Hello Scouts,

During December, we will have fun patrol activities. Merit badges will resume in January.

December 7 – Patrol bonding and games
December 14 – Scout Jeopardy
December 21 – Holiday Party (more details below)

On to the update:

1) December 8 – 10 – Ski Weekend at Copper Mountain – Through his well-honed negotiating skills, Mr. Jackson got the cost of the condo reduced by $1,000, so the ski weekend is ON. If you plan to attend (even if you haven’t signed up).

2) December 21 – Troop Holiday Party, Gift Exchange, and Cookie Contest at the regular meeting. Scouts should bring a wrapped gift worth less than $20 to exchange. We will also have a cookie contest so bring your best holiday cookie or treat to share.

3) Northern Tier – We have open spaces in our Northern Tier crews for trips starting on July 10 or July 13, 2024. This is a BSA high adventure base in Northern Minnesota where you will canoe through the Boundry Waters. It is a great chance to be in nature, catch a lot of fish, and bond with your fellow scouts. Scouts must be 14 and First Class to attend. Please let me know if you are interested or would like more information.

4) Philmont 2025 registration is now open. Philmont offers backpacking trips through the mountains of northern New Mexico. In my opinion, this is the pinnacle of scouting, and something that every scout should do as part of their journey. I would like to get spaces reserved soon, so please let me know ASAP if you are interested — no commitment required at this point, just determining how many crews we think we’ll have.

Hope to see everyone next week.

Mr. Wilcox

Hello Scouts,

We had some great work on First Aid rank requirements today. Thank you to Andre, Russel, and Jackson for helping to teach these skills. We will be working on rank advancement for the rest of this month, so this is a good chance for scouts who are not yet first class. 

That said, there will be no meeting next week due to Thanksgiving. We will meet again on November 30.

On to the update:

1) November 30 – PLC after the meeting. All scouts with leadership positions should plan to attend.

2) December 8 – 10 – Ski Weekend at Copper Mountain – We will have a ski in / ski out condo where everyone can stay. If you are interested, please sign up ASAP on the Sign-up Genius so we can ensure we have enough scouts to make it happen. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E4AAAAD22AA8-44769369-skiweekend#/

3) December 21 – Troop Holiday Party, Gift Exchange, and Cookie Contest at the regular meeting. Scouts should bring a wrapped gift worth less than $20 to exchange. We will also have a cookie contest so bring your best holiday cookie or treat to share.

4) Northern Tier – We have open spaces in our Northern Tier crews for trips starting on July 10 or July 13, 2024. This is a BSA high adventure base in Northern Minnesota where you will canoe through the Boundry Waters. It is a great chance to be in nature, catch a lot of fish, and bond with your fellow scouts. Scouts must be 14 and First Class to attend. Please let me know if you are interested or would like more information.

5) Philmont 2025 registration is now open. Philmont offers backpacking trips through the mountains of northern New Mexico. In my opinion, this is the pinnacle of scouting, and something that every scout should do as part of their journey. I would like to get spaces reserved soon, so please let me know ASAP if you are interested — no commitment required at this point, just determining how many crews we think we’ll have.

6) Leadership position terms have ended. If you are not an SPL, ASPL, Patrol Leader, or have not talked to Mr. Wilcox about another leadership position, then you do not have a leadership position. Please, talk to Mr. Wilcox if you would like a leadership position.

7) Speaking of which, we need scouts to be Den Chiefs for the Cub Scout dens. This is a good leadership position for scouts who need leadership for rank advancement. The requirement is to attend typically one den meeting and one pack meeting each month. Please, talk to Mr. Wilcox if you are interested.

Have a very happy Thanksgiving everyone. See you in two weeks.

Mr. Wilcox

Hello Scouts,

Another great night of ILST. Thank again to Andre for leading. We’ll finish tomorrow at the overnight. Hope to see you all there.

Congratulations;

James – Scout Rank

On to the update:

1) November 10 – ILST Overnight at 6:30 pm – We will complete the final module of training, play, games, and sleepover in the church. If you are planning to attend, please sign up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E4AAAAD22AA8-44986418-ilst#/. An email went out earlier this week with more details and a packing list. 

2) November 11 – Annual Plan. Breakfast at 8:00 am, Meeting at 9:00 am. As many scouts and families as possible should attend the planning meeting. The scouts will make breakfast for their parents and any family members. This is a very important meeting as we will plan all our campouts and activities for 2024.

3) Waterton Canyon Hike for Hiking and Nature Merit Badges (and fun) – Immediately following the annual plan. 

4) November 12 – Jackson’s Eagle Project from 9:00 – 1:00 at his house. Donuts and Pizza will be provided for breakfast and lunch. Scouts will build 2 gaylords for Project CURE. Project CURE is a nonprofit organization that collects medical supplies via the gaylords, repackages, and ships supplies all across the world.

5) December 8 – 10 – Ski Weekend at Copper Mountain – We will have a ski in / ski out condo where everyone can stay. If you are interested, please sign up ASAP on the Sign-up Genius so we can ensure we have enough scouts to make it happen. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E4AAAAD22AA8-44769369-skiweekend#/

6) Leadership position terms have ended. If you are not an SPL, ASPL, Patrol Leader, or have not talked to Mr. Wilcox about another leadership position, then you do not have a leadership position. Please, talk to Mr. Wilcox if you would like a leadership position.

7) Speaking of which, we need scouts to be Den Chiefs for the Cub Scout dens. This is a good leadership position for scouts who need leadership for rank advancement. The requirement is to attend typically one den meeting and one pack meeting each month. Please, talk to Mr. Wilcox if you are interested

Let me know if you have any questions.

Mr. Wilcox 

Hello Scouts,

We had a great start to ILST tonight. A big thank you to Coleman and Andre for teaching Module 1. They were very well prepared and did a great job. We still need instructors for Module 2 (next Thursday) and Module 3 (Friday night). Please, let me know if you would like to instruct. We have Dr. Hurska’s flipchart and notecards that make it really easy to lead. 

On to the update:

1) Leadership position terms have ended. If you are not an SPL, ASPL, Patrol Leader, or have not talked to Mr. Wilcox about another leadership position, then you do not have a leadership position. Please, talk to Mr. Wilcox if you would like a leadership position.

2) Speaking of which, we need scouts to be Den Chiefs for the Cub Scout dens. This is a good leadership position for scouts who need leadership for rank advancement. The requirement is to attend typically one den meeting and one pack meeting each month. Please, talk to Mr. Wilcox if you are interested

3) November 4 – Annual Food Drive. Here’s how it works:
– Print out the flyer attached here (unless you got some at the meeting)
– Attach them to paper grocery bags — if you did not get some at the meeting, you can arrange to get some from Mr. Smith
– Hand them out around your neighborhood (or you can e-mail the flyer to your neighborhood or post it on social media or however you communicate with your neighbors)
– On Saturday, November 4th before 9:00 am, your neighbors should leave the bags by their mailboxes
– You should pick up the bags and deliver them to Covenant Cupboard at 10:00 am
– Bring the food into the Covenant Cupboard pantry and help sort it
– That’s it. We are usually Covenant Cupboard’s single largest source of food for the entire year, so hopefully, we continue that streak

4) November 10 – Veteran’s Day Flag Ceremony at Campus Middle School. We need five scouts to participate in a flag ceremony and veterans celebration. You will miss the beginning of school. First five entries will be able to participate.

5) ILST (Introduction to Leadership Skills for Troops) Training – Continues next week (Thursday at the meeting and Friday at the overnight). This is a really great, fun leadership training that we do every year. Beyond being a great life skill, completion is required to attend NYLT, a week-long leadership camp that is an amazing experience, and to be an ASPL in our troop (NYLT is required to be a SPL). 

6) November 10 – ILST Overnight – We will complete the final module of training, play, games, and sleep over in the church. If you are planning to attend, please sign up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E4AAAAD22AA8-44986418-ilst#/, so that we know how many to expect. We will also need adults to attend so we comply with our youth protection guidelines. I will send more details early next week.

7) November 11 – Annual Plan. As many scouts and families as possible should attend the planning meeting on Saturday morning. The scouts will make breakfast for their parents and any family members. This is a very important meeting as we will plan all our campouts and activities for 2024. Please sign up so we know how many to expect: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E4AAAAD22AA8-44986418-ilst#/.

8) December 8 – 10 – Ski Weekend at Copper Mountain – We will have a ski in / ski out condo where everyone can stay. If you are interested, please sign up ASAP on the Sign-up Genius so we can ensure we have enough scouts to make it happen. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E4AAAAD22AA8-44769369-skiweekend#/

Let me know if you have any questions.

Mr. Wilcox