Troop 131,
Wow, what a busy October!
It looks like the scouts who went on the camporee had a BLAST (sorry for the corny joke- I could not resist) and we successfully navigated two major camping trips, two service outings and a Philmont training hike all this month. Thank you to all the adults who helped make this happen. A very special thanks to Mr. Mulvaney (outgoing Outdoor Chair) & Mr. Grocki (in coming Outdoor chair) for doing Yeoman’s work and handling all the logistics, paperwork, carpool planning, etc. for these trips.
Scouts, please bring back any troop gear, clean and dry! Please do not leave any food into the patrol bins and make sure there is nothing organic left in them …. Otherwise the mold fairy will visit you!
TROOP MEETING & BoR
We will have a Troop meeting at 7:30 PM this Monday at Immanuel Church on the Hill!
After two rather INTENSE Meetings, we will try and make it a little easier for the next two. We have a big group of scouts who are up for Board of Reviews (which is awesome, keep the rank advancement coming) and we will dedicate a good bit of time to Patrol Meetings and Personal Advancement. With two camping trips in a row, I am sure you have lots of items that need to be signed off by the older scouts!
Your leadership team has prepared a short instruction on Backpacking Essentials, which is timely, given the two upcoming backpacking trips (November and January) plus a full day training hike in December.
DUES
Parents: See note below from Mrs. Devlin– Committee Chair concerning the troop Dues. Please note that the Dues are now Separate from the National Registration with the Scouting America/National Capital Area Council.
Good morning, scouts and families!
Thanks to the 2024 change in BSA’s national registration system, this message is only regarding local Troop 131 dues! (National dues are paid directly to the BSA organization. The MAJORITY of our scouts/adults will renew at the end of January, so be on the lookout for that email.)
As you’ve seen with your own budgets, costs are going up for the gear we need to put on this program. T131’s 2026 dues will be $40 per scout FOR THE YEAR. We still supplement with events like the wreath sales and car washes, but dues constitute the majority of our funding.
· This money mostly goes to pay for things like rank patches, merit badges and troop camping gear, but it also includes unit registration, summer camp registration, scout camping food, annual picnic supplies, and our annual cub scout recruiting dinner.
· It DOES NOT pay for high adventure; HA participants have separate fundraising events.
· Continuing from last year, we will still waive adult camping fees (with the exception of events that come with secondary costs like climboree/camporee, skiing or rafting). Thank you to all who continue to support our boys’ outdoor experiences!
· Troop 131 dues are only for scouts—no dues for adults.
· Pay by NOV 15 via Zelle/cash/check to Mr. Baldwin (Zelle: treasurer@t131.org). This can also be covered with past wreath sales or other credits; the attached doc from Mr. Baldwin reflects scouts with positive balances.
Finally, we never want dues to stand in the way of the Scouting experience. Scholarships are available; please contact me or the scoutmaster to discuss.
Anastasia Devlin
Chair, Troop 131
786.457.3043
WREATH SALE
It is that time of year, our one main fundraiser for the year! The money raised from the sale of the wreaths helps pay for much of the activities, patches and gear that we need. We have a big group of new scouts, and I hope you all will help if you can. We are looking for 80% participation this year! Mr. Green has graciously volunteered to be our fundraising chair this year, please see the note below and attached files from him with more details.
Troop Wreath Sales & Fundraising Drive
We’re kicking off this year’s wreath sales! Over 50% of sales go directly toward your camping trips and scouting equipment, so your effort really pays off for the whole troop.
Our Goal: 80% troop participation (last year only 1/3 participated—let’s do better!)
Sales Target: Sell 3 wreaths, swags, garlands, or other holiday decorations
Pro tip: Mention the door hangers and plastic bags when selling!
Amazon Gift Card Prizes for Top Sellers:
- 1st Place: $50
- 2nd Place: $35
- 3rd Place: $25
Merit Badge Opportunity
Earn your Salesmanship Merit Badge through this fundraiser! Visit https://www.scouting.org/merit-badges/salesmanship to review requirements. Complete items #1, 3, and 7 on your own—we’ll cover the rest at a troop meeting.
Key Dates & Details
Sales Period: October 6 – November 1, 2025
- Collect payment with each order (Zelle or Square preferred)
- Orders delivered to: Mr. Mill’s house, 213 E Randolph Ave, Alexandria, VA (pick up from here)
- Sales kits include glossy brochures and clipboards (distributed at pack meetings)
- Direct shipping available for out-of-area customers (contact Mr. Green for details)
- Orders will be delivered the first week of December (Dec 3-5)
Need help with your sales pitch?
Our fundraising chair, Mr. Green, is ready to help you craft your sales pitch and build confidence in reaching your goals. Find him at any troop meeting or reach out with questions.
See attached product flyer and sample order form for pricing and options.
For those of you interested in placing an order using the online catalog, attached is information about how to get started. Here are a few important details:
How to order: Visit https://my.evergreenindustries.com/#shop (a QR code is also included in the attachment). When placing your order, please include our customer code, BSA131, and enter the scout’s first and last name in the “beneficiary” field.
What to know: The online store has fewer product options compared to local sales, but you have more time to order. The deadline for the online store is November 15th, whereas our local and direct sale deadline is November 1st.
About profits: I didn’t initially promote this option because it returns a lower profit to your accounts compared to other methods. Each online sale returns a flat $10 to you, whereas local or direct orders return $20 or more. However, it’s a cost-feasible option for families outside our area and is shipped similarly to direct sales (to anywhere except Alaska and Hawaii).
As always, reach out if you have any questions or concerns.
Best of luck!
Mr. Green
SERVICE CORNER
Scouting for Food
See note below from Mrs. Ramirez (Service Coordinator) for our annual Scouting for Food on Saturday November 1 and Saturday November 8. We will need full troop participation for this, so please mark your calendars. Hours for this will count as service hours for rank advancement.
Scouting for Food in Alexandria will again benefit ALIVE!, which provides support to Alexandrians struggling with food insecurity and economic disparity. SFF is one of its biggest food drives and will take place:
Saturday November 1st – Scouts distribute SFF stickers
Saturday November 8th – Scouts collect donations in the morning and deliver to ALIVE’s Old Town Warehouse at 801 S. Payne Street
We will be distributing SFF door stickers again this year stamped “next Saturday” in the same SFF territory and same number of SFF stickers that you had in 2024. Here’s the map of our SFF territory.
Thank you for supporting Scouting for Food!
TROOP GOOGLE GROUP AND EMAIL DISTRIBUTION
PARENTS: Many of the scout’s email addresses are not included in this distribution list. If you would like to include them on troop distribution. Please email Patrick Byrnett (Membership Chair) and he can add their information.
SUMMER CAMP
For the long-term planners in the troop, we are locked in for the following two summer camp experiences:
· Goshen – Camp Olmsted Week 3 (July 5th – 11th) – traditional summer camp
o https://www.gotogoshen.org/camps-programs/camp-olmsted/
· Goshen – Lenhoksin Week 4 (July 12th – 18th ) backpacking trek
o https://www.gotogoshen.org/camps-programs/lenhoksin-high-adventure/
Sign up for camp will happen in the new year and after the release of the merit badge schedules.
NYLT
See link below for National Youth Leadership Training (NYLT). In the past we have had a number of scouts who participated in this program, and they all came back raving about how good it is.
https://ncacscouting.org/training/nylt/
SCHEDULE: One Month(ish) Look Ahead
Monday, October 20th – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM (BoR) – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, October 27th – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Saturday, Nov. 1st – Pumpkin Clean Up – 8:30am to noon – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Saturday, Nov. 1st – Scouting for Food Sticker Distribution- Alexandria Neighborhoods
Monday, November 3rd – Troop Meeting, AOL Visit & Spaghetti Dinner – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Saturday, Nov.8th t – Scouting for Food Pickup- Alexandria Neighborhoods
Monday, November 10th – No Troop Meeting -Federal Holiday – Veterans Day
Friday, Nov. 14th -16th – Camping Trip- Back Packing – Mudhole Gap – Fort Valley, VA
Monday, November 17th – Troop Meeting (BoR)(PLC) – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, November 24th – No Troop Meeting -Thanksgiving Week
Monday, December 1st – Troop Meeting – ELECTIONS – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Saturday, December 6th – Scottish Walk – Old Town Alexandria
Sunday, December 7th – Day Trip – Linden to Jim and Molly Denton Shelter – Linden VA
Monday, December 8th – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, December 15th – Troop Meeting (BoR)(PLC) – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, December 22nd – No Troop Meeting – Winter Break
Monday, December 29th – No Troop Meeting – Winter Break
