The Frontiersmen Camping Fellowship (FCF), originally called Frontiersmen Camping Fraternity, was founded during the summer of 1966. The Fellowship began as a way to reward for the older kids and leaders who had distinguished themselves in advancement, training, and camping.
In Singapore, the FCF chapter is called The Raffles Chapter.
The Raffles Chapter started with the testing of a group of commanders from Bethel Outpost 1 by National FCF President of Australia, Ian Phillips, on 13 March 1983
The Frontiersmen Camping Fellowship (FCF), originally called Frontiersmen Camping Fraternity, was founded during the summer of 1966. The Fellowship began as a way to reward for the older boys and men who had distinguished themselves in advancement, training, and camping. The first FCF chapter was organized in the Southern California District in 1966. Dressed in buckskin outfits, the boys and men gathered in the firelight and prepared to endure a night of testing that would stretch their camping and survival skills to the limit. Many of the tests a Royal Ranger will face to become an FCF member will demand a courageous spirit and be a life-changing experience.
Participation in the FCF ministry will achieve five important things for the boys and men: a demonstration of courage and leadership, development of friendships and woodsmanship, and a display of achievement.
FCF accomplishes the following purposes:
- To give recognition to boys and men who have shown exceptional interest and outstanding achievement in the Royal Rangers ministry and in Royal Rangers campcraft.
- To build a brotherhood of top-notch boys and men who will, over the years, continue to be Royal Rangers ministry and camping enthusiasts.
- To emphasize the importance of involvement in the advancement program, development of campcraft skills, and completion of the leadership training programs.
- To develop a corps of proven Royal Rangers who will strive to be the very best in Christian example and leadership.
- To encourage the boys and men of Royal Rangers to always prefer others above themselves and to let their leadership be by example. To show a spirit of servanthood, willing to give of time and energy above and beyond what is expected of Royal Rangers.
FCF Spirit
FCF endeavors to develop in each member the same courageous and undaunted spirit of the early frontiersmen. High morale and contagious enthusiasm are developed by urging each member to strive to achieve five important things: develop courage, display achievement, develop friendship, demonstrate leadership, and develop woodsmanship.
The blazing campfire is the official symbol of FCF. It symbolizes the spirit of FCF, which is:
Courage
Early frontiersmen demonstrated outstanding courage by exploring unknown wilderness, scaling high mountains, crossing barren deserts, blazing trails in virgin forests, and enduring extreme heat, cold, peril, and hardships. Many are the stories of their bravery in battle, their struggle for survival, and their unwavering loyalty in the name of honor. FCF encourages each member to develop this same spirit of courage.
Achievement
History books are full of the accounts of such outstanding men as Lewis and Clark, Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett, and Kit Carson. These men carved a name for themselves in our American history because of their outstanding achievements. Their undaunted spirit of determination and their desire to excel provide some of the most colorful and exciting pages in our history books.
FCF members should also maintain this desire to excel and achieve. Proficiency in camping and other phases of the Royal Rangers ministry is demonstrated by achieving certain milestones in advancement. These abilities are further demonstrated by each candidate during his Phase I testing.
The FCF member should also strive to achieve the following goals: progress in advancement, become more involved in Royal Rangers, and continue to develop skills as a good camper.
Friendship
The saga of the American frontier contains many accounts of frontiersmen who risked–and sometimes gave–their lives and their fortunes on behalf of their friends. Their unwavering loyalty to friends serves as an inspiration to today’s FCF members. They too endeavor to cultivate the same strong bonds of friendship and display the same loyalty to their friends. The feeling of brotherhood is very strong in FCF and members do their best to uphold this tradition.
Leadership
Many of today’s major highways and mountain passes were once mere trails blazed by early frontiersmen through uncharted wilderness, leading the way in exploration of a new country.
Just like a frontiersman, each FCF member should also be willing to step out and lead the way by being an example in Christian living, participating in Christian service, and being willing to assume specific responsibilities. There are still many opportunities awaiting the individual who is willing and ready. An FCF member should prepare himself now for leadership so he will be ready when the opportunity presents itself.
Woodsmanship
Early frontiersmen were able to adapt to almost any wilderness situation because they were constantly developing outdoor skills. It became a matter of survival to know what to do and how to do it. As experienced woodsmen, they could spend months on the frontier with only a small knapsack, a blanket, a rifle, and a hunting knife. Today’s FCF member should also continue to develop outdoor skills. They should use every opportunity available to demonstrate these skills in a camping situation. An FCF member should not only be a trained woodsman, but also an experienced woodsman.
FCF Pledge
I promise to share with you the warmth of Christian friendship and with others the light of my Christian testimony.
I promise to keep alive the spirit of FCF in my personal life and to observe at all times the principles of Royal Rangers.
FCF Motto
Ad Dare Sevire
(English Translation:: To Give and To Serve)
