Use this category to add news to the Troop blog. News can be a collection of announcements, live updates (photos, videos, etc.) on outings, or any information that pertains to the entire Troop.
Troop, this coming Sunday is our last Flags day for the year!
Last year we put out flags the morning of Veteran’s Day flags and the weather was nice and all that. By the time we were picking flags up, it was a blizzard of snow and ice. Fun times were had by all! We saw over turned motorcycles in the middle of the road, 12 inches of snow on parts of our route and one awesome Crosstrek conquering all of it.
Let’s make some more awesome memories this year by placing flags, making our customers happy, showing support for our Community, our Nation, and our Veterans!
If you have not filled a slot, please do so at the link below:
Mr Warner Here: Only THREE Scouts are signed up to be in the Veteran’s day parade tomorrow!! I know we can do better than this. Let’s get some more participation and represent tomorrow. I’m going to be there but will be a little embarrassed that there is only 3 of us because I know other Troops will show in force. The United States of America has Special Forces soldiers fighting in Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq right now. They just killed the leader of ISIS!!! I think we can walk for 30 minutes down the road with our Retired Special Forces Chapter. . What say you?? Are you up for the challenge? If so, sign up at the link below and I will see you there tomorrow morning. There WILL BE DONUTS! We should have at least 10 scouts!
Due to the weather and the fact we follow D-11’s schedule, we are cancelling tonight’s meeting. D-11 called off all after school activities a little while ago.
If you had scheduled for a SMC, we will get you done first thing next week so you can get your BOR done as scheduled. I think there were only two.
Please be advised that our Troop follows the closing schedule for District 11 schools. We will keep an eye on the weather and make appropriate decisions based on the conditions. If D-11 cancels their afternoon activities, or if the schools close early, we will not have a meeting tonight.
You can follow the District’s closings at the link below.
Meet up location will be provided later by Mr. Warner. The parade starts at 10am on 2 November, so make sure you get signed up quickly. We will meet up at 9:30am so we are all situated properly for the route.
Class A uniform with MB sash and headgear (if you have them).
I am going to schedule Scoutmaster Conferences (SMC) using signup lists and RSVPs in an effort to eliminate the last minute requests we have had in the past. I want to establish a routine in our meeting schedule so you guys are supported and we have some predictability on this type of event.
As a reminder, you as the Scout, are the master of your Scouting destiny and rank advancement! Take charge of it and try and schedule our your advancement according to your desires and plans. Make sure you are on top of all of your advancement requirements and have those items signed off in your books (by Scout Leadership and then Adult Leaders) prior to your SMC. You should be well versed in your knowledge and skills required for the rank you are trying to attain: you will be asked to recite, demonstrate, and explain things you should know during your SMC.
In turn, Boards of Review (BOR) will be completed this way as well, since the Committee Members need as much, if not more scheduling notification than we as Scoutmasters do. BOR will be scheduled out as well. In the past the committee has accommodated last minute boards and endured late nights because at the end of a meeting, a Scout as asked for a board. Understanding there are circumstances when this may occur, it is entirely preventable. I would like to put the responsibility in the hands of you, the Scout, to schedule these things out and have an outlook to the future of your advancement instead of waiting to the last minute before a Court of Honor to get your SMC or BOR completed. Just because it is the “day” you are eligible for the next rank, does not mean you need a board of review that day. Plan accordingly.
We will hold SM Conferences the on the Rank Advancement nights, which generally will follow Game Night.
We will hold Boards of Review on nights that the committee members are most available. I would like to see these happen on the week prior to the Committee Meeting. So, our first one will be on 5 Nov. Future BORs will be placed on the schedule/calendar and posted to the website after the monthly committee meeting decides on the best day for the following month.
As previously discussed, I would like to follow a schedule of meetings as follows:
Week 1: MB work (BOR)
Week 2: Camp prep
Week 2.5: campout
Week 3: Game Night
Week 4: Rank Advancement (SMC)
When we have a 5th meeting in a month, we can adjust and make other things happen. Maybe an extra game night (non-cost type), field trip, continue MB work, Rank ADV, or required presentations (many of you have those requirements where you need to give a speech or presentation, this would be a good opportunity for that).
Anyway, sorry for the long post, below you will find the sign up for the next SM Conference and BOR dates.
The church is hosting their Harvest Festival on 26 Oct (this Saturday) from 2-4pm. They adjusted hours and events, so we can support even better now!
Just a couple of hours of your time will give back greatly to the organization which allows us a meeting location and a storage location for all our stuff. If it were not for them, we would not have the barn and fire pit for our meetings!
So, please, sign up and spend a couple hours helping out. You’ll get service hours to boot.
Assistance from friends and Family is always appreciated! Bring your siblings to show support!
I am going to make the call that Summit wins for Game Night.
Please be sure to bring your popcorn order forms and money to turn in. Also, be sure to make a copy of your order form so you know who to deliver all the orders to.
Alright, for the parents: There are several opportunities to save at the Summit. You can sign up for their newsletter and get some discounts, there are Groupons available, and here is a link that may or may not offer some discounts:
It looks like so far Summit is winning out for game night. Final tally will be tomorrow afternoon.
Also, please prepare and bring your popcorn order forms and money for turn in tomorrow to the meeting, wherever it may be (or Wednesday if Dart Wars makes a late rally for votes). A reminder will go out with the game night decision tomorrow as well.
Mrs. Durrenberger will collect at our next meeting.
Get your votes in for either Summit on Tuesday or Dart Wars Wednesday!
Wednesday: 5:00pm – 8:00pm (Parents Play Free NIght *with paid kiddo)
Troop, above you will see that the chosen game night at Dart Wars has a conflict. They are closed on Tuesday night but are open on Wednesday 5-8pm.
The second option was The Summit (bowling, video games, laser tag, pizza). I’m not even sure they ever close.
The choices are to either move our game night to Wednesday and do Dart Wars where there may be scheduling conflicts with other family activities, or do the Summit during our regularly scheduled time.
Here is the link to the sign up. Just put your name in whichever slot you prefer I will tally them up and let everyone know via post before 6pm tomorrow night.
There are just a few opportunities to camp near the dino tracks. We can discuss in depth on Tuesday, but there is a place called Picketwire Corrals we can use for dispersed camping and then hike into the dino tracks Just a couple of miles to the south) via a couple of different routes. I will bring a couple of maps, and you can bring some ideas after you do some research.
Also, we need to decide on where we are going to attend summer camp. I think we should try somewhere we have not been yet, such as San Isabel Scout Ranch near Bishop’s castle, but it is definitely up to you guys as a troop.
Pretty sure this never happened! At least on Earth.
Troop,
It is time to walk where our forefathers strode across the plains, hunting the mammoths, tricerotops, and chickens, and being hunted by the velociraptors and tyranosaurus rexs of the past! It is time for the Dino Death March!!! (just kidding, I know humans were not around during the dinos; in fact, more time passed between T-Rex and Tricerotops than has passed between T-Rex and humans: crazy, right?!)
We will be staying in the Picketwire Canyon Lands and trapsing through the wilderness where the mightiest of the thunder lizards roamed and left their prints in the ground for us to find eons later.
On Tuesday, 15 OCt, Scouts will plan the meals and identify gear required. The current forecast is as follows, for consideration of gear. Seems like a nice couple of nights to sleep under the stars!
FRI OCT 18
Sunny
77°46°
0%
SW 12 mph
25%
SAT OCT 19
Mostly Sunny
72°42°
10%
NW 11 mph
29%
SUN OCT 20
Partly Cloudy
66°39°
10%
N 11 mph
33%
We will meet up at the barn on Friday, 18 Oct at 5pm like usual, and then head out from there. We will find a place to camp down there in the immediate area of the trailheads (more to follow on that specifically). You can check out some of the stuff to do in the area at the link below.
Scouts will prep breakfast on Saturday morning, then pack a to-go lunch for eating on the trail. Then head out for the hike, which is about 5 miles or so one way (from what i’ve been told). Lunch will be on the trail, then head back to base camp for the Scouts to prep dinner. During down time, the Scouts should try and maximize the captive audience to work on some of their ADV and prep a skit or two to entertain over the campfire.
Sunday we will have a light/quick breakfast, pack up and head home. We should be home by noon for parent pick up.
Sign up so we can learn something about history and have fun while camping!
It is time for the Wilson Methodist Church Family Fun Festival (formerly the Harvest festival). This is a chance to give back to the church that gives us a place to meet every week since 1986. Every year we have scouts and scout parents help direct cars in the parking lot and help run some of the activities. The Church needs as many helpers as we can get from our troop, both Scouts and parents. There is food and treats and Scouts have a pretty good time during this event. Please sign up if you can help. Proudly wear your Class A Scout uniform to represent the Troop!
The Church Harvest Festival is October 26th from 2-5pm.
Tonight we will actually get to the MB Indian Lore we wanted to start last week. Many of you already have the worksheet that was handed out last week, so bring what you have done, if any. If not, no worries, because Mr. Petree will spend a few minutes going over the requirements and showing some regalia he has.
We will also do some Rank ADV because next week is camp prep and the following week is game night, so we have to fit it in somewhere!
Lastly, Thanks to all who assisted Lance in his Eagle Project for UpaDowna! With all the help and determination, they completed the project in one weekend! Fantastic news, right! Now I have next weekend free! Thanks guys! Lance will also provide an update to his project – sorry if I stole your Thunder, Dude.
Just a friendly reminder that my eagle scout project is approaching very, very soon. I purchased most of the building materials today. So far, I only have two scouts signed up. It’s not too late! Please sign up and help me achieve a goal that has been in the grasp of my hand for years. Not only does your participation support me but it also benefits you. Service hours are needed to promote to the next rank. We will be spending two weekends working on a bicycle storage shed for the nonprofit, UpaDowna. The first weekend will be the 5th and 6th of October and then the following weekend after that. The construction will begin at 9:00 A.M. and end at 4:00 P.M. at 335 Manitou Ave, Manitou springs, CO, 80829. Please sign up on the sign up genius at the link below!
I would greatly appreciate your participation and I hope to see you there!
We would like to have max participation this week in Class A uniform because the Arrow of Light Den from Pack 166 is visiting us at our meeting. We would like to put on a good showing so they consider us as their Troop of Choice when it comes time to transition over in February.
We will have our regularly scheduled stuff and do not plan on ‘putting on a show’ for our visitors. Our merit badge this month is Indian Lore, and will be led by Mr Petree, who has volunteered to bring in some artifacts for your viewing and knowledge gaining pleasure. The short MB instruction will be followed by some pioneering skills and then an IPA with the WEBELOS.
The only other adjustment to this week is the time: we would like to start at 6:30pm to capitalize on the remaining light for the opening fire of the ceremony and to welcome our friends in Scouting to our meeting place.
Whomever arrives first can start to build the Troop fire. However, do not actually start the fire until an adult arrives!!
Start time is 6:30pm, please wear Class A uniforms!
We planned on having Pack 166 hang out with us this week, but there was a scheduling conflict, so they will be with us next week.
We will carry on with our uniform inspection, Rank Advancement and such. We will meet at our regular time, 7pm. We will adjust for next week with the WEBELOs from Pack 166 to 6:30.
The troop has made its next payment to Philmont for the June 2020 trek. The troop is currently covering some of these fees as we have not collected enough money either from participants or have we filled all of the available slots. We currently have 9 of 12 slots filled. A scout should be 14 years old OR 13 years old AND finished 8th grade. It would be great to get these last three spots filled. We are not required to have 12 members in our crew. We can continue with the current 9 participants. With 9, the fees would be $1,367 each. Please discuss with your scout if they are interested in participating.
I was informed that game night this week will be park games (football, kickball, ultimate, or whatever) at Pinion Valley Park. Instead of our usual 7pm start time, we will do our best to take advantage of what remaining daylight there is by starting at 6:30pm. Pinion Valley Park, near the kickball diamond. See you tomorrow night!
P.S. No uniform inspection this week. We are postponing it to next week when we have Pack 166 Arrow of Light Scouts visiting us. That will be a rank advancement meeting, so do that Scout thing and “Be Prepared” to use the EDGE method to teach some younger Scouts some skills (lashings, first aid, fire building) although whomever gets to the meeting first gets to build the fire-6:30pm again next week because of the younger scouts and we want to capitalize on daylight with them too.
My eagle scout project is approaching and I need people to help me. I am constructing a bicycle storage shed for a nonprofit organization, UpaDowna. Any hours volunteered counts as community service.
To fully make this shed, it will take two weekends (most of the work will be on the first weekend). The first weekend will be October 5th/6th and the second is the 12th/13th. The 5th/6th will be spent making the shed itself. The following weekend will consist of painting the shed and extra added details. Please wear work clothes that you don’t mind getting damaged. Bring sunglasses or eye protection. Work Gloves is a good idea.
The hours for each weekend will be from 9am-4pm but may change depending on how much we complete on the weekends.
There will be food and drink provided! Sunscreen will be provided.
The address is 335 Manitou Ave, Manitou Springs, CO 80829.
Welcome to the website of Boy Scout Troop 287 at Wilson United Methodist Church, located on the northwest side of Colorado Springs, CO, in school districts 11 and 20. We are in the BSA Pikes Peak Council, Frontier District.
To the left, you can view our news and events. Below you can browse information about our troop, subscribe to our blog by email, download documents, and access useful links.
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