I hope you are all doing well this breezy Sunday afternoon. Sorry for the long email, however, there is a lot of new information below, so please take the time to read through this!
First let me thank all the scouts and adults who came out for the Camporee this weekend. As always, it was an adventure! Remember to clean and dry your gear as MOLD is not our friend. If you have a patrol box also, please make sure to return it organized and re-stocked on Monday.
Just a few highlights from the weekend:
- On arrival we were greeted with a rainstorm and many scouts learned the importance of setting up your tent as quickly as possible!
- Troop 131 ran 5 of the 8 total camporee stations.
- We received a few new banners for our troop flag (for our service in running the program and for our camp entry gate design).
- We won two of the three places for our upcycle designs!
- We planted a tree in memory of Will Roger- see attached photo.
- Hosted 20 Webelos/Arrow of Light Scouts and their parents from pack 135.
- Ate amazing chili.
- Ben Turney’s Cobbler!
- Camping in the wind. We had a few tents tumble including the Scoutmasters Canopy!
First, a very special thank you to Mr. Jahns who organized the program portion of the Camporee, made the Chili dinner with the Webelos/Arrow of Lights Scouts happen, was responsible for the Will Roger memorial tree and took care of countless other things. I don’t know where he gets his energy from, and I am eternally grateful for all that he does. We are so fortunate to have him part of our organization!
I would like to note that the organizers were so impressed with the program portion that they asked if he would do it next year! I think Mr. Jahns graciously declined ….
I also want to thank all the older scouts (high schoolers) Sean, Gabe, Ben, David, Ethan, Owen, Theo, Tadgh & Josiah who ran the program stations. Some of these scouts had Homing Dance Plans Saturday night but came out anyway on Friday, camped with us one day, taught a station on Saturday afternoon and then went home for the dance. We could not have done it without all of you and you made it look easy!
We always need to strive for improvement, so let’s continue to get better with our meal planning, duty rosters and clean up. I saw too many scouts sitting around waiting for others to cook and do KP duty.
Finally, and a reminder to both Scouts and Parents, unless previously agreed upon due a scheduling issue, we ask that no one leave the camp site until the entire troop is done camping, packed up, completed our trash police line and we do our end of trip start/stop/repeat activity. We will always accommodate family schedules or other activities; however, it builds better unity when we all work together and finish at the same time.
TROOP MEETING
We will have a Troop meeting at 7:30PM at Immanuel Church on the Hill this Monday.
The quartermaster will need a bit of help in the shed getting the gear stored away, however, a major portion of the meeting should focus on our November Patrol activity. I would like each Patrol leader to come to me during the meeting with the “official patrol plan.
Many new/younger Scouts were involved in the past two camping trips (great job!) and probably completed a few rank requirements. Make sure you track down an older scout (First Class an above) at the meeting and ask them to review it with you and sign off.
We did not get to do this last week, however, let’s have a conversation about High Adventure, see info below from Mr. Farmer. We are trying to gauge interest and set up a long-term (2-3 year) plan.
We still have plenty of scouting left this year (including service projects- see below), so let’s finish strong!
SERVICE PROJECT- SCOUTING FOR FOOD
See note below from Mr. Moore. We have our annual council- wide service project- Scouting for Food. Unfortunately, I will not be able to join you all next weekend (out of town family commitment) however, all please go help support this important scouting event!
Scouting for Food: Scouts and parents, please join us on Saturday, October 28th (flyer drop off) and November 4th (food pick-up) to encourage local residents to donate non-perishable food items to support Alexandria’s food pantries, meal kitchens, public schools, recreation centers and other community partners to aid those in need. This is an annual event in which the troop participates.
We will meet in the parking lot of Immanuel Church on the Hill at 3606 Seminary Rd., Alexandria, VA, at 9:00 AM, Saturday, October 28th and then return to the homes of the residents in which flyers were distributed at 10:00 AM, Saturday, November 4th to pick up donated, non-perishable food items and return them back to Immanuel Church on the Hill. For friends and family outside of the area to donate visit: https://yougivegoods.com/colonialdistrict-scoutingforfood2023.
This is a great way for Scouts to earn service hours and help those in need in our community. Parents and their automobiles are needed to drop off and pick up Scouts to distribute notices and pick up donated food items on both days. Parents, please contact ASM Andrew Moore if you are able to participate in transporting Scouts and donated food items on the flyer drop off and food collection days (andrewdmoore2@aol.com, 202-258-7103).
SUMMER CAMP COORDINATOR
Mrs. Catherine Lacayo has volunteered to be our Summer Camp Coordinator this year. Thank you very much Mrs. Lacayo! Just as a reminder, we have a reservation for Week One at Goshen/Camp Olmsted this summer (week of June 23-29). This is one of the more popular weeks and just saw that it is now officially full!
WREATH SALE
Don’t forget to work on your Wreath Sales! We have lots of great things planned for next year and the proceeds from the sales help fund this. November 13th is fast approaching. See message below from Mrs. Irwin, our wreath sales coordinator! Remember the top three sellers get to put a whip cream pie on my face!
Hello Scout Families! I hope this finds you well.
It’s that time of year where we are getting our Scouts ready for one of their biggest fundraisers – Evergreen Sales. Last Monday, all attending scouts received a set of sales materials including a clipboard with one order form; friends and family flyers attached to door hangers for houses where no one is home (your scout will need to fill out their information), and laminated brochures featuring this year’s selection of items. Also attached to the board will be an envelope for them to collect order forms and payments.
We’re offering multiple ways for customers to pay this year: Cash, Check and Zelle – all preferred; and a QR code for credit card transactions, which though available, isn’t the best due to the fees the proceeds incur (3%).
The sales window will be Monday, October 2 through Monday November 13th when I will need everything back to ensure we can get the final order to Evergreen.
If you’re wondering how your Scout will benefit from participating:
- First and foremost, your scout is going to learn some great skills… knocking on a door, introducing themselves and what they represent, and advocating for what they are striving to achieve.
- Second, they are going to EARN MONEY THEY CAN USE. The proceeds from this don’t just go to the Troop – they go to individual scout accounts to help your scout pay for the adventures they seek to have. Backpacking, summer camp… all of it – 50% of their sales proceeds go to their individual accounts. I know more than one scout last year was able to pay their way to Goshen with this.
- Third, they’re doing a good turn and helping their troop! The other 50% of the proceeds go to the troop. All of those patches and badges, the scholarships, the picnics… all of that if funded partially through this fundraiser.
Finally, we will also be partnering with our sponsoring church, Immanuel Church on the Hill this year, to do sales through the online portal and during coffee hours. All proceeds from sales through the church will go 100% to the troop. More information on signing up for volunteer hours will be coming soon.
Please feel free to reach out to me with questions… I’m happy to help if I can.
HIGH ADVENTURE
Mr. Farmer along with Mr. Devlin have volunteered to help get us organized a put a plan together for high adventure over the next few years. Mr. Farmer put together a summary of each program and basic details. I encourage you all to look at this, click on the links. We want to see how much interest there is in each and compile a list of interested scouts. Let’s spend a little time talking about this at the meeting.
See below:
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Sea Base High Adventure:
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Minimum Age 13 for most events, to include SCUBA. There are some events that allow for youth as young as 12.
Seasons: Spring, Summer, Winter
Events: Sailing, and SCUBA are the primary events. The SCUBA requires a lot of prep work, so if you do that program, its all SCUBA, all the time. The sailing events have a mixture of sailing, kayaking, snorkeling and exploring.
Size: Groups as small as 6-8 for some sailing events, while the longer sailing trips on large vessels require 18-20
Availability: Events are available as early as March of next year, and extend through summer
Northern Tier Winter
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Minimum age: 14
Group Size: 6-11
Events: There is a longer event 27 December-1 Jan, and then a series of weekend events. You can camp or work with sled dogs.
Availability: Unsure yet, email sent to enquire on the December event this year
Philmont
Registration Information – Philmont Scout Ranch
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Minimum age: 14
Group Size: Depends
Events: This is the mother of all backcountry backpacking treks
Availability: There are 12 and 7 day treks available next summer. The 9 day treks appear to be the most popular as there are none of those available. The cavalcade is Philmont via hors, but they are so popular you have to register in a lottery to win the opportunity.
SCHEDULE: One Month(ish) Look Ahead
Monday, October 23rd – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Saturday October 28th – – Scouting for Food Drop Off – Alexandria Neighborhoods
Monday October 30th – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM (ACPS – No School) Immanuel Church on the Hill
Saturday November 4th – Scouting for Food Pick up – Alexandria Neighborhoods
Monday November 6th – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday November 13th – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Friday Nov. 17th – 19th – Patrol Outing or Camping Trip – Varies
Monday November 20th – No Troop Meeting (Thanksgiving Week)
Monday November 27th – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM (BoR) – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday December 4th – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM (Elections) – Immanuel Church on the Hill
