston’s seventh archbishop on Oct. 31. Until then, he will continue to oversee church operations in Providence, said diocese spokesperson Michael Kieloch.

The appointment of Henning’s successor at the Providence Diocese is solely up to the pope. If a replacement is not named by Halloween, the diocese’s College of Consultors would select a temporary apostolic administrator, Kieloch said.

“In terms of timing and timeline, that’s completely unknown,” Kieloch said. “It’s the sole prerogative of the Holy Father.”

A church in decline

Henning took the reins of the Providence Diocese last May after the retirement of Bishop Thomas Tobin. Unlike his predecessor, who used social media to share his unapologetic stance opposing abortion and same-sex marriage, Henning did not have a personal social media account.

Bishop in final act before stepping down, deletes Twitter account

During his short tenure, the now Boston archbishop-elect laid the groundwork for a more forward-thinking church in Rhode Island, Providence College Associate Professor of Theology Jim Keating said in an interview.

“He’s very impressive, it doesn’t in any way surprise me to see that the people making these decisions were not going to pass on him simply because they have just assigned him to Providence,” Keating said.

A new bishop, Keating said, can either be a manager in decline or someone who instead tries to build off the positives of the past to build up the diocese in a more evangelical way — which involves more baptisms, weddings, confirmations, and participating in the life of their parish.

“And I got the immediate impression from Bishop Henning that he was the latter,” he said. “He wanted to take a very clear-eyed view of the actual situation of New England Catholicism, which is very dire.”

Throughout the 20th century, the Catholic Church was seen as a place for many of New England’s new immigrants to find community. But after the 1970s, Keating said the dominance of the church started to erode.

“Of course, the huge crack was the Geoghan case and Cardinal (Bernard) Law’s handling of that,” he said, referring to the sexual abuse scandal surrounding a defrocked retired Boston area priest that rocked the church in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Pew Research reported in April that 20% of U.S. adults describe themselves as Catholics — down 4% from 2007. A declining population means less political swing.

“It used to be that the cardinal or archbishop would signal their opposition and legislation would die,” Keating said about Boston politics. “No one thinks about Massachusetts that way any longer.”

Still some political muscle to flex

Tobin’s hardline stances often generated outrage from liberal and left-leaning groups.

“And he would almost always dial it back,” Keating said. “Which then raised the question: Why did you say something in the first place? Or why don’t you think before you talk?”

Henning, meanwhile, tries to stay out of politics — which he made clear when he spoke before reporters at a press conference Monday morning at the Pastoral Center in Braintree, Massachusetts.

“I will admit, I don’t know that I’ve ever been an activist — I’m not that exciting,” Henning said. “My stance in Providence has been that I’m a pastor, not a politician.”

He told reporters the Catholic Church does advocate for policy positions related to church teachings. Henning did weigh in on a few issues during the Rhode Island General Assembly 2024 legislative session, joining fellow faith leaders in supporting legislation mandating the safe storage of firearms and a failed push to ban assault weapons.

But Keating said the decision to support gun control was simply the church “swimming with the stream” on what has become a more popular stance.

“When it comes to abortion or the more hot stuff, it’s harder to see,” he said of vocal stances by church leaders.

During Monday’s press conference, Henning described himself as pro-life, but said he believes “every woman should have a full choice.”

“What I want to do is to help the Catholics, the faithful of this archdiocese form their consciences,” he said. “I certainly have opinions — I will vote as an American citizen. I will never tell you for whom I vote — I don’t belong to a party — that’s not my job to advocate for either side.”

If the Catholic Church wants to regain its influence, Keating said it needs to increase the number of parishioners who both know church teachings and can think about their political action.

That doesn’t happen unless the diocese can attract new members. Historically, Keaing said New England Catholicism has mostly relied on faith being part of a tradition passed from generation to generation. That might have worked in the 20th century, but over time, the region has become much more secular.

“The church can no longer rely on inherited faith, it has to have intentional faith and personal faith,” Keating said. “How do you do that? You have something attractive to offer.”

If anyone can accomplish that feat, Keating said, it’s Henning.

“He’s been meeting with people, talking, connecting with big players and trying to figure out what the diocese’s strengths and weaknesses were,” Keating said of Henning’s tenure in Rhode Island. “He’s energized things.”