Spring "Winter" Camporee

            On May 13th Troop 321 set out to host their Winter, I mean Spring camporee. When they arrived they started to set up their tents and meet the other scouts coming. Until 10:00 pm the scouts ran around, and played some games. But, at 10:00 pm they started the events. At their first event, they had to set off 4 mouse traps from 5-15 feet away by lashing multiple sticks together and extending it to the traps. On their second event they had to knock down bowling pins with a tennis ball, and a tennis ball hand launcher. On their third event they had all the scouts blindfolded except one who would give directions to the others on how to set up the tent. On their fourth and final event they tested how prepared they were by seeing how many of the ten essentials they had.

On day two of their campout,  Willard K woke up last and earned "Hollywood" for the day. (Hollywood is a game they play where whoever wakes up last is called Hollywood, and must take out the trash.) For the rest of the day the boy scouts invited the cub scouts to their camp and hosted a bunch of games for them! The camp was getting so much attention, even TV6 showed up and interviewed a few scouts about it!  After the cubs finished their games they were served a wonderful lunch by the older scouts. At the end of the day everyone sat down for a campfire and a performance of skits. Following the camp fire Caleb H made a wonderful dinner for the troop, and Nick M made a perfect marshmallow for the first time and earned a package of bacon from Robert Lawton, and Nick M generously shared his prize with his fellow scouts for a perfect ending to the day.

On their last day, Danny P earned "Hollywood" and they had a breakfast of donuts and oatmeal. And at the end of the day the boys all left with a smile on their face, Gary had all his clothes, and surprisingly Darryl had all his arm hair.

Bell Hospital Raised Flower Boxes

Power Tool - or Automated Screwdriver?

Amy reports:

Julie Solka, volunteer services supervisor at UP Health System, Bell, contacted me in late March to ask if the Scouts would be interested in building four planters for the community garden sometime in April or May.  One of Julie's volunteers donated the materials.  Darryl and Carl cut the lumber, and the boys built the planters with great enthusiasm.  The only "funny story" I saw was the feat of strength and cooperation required to move the four very heavy boxes from the driveway into the garden area.  It was an all-hands-on-deck moment.  :)

Commentary from the Troop Blogger:
Didn't someone mention that maybe the boxes should be built closer to the garden? And didn't someone not listen? Do tell!

I sure wish I could have been there!

Pancake Breakfast Ticket Sales Event

Sweet Sales Success!

Our ticket sales event got off to a great start with 17 Scouts selling 213 tickets. Many buyers donated tickets to St Vinny's and to the Salvation Army. As a result, we'll be feeding a lot of hungry people on May 9th.

All Scouts who participated will split the evening's proceeds evenly. Great work guys! 

After tonight, Scouts are encouraged to continue selling right up until the 9th. The Troop will credit a Scout's scholarship fund $3 for each ticket they sell. These funds can be used for Scout related purchases and for camp tuition. Interested Scouts should also plan ahead for a trip to the National Jamboree next year. 

And don't forget to sell to family, friends, and teachers. Always remember, though - sell safely! Always go with a buddy and an adult, and don't carry large amounts of cash with you. 

Project Feed a Neighbor part 2

Crew & Troop getting it done

Today was the heavy lifting day, the day we distributed collection bags to every single house on our assigned routes - no matter how long the driveway or number of steps up to the door. This week's snow just made it more... interesting. At least it wasn't raining, and the sun was out.

The project included volunteers from high schools, Troops, Packs, and a Crew member, too. Troop 321 made a good showing, and some of the Scouts brought siblings who were also really helpful.

The Troop helped label, rubber band, and count bags earlier in the week. Next Saturday we'll hit the streets and pick up the bags of canned food for our local food banks. This is a really big community project, and it's great to see our Scouts join in.

November Hike

Who here thinks he can out-run a bear?

The fall snow started a little early this year, on October 31st, and it hasn't let up much. After a week or so, the big wet flakes finally started to stick. What a great time to take the Scouts on a walk through the woods!

A good fall hike makes for a great opportunity to practice old skills, learn new skills, and work on a few promotion requirements... like taking a five mile hike, cooking lunch over a stove or campfire, and reading a compass (eh, Carl?).

Along the way, we identified some animal signs, practiced "leave no trace" hiking, and soaked in our home town's raw beauty. Heavy snow showers kept everything fresh and white for us and made our hot lunches all the more welcome.

We finished up our hike on schedule and with full stomachs - if not at our intended destination. What a great way to spend part of a Saturday! Hopefully we can fit in another hike before we have to strap on snowshoes for the winter.

Oh, and don't forget to check out the hike's album!

Pot Luck & Honor Court

 

The Scout Handshake

Scouts work throughout the year on promotion requirements, merit badges, and service projects. Why? Because its fun, interesting, and helpful. Maybe they get a little push from their parents, but it's a push along a path of lifetime learning and community building. Once started on this path, many boys stay on it much to their benefit and ours.

As a result, we find it important to pause a moment to reflect on and reward recent achievements. For example, our Scouts participated in at least seven different service projects since our last honor court, and that doesn't count the assistance they've extended to Pack 321. Scoutmaster Carl handed out dozens of merit badges, and most of the boys also earned promotions, too. 

And, of course, the pot-luck dinner added a warm, neighborly atmosphere to the event. Thanks to everyone who brought a dish, and thanks to our Scouts for all their hard work!

Don't forget to check out the evening's photo album. 

Spring Camporee

Testing their lashings in a race

Like last year, this year's spring had been "extended" (for a limited time only...) So yes, we had snow and freezing rain right up to Friday morning. Boys went off to school wondering if their parents had the fortitude to let them go to the Spring Camporee. Parents sent their boys off to school wondering if their sons might freeze to the ground that very night. Never mind the forecasted lows were a good 50 degrees warmer than our coldest winter days... that's really not saying much in these parts.

By the time school let out, the weather had cleared, and it was almost easy to ignore the forecast for freezing temperatures overnight. Two Troops and a handful of Scouts backed out, but only one of our boys.

So... the weather Saturday was beautiful with blue skies, a significant warm-up, and lots of sunshine with Sunday bringing more of the same.

And the camporee? It came off without a hitch. Let the others gnash their teeth in envy, Scoutmaster Carl organized and pulled off a really great event with a lot of  help from a lot of really great Scouting folks from our Troop and others. With everyone pitching in, we all got to have a lot of fun.

Fun like...

• testing visual memories
• challenging navigation skills
• patrol sprints using only four legs and four arms (eight legged monster)
• a canoe portage challenge course
• fire building
• match splitting (with a hatchet)
• readiness testing (Scouting essentials)
• Dutch oven entree and dessert cooking 
• and lots of lashings (knot tying)

Of course, we've got a photo album of a lot of the fun stuff, but there was so much going on, there was no way to capture it all!

The boys got off to a great start Saturday morning

One special feature for us included using the "Patrol Method" for the first time. Carl organized the boys into three patrols, each with a patrol leader and assistant. The patrols planned their own meals and duty rosters, set up their own tents, prepared their own food, and cleaned up their own messes. 

"How did that work out for you?" you may well ask. Well... I heard lots of yelling and arguing and debating and trial and error, and they got a lot done, too. 

The "Patrol Method" forms the heart of Scouting. It was new to most of our Scouts, but it's a really great tool to teach leadership skills, self-reliance, teamwork, and so much more. All the boys slept in tents, no one missed a meal, and the campsite was cleaner when we left than when we arrived. More importantly (probably), the boys have started learning how to organize themselves and work together as a team.

From a parent's point of view, watching the boys employ the Patrol Method was like watching five boys all learn to ride the same bicycle all piled on at the same time. But by standing back and watching them work things out for themselves, they learned far more far faster than they would have during any Troop meeting. 

A lot more.

Lock-in!

The night went a lot like this...

It's winter and the boys sometimes get squirrelly, so what's a Troop to do? Lock. Them. In! It's an idea so brilliant, it makes you wonder why we don't do this every month... Volunteers? Anyone?

So we locked the boys in, and we had a enough volunteers that Carl didn't have to wander the hallways muttering to himself. And the boys and their brothers and their friends went about the very serious business of having fun.

Video games abounded with Flappy Birds causing the most buzz - and frustration. Next door a non-stop game of  "capture the fort" dominated the gym. The boys turned hockey sticks into rifles or canons, a scooter became a scout car, and with only a little prodding, they conscripted two trash cans on wheels to serve as battle tanks.

It's also true that a few sleeping bags saw limited service as sleeping bags, but that wasn't discouraged. There's more evidence of good times here in this album, too!