May 11, 2015

Having Fun!

Well as this hits your inbox, we are Wildcat Mountain making breakfast, we are preparing for an exciting day of camping and biking, for those who are reading this when they got home, hope you had fun.

This Monday

Batter’s Up! This Monday is going to center around the theme of baseball, come and learn all about it, and maybe even play a little.

High Adventure

For those scouts who have not signed up for High Adventure and plan on going, please be sure to get that taken care of this week. Can’t pay the whole fee right now, at least put down $25 so we can plan on how many are attending. We need to start making some solid plans and need those numbers.

Advancement needed

Don’t forget, if you finished any advancement this quarter, this Monday is the last Monday meeting before the Court of Honor. We had a lot of work done on the campout, and the last few months, be sure to give that info to Mrs. Williams so you can be recognized at the Court of Honor. Just because it is in YOUR book, does not mean that it is in OUR books too, be sure to turn it in. Bring your book on Monday.

Camp

Camp is quickly approaching and everyone should be paid up in FULL by now, if not, please do so by the end of the month. Camp must be paid IN FULL before camp unless you have made special arrangements. Med forms are part of the preparation for camp, if you have not turned those in yet, they need to be turned in as well. It won’t be long, and we will be headed into our Super Summer program and out of the church hall, let’s get this stuff all turned in NOW.

Account Balances

With camp fees coming out recently, plus other things, some of the Scout accounts are over drawn, remember any balance greater than zero, means you owe the Troop money, please get those numbers back down to zero.

The Future

As we have announced in the past, we all know that Camp Lyle is closing after this summer season. Just wanted to take a moment to update everyone on what is going on, the committee and the PLC have been well versed on what is going on, but that does not mean the whole troop is up to speed. As soon as the announcement of the closing of camp took place in January, we have been actively pursuing camps for 2016. The Scoutmaster staff met and discussed what was important to the success of the Troop when it comes to summer camp. We laid out a plan of attack and presented it to the committee back in February. We gathered info on all the Boy Scout camps in the Wisconsin and a few in IL, the committee and the PLC has looked at this info and each group has set some priorities to what our NEW camp should offer. Of the 15-20 camps available, we have learned that camps are very different and we want to pick ones that best suit our needs. The two priorites on everyone’s lists were Patrol method camping (Patrols cook their own food in the sites) and then OPEN program, which means Scouts can wander in to Merit Badge areas and work more independently than say what is referred to as a closed program, which has set class times and you actually sign up for the classes even before you go to camp. There are pro’s and con’s to both. This open concept is a lot harder to find, as Camp Lyle was very unique with this program, but we are looking deep for this type of open program.

There are tons of other things being considered as well. One of the more important ones is that some camps do not offer the use of their equipment (Tents, cook kits, cots and such) as Lyle does, so that means that we have to bring our own gear. Our current tents may not be suitable for a long term camp situations especially if we want cots, but we will evaluate that situation as we move forward. Due to the diligence of the Troop committee over the years, we have been able to save money for a rainy day situations and if we have to purchase additional equipment, it is good to say, we think we will be OK, but it depends on the volume of equipment we need. We have at least one group that is willing to help out if we need funds too. In general, we are not interested in purchasing any excess canvas gear from camp if it were to go on sale. Transporting canvas is a LOT of weight, and we don’t need to be stressing out our trailers, not to mention the storage of this equipment.

This week, the Three Harbors council will be putting on a Camp Fair (May 14th) where they will be bringing a bunch of camps together for us to take a look at. Our Committee and our PLC will be attending this fair to look at what each camp has to offer. We will narrow down our choices to a few camps, then this summer, we may make a road trip to go visit some of these camps to see what they have to offer in person and hopefully we will have a choice made by the end of August, with a reservation and camp dates set for 2016.

As you can see, this process is pretty complex and we are doing our best to pick the best camp for all situations. Being very involved in the council, related to the council process, then also at the Troop level, I think as much as I LOVE Camp LYLE, the new experiences at a new camp will prove to be a very positive thing for the members of the Troop. Some of the other camps have very active high adventure programs like COPE and high ropes courses, some have ATV’s and Wave Runners and some pretty cool upgrades like shooting sports areas, not to mention some great opportunities for first year scouts. So as we move forward it is exciting to see these new opportunities, but I am sure many of you share in my sadness of Lyle closing as the camp we know and love, but keep your head high. This is a change, that can be very positive if we approach it with a positive attitude, kind of like getting a new pair of shoes, when the old ones very comfortable, after a while, the new ones get comfortable too.

So I think that catches the rest of the Troop up with where we are with camp for 2016 and beyond, for some of you, I understand, it may not be the most interesting, but for others, I just wanted to help you understand what was going on so you know we are taking some great care in selecting a new camp, something this Troop has not done in over 50 years. If anyone wants to add input in what they find important, please let me know. Don’t be afraid to let your Patrol leader know as well. Even though you may not be in PLC or on committee, if anyone is interested in going to the Camp Fair to see what other camps offer, let me know, and I will get you the details and get you signed up. Parents or Scouts, if you have any comments or concerns, please let me know. I hope this gets you up to date.

That should do it for this, see you Monday night!

Thanks

Mr. F.

BSB 15 05 11.Docx

Troop161 Web Site Court of Honor Handout Online Troop Photo Album