Boy Scout Troop 648 Scottsdale, Arizona

Greetings!

This is a reminder that we will hold our quarterly Parent & Committee Meeting tomorrow, 3/5/19, at 7:00pm. We will discuss a number of subjects including the upcoming Pancake Breakfast and Summer Camp.

Note: Our usual location in the Conference Room is not available, so we will meet in a room immediately adjacent to the Choir Room instead. (The Choir Room is just north of the regular Troop Meeting area, across from Andie’s Coffee Shop.)

All committee members, leaders, and interested parents or guardians are invited and welcome to attend. We hope to see you there!

Here are some of the links to our upcoming Merit Badge Clinics (all of these will fill up fast!):

https://scoutingevent.com/010-2019InsectStudyMB(Insect Study Merit Badge – Multiple Days) â€“ Butterfly Wonderland 

https://scoutingevent.com/010-2019MammalStudyMB (Mammal Study Merit Badge – Multiple Days) â€“ Odysea Aquarium

https://scoutingevent.com/010-pangeaarchmb(Archeology Merit Badge) – March 24^th) – Pangaea Land of the Dinosaurs

https://scoutingevent.com/010-pangaealandmb(Archeology Merit Badge) – March 30th)  â€“ Pangaea Land of the Dinosaurs

https://scoutingevent.com/010-2019riflemb (Rifle Merit Badge) – April 27^th)

https://scoutingevent.com/010-2019MayRoboticsMB(Robotics Merit Badge) – May 4^th) â€“ Legoland

https://scoutingevent.com/010-2019FallNuclearScienceMB (Nuclear Science Merit Badge) – September 14^th) – APS

https://scoutingevent.com/010-midwesternmb(Dentistry, Medicine or Vet Medicine) – September 28^th)

https://scoutingevent.com/010-septplumbingmb(Plumbing Merit Badge) – September 29^th) â€“ PIPE and UA Local 469

 https://scoutingevent.com/010-citizenshipinthenation(Citizenship in the Nation Merit Badge) – October 12^th)

*SAVE THE DATE* Ashley Furniture HomeStore Merit Badge Day (At least 8) – October 26^th at the Tempe Location

*SAVE THE DATE* Grand Canyon Council BIG Merit Badge Expo – November 1st-3rd at the Heard Scout Pueblo Scout Camp (At least 35 Merit Badges)

Look for upcoming Electronics, Aviation, and more Merit Badge Clinic Dates.

Dear Troop 648 Scout families:

I hope everyone has been busy seeking silent auction items for our Annual Pancake Breakfast & Silent Auction on Saturday, April 27!  The big event is two months from tomorrow so I’m anxious to see what items have been collected.  Last year’s silent auction had more than 80 items so let’s all work hard together and try to top that!

Scouts are encouraged to solicit or donate items to be included in the Silent Auction.  In years past, Scouts have been very successful in soliciting donations (gift certificates, goods and services) from local restaurants, shops and service providers.  Last year items donated to the auction included tickets to sporting events, concert tickets, restaurant gift cards, Ninja Camp, gift baskets, sunglasses, sports memorabilia and so much more.  The ideas are endless!

To help, we have made two documents available for your use.  The first is a Donation Request Letter.  I would suggest having your son practice his “pitch” before entering a business.  Use this letter as a guide to solicit donations.  This letter is usually a key factor and often essential when trying to obtain donations because it’s on Troop 648 letterhead and includes CCC’s 501(c)3 number. The second document is a Donation Form that you give to businesses once they agree to make a donation.  Make several copies of each document to hand out.  Last but not least, be sure your Scout wears his clean Class A uniform when he solicits businesses.

Please be aware that we are not able to accept alcoholic beverage items or tobacco products as auction items.  It is against BSA policy.

Auction items will be displayed for silent bidding during the event.  Scouts will receive a percentage of the purchase price for each item they secure or donate.  Funds raised will go directly to their individual Scout account.  Their Scout account funds can be used to pay for Scout-related items such as summer camp, new uniform items they grow out of, camping equipment, monthly camp outings, etc.

This event can’t be successful without everyone’s support.  Please let me know if you have any questions and thank you!

Barb Starr

Road closures and winter weather couldn’t stop Troop 648 pressing forward with our annual ski outing February 22-24.  11 Scouts and 4 adults made the trek to Show Low where we enjoyed tremendous comforts in the rented cabin.  After arriving late Friday, a team quickly began shoveling the driveway in the dark!  Saturday weather was cold and sunny, perfect for skiing.  We divided into 4 groups according to skill level and after a morning of great slopes met in the parking lot for a wonderful “tail-gate” lunch.  The entire group made sure to take advantage of the sublime conditions right up until the lifts closed at 4PM!  Saturday evening was spent with board games and exciting recounts of the day’s events.  From falls to jumps everyone had a favorite memory.  Special thanks go out to Mrs. Achor who masterminded the accommodations and coordinated the meals

Troop 648,

Just a quick reminder that this week’s Troop meeting is set up as an Open House for prospective Cub Scouts thinking about joining our Troop. All the Patrols have been working hard on their station activities. They will show the Scouts what some of the fun things they can do and learn in Scouting. If any of the Patrol leaders need any materials for their station, please remember to bring them, or reach out to those that can help you obtain the things you’ll need to impress the Scouts and put on a good show. See everyone tomorrow (2/26).

Mr Blair
Troop 648 Scoutmaster

I wanted to thank everyone that came and supported me in my journey in scouts and towards the Eagle rank. The Yee Fung Toy also would like to express their greatness towards everyone as well, they are awestruck that with the work we had completed.

From David Yu

Troop 648,

The Activity Committee Meeting members discussed how we can try to keep track of adults and Scouts who are attending events better. We want to try to encourage everyone to not just RSVP if they are going, but try to start RSVP’ing “No” if they know they can not attend. As the Adult Leaders check on Scoutbook, and we see some some “maybe”‘s or undecided Scouts, we may actually reach out to the parents or the Scouts to ask them if they have decided whether or not they are attending. Thanks again in advance for your continued support of the Troop and helping us run an efficient and smooth running program.

Mr Blair

Troop 648 Scoutmaster

Troop 648,

Next week is our next COH, where we recognize all the Scouts who worked hard and will be rewarded by officially receiving their Rank Advancements and Merit Badges. We will also be taking a long overdue Troop Photo. This has not been done in a while and we thought it would be the perfect place to get everyone in one place. Class A’s as always and Merit Badge Sashes would be very appreciated. Also, make sure you spread the word to as many Scouts in the Troop as possible so that we can have maximum participation for the Photo. Thanks in advanced, and see everyone Tuesday (2/19/19).

Mr Blair
Troop 648 Scoutmaster

Troop 648,

Tomorrow is our monthly Troop Activity Meeting. This takes place at 6:00 PM the second Tuesday of every month. This is mainly for adult leaders and volunteers. At this meeting we usually discuss the last outing, the upcoming outing for that month, and the next outing for the next month. It’s good to have the adult leaders for those outings to help to learn, prepare and plan for the upcoming outings to make sure the Scouts have the best chance for a successful event. Other special event leaders are encouraged to come as well; Courts of Honor, Eagle Projects, Summer Camp, etc. Another good example of that is the upcoming Pancake Breakfast. All those involved in helping to plan that event should try to make the next 2-3 Troop Activity Meetings so that we can help to organize and put out word for the event’s specifics.

On a second note for tomorrow – the regular Scout meeting at 7:00 PM will hold at least 2 if not more Boards of Review for Advancement. I have already had 3-4 adult leaders who usually are able to attend have other obligations. I would like to have a strong showing of available Adults at the beginning of the meeting, so that we can assure we have enough leaders able to cover the Scouts requests. If we have enough at the beginning I won’t ask everyone to stay, but if we are short adults we may not be able to have some Scouts get their advancement awards next week. Thanks in advance for everyone’s continued support.

Mr Blair

Troop 648 Scoutmaster

I want to thank all the Scouts and Adults that come out this weekend to help Eric, Ian and Arjun with their Life Project. There was a great turn out and we accomplished a lot. We brought 2 trucks filled with tile, roofing and half of a camper – that’s right, we found a deserted half together camper that we managed to disassemble a little, and with Zane’s help move the rest, off the trail paths. There will be plenty of opportunities to finish job on the next outing. Thanks again to all those below as well as adults that helped.

Mr Blair

Troop 648 Scoutmaster