Troop 131,
I hope you all had a good weekend! The court of honor last Monday was great and big thank you to Luke Irwin our Master of Ceremonies and all the other scouts who participated! I am always so gratified to see all the ways you are advancing- keep it up!
PARENTS: Please don’t forget that we have a committee/parent meeting this Thursday, see info below! We invite you all to attend.
TROOP MEETING and PLC
We will have a Troop meeting at 7:30PM this Monday at Immanuel Church on the Hill! I believe that your leadership team has a cookoff planned for this week! The other major activity is planning for the camping trip!
In addition, it is time for our bi-monthly PLC. All those in leadership positions should arrive ½ hour early and at 7:00.
Finally, next Monday will be the Order of the Arrow (OA) Elections. For us to conduct the elections, we will need to have at least ½ the troop in attendance. That is about 24 scouts. So please make sure you all come and support the Honor Society of Scouts BSA. Current OA members should wear their OA sashes for that meeting.
MARCH CAMPING TRIP
Please sign up if you intend to come and see the link below from Mr. Mulvaney! This is the last meeting before the trip this coming weekend, so please make sure you have any gear you need checked from the Quartermaster and you have a clear meal plan!
Scoutmaster Ramirez has 5 acres of unimproved property near the Appalachian Trail (AT) and the Whisky Hollow Shelter. We will camp at his property, then take a full day hike on the AT to Sky Meadow. This will be primitive camping (like we do when we backpack), however, the campsite is about 200 yards from where we can park the cars. The site is heavily wooded within ½ a mile of the AT. The only challenge being the fact that there is no running water, so we will need to pack that in. It should be a good trip and a good time to work on backpack cooking skills!
Who: All T-131 Scouts
What: Primitive Camping and Day Hike to Sky Meadow
When: March 15th – 17th
Where: Linden Virginia/Whisky Hollow/Sky Meadow
Why: Troop-131 is a Camping Troop and we go every month!
Cost: Just $20 for everyone
Click the Link to Sign up NOW!!!!!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfXcEjD24qIMiapSevlA9TNBqEqpSdcnuHZI7ZDVTxXRnYh0w/viewform
Brendan Mulvaney
Outings Coordinator
Boy Scout Troop 131
SUMMER CAMP
Mrs. Lacayo, our Summer Camp Coordinator, Mr. Devlin, and Mr. Irwin hosted a great parents info session last Monday. If you have any questions, be sure to reach out to Mr. Lacayo at: summercamp@t131.org!
Goshen 2024
Summer camp is coming up! This year, we will be attending Camp Olmstead at Goshen. I’ll provide more details about camp activities and merit badge sign ups in the coming weeks, but here are a few things to know now:
- Location:Camp Olmstead in Goshen, VA
- Dates:Sunday, June 23 – Saturday, June 29, 2024 (week 1)
- Camp Fees:If you register by April 11, the early bird cost for one Scout is $475. Regular registration will increase to $505 per Scout. (Note: This does not include the $80 bus fees; see below.)
- Transportation:Scouts will ride the bus to and from Goshen. (This is a change from last year – we are asking everyone to take the bus unless you are bringing supplies.) The roundtrip cost is $80. The bus leaves from Fairfax County Government Center in Fairfax, VA, and will drop back off at the same location.
- Merit Badges:There are many merit badge options available; you can view the schedule here. New Scouts will go through the Trailhead program. I’ll send details in March about how we do sign ups.
- Forms:Each camper will need to fill out BSA Medical Forms A, B1, B2, and C, as well as the NCAC form. All forms can be found here.
Please note: Part C requires the signature of a medical professional, so prioritize getting this signed! - Scholarships:The troop is committed to making Goshen accessible to as many Scouts as possible. If you are interested in a Campership (financial aid) to help cover the fees, please let us know before February 28, 2024.
- Adult Campers:Interested in joining the Goshen fun? We will need a few good adults to join the Goshen trip. You can come for a portion of the week or the whole week. I’ll follow up with more info in a separate email, but for your awareness, adult early bird registration costs $230, and increases to $270 for regular registration.
PARENTS/COMMITTEE MEETING
See note below from Mrs. Devlin, our committee chair concerning the upcoming Meeting.
Dear T131 Families,
Parent / Committee Meeting
Please mark your calendar for our upcoming parent and committee meeting via Zoom on Thursday, March 14 @ 7:30pm (link to follow).
This is your chance to find out what’s going on with the troop, get questions answered, make suggestions, and find where you can support. All are welcome!
Uniform Swap
As we get ready for new scouts in April and May, please gather your son’s outgrown uniforms. If you send them to the troop meeting, we can add them to our uniform swap box.
Volunteer Needs
We are looking for some adult volunteers in these areas:
- Scoutmaster – We are looking for someone who might be interested in this role to shadow Mark for a gradual transition into being Scoutmaster, especially some of our parents who are former scouts. Please ask questions, we’d love to discuss.
- Service Coordinator – Our outgoing service folks are happy to discuss the requirements; this can even be done by one parent with a little extra time to track service hours and opportunities.
If you’re a parent who doesn’t have time for activities or camping, please consider helping with one of these positions, I’m happy to discuss!
Thank you for your consideration, see you in March!
Anastasia Devlin
786.457.3043
MERIT BADGE COUNSELORS
We are always looking for parents’ involvement in the troop and one great way is to become a merit badge counselor. If you are interested, then see the process below. Anyone can become a counselor; however, you must be registered with the troop, be YPT certified and complete the online merit badge course. Keep in mind that some merit badges, such aquatics or shooting sports, require additional training/certifications.
See link below to the google doc with the current list of counselors. Register for the ones you are interested in/qualified for and don’t worry if there are already multiple counselors, it is great for the scouts to have options. Counselors for eagle required merit badges (in yellow) tend to see more action, however, it is great when there are opportunities for electives as well.
(Scouts, keep in mind that you must have a conversation and receive a blue card from the Scoutmaster or one of the other Assistant Scoutmasters BEFORE you reach out to a counselor).
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/19yJTQS1qk7-UBpIjI2fgJBLrB2qMx-48/edit#gid=1739196674
Merit Badge Counselor Registration Process
Inform the Scoutmaster and Committee Chair that you intend to register as a merit badge counselor- Submit an online application through this link – https://my.scouting.org/VES/OnlineReg/1.0.0/?tu=UF-MB-082c22
If already on our unit charter, you can register with “Colonial District 22” as a dual registration. If a dual registration, there will be no fee required with the application.
If not on the unit charter, you will register with Colonial District and the fee will be $25
- Once the application is completed, you can submit directly to Colonial District via email (registrarcolonialmbc@gmail.com) the following:
* The MBC Information sheet (https://filestore.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/34405.pdf)
* Certificate of completion for Youth Protection Training (YPT)
* Certificate of completion for the online MBC training (accessible through My Scouting, same as where they do YPT https://my.scouting.org)
- Once complete, theColonial DistrictMerit Badge Registar will contact you and verify that you are registered with the District. You should see the merit badges listed in Scoutbook.
SCHEDULE: One Month(ish) Look Ahead
Monday, March 11th – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM (PLC) – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Thursday, March 14th – Parent & Committee Meeting- 7:30 – Virtual
Monday, March 15th – 17th – Camping – Primitive Camping and Day Hike to Sky Meadow – Whisky Hollow VA
Monday, March 18th – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM (BoR) (OA Elections) – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, March 25th – No Troop Meeting – Spring Break (ACPS & FCPS)
Monday, April 1st – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM (ACPS- No School) – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Friday April 5th- 7th – OA Spring Fellowship – Camp Snyder
Monday, April 8th – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, April 15th – Troop Meeting- 7:30 PM (BoR)- Immanuel Church on the Hill
Friday April 19th – 21st – Camping- Fishing- Pohick Bay
