RADA orders and Mondays meeting

RADA ORDERS
Rada orders are in, if you want to pick them up over the weekend, contact Paul at 814 243 6320 to make arrangements.

Mondays Meeting

The meeting will be from 6:30 to 8pm as usual but it will be at 7th ward ambulance service where we will continue on the first aid merit badge.

Rechartering, Gun bash and Next Mondays meeting

Rechartering
If your sons name is not posted on the previous blog entry as wanting to continue, we will not add him to the roster for next year!!!! If you are having trouble posting, it is up to you to contact me, my phone number and email are right there for you to use. The charter is due on the 10th, so you have until Dec 8th to let us know.

Gun Bash
I had posted to save the date for the gun bash, due to insurance changes, it has been cancelled.

Next Weeks Meeting
We will once again be doing CPR certifications. As always, parents and siblings are welcome to attend and encouraged to do so. The meeting will be from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM. You can never have too much knowledge or practice when it comes to emergency care.

RADA orders and rechartering

RADA

Please remember that the RADA orders are due this coming Monday.


2017 Recharter

Recharter is due for 2017 on December 10th.

Time is needed to be able to get everything in order so please respond ASAP if your son is going to continue in the troop next year.

Cost for recharter will be 25 dollars.

Post in the comments to confirm that your son will continue.

IF YOU ARE HAVING TROUBLE POSTING TO THE BLOG IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILTY TO CONTACT ME FOR ASSISTANCE!!

Camp out this weekend, RADA orders, Gun bash

Camp out
This weekend we will do a campout with the Webelos from pack 217. Please let me know by Friday at 5pm if you are going to attend.

When: Saturday November 26th
Where: Stackhouse park Pavillion
Time: 4pm sat to 9am Sunday


RADA orders
Due to us not having a meeting next week, RADA orders will be due the following Monday. For those of you going hunting next Monday, Good luck!!!!

Gunbash Save the Date
The next gunbash will be on February 12th, 2017. Please save the date!!! More details to come.

Veterans Day Parade, finances,RADA orders

Veterans Day Parade
When: Friday November 11th, 3:30PM
Where: Szechuan restaurant:
What: We will be walking in the veterans day parade, please wear your class A uniform.
This event is RAIN OR SHINE!!! Please keep in mind it is a short parade in honor of people who never were given the chance to decide if they fought for our freedoms because it was raining!!!


Finances
As we close out the year, we need to even up our books with everyone!
If you were owe dues, fund raising, etc please square up. If you aren't sure, get in touch with Paul Miller and he can help you. Keep in mind that as of the first of the year, you will owe dues for next year plus 30 dollars for registration.

RADA
Rada order forms were given out last week, they are due back on the 28th of november and delivery will be the week after. Plenty of time to get items for christmas!!! There is no minimum.

Monday OCT 31st meeting, service hour opportunity.

Tonights Meeeting

There will be no meeting tonight October 31st due to trick or treat being held all over Westmont.

Next week we will be holding boards of review for those who are ready for them so I will need a couple of parents to stay through the meeting to help with those.

Morleys Run 5K.
We need volunteers to help with morleys run 5k again this year.
When Sat Nov.5th
Where The Westmont grove
when 8am- 10 am

Please respond by Tuesday November 1st and include a t shirt size.

Environmental Science

For those of you that started Environmental science last monday, Gretchen Lohr asked me to post this info for you.

Below are the links for the merit badge workbook, powerpoint presentation and the list of endangered and threatend species in PA.  Remember to find an example of soil erosion (pic optional) and come up with at least one idea of how to prevent it from continuing for next time.  Also, decide what 2 locations you are planning on doing your obervations on and pick an PA native threatend or endangered species to report on.

Merit badge workbook:  meritbadge.org

Power Point:  Slideshare.net  Look for enviromental Science by Joel Habdon.

PA game commision:  www.pcg.pa.gov/wildlife

Okay that's it for now! Enjoy!

C and O canal itinerary

Sat October 1st
7 am- Meet at the church, load bikes, arrange transport
7:30 - Leave the church and head to the trailhead in Connellsville
8:30- Arrive, unload, unload, safety brief
9:00 - Hit the trail
When we get there- Set up camp etc


Sunday October 2nd
7 AM wake up, breakfast, tear down
9 AM Hit the trail



What you need to know:
Helmets are REQUIRED
Equipment needed is just a tent, sleeping bag, clothes, rain gear, anything else is optional
Please check your bike, tires, chain etc and make sure it is in proper working order
We will have a chase vehicle for medical or mechanical emergencies.
Please wear closed toes shoes
There is a bathroom at the campground but not a shower.
Please bring a water bottle

Points of contact
Dan Miller-(814) 233-1464
Glenn Stutzman-(814) 241-0015
Campground- Outflow Campground Confluence PA
                       1579 Mae West Road, Confluence, PA 15424
                        (814)395-3242, site 2A

Change to times for Saturday

Previously I was told that the suicide awareness walk started at 3pm at central park, this is not correct. We need to be there between 1pm and 1:30 pm, the walk actually starts at 2 pm. Sorry for any misunderstanding, hope to see you all there.

Updates,info and C and O canal

Advancements
As promised, Paul has printed out advancement sheets for every boy. I will be sending these home on a monthly basis so you can discuss with your son where they are and where they need to go.

You will also find a tab on the blog with every ranks requirements in detail and I will be adding links to this page to help you along with more detailed information.

We will be starting environmental science in October, this badge is required for Eagle.

C and O Canal
When: Depart Saturday October 1st at 7 am
            Return Sunday October 2nd around 7 pm

Where:We will leave from the church, drive to the trailhead in connellsville, bike to confluenece to                 the campground. Campground to be determined as I have contacts with a couple that we are                 trying for better pricing. Sunday morning we will pack up and bike back to connellsville. 52               miles total.

Cost:   25 dollars per person as of right now, bike rental is 30 dollars per day

PLEASE RSVP BY THIS FRIDAY BY POSTING A COMMENT ON THE BLOG!!!! IF YOU HAVE TROUBLE WITH POSTING IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO CONTACT ME FOR HELP!!

Service Hours (suicide awareness walk)
When: Saturday, September 17th at 3PM

Where: Johnstown central park

Please bring a couple canned good items for donation and wear your class B uniform!

Notes from the parents meeting

Advancements

1. We are urging parents to take a look at the merit badge list and sign up if you see something that you have some expertise in. Two that we would really like to fill are personal management and family life.
2. We will be sending home advancement reports at the first meeting of each month with your son so that everyone is on board with what the boys can be working on at home. I will also be adding a page to the blog with links to all of the requirements in case you need to reference them
3. Our goal is to get the boys advanced by the end of the year under the old requirements

England Trip

1. It was decided by the group that we will not be making the trip to England and will instead explore other alternatives
2. I am already looking into other options but if you have suggestions please feel free to bring them to my attention

Fundraising

1. Popcorn sale is going on now, orders are due Oct 17th, delivery is Nov 4th. All profits go to the boys
2. We will be doing another gunbash
3. RADA knife sales will be in Oct/November
4. Cookie Dough etc will be in Nov /December
5. Fundraising efforts other than popcorn will be profit sharing with 50% to the troop, 20% to high adventure fund and 30% going to the boy.

Service Hours

1. September 17th at 1pm we will be participating in the veterans suicide awareness walk, we are also working on other opportunities in this area.
2. October 29th we are looking at putting together a booth for a cancer awareness program, more details to follow.

Upcoming events
There will be another blog post coming behind this one about the C an O canal, please make sure you read it and correspond according to the directions in that post

Important upcoming events

Congratulations!!!
Logan Pringle, Landon Miller, Glenn Stutzman and Braydon Winkleman all advanced to the rank of tenderfoot last night!

Next Monday, Parents meeting

Next Monday, August 29th at 6:30 Pm we will have a parents meeting to discuss upcoming events, fundraising etc. We will try to keep it as brief as possible and will end our regular meeting when the parents meeting is over. Some of the items will include, gunbash, rada knife sales, popcorn, C and O canal trip, plans for winter and decisions on the possible England trip. If you have any items that need to be discussed or need time to speak please contact me asap so I can get you on the schedule.

Save the date

We are in the process of getting details about a walk on September 17th at 1 pm leaving from central park. This is to raise awareness about PTSD and complications in our returning troops.

Service hours Available

Cambria Arts Center is looking for volunteers for its Log Cabin Festival 2-3 September.  Please contact Pat Petrell if you can help out.

Pat Petrell

254-0256

 

Communication

 

If you have opportunities for the troop, or need to communicate via mass email, blog post etc, feel free to email or call me and we can make sure that the info gets sent out in the appropriate manner.

 

 

Remember, if you don't come to the parents meeting, you may miss the opportunity to have a say in what happens, see you all there!

This weekend

I apologize for the late information but here are the plans for the weekend.
Friday night at 6:00 pm you can either take your son directly to Benshoff Hill sportsmans club, you can meet up with Glenn at the church and follow him. He will be there from 6:00 pm to 6:15 pm,
after that he will be gone. We will be working and shooting Saturday, cleaning up and ready to go by 11am on sunday. The address for the club is 1260 Benshoff Hill Rd, Johnstown, PA, 15906.
Estimated cost for this camp is going to be around 25 dollars. Hope to see you all soon.

Dan

Shooting sports camp

 Shooting sports camp is rapidly approaching, here is what you need to know.......

Shooting camp will be Friday July, 22nd through Sunday the 24th.

 You must register your son ASAP by responding to the blog in the comments section. We need first and last name so that Brian Law can register the classes properly. Please also include any family that will be attending  I will not accept Text messages, emails etc. as registration as Brian needs to be able to look at them as well. Your son needs to be registered no later than this Friday, July 15th.

Next Monday at our regular scout meeting is the mandatory safety training. If your son wants to shoot, he needs to be there.

We have been asked to do some maintenance around the club to help them prep for their NRA day the following weekend. This a completely reasonable request as they charge us nothing and shut down their club for us. We will need Moms and Dads to help with this, especially Saturday. Nothing too hard but it will help them out a great deal. Please respond ASAP and let me know how many of you can help. If we do not have parents that will help clean up a bit, we will cancel the shooting camp as it is not fair to use the facility and turn our backs when they need a hand.

If you have questions, problems, concerns, feel free to contact me directly at 233-1464

Canoe Camp responses needed ASAP.

As of right now, I only have 4 boys and 3 adults registered for Canoe Camp. I will eed to get moving on this pretty quick so please either comment, email or text me how many scouts, how many adults and how many siblings will be attending as soon as you can. Thanks.

Dan

SHOOTING SPORTS CAMP!!!!!!

Benshoff Hill Sportsmens Club has again agreed to loan us use of their club for a weekend for the boys to participate in a weekend of shooting sports. The weekend is July 22 through July 24th.

The following weekend is their annual Family Fun Days. Since the club is always so generous with the use of their facility I told Steve Lindberg that we would assist in preparations for the weekend by helping clean up the property while we are there. In addition to our typical responsibilities of cleaning up trash, etc., we'd also pitch in by removing some brush, mowing grass, and the like. This can easily be undertaken as we spend the weekend there.

The Monday prior,July 18th, I would like to use the regularly scheduled meeting for the classroom work. All Scouts are encouraged to come to this meeting, but those earning their rifle, shotgun, and archery badges MUST attend the classroom session. If a Scout cannot attend on this date, but plans on earning these badges the following weekend, let me know. I can always work with them to schedule an alternate day/time for this portion.

We'll cover safety several times over the weekend at Benshoff Hill, so everyone shooting will know exactly what is expected of them.

Several parents are looking to get these dates on their calendar, so please share this message via the blog.

Thanks,

Brian

----

This years Canoe Camp

Putts Camp has not been returning phone calls, emails, etc. So we are going to go to Shawnee that weekend instead. We will be leaving on June 24th around 4pm. We will be coming home on Monday around 4 pm as well. I need to know as soon as possible and no later than Monday June 13th if your son is going to attend and how many people will be coming. Cost should still be around 50 to 75 dollars per person. As soon as I have a list of people I will publish a final list of what merit badges will be offered. We will work to make sure that even if your son has all the water based merit badges that he can earn others. Any questions, feel free to give me a call.
 Dan

Reminder

Just a reminder that tonights meeting will be at 630pm at the johnstown airport. Please bring yard tools, shovels, rakes etc and be ready to get a little dirty as we will be spreading mulch. Thank you

Mondays Meeting.

This Monday, May, 23rd. Our regular meeting will be at the Johnstown airport. We have been asked to help with a service project there and will be spreading mulch. Please bring a rake, wheelbarrow, shovel etc to help with the job. We will meet at 6:30, by the terminal. Remember, service hours are required to advance.

The following saturday, May 28th, we will be meeting at the airport to be the colorguard for dedication of the project that we are spreading mulch for. We will be meeting at 12:30 for the ceremony at 1pm. Please let me know if you can attend. This also counts for service hours

Stony Fest Plans

The plans are to be there at 5pm friday to set up, I need to know if any of the boys are going to camp out by wednesday evening.

Saturday Breakfast from 7am to 9 am

Lunch from 11am to 1 pm

Dinner from 5pm to 7 pm

Tear down and take the trailer to unload it for the gunbash to follow directly after dinner.

I can always use help cooking and serving meals, please let me know asap if you or a family member will be there to help and for which meals. Thanks

Stoney Fest

Crazy weekend coming up this weekend. Here is what I have so far for food responsibilities for stony fest

Breakfast
4 boxes of Pancake Mix- Hendershot, Nitch


Sausage, 28 links each- Reynolds, Hart, Smitherman

2 bottles of syrup- Nitch

Coffee- Winkleman

Lunch
5 packs of hot dogs each- Lohr, Karunaratne

5 packs of buns each- Pringle, Richter

2 bags of chips each- Rutledge, Sakmar

Dinner
Spaghetti 5 lbs each- Arone, Mastovich, Foster, Karunaratne

Salad mix 4 bags each- Stutzman, Crum, Sakmar
STILL NEED 6 BAGS

bread 2 loaves each- Evans, Hart, Arone 4 loaves


Sauce 5 jars each- Mastovich, Tauber, Law
STILL NEED 5 JARS

Meatballs- Misner
We are going to need about 100 meatballs total but I dont know how many come in a bag.

If you can take care of the extra items, or if your name is not on the list, comment below so everyone can see who else is bringing what items. Thank you.

Reminder GUNBASH

ALL gunbash tickets, sold or unsold need to be back in by next monday!!! If you are unable to attend next mondays meeting it is your responsibility to get your unsold tickets, or ticket stubs with money to either Dan or Jason Richter. This is extremely important and there is no reason that you cannot arrange this by monday. Thank you to everyone for working together on this fund raiser, it should prove to be very lucrative.

Reminder, Gunbash tickets

ALL gunbash tickets, sold or unsold need to be back in by next monday!!! If you are unable to attend next mondays meeting it is your responsibility to get your unsold tickets, or ticket stubs with money to either Dan or Jason Richter. This is extremely important and there is no reason that you cannot arrange this by monday. Thank you to everyone for working together on this fund raiser, it should prove to be very lucrative.

ALL gunbash tickets!!!!

ALL gunbash tickets, sold or unsold need to be back in by next monday!!!
If you are unable to attend next mondays meeting it is your responsibility to get your unsold tickets, or ticket stubs with money to either Dan or Jason Richter. This is extremely important and there is no reason that you cannot arrange this by monday. Thank you to everyone for working together on this fund raiser, it should prove to be very lucrative.

Gun Bash Graphic

Thank you to Brian Law for taking care f this, it looks great!!

Parents meeting notes

Here are the notes from the parents Meeting Monday, thank you to all that attended.

Stonyfest:
May 21st
we will set up at 5pm, camp overnight for those that want too.
we had a sign up sheet that I will post shortly for food donations.
we are tearing down following dinner and will NOT be camping saturday night due to the gun bash sunday

Gun Bash:
we still have 100 tickets left to sell, I will posting the new graphic so everyone can share it on facebook. Please at least post in on facebook and lets get the last 100 sold!!

we had a sign up sheet for every family to bring a desert

we will set up at 9am, all the kids will be gone by 11am

the last drawing will be around 5pm, we should be done by 7pm

 we are not bringing the kids back to tear down, we are just going to get it done.

EVERY FAMILY MUST BE REPRESENTED AT THE GUN BASH!!
WE WILL NEED LOTS OF HELP TO MAKE IT GO SMOOTHLY!!

Putts Camp:
Tentative dates are June 23-26

we are working on confirming everything

C and O canal
Aiming for the end of July, dates and details to follow

VERY IMPORTANT INFO!!!!!

Next weeks meeting

A representative from the order of the arrow will be on hand to take care of elections so please make every effort to have your son there. I have pushed him back until 7 pm so the soccer kids etc can be there.

Gun Bash:
Next Monday from 730 pm to 8 pm, that's right its only a half hour!!!
We need representatives from each family to be at the church for a quick half hour meeting about responsibilities pertaining to the gun bash. We will also have dates for Putts Camp, Shooting camp as well as info about the 5k, biking the C and O canal and stonyfest
If your family is not represented, you will be voluntold what you are needed to do and will then have to worry about covering it, or switching with someone else.

ALL UNSOLD GUNBASH TICKETS NEED TO BE ACCOUNTED FOR!!!
We have around 140 tickets still out in the world somewhere and we need to make an effort to get these sold.


A big thank you to everyone that signed up to help with the concession stand, we only have two spots left so all in all it was and will be pretty painless.

Reminders and info

The boy scouts are going to be running the concession stand at the soccer field as a fundraiser, every family need to pick a day. You should have all gotten an email with the sign up info and where to go. If you are having ANY trouble with the site, contact Dani at 814 341 6763. If you don;t call and you cant sign up its not an excuse.

Gunbash tickets. If you have unsold tickets and dont feel you will be able to sell them, you need to get them back to Jason at the regular monday meeting. We have people that are waiting to buy tickets but we have none to give them. Any unsold tickets will eventually become your responsibility!!

We have been working on emergency prep at the meetings and the boys were to dicuss an escape plan with you including meeting spots, 2 ways out of the house etc. Please make sure they have this with them for the meeting.

I will also post this on the blog but if you are not signed up to follow it you will soon get no notification of events.

Scout Association clean up

A big thanks to those who showed up last night to start the cleanup of the scout room.  It was amazing how much you accomplished with the small number of people.
Next week they are going to start tackling the kitchen and could use some of the mothers to help in this area.  We need your organization skills to assist in this area.  The cleanup will start at 6:30 and go until the meeting is over.
Thanks in advance moms as I know the support will be there.

Reminder

Gun Bash tickets are due every week.  Jason has to enter them in a data base before the bash so please turn them in when sold.  The scout association scheduled a cleanup for tonight at the scout room

Gun Bash

Just a reminder that we would like all unsold tickets turned in so we know where we stand and also so that we can get tickets to those who need more.  Please also send in any sold stubs with the money every monday.

Gun Bash tickets

We are asking everyone to please return any unsold tickets on Monday April 4.  We have people asking if we have tickets available and we need to collect any unsold tickets so we can get them to the people who need them.  Any ticket stubs you have and the cash should also be turned in then.

Paul

Scout Association

At the last parents meeting we discussed about starting a group patterned after the British scouts for the parents.  I would like to have the first meeting on April 4th while the troop meeting is going on.  Coffee, Tea and light refreshments will be provided.  The purpose is to try and get this off the ground and we have several things we can discuss, not limited to but including a trip to England next summer.  I feel that by starting a group we can help Dan with a number of things.  See you monday
thanks
Paul

Gun Bash tickets

Just a reminder for tomorrow, there are a couple boys that will be having their boards of review. Please wear you first class uniforms if you are one of them.

Gun Bash Tickets
Please bring your ticket stubs and money to the regular boy scout meetings on monday night as you sell them. The information needs to be entered into a database etc so we are trying to collect them so Jason doesnt get killed with 500 tickets at the last minute. NO TICKET STUBS WILL BE ACCEPTED WITHOUT PAYMENT, NO EXCEPTIONS, PERIOD!!! If you sold the tickets, you were given the money, so there is no reason to not turn in payment with the stubs.

Campout
Some of the boys may have mentioned a campout next weekend, well, Im an idiot and forgot that next weekend is easter so this will be rescheduled as soon as we can.

Boards of Review

The following boys will have a board of review this coming monday March 21.  Ivan Arone, Nathan Hart, Ethan Foster.  We are asking that all board of review candidates wear their Class "A" uniform.  In the past this has been the tradition and we want to get back to this since we will be able to notify the boys prior to the board.  We also can use parents to help with the boards.

Thanks
Paul

Service hours: UPDATED

Mike Reynolds needs 3-4 older scouts to assist in serving food and drinks at the Franklin St United Methodist church from 6:30 to around 8:30.  If you are interested please respond.  Reminder all scouts need service hours to advance under the new requirements.  Mike is looking for the older scouts due to the nature of the activity.This will take place on march 31st

Next weeks Meeting, March,7th, 2016

Next weeks meeting will be a bit hectic but Im sure we can get it done!

For the Scouts
Next week we will be holding Boards of review, if your son is ready for a board of review please have them wear their class A uniform. If you aren't sure if they are ready for a board, feel free to contact me and I will let you know, almost all of the newly bridged boys are ready.

For the Parents
Next week we will be holding a parents meeting as well, it will be from 6:30 to 8pm and will cover troop finances, troop committee, plans for the summer concerning camps and activities and also the upcoming gun raffle for a fund raiser. Please plan to attend, if you dont attend, and dont know what is going on, it will become your responsibility to find out the information.

If I have not received your sons application to transfer to the troop we will give him his board of review but he will not be able to advance until we have it on file.

Intro to sign language Day!! April 10th, 2016

Please comment below if you want to go!!!

WHAT: A fun introduction to ASL (American Sign Language) for students in grades 1-12

WHERE: JFK Student Center at Saint Francis University, Loretto, PA

 TIME: *10 am – 2 pm (In the event of inclement weather, please check WJAC-TV for cancellation information. Make-up day is 4/16) *Check-in begins at 9:15 am

COST: $10 per participant – Registration deadline March 7, 2016 (Registration fee is non-refundable)

 Registration includes lots of fun and a T-shirt (Participants who register after 3/7 will not receive a t-shirt)

Attention new parents!!

Last night we had a great turnout for the hike from the inclined plane, thank you for all that attended.

New Parents
Last night at the meeting we handed out Boy Scout applications, it is very important that you fill these out and get them back to us as soon as possible. Your son will advance rather quickly through the first couple ranks but we can only advance them if they are on our roster, which requires the application.

The dress for our regular meetings does not require a class A uniform and I would recommend jeans and a t-shirt, and a coat, hat etc if weather requires it. Our typical meetings can end up inside sanding or building something or outside looking for animal tracks or having a fire so I would not recommend good school clothes or a 3 piece suit, but that's up to you lol.

Troop 217 does not require the boys to purchase an official scout book, you are welcome to purchase one if you want too.

Please remember to sign up and follow the blog by email as this is where you will find information about all upcoming events!

In the front of every scout book, or online, there is a section on youth protection. In order for your son to advance you must sit down with him and go over this section. I urge you to make this a frank and very open discussion.

As always, parents are more than welcome to sit in on the meetings or attend the outings but it is not required unless specified.

Tomorrows meeting

We will be meeting at 6 pm at the inclined plane to do a 5 mile hike. It is supposed to be in the upper thirties and dry, please dress for the weather and bring a flashlight. The hike should take around an hour or so.

Trial by fire.....or ice as the case may be.

Last weekend we welcomed a bunch of new scouts to the troop at the pack 217 Blue and Gold!!!
As tradition has become, a bunch of us hit the trail and welcomed them by taking them camping, in the cold. They all hung in there like champs and a good time was had by all.

You havent been camping with 217 until you have been frozen beard selfie camping!!!

My apologies

Hike
My last post stated that we would complete our hike next week, which should have read, next meeting. Just to recap, we follow the westmont school schedule and if they dont have school for any reason, we do not have a meeting. We will follow the weather and attempt the hike on this coming monday if weather allows. I will let you know by sunday afternoon if it looks like we will go. Sorry for any inconvienience.
Dan

Scout Sunday, and things......

Scout Sunday
If your son participated in a scout sunday service please let us know. We are trying to keep track. If they were at christ lutheran for service we already have them down for participating

Congratulations
Brian Misner completed his swimming requirements for second class

Mike Reynolds completed his swim test which finishes his swimming, canoeing and kayaking merit badges

Next Week
We are going to watch the weather and see how it goes but if its nice enough we are going to meet at the inclined plane at 6 pm to complete the hike required for the boys to get second class. The hike will end up back at the church at 8pm. Please dress accordingly and bring a flashlight so we are visible and can read the maps and compasses. The boys that need this are Ivan, Wes, Ethan, Dorian, Stephen, Dunil, Brian, Eli, and Robbie but all are encouraged to attend.

Scout Sunday service is at 9:30 at Christ Lutheran Church.  Please have the boys there between 9:00 and 9:15 as they will be participating in the service and we need to go over what they will be doing.

Upcoming events

Meeting for February 1st is cancelled.
I will be in ohio and Paul has a trip as well so Mondays meeting is cancelled

Scout Sunday, Feb 7th
We will be attending scout sunday on Feb 7th at Christ Lutheran church, where we meet.
Please have the boys looking sharp in class A uniform. Lets get as many people as we can there so the church knows that we appreciate there charter. Most troops dont have the luxury of having a dedicated space like we do and they need to know we are thankful for it.

Meeting for Feb 8th
The ligonier YMCA has graciously agreed to let us use their pool at 7 pm to do swim tests. This is especially important for the boys working on second class as it will be their last chance to complete the swimming requirements and advance under the old rules. There is no cost and should only take an hour to cycle everyone through

Webelos (new boy scout )overnighter
It is not too late to sign up your boy for the overnighter, as of now I believe we have 6 or 7 kids going plus the new boys.

Overnighter etc

As of right now, I have only received 4 responses from the boy scouts of people coming to the overnighter.

I have received 0 responses that the boys have talked to you about the drug program or saved money etc.

Important information

There is no meeting tonight, Jan. 18th

2nd Class Scouts
We are working to try and get your boys advanced under the old requirements. We only have until March of this year to do this. A couple requirements that we need to finish up are as follows.

- Have the boys save an amount of money, then they need to save half of that amount.
There is no specific amount or what it means to save it. My suggestion is to have them do some chores around the house for a set amount, then put half that amount into a piggy bank. Once this is done, please comment below that your boy has completed this requirement.

- Participate in a drug or alcohol awareness program then discuss this with your family.
We held a program at scouts last week, I urge you to sit down and talk openly with your son about drugs and alcohol, then comment below that you have done this.


New Scout overnighter
The webelos will be bridging on February 13th, we will once again take the new scouts out to the lean to shelters for their first camping trip directly following the bridging. The cost will be 5 dollars and a lot of the younger boys need camping nights to advance. The group bridging is quite large so it would be helpful to have as many boys there as we can. Please comment below if your son will be attending.

Please note

As I am posting these opportunities to participate in things like the klondike derby, the cross country skiing, orienteering etc. We will base whether or not we participate soley on the number of comments we get that say your son is interested. So please be sure to ask your son, check your schedules etc and then comment that you are interested. Thanks

March orienteering event

Registration is OPEN.
In a rogaine-style format, individuals or teams have a fixed time (3 or 6 hours in this event) to visit as many checkpoints as possible; walking, running and resting as they see fit. The checkpoints are spread over a large area, and are pre-marked on a map issued shortly before the start of the event. Point values for visiting each control vary (and are specified in advance) depending on such factors as distance from the start/finish area, elevation, navigational complexity.
Participants in a Rogaine come from diverse backgrounds: hikers, walkers, cross-country runners, trail runners, adventure racers, ultra runners, orienteers, hashers and family groups. Widely varying levels of competitive intensity are found, going from the casual stroller who wants a little variety added to the weekend hike to the serious athlete. Map reading skill is perhaps the most important technique needed. Route planning strategy is also very important since there won't be time to get all the controls, so the choice of which to try for is crucial in maximizing scores.
Time: Event start at 10 a.m. on Sunday, March 20, 2016. The registration desk opens at 8:00 AM. Maps will be distributed at 9:00 AM. There is a mandatory meeting at 9:45 AM. at the start location for all participants.
Organizers: Western Pennsylvania Orienteering Club - website    www.wpoc.org
Start/Finish area: Rec Hall in Raccoon Creek State Park. Located 30 miles West of Pittsburgh, near the town of Frankfort Springs. Rec Hall is located 1.3 miles west of the park headquarters which is on route 18. Directions: from Pittsburgh, take Parkway West (I-376) in direction towards the airport. Change to Route 22 West, and exit route 22 at Route 18. Follow Route 18 for 6 miles to the north to park headquarters, and follow signs and road for 1.3 miles West to Rec Hall.  GPS coordinates:  N 40 30.570, W 80 26.800
Provided Equipment: A special-purpose topographic map on a large sheet at a 1:15,000 scale and 5 meter contour interval with a clear plastic bag will be provided to each participant. In addition, to each team or solo competitor, control descriptions and an SI card for recording found controls are also provided. Water is available at the base camp and at selected points marked on the map. Food will be available at end of event. Recommended equipment: compass, whistle, water bottle or camelbak, watch, snack food, sunscreen.
Rules: No help from others is allowed during the race away from the base camp. If in a team, team members must stay within sight and speaking distance throughout the event.  Portable GPS systems are allowed as long as the intention is to simply record the route taken for later analysis, discussion and sharing.
Checkpoints: Each checkpoint is marked by an orange/white 3-sided control, with sides approximately one foot square. The control flags will usually be visible from some distance, not intentionally concealed, but also not in view of trails or roads. There will be about 50 control points distributed in the state park area.
Scoring: The point value of all control points visited is totaled. The lateness penalty will be 10 points for every minute late. Tie scores will be decided by the order of finishing times.  If in a team, all members of the team must be present at the finish.  After finishing, the team will need to download the information from their SI card to get a score and a report on their progress through the cocurse.
Awards Categories: There are three age categories:  Elite (age 20 and over), Masters (age 40 and over), and Veterans (age 55 and over).  Within each of these categories are  gender categories:  Men, Women, and Mixed.  You will be placed in the least competitive category that fits all team members.  For example, a team of three women age 40, 44, and 57 would be in the Masters, Women category.  Team members under age 20 are not considered in determining age category unless all are under age 20; then the team is Elite.
Entry Fees: Entries postmarked by 3/10/2016 will pay a fee of $30 per person for the 6-hr events and $18 for the 3 hour event. After that date, the fees are $40 for the 6-hr event, and $25 for the 3-hr event. On March 15, preregistration will be cut off; all subsequent registration must be done on race day at the event, provided the registration limit has not been reached.  There is a $8 discount per person for members of WPOC on the 6-hour event and a $5 discount per person for members of WPOC on the 3-hour event.  Limited to the first 150 people to register.
To register for Raccoongaine VII, click here  Register 
 Registration List ( http://www.wpoc.org/registrationlist2016.htm )   This is where to look to see who is registered.
To see photos from last year's Raccoongaine try the following link    2015 pics

To view the routes some people took in 2015, go to  Racer's routes
To see last year's results and read commentary about last year's event, go to commentary
You can follow what is happening with Raccoongaine on various social media:
 Facebook at "Raccoongaine"

Intro to sign language day at Saint Francis

Sign Day at SFU!

WHAT: A fun introduction to ASL (American Sign Language) for students in grades 1-12

WHERE: JFK Student Center at Saint Francis University, Loretto, PA

 TIME: *10 am – 2 pm (In the event of inclement weather, please check WJAC-TV for cancellation information. Make-up day is 4/16) *Check-in begins at 9:15 am

COST: $10 per participant – Registration deadline March 7, 2016 (Registration fee is non-refundable)

 Registration includes lots of fun and a T-shirt (Participants who register after 3/7 will not receive a t-shirt)