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Youth from around the world have joined a talented team of individuals working to make the Greater Yosemite Council Jamboree website the one stop place for everything jamboree. From informative articles to entertaining video presentations, these kids bring life to our website.
Lewis Spearing - International Ambassador/ Tutorials
 Lewis Spearing is the brilliant young man behind Lewis Spearing Productions. He proves that neither age nor geographic location limits significant contributions to the Greater Yosemite Council.
Lewis produces the tutorials for our website from his home in the United Kingdom. The global network created by the Internet allows him to be "just a click away" any time we need him.
Lewis (age 13) first started learning about computers when he was six years old. At age 8, he decided to "fix" his family computer...and he fixed it for good! But the family got a new computer, and Lewis's interest and skills continued to grow. On his 11th birthday, Lewis was presented with his own Dell Latitude D600 laptop. This is the computer he uses today.
Winston Churchill said, "Success consists of going form failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." and Lewis claims he learned his computer skills by "trial and fail." But it has worked well for him. Since joining YouTube on July 28, 2007, his tutorials have been viewed over 300,000 times! Lewis is a "YouTube Partner"–an honor bestowed on few youth his age.
Lewis has many interests. He especially enjoys film making with his friends and creating digital animations. Some day you will say, "I knew Lewis Spearing when..."
You can visit Lewis's YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/lspearingproductions. Don't forget to subscribe!
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Sullivan Hunter - Advisor
 Sullivan inspired creation of the Greater Yosemite Council International Web Team. He proved that intelligent and talented youth from around the world can work together on an Internet collaboration. Sullivan's busy schedule does not allow him to produce many video presentations; however, his perspective has strongly affected the development of our web team. Sullivan also provides valuable feedback on the content of training workshops for our troop historians.
Growing up in the Australian Outback, Sullivan has often joked that he lives on "The Moon!" It may seem that way to a 15 year old boy from a small town in the middle of a vast landscape. Sullivan's remote location makes apparent the power of the Internet to connect people across international boundaries. It shows how positive communication can help build a global community.
In truth, Sullivan is an active member of a vibrant town. He is a top student–and excels in all academic areas. He enjoys playing soccer–and contributes significantly to the success of his team. Above all, Sullivan is an avid reader. He absolutely loves books. Even he cannot list all of the books he has read!
You can visit Sullivan's YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/waytorandom . Sullivan is well known as the boy who asks the simple question, "Can you say kangaroo?"
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Tynan Achondo - Actor
 Finding a voice for our cartoon character, Scooter Scout, took several twists and turns. After searching weeks for just the right person, Tynan happened to attend a jamboree recruiting event with his parents and older brothers. A Cub Scout, he appeared very gregarious and energetic. When asked, Tynan readily agreed to help make a telephone recruiting message for the Greater Yosemite Council jamboree contingent. With the support of his parents, Tynan recorded that message, and many more, over the following several weeks. The search for "Scooter Scout" had ended!
Tynan comes from a strong Scouting family. He joined Cub Scouts when he was 6 years old and has continuously advanced through the ranks. Although he is not old enough to attend the 2010 National Jamboree, he will be eligible to go in 2013!
Tynan is also a budding athlete. He loves to play all sports but especially enjoys American football. He played lineman on his local youth team last year. The team won the regional youth league "Super Bowl" novice division.
Tynan, age 10, is the youngest member of our web team. He was born and raised in California. We look forward hearing the story of Scooter Scout as we prepare for the 2010 National Jamboree.
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Daniel Messias - Graphic Animations
 Daniel Messias is more than a computer wizard. He combines the art of creative expression with the science of digital technology. Thus, he achieves a unique form of graphic artistry. Daniel writes and produces the Yosemite Jamboree Trading Post commercials seen on our website.
Working from his studio in the United Kingdom, he is able to craft video segments that bring together photography, graphics, sound effects and music. Daniel uses a variety of software products including Adobe Photoshop and Adobe After Effects. He works exclusively on a windows based PC.
Daniel became enthralled with computers at the age of three. That is when he first started drawing simple shapes using the Microsoft Paint program installed on his family PC. He continued to develop his graphics skills whilst adding video editing to his repertoire. From these early beginnings, Daniel has graduated to mastering the full suite of Adobe software used by top professionals around the world. He also dabbles in programming and website design.
Daniel is 12 years old. He is in Year 8 at his school. You can see some of Daniels other work on his YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/adobenicnacs . Daniel can be contacted at
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Matthew Walpole - Actor
 Matthew Walpole has been "acting up" most of his life. He caught the acting bug at an early age when he saw a production of "Oliver! The Musical." Since that time, Matthew has worked with two young peoples' theatre groups and has appeared in numerous stage productions. His stage work has included a featured role in a play at the Theatre Royal in Norwich, England.
Matthew contributes to the Greater Yosemite Council Jamboree website by providing a voice for Half Hitch: the loyal companion of Scooter Scout. He makes his voice recordings in a studio near his home in England and submits them to the website production team via the Internet. His work demonstrates the global nature of our Jamboree website team.
Matthew was born on the 7th of March, 1995. He has grown up in a village in Norfolk, England. While the challenging coursework he has chosen for school keeps him busy, Matthew still finds time for his other interests including music, reading, creative writing, and spending time with his friends.
Matthew found pleasure in writing during his primary school years. Since that time has spent long hours in his room creating literary works. Matthew hopes to pursue a career as an author, a journalist or an actor. He currently is working on the manuscript for a fictional short story.
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Ashley Mathews - Vlog Master
 Have you heard the story about a boy who goes shopping with his mother and a stranger asks him, "Would you like to be in a movie?" Well, it really happened to Ashley Matthews.
He was Christmas shopping in York with his mum when a woman invited him to an open audition. His mother was suspicious about the legitimacy of the offer, but Ashley was able to convince her-with the help of some well acted tears-to give it a go.
It turned out a real producer was casting the lead for a short subject film entitled "Creep." She was looking for a "new face" Ashley had no acting experience, but he got the job! "Creep" went on to win top honors at the Leeds International Film Festival, with accolades for its young actor. The acting bug had bitten Ashley Matthews!
After this triumphant debut on the big screen, Ashley performed in countless school productions and two "Shakespeare 4 Kidz'" productions at the Wakefield Opera House, "Macbeth" and "Midsummer Night's Dream."
He also made it through the first rounds of the Andrew Lloyd Webber talent search for Oliver that was part of a BBC television show, and he appeared in two Dewsbury Collegian Shows, "The King & I" and as Oliver in "Oliver! The Musical." Most recently Ashley sang and danced in a new production of Oliver! staged by the Wakefield Operatic Society at the Theatre Royal Wakefield. He played the Artful Dodger. The newspaper reveiw proclaimed, "Our Dodger, Ashley Matthews, also proved to be a real talent - stealing his scenes with his cockney drawl and cheeky grins."
Ashley hopes to attend a performing arts university in the U.K. He wants someday to appear in a show on London's "West End"-the equivalent of New York's Broadway. Ashley's dream is to be recognized by the public as a top rate actor. For now he is excited to be part of the Jamboree web team doing what he loves most... acting!
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Kevin Perry - Guide on the Side
 Kevin brings an expertise to the jamboree website that can only be gained through experience. He attended the 2005 National Jamboree as a member of the Greater Yosemite Council contingent. Kevin will appear regularly on our website in a series of video presentations entitled "Guide on the Side." These segments will provide insight and tips to Scouts who are members of the 2010 contingent from his perspective of "been there...done that."
Kevin joined Cubscouts when he was in first grade. He progressed through every level of the Scouting program earning the rank of Eagle Scout in 2007. During that time he held numerous leadership position in his home troop including Senior Patrol Leader, Junior Assistant Scoutmaster and Troop Guide. He currently is president of his Venture Crew and has been a member of the local Fire Explorer Post since January 2008.
Kevin graduated from high school in June 2009. He will continue on to to earn a college degree in fire science. He hopes to serve his community in the future as a professional fire fighter.
Kevin has many interests outside of Scouts including soccer and music. He especially enjoys playing drums. You can contact Kevin at
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Ethan McKenzie - Actor
 Ethan McKenzie is 14 years old. He spent his early years at the family manor in the Yorkshire Dales. At age seven, he left home to attend boarding school in Berkshire. Whilst not a fan of homework, Ethan found most subjects came easily and he received high marks. Summers were spent on trips abroad with his school–visiting France twice, Greece once and Spain once. He always looked forward to staying a few weeks each summer at his family's estate in Yorkshire. Horse riding, bike riding, and camping in the Dales made Ethan happy. He prefers the solitude of the country to the bustle of city life.
Last year Ethan advanced to senior school. Although his prep school and senior school were on the same campus, he lived in a new boarding house with older students. He had the chance to enroll in some optional courses at school. He chose to focus on theatre and dance. He loved every minute of the time in those classes. Ethan was cast in the title role for the school production of "Jack and the Beanstalk." He also took acting lessons with a local stage company once each week.
In the 2008-2009 school year, Ethan is attending public school for the first time. Due to circumstances, he lives with his mum in a London flat. Ethan is resilient. He sees this as another adventure and has offered to tell us about his life in London. Ethan will send us a series of videos chronicling his life during the coming year. We look forward to hearing from him regularly.
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International Team
