2026-05-10 This Week: Hike of Discomfort Woggle, Troop Meeting, Goshen T-Shirts, Backpacking at Trip Dolly Sods, SCUBA Certification, Scuba, Gear Giveaway, One-month Look Ahead

Happy Mother’s Day!  I hope all the scouts are making sure their mothers are having a great day!

While there are certainly some sore legs, blistered feet, and aching joints, I am proud of the 14 scouts and 7 adults who came out on Saturday for the big hike.  Thank you to Mr. Grocki for planning this hike. The 20-mile hike is one of the harder requirements for the Hiking Merit Badge, and I hope to see a few Blue Cards that I can sign soon!

A big call-out to Beau Painter-Ullom and JP Reading, who counted amongst the hearty group of 9 scouts who walked the full 20 Miles.  Because of the length and duration of this hike, I will give out at this week’s meeting an official Hike of Discomfort Silver Woggle to all the scouts who participated in the full 20 miles!

Also, another big thank you to our amazing road support team, including Mrs. Farmer, Mr. Devlin and Mrs. Baldwin who provided us with water, snacks (the donuts, popsicles and ice cream sandwiches were awesome) and refreshments at the 10, 15 and 20-mile mark. We could not have done it without you!!!

Since September, we have collectively walked just shy of 1500 miles on the training hikes, this includes Philmont Scouts, Troop Scouts, Philmont Adults and Troop Adults!

TROOP MEETING – BOR?

We will have a Troop meeting at 7:30 PM this Monday at Immanuel Church on the Hill. Your Leadership team will have a great plan and will mostly focus on rank advancement, sign offs and plenty of time for games.

If you are ready for a Board of Review, please inform Mrs. Farmer (Advancement Chair) right away!

Next week we will have our annual swimming test at Minnie Howard Campus School. Scouts going to Goshen this summer are strongly encouraged to attend as this will provide considerable time savings and you will NOT need to do it when you arrive at camp. We are very fortunate to have three Camp Olmsted Lifeguards who are part of the troop, and they can do this swim test beforehand!

There will not be a PLC this week!

GOSHEN CAMP OLMSTED T-SHIRT DESIGN

Hi all,

Here are our only requirements: Somewhere on the shirt, it needs to say:

• Troop 131 Alexandria Virginia
• Goshen Camp Olmsted 2026

Looking forward to seeing what scouts come up with!

Other Goshen business:
If your scout is going to Goshen and you have not already, please pay the treasurer $90 via Zelle for our bus reservations: treasurer@t131.org. This is in addition to the $580 (apologies for an earlier typo) registration fee you paid earlier for camp. Thanks to those who have already paid.

Please make sure you are getting camper (and adult participants) current copies of Medical Forms A, B and C … Form C requires a physician’s signature and must have been completed since July 5, 2025. We will be at the Troop meeting on May 11 to collect forms and for the t-shirt vote. Medical forms are due no later than June 15, 2025.

Thanks much,
Meghan + Mike

BACKPACKING TRIP – DOLLY SODS WILDERNESS (May-23-25)

Please sign up for this trip soon so we can plan ahead!  We have two meetings between now and the trip to arrange transportation, gear, and meals.  This trip is highly encouraged for all Philmont scouts but all scouts are welcome.

https://forms.gle/zYSYHfbjthNaTAGv8

Who: Everyone
What: Spring Backpacking and Final Philmont Shakedown

When: Sat 23 May – Mon 25 May 2026
Where: Dolly Sods Wilderness, WV
Why: We’re a backpacking Troop!

We’re making use of the long weekend to get more backpacking!  We’ll drive out Saturday morning and do a short hike to camp that day.  Sunday will be a long day with a 10+ mile hike.  Another short hike out to the cars on Monday and we’ll be back to Alexandria by Monday night.

Dehydrated backpacking meals are fine for this trip but we’d like everyone to plan a crew meal for Sunday dinner.

Cost: $20/scout

Thanks,

Chris Grocki

Outings Coordinator

Boy Scout Troop 131

SCUBA CERTIFICATION

Dear Troop 131 Families,

Scouts participating in the scuba option for Sea Base will need to arrive fully certified by PADI or an equivalent recognized certifying agency. Scouts who are not yet certified have two options for completing their certification before the trip. The first is to enroll in a full open water certification course through a commercial dive center such as Aquatic Adventures in Springfield, at a total cost of approximately $1,074 including gear rental. The second option is to participate in the troop’s own certification program, where scouts complete PADI eLearning, attend troop-led pool sessions over the summer, and complete open water checkout dives on a troop camping trip at Lake Phoenix the weekend of August 28–30 — at a total cost of approximately $550 including gear rental. Training for the troop program will be provided by Assistant Scoutmaster Reading, a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor with 20 years of experience. Scouts who complete the pool sessions will receive the Scuba BSA recognition, and scouts who complete the full certification course will also earn the Scuba Diving merit badge. The troop program is also open to any scout who would like to get certified this summer, regardless of whether they are attending Sea Base.

Pool training will be conducted in small groups of three to four scouts, with multiple scheduling options to fit different family calendars. We will offer sessions on either Wednesday evenings at 6:00 PM or Friday afternoons at 4:00 PM throughout the summer, beginning in mid-June. The open water checkout dives will take place during a troop camping trip to Lake Phoenix (Rawlings, VA) from Friday, August 28 through Sunday, August 30. Please email ASM Reading on ericreading@gmail.com with a copy to another adult if you are interested in the troop certification program so we can begin scheduling pool groups.

FOUR MILE RUN ANNUAL GEAR GIVEAWAY – MAY 14^th

See below, this will be right before the monthly Four Mile Run Roundtable.  If you need gear or have gear to donate, this is a good place to see if you can find what you need!

Annual Gear Giveaway – Open to All Four Mile Run District and former Chain Bridge District Units AND SCOUT FAMILIES – The May 14 District Showcase” marks the return of the Annual District Gear Giveaway – an opportunity to donate unwanted or unneeded Scout and camping items to fellow Scouts and Scouters, and/or to pick up needed items. Weather permitting, the Giveaway will be in the parking at Our Lady of Lourdes (830 23rd St South, Arlington, VA). Setup starts at 5:45 PM and runs until 8:00. All items are free, and there are no limits on what can be taken. Literally everything related to Scouting and/or camping has been offered at past Giveaways, so there’s no telling what might show up. Some years there is a lot of gear; other years not so much – but you never know. If the weather is uncooperative, the Giveaway will be postponed to the June 11 Roundtable. 

*POINTERS:*

No items for sale – Everything is FREE.

“Cherry-picking” starts at 6:30 pm. If you have items to donate, please bring them EARLY (by NLT 6:15 would be best) to maximize the chances of someone grabbing them. If you cannot make it that night, please arrange an advance drop off at Bob Klein’s house (contact HERE.

The Giveaway is not a table-top dumpster – Please be reasonable. Moldy tents and tarps, delaminated, low quality or worn-out backpacks, bent tarp poles or pack frames, mangled stakes, badly dented cookware, worn-out or unwearable uniform parts, water-soaked books or paperwork items, and so on, are very unlikely to be claimed.

Unless you re-claim your items before 8:00 PM, they will be discarded, recycled, or given to Units outside the District. Be aware, past experience has proven many times that items not taken by 7:45 pm are not going to be claimed.

SCHEDULE: One Month(ish) Look Ahead

Monday, May 11^th – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM (BoR) – Immanuel Church on the Hill

Friday May 15^th -17^th – OA Conclave – Rodney Scout Reservation

Monday May 18^th – Swim Test – Minnie Howard Campus Pool

Friday May 22^nd -26^th – Multi Day Backpacking Trip – Dolly Sods Wilderness

Monday May 25^th – No Troop Meeting – Federal Holiday – Memorial Day

Monday, June 1^st – Troop Meeting (TROOP ELECTIONS) – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill

Saturday, June 6^th – Day Hike – Billy Goat Trail

Sunday, June 7^th – Taste of Delray Service Project (8:00-10:30)

Sunday, June 7^th – Gabe Muldoon Eagle Court of Honor (2:00-4:00)

Monday, June 8^th – Troop Meeting (BoR) – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill

Friday, June 12^th – ACPS – Last Day of School 😊

Friday, June 12^th – 14^th – Fishing Trip – Double M Farm- Mt. Crawford VA.

Monday, June 15^th – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill

Monday, June 22^nd – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill

Monday, June 29^th – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill

Sunday, July 5^th – Start of Summer Camp – Camp Olmsted – Goshen, VA

Monday, Jule 6^th – No Troop Meeting

Sunday, July 11^th – End of Summer Camp – Camp Olmsted – Goshen, VA