Troop 131,
I hope everyone had a great weekend! I understand that the Shooting Trip was a great success. Thank you to Mr. Framer and the other adults for going and making it happen!
Thank you to all the adults who came to the Committee/Parents/ASM Meeting last Thursday night, it was an excellent time as well and special thanks to Mrs. and Mr. Devlin for hosting them at their house!
We will have a busy meeting again this Monday, with SeaBase Crew Meeting (6:45), Board of Reviews (2 candidates), and Order of the Arrow Elections. See below for more information!
As a reminder from last week, I just want to announce that last week we received a donation of camping gear from a former Troop 131 family. It included backpacks, tents and sleeping bags. If anyone would like to look through it, please talk to Tadhg Devlin (the quartermaster) and he can open the shed for you. In addition, we have a chest full of lightly used scout uniforms. Most of the sizes are on the smaller size, which is perfect for any new scouts looking to switch out their blue shirts for tan ones!
TROOP MEETING
We will have a Troop meeting at 7:30PM this Monday at Immanuel Church on the Hill!
The Order of the Arrow Elections will take up much of the meeting, however, I am sure there will be time for advancement and games! It is imperative that we have at least ½ the troop in attendance, otherwise we cannot conduct the elections!
Board of Reviews will also take place during the meeting, and I hope to have a few new rank woggles to hand out!
SEA BASE PREP MEETING
We have a Sea Base prep meeting next week at 6:45. Both crews should attend. The following is the final list for the crews:
Boat 1- Coral Reef Sailing: From 8/6/2025-8/11/2025 (Wed-Mon) (Mike Farmer & Sean Dalton)
- Owen Farmer
- Arthur Dalton
- Declan Heatherington
- Sam Cantrell
- Jack Norris
- Geoge Pica
Boat 2 – Keys Adventure Sailing: From 8/8/2025 -8/13/2025 (Fri-Wed) (Daren Devlin & Vivian Ramirez)
- Tadgh Devlin
- Andrew Devlin
- Theo Ramirez
- Josiah Baldwin
- Isabel Ramirez
- Henry Mills
Mr. Devlin has provided the following agenda for the meeting:
- The last payment is due 90 days before the trip (beginning of May)
- Discuss transportation logistics/dates (must arrive at Sea Base between 1-3 pm, depart Sea Base early in the morning 7-8 am)
- Review of the Participants Guide
- Scout requirements
- Adult requirements
- Swim tests
- Training plan
- Required gear
- Crew T-shirts (pick a design & color for each crew)
- Masks & snorkels (where to buy, pricing)
- Forms to bring
ORDER OF THE ARROW ELECTIONS
Mr. Dalton has coordinated with the Local OA Lodge, and we have scheduled this year’s OA election for this Monday! We have one additional candidate, please see below.
For the troop to hold a valid election we need to meet the following attendance requirements and rules:
- At least ½ the troop must attend – in our case I believe this is 20 scouts.
- To be elected to the Order – an eligible scout must receive ½ the votes of those in attendance.
- For example, if 20 scouts attend, then an eligible scout must receive 10 votes.
- Only scouts vote, adults are not eligible to vote even if they are in the OA.
- All scouts can vote, both those that are currently in the OA and those that are not.
- Scouts may vote for as many or as few candidates as they like.
- A scout may vote for themselves.
- The election will be administered by current OA scouts OUTSIDE of our troop.
- Current OA members may wear their OA sashes on election day.
- The order of the arrow is Scouts BSA Honor Society. Scouts should vote for candidates that feel they embody the best spirit of scouting and those scouts who follow the scout oath and law.
For a Scout to be eligible for the order of the arrow they must:
- Embody the spirit of scouting.
- Be the rank of First Class and above on election day.
- Have camping experience (15 nights total with a minimum of 5 long-term consecutive nights such as summer camp/high adventure experience within past 24 months).
Based on the above criteria the following scouts are eligible OA candidates this year:
Qualified:
Declan Heatherington
Johanthan Nguyen
Andrew Devlin
Rylan McDonald
Talis Saulski
Karsten Gross
If you would like to remove yourself from the election list, then please reach out to Mr. Dalton
If you feel that you are qualified and were inadvertently left off this list, then please reach out to Mr. Dalton and he can review the requirements with you.
Thank you, Mr. Dalton, for coordinating the election again this year!
NEW PATROLS
Last Monday the new scouts (and troop guides) successfully organized two new patrols and elected Patrol Leaders! The Patrol leaders also appointed Assistant Patrol Leaders. This organizational structure will hold until June when we have new troop elections.
I am pleased to announce the two newly minted Troop 131 Patrols!
Royal Dill Pickles (9)
Nathanael Baldwin (Patrol Leader)
Kellen Byrnett
Owen Gruss
Liam Jones
Wyatt Kneller
Ben Niss
Gavin Niss
Finnegan Smith
Jameson Westfall (Assistant Patrol Leader)
Brazilian Bananas (8)
Fernando Campos
Andrew Gross
Wade Holman
Charlie Mills
John Porter Reading
Beau Painter-Ullom (Assistant Patrol Leader)
David White (Patrol Leader)
James Yuda
*Please let me know if any of this is incorrect.
Finally, I must admit, when I was a scout, we all wanted “dangerous patrol names” for instance I was a Cobra and a Panther … I don’t know what to think of you all and your funny food names.
SUMMER CAMP
See below for more information from Mrs. Lacayo, our summer camp coordinator, concerning camp this year. She intends to be at our meetings on March 17th and March 24th to answer any questions and help with selection of merit badges.
Summer is coming soon, and Goshen is waiting for you!
We now have merit badge schedules available for Camp Marriott. Take a look at the different adventures you could have at the highlighted links below!
I will send out a registration form to everyone next week. I’ll also plan to be at the Troop meetings on March 17 and 24 to talk with any Scouts (or parents) about the options available and how to fill out the registration form! – Mrs. Lacayo
- Location: Camp Marriott in Goshen, VA
- Dates: Sunday, July 6 – Saturday, July 12, 2025
- Camp Fees: If you register by April 13, the early bird cost for one Scout is $565. Regular registration will increase to $595 per Scout. (Note: This does not include the ~$100 bus fees; see below.) The cost this year is all-inclusive for all activities; you will not have to pay additional fees for any merit badges as we have had to do in years past.
- Transportation: All scouts will ride the bus to and from Goshen. The roundtrip cost is around $100. 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. Look at the 2025 schedule. If you are new to the troop or to attending Goshen, we recommend trying out the New Scout Quest program. There are also optional evening activities.
For older Scouts who may think you are beyond your Goshen years, they have a new program for you: Osprey! Offered to Scouts at Camps Bowman, Marriott, and Olmsted, Osprey is a full day, week-long program that includes high adventure opportunities and explores Goshen Scout Reservation. Over the course of the week, Scouts will become a team at Low COPE, participate in a service project, circumnavigate Lake Merriweather in canoes, engage in a metalworking and welding workshop, and embark on a backpacking overnighter with Lenhok’sin High Adventure activities. The Osprey program is based out of Camp Marriott and is a replacement for the former Goshen Vets program.
- 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! - 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 $300, and increases to $340 for regular registration. The troop will subsidize some of this cost, and any adult who chaperones on the bus will have their bus ticket covered.
FISHING TRIP- APRIL
See the message below from Mr. Mulvaney, please sign up! For the scouts who are going to Philmont in 14 months, (or scouts who are just interested) there will be a HIKE-IN option for this camping trip as well!
Who: All T-131 Scouts
What: Primitive Camping and Day Hike to Lake Thompson for Fishing
When: Fri 25 Apr – Sun 27 Apr 2025
Where: Linden Virginia/Whisky Hollow/Lake Thompson
Why: Troop-131 is a Camping Troop and we go every month!
Cost: Just $20 for everyone
https://forms.gle/KhRTn57E7r9SPK617
Easiest way to make payment for this or other Scout events is Zelle:
Name: TreasurerT131
Email: Treasurer@T131.Org
When making payment via Zelle, please be sure to add a note telling the Treasurer what the payment is for; alternately, you can send a separate email.
-Brendan Mulvaney
BIKING TRIP- MAY
See the message below from Mr. Mulvaney, please sign up! There will be a shake-down ride the weekend before for those that are interested!
Who: Everyone with a sense of adventure who loves the outdoors (i.e. SCOUTS!!!!)
What: Riding into the sunset (or at least along the canal)
When: SAT 10 May – Sun 11 May 2025 (Just Sat & Sun this month!)
Where: C&O Canal
Why: Let’s Ride!
Cost: $20 Each
And there is a Biking Merit Badge (https://www.scouting.org/merit-badges/cycling/)
Sign up at: https://forms.gle/d7FtXj7gR87E9S4HA
Easiest way to make payment for this or other Scout events is Zelle:
Name: TreasurerT131
Email: Treasurer@T131.Org
When making payment via Zelle, please be sure to add a note telling us what the payment is for; alternately, you can send a separate email.
-Brendan Mulvaney
SCHEDULE: One Month(ish) Look Ahead
Monday, March 17th – Troop Meeting (BoR) (OA Elections) (Seabase prep meeting)– 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, March 24th – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, March 31st – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, April 7th – Troop Meeting (PLC) – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Thursday, April 10th – District Round Table- Troop 131 Hosting – Our Lady of Lourdes
Monday, April 14th – Spring Break- No Troop Meeting
Monday, April 21st – Troop Meeting (BoR) – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Friday April 25th – 27th – Primitive Camping and Fishing Trip – Linden VA & Lake Thompson
Friday April 25th – 27th – OA Spring Ordeal/Fellowship – Camp Snyder
Monday, April 28th – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
