What a great evening our scout troop had Friday night December 9, 2022. We started out by helping the Fairmont Food Pantry put together  200 Christmas Boxes. I found out that our troop has been doing this for 25 years. This project was done in less than an hour. I could not believe we did all that work in that short of time. If you think about the Scout Oath and where it states a scout “should help other people at all times” I could not think of a better project to fulfill this statement.

Once we completed the Christmas Boxes and ate the pizza  that was supplied by the Fairmont Pantry We jumped back on our troop bus and headed back to Trinity Epicopal Church in Independence for a night of fun and a night of friendship.  The Scouts played games and talked until 11:30 AM when we were asked to go to bed. I was ready to hit the hay.

On Saturday morning we picked up our sleeping gear and cleaned up our scout room and headed upstairs to a great breakfast made by our troop leaders .

I would like to say thank you to all the scouts and especially our troop leaders  who came to the lock-in. Our leaders always see that the scouts have a great time on our troop activities.

I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and ask everyone to remember why we celebrate Christmas.

What a great overnight! The Scouts and Leaders gott to climb, climb and climb. We climbed till midnight. But before we got to climb the scouts and leaders went through a very detailed training course by the great staff at Ibex’s. All the scouts 13 years of age got to take part in the Climbing Merit Badge. The neat thing about this overnight was that I didn’t at first want to climb to the top of the wall. But with many attempts and lots of encouragement from my fellow scouts and leaders I made it. I was so glad that I was able to achieve climbing to the top of the rock wall. I hope the troop does another overnight at IBex’s in the future.

The Troop had a great campfire. Each patrol had to perform a skit and a song and the scouts did an excellent job. The campfire was one of the best that I have ever seen our scouts put on. Our MC for the campfire was James Robbins. James did a great job.

To close our campfire the troop retired 200 American Flags that had served the United States very well. Our veterans who were present oversaw the very solemn ceremony. The veterans made sure that the flags were totally destroyed in the fire before retiring for the evening. In the morning they returned to the fire to retrieve the brass eyelets from the flags.

What a weekend the Scouts, Leaders and Cub Scouts had on the October Overnight. The troop played host to the Cub Scout families of Pack 185. The weather was great, the food that was prepared was great.

The troop had a cake baking contest. The Patrols had to bake a two layer cake in a paper box. See photos attached.

The Stunning Foxes won BEST LOOKING

The Arrow of Light Patrol won BEST TASTING

The patrol also cook two great meals in their dutch ovens:

Arctic Fox Patrol:

Dinner: Chicken Rice

Breakfast: Monkey Bread

Flaming Goats Patrol:

Dinner: Quartermaster Stew

Breakfast: Breakfast Burritos

Fearsome Flying Frogs Patrol:

Dinner: Chicken Rice

Breakfast: French Toast

Stunning Foxes Patrol:

Dinner: Chicken & Rice

Breakfast: Mountain Man Breakfast

If I could summarize camp in one word, it would be great! At first I was really nervous, it was my first year at Bartle. I didn’t really know what to expect. But once I got there, it was pretty good. It seemed like at first, it would be a terrible 10 days. But I once I got settled in, and was making good progress on my merit badges. I had already finished them in a few days. The other first years in my troop had hikes, and we got to see some great views of the lake. We also got to shoot some bow and arrows and a .22 caliber rifle. I had to leave early because of a personal issue, but for the time I was there, it was great!

On the High Adventure Trip the Scouts had to show determination, teamwork and flexibility. This trip was a true scouting experience for all the scouts and leaders involved.
During this adventure scouts parpicated a 12 hour bus ride, camping and canoeing.

Each scout had to work together to set up tents, cook meals and portaging(walking on land carrying the canoes, food and equipment to the next lake). On the lake there were many challenges keeping food safe from bears and other wild animals. Each night you had to put all your scented items in a bear proof barrel that you tied to a tree. You also had to keep all your gear that was in your dry bag neat so you could fit everything back in the bag when you were done with it.

During the trip our group stayed at four different campsites. One of the biggest parts of staying at a campsite is leaving it better than you found it. So we had to follow all the Leave No Trace policies. Out on the water we had a lot of fun and great weather. You had to beat the waves, wind and the rapids. You got to see lots of great scenery.

Each group had their highs and lows but over all this was a great opportunity to have fun.

Last outing the scouts participated in teaching and entertaining the cub scouts. Some activity’s were monkey bridge, BB guns, archery, and obstacle course. The scouts helped set up activities with a partner and a leader. Family’s were assigned a time for each activity. After teaching the scout were able to participate in activities before dinner. It was a fun time to get know some of are future scouts.

The zoo was really fun. We got to go all over the zoo, we split up into groups and looked at so many animals like seals and red pandas, then we ate lunch. Afterwards we went to merit badge class and got a tour of the aquarium. We ate dinner, got our stuff, and set up camp, then we went on a night hike to see the nocturnal animals. Later we went back to the aquarium, had a snack and watched a movie. Briefly that was our incredibly fun zoo trip.

As a Scout leader, I have had the opportunity to sit in on a number of “boards of review”, which are done when a Scout is ready to advance in rank. One of the questions that is always asked is what a Scout’s favorite thing about Scouting is and the answer is always the same—going to Scout Camp. One of the things I have heard our Scoutmaster state many times is that Scout Camp is where everything that happens during the rest of the year comes together. Despite it being 40 years since going to camp as a Cub Scout and camp being held in late July/early August, I decided I had to go see for myself–as a leader and father of a Scout–just what it was all about.

After arriving at camp, adult leaders are assigned a selection of merit badges the Scouts will be completing to monitor and track the progress of. While it isn’t required that a leader attend the merit badge sessions, being that it was my first year at Scout Camp, I attended most days. It gave me a chance to get to know where everything at Bartle was, and it is a big place with a lot to see. The merit badges assigned to me were the shooting sports and climbing (two of my hobbies). It was exciting to see as the Scouts progressed in their skill and confidence. I also enjoyed meeting Scouts and leaders from other Troops and getting to know the staff who make it all possible.

As camp progressed, I had a lot of time to observe our Troop’s more experienced leadership and one thing that stood out time and time again is how this Troop puts the Scouts first and works hard to help them reach beyond what many of them think they can do. For a number of Scouts, the swim test required for their First Class rank is no easy task. Each Scout hopes to earn a “blue band” to wear on their wrist which shows they passed the test and are allowed to swim anywhere in the pool. Within just a few days, due to dedication and encouragement of the leadership, every Scout in the Troop had earned their blue bands, which I can assure you is no small accomplishment and something that truly impressed me!

Speaking of impressions, the others leaders mentioned that the evening of Night 4 would certainly leave one as it was “Call Night”. When I asked a bit more about it, I was constantly met with the reply that it is just something you need to see for yourself. Looking back on it now, I have to say it was my favorite part of camp. For those of you who haven’t seen or experienced it, I have to echo the replies I got—it’s something you just have to see for yourself! What I can say is that it is where selected Scouts are informed they are under consideration for being called into Tribe of Mic-O-Say (Foxman) or called to begin their journey into the Tribe (Brave). This year our Troop had 4 Foxman and 4 Called Braves among its ranks!

Day 5 was an eventful day as well, but not because of camp activities, but because of COVID. Our Troop was informed that afternoon that due to direct exposure, we would need to leave the following day. While the disappointment in our camp was as heavy as the summer air, the safety and well-being of the Scouts had to come first. While this was hard to hear for the Troop, it was especially tough for the Scouts who had just been called into Mic-O-Say or who were already members and had earned advancement, as they wouldn’t be able to be awarded what they’d earned before having to leave the next day. Yet, even as we made preparations to go that evening, I overheard our Scoutmaster speaking to Camp leadership about making provisions for all these Scouts to return later that year and receive what they were due, which was a much-needed bit of encouragement on a day with too little. And it turned out to be a sign of something to come…

Earlier in the session, we had a Scout join us from another Troop who had attended an earlier session, but had to leave before he was awarded his Mic-O-Say advancement. But, due to our COVID exposure, it looked like he would once again have to leave Bartle without receiving his advancement. That evening, as I passed this Scout in camp, I told him how sorry I was about what happened and assured him that our Scoutmaster wouldn’t forget him. That next morning as we were packing up to leave, I saw someone in our camp I didn’t recognize with this Scout and one of our Scouts that was due the same tribal advancement. As I watched and listened, I realized he was a Mic-O-Say Chief and he had come to award this Scout and our Scout their Firebuilder paint. There are many wonderful memories I took away from my first year at Camp, but that will always remain a treasured one no matter how many times I am fortunate enough to return to Bartle and made me as proud as I can be to serve under our Scoutmaster.

As I reflect on my time as a first-year camper, my experiences exceeded my expectations and I can now join the chorus of those who sing the praises of Scout Camp. It truly is where it all comes together and you get a chance to see the ideals of Scouting on full display. On our Troop t-shirt, the word “PRIDE” is written in large letters. While I have always been proud of our Scouts and their accomplishments, it has taken on a much richer meaning for me after spending time among our leadership at Scout Camp. Troop 282 is a troop led by men and women who put the girls and boys first and work tirelessly to see that they are shown clear examples of what the Scout Oath & Law look like lived out. I am proud to have a son in Troop 282, proud to serve as a leader in Troop 282 and proud to be a part of Scouting!

This is a story about stories, and by that, I mean, a campfire. Specifically, the campfires we held at our campsite.  We did these with the neighboring troop 6282, we are troop 7282.  We were going to have a real fire, but it started raining cats and dogs so instead we went to 6282 pavilions where we performed skits and songs.  Since we couldn’t have a real fire, we opted for flashlights.  We had multiple different people’s flashlights in the center of the pavilion, and we treated it like a real fire. So, if someone walked through or over, we would yell “get out of the fire, you are burning yourself”.  Each troop did 2 songs and 2 skits, we had to improvise because we came with only 1 song and 1 skit; we made up a new skit and song.  We screamed one of our songs which started the other camp next to us to also scream, after that we screamed even louder.  I am not sure if they were battling us in a screaming match but that is just a hunch. After our skits and songs, we got to do other stuff, we sat around telling 3 to 4 urban legends; we had to be careful though because some of the campers were getting scared and then it was also thundering and lightning. 

Overall, it was pretty fun to meet other troops, make friends, have fun, and TOTALLY win that screaming match.