Scoutmaster Comments... Welcome Back!
Welcome Back Troop 1 to the 2012-13 Scouting Year
September 2012This is a brief for scouts and parents of all of the early season activities this year. We hope you are all planning to come back—we miss ya. New meeting plans are in the works this year—more merit badges!
First of all, Hessel this year is September 14-16 (this weekend!), so in order to get started with the planning, we will have our first meetings on the 5th and 12th of September 7:00PM at Bagley as usual. The agenda for this meeting include planning for Hessel and planning longer term for the Fall Camporee on the weekend of October 5th. Click the link for the Hessel information: Hessel Information Contact Ken Arndt immediately if your scout plans to attend. We leave from Bagley at 5:30 on Friday, Sept 14.
Congrats to our latest Eagle Scouts this year: Kory Wegmeyer and Kenny Arndt—both firmly entrenched in Michigan Tech now. Kenny Arndt takes the record from Doug Tyran and Chris Coale turning his packet in closest to the time he was actually born. Trevor Adams and Zack Zelkowski are right behind them.
Summer camp was certainly a success. Our boys earned more merit badges per scout than any camp for the past 3 years. Bravo! Not only that but 4 boys attended high adventure camp and 4 more earned the horsemanship badge at Greilick. Our senior patrol leader Steven Verduce attended camp at Philmont and came back skinnier than he was when he left. His belt wouldn’t make a good shoe tongue. What a trip.
The Pack 1 kickoff event is going to be on the 20th of September (Thursday) at the Intermediate School rec room at 6:30 PM. We have one den chief serving the pack now—anyone else want to volunteer?
September 22 is another opportunity for service. The scouts have been invited to cook and serve short order food to the Veterans around northern Michigan who will be coming to Gaylord. This is like Critters in the Moonlight but a little bigger. We should be involved from 10:00AM to 1:00PM only—and then we are done. More service time if the scouts need it.
Grass cutting will continue into late September. There is still a chance to make some $$ so contact the grass chairmen.
The Fall Camporee this year is October 5th to 7th. It is different because the Camporee is our responsibility this year. The theme is “Find Your Way in Scouting.” The event will involve earning the orienteering merit badge. We are going to conduct it in the lands of Aspen Park in Gaylord and the adjacent Gaylord school property, totaling about 140 acres. Adults will have a meeting on the 16th (Sunday) at 6:30 PM (after Hessel) to assign responsibilities and go over the concept. We need everybody’s help—especially adults--to make this work, so please come.
The fall Court of Honor to reward all of the efforts at summer camp and over the summer will be Sunday the 21st of October at Bagley. Plan to attend and bring relatives and friends. One thing we changed last year was to allow a scout to plan the meeting. Ben Bushong did a bang up job and this year’s meeting will be planned and conducted by Zack Zelkowski. We install new troop leadership in October--new patrol leaders and staff. It will be a busy couple of months.
Before you know it we will be headed to the fall lock in the Community Center in November.
Jeff reported to the committee that he is ready to make contact with the wreath suppliers, so get ready. And POPCORN is next on the agenda—yes we are ready to start as soon as the forms come in. Take orders now verbally and when we get the forms, you will be all set. 30% profit there to the scout.
It has come to my attention that Camp Greilick will be closed to Boy Scouting except for weekends soon. That means we will have other choices to make for camp. I am sure once the committee sets to work on options, we will be able to plan for a good experience once again next year. Not to worry.
Remind your buddies to come on back before you have all the fun—as yet another year begins.
From the Scenic Trail-
Ken Arndt
Scoutmaster
