Now that we're finally back in action after a long forced hiatus there is a lot to go over and little time to do it.   A quick turnaround in our program schedule could mean the boys have a resurrected summer activity lineup with not a lot of stagnation.

 

Good Templar Park update 

This past Thursday I spoke to Heather Snyder the caretaker of Good Temper Park.  She was able to give me a few updates on what is happening at the park at this time.  For the time being the members side of the park is going to be specifically for the members of the park. The members have requested that no outside guests use that side of the park for the time being.  

The soccer groups that normally use the park throughout the spring and summer will be there using the fields but not in any great quantity. They will be holding minor practice's and skirmishes but nothing big for the time being.  Our troop still has almost sole usage of the park as we have been associated with them for more than a decade now. 

 We have the ability to hold merit badges, camp-outs and other service projects and day outings. We also have been given the green light to use the better bathrooms inside the kitchen building versus the large bathrooms.  

 

We will be holding our monthly P.L.C. (6pm - 7pm) and C.M. (7pm - 8:30pm ish) IN PERSON over at Good Temper Park on the park side of the park.   Weather reports say that it's going to be sunny Monday evening so we will be back by the kitchen building. If for whatever reason rain comes up we will be meeting by the front pavilion. We have been using WebEx over the past few weeks to some success and I don't think we will be stopping any time soon. If you cannot make it to our in person P.L.C. or C.M. meetings  You can tune in to our Webex broadcast starting at 6pm.  There will be some big topics and big issues to go over so please attend or tune in.  

 

 As of right now a majority of our 1st and 2nd years have participated in the 1st portion of the First Aid merit badge. The book learning and discussion portions of the badge are fairly easy to complete anywhere at any time.  The portion we still have to finish is the hands on portion.  I am waiting to hear back from the park as to what is going on over there the next few weekends. As soon as I know we can set up a few times to do the hands on stuff.

 

On the last weekend of June we will be having a Back to Basics camp-out at Good Templar Park. This camp out will be a good way for all scouts to be able to bone up on the skills that they have not had a chance to practice or have lost entirely over the past few months. Camping just like riding a bike requires constant practice and if we fall out of practice the best thing that can be done is get right back on and start pedaling hard.  I will have more info on it Monday evening.

 

 

If you haven't made a decision, this is another reason you should be here.

Due to the virus, Brock D was unable to complete his position of responsibility for the troop.  This is one of the last requirements he needs for his Eagle scout position of responsibility.  Our summer camp allows him to be a camp counselor which fulfills a special scoutmaster selected service project for the troop.  Not only would you be helping yourself by earning some badges and some rank requirements, you will be helping Brock get one step closer to earning his Eagle.

 

 

Troop ones' policy has always been that you must tent with one of your fellow scouts until you reach the rank of 1st class.  Because of the virus we are lifting this requirement and you can do 1 of 3 things.  Option one,  you can tent alone and if you have your own tent (four person or smaller) you can bring it with you and use it exclusively.  Option two you can still tent with a partner but you will have to sleep head to toe versus head to head this follows some of the guidelines that national and council has recommended for tenting partners for the foreseeable future.  Option three if you have a larger tent (six person or greater) there should be plenty of space for you and your partner(s).

 

I hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th of July this past weekend.   With everything being canceled I hope that if your neighborhood had any fireworks displays you were able to enjoy them and have some fun. 

 

I hope everyone was able to stay safe and didn't get blown away or suffer any damage by last Monday's thunderstorms. For the 1st time in a long while we had to cancel the meeting because of severe weather.  We now have a Zoom account for the troop and if anything crazy happens in the near future we will be ready. 

 

I hope everybody has recovered and is ready to start up again after our closer-to-home camp. The scouts were able to complete 36 merit badges With 16 partial's.  Out of all of the partial merit badges most of them are straightforward and without a lot of hassle.  Having a day camp over at LeRoy Oakes gave us a much greater ability to do things without the cost or the confines they would have had going to Freeland Leslie.  As I'm sure all the kids noticed, they where able to have free time to just goof off, walk around and have a little bit of freedom to explore.  

 

The original cost estimate was going to be placed at $50 per scout. After all the expenditures I am happy to report that the cost of camp will be cut to $40 per scout. Those who already paid the $50 will be refunded the overpayment. Those who still owe for camp please remit your $40 as soon as possible.  

 

Monday 8/3 evening we will be trying to finish off some of the merit badges that the kids started at camp.  If for some reason we cannot work on the badges because of rain we will be updating scout books and recording requirements for advancement. The boys were able to complete a fair few rank requirements  during camp.

 

Here is the news that you need to know.

 

As everyone knows this is the final meeting before our summer court of honor.  If you have any outstanding merit badge cards or rank advancements that need to be taken care of please let me know.  We already have 2 boards of review and a few merit badges scheduled on the docket for our Monday meeting so please come prepared.  The deadline for any awards will be the close of Monday evening's meeting.  If I do not have the paperwork in my possession by that time you will have to wait until our December Court of Honor to receive your award.  Listed below is the updated list of requirements from camp.  Check to see if this information is correct. Please contact me if you have any questions or corrections.

 

 

Our court of honor will be at LeRoy Oakes forest preserve on Sunday the 30th at 3:00. It is at the same pavilion that we held our summer camp (shelter #1) so everyone should be able to find it easy enough.  Because we had to skip our Spring court of honor we have a back log of awards and recognition to give out.  Attached below is the merit badge and rank advancement read out for the summer court of honor.  Just because you don't see your name on this list doesn't mean we don't have awards for you.  If you have not been to a court of honor in a while please come anyway we may just have some awards for you.

 

After our award ceremony a late lunch (early supper) will be held around 5pm.  Please remember to sign up on our website so we can know how many people to cook for.  If your last name begins with an A - M please bring a side to pass around. If your last name starts with an N - Z  please bring a dessert.

 

Good Evening Everyone

I wanted to thank everyone that came to the court of honor this evening.  We had a fantastic turnout and amazing participation.

 

For the last meeting in August we will be holding a flag retirement ceremony at the park.  We will be starting at 7 o'clock and retiring as many flags as we can up until 8p.  This is a class A event so please make sure you wear your class A.

 

I wanted to start tonight's letter off by saying thank you to everyone who was able to attend Jack Drake's Eagle project. Because of all the help Jack was able to get his project was finished Saturday morning before noon.  He and his family had done some pre-work on the site and all of that pre-work paid off.  In all the time that I have been helping out on Eagle projects I haven't ever helped construct a ga-ga ball pit.  The principal of Lincoln Elementary School was very happy with the final result. 

Race Into Scouting was a hit!!  Most of the scouts attended, had never been, and definitely said they would come back again. Our troop was thanked immensely for helping out, and we even made new friends with a troop just immediately north of us. We are hoping to connect without new found friends and have them join us in a meeting or two in the near future. 

 

We have only one week till we have our next court of honor and we want everyone to have the best chance to complete the badges they started.

Next Saturday will be our swimming and lifesaving merit badge work day. We will also have the leaders on hand to work with you on requirements and objectives. Everyone that may have something to do could get something done during the day. 

 

We also have a cub scout Munhall meet and greet night that Mr.Browne can talk more about on Monday. 

 

All that and more tonight.  

 

 

This week we have a lot of info and some really good news on the fall / winter meetings front.  Some of these sections have been updated and/or re-posted from earlier newsletters.  I have made updated headliners to let you know which ones are older or more current.  Tomorrow evening will be our Zoom P.L.C. and Tuesday will be the Zoom C.M.  I'm going to start tonight off with an eagle project notice. 

 

Brock has received the green light to begin his Eagle project.  This Saturday (9 -19) at 3p to 7p and again on Sunday (9-20) from 8:00 a.m. To 5P.   His project will be at the Camp Kane Historical Site in lingam park, East Side off of Riverside Ave.   He will be refurbishing and repainting the 1840s law office.

 

The Patrol Leaders Council meeting this month (September 14th) will be on the Zoom account and the Committee Meeting will be moved to Tuesday the 15th also on Zoom.  The P.L.C link will be sent out Monday afternoon.  You can also check the troop calendar for the meeting link.  It is already posted there.   The link for the C.M. will be sent out Tuesday morning and again check the website calendar for links.