Boy Scout Troop 648 Scottsdale, Arizona

It has been brought to my attention that we may be a bit short of drivers for the ski outing next month.  If there are any Dad’s who are interested in a weekend of skiing and would be able to drive please contact Mr. Harness.  I would also like to remind everyone of the importance of attending the Eagle Court of Honor on the 11th of February.  This is a great opportunity for all Scouts, and especially the younger boys, to see the end result of all the hard work.

Thank you. Mr. Martin

Good evening T648!

As we reorient ourselves after the holidays, the troop’s agenda is filling up.  Next weekend is the Rock & Roll Marathon, rapidly becoming one of the largest races in the country.  Our troop has traditionally provided support during this race for Team in Training (TnT), a volunteer group with raises money for leukemia and other blood diseases.  As announced by Mr. McFetters last Tuesday, we are holding a service project next Sunday morning, January 15^th, for this very important cause.  In the past we have done such things as make peanut butter sandwiches or cut orange slices for the racers, or provided noise & enthusiasm for the TnT racers along the course.  Stay tuned for further details this week from young Mr. McFetters as this volunteer opportunity takes shape.

We also have a Winter Court of Honor occurring on the 24^th of this month.  For those of you finishing merit badge requirements or scoutmaster conferences / boards of review – please have those completed by the end of the meeting on the 17^th.  All information on advancement will need to be to the elder Mr. McFetters, our advancement chair, before the 18^th.  The Winter Court traditionally has been a quick and fun CoH, with hot chocolate & yummy desserts.  If any parents or leaders would like to coordinate a number of our members to help with the refreshments for this meeting, it would be terrific!

Many of you are aware that we have transitioned from a 12 month to a 6 month term for our Senior Patrol Leader, to keep it fresh and challenging for them, and to allow more boys to have an opportunity to lead the troop.  I would like to thank our outgoing SPL, young Mr. Andrews, and to congratulate our new SPL, the youngest Mr. Martin.  Mr. Martin is also the youth in charge for our upcoming Webelos Weekend on the 21^st.  Please contact him with information on any Webelos you are interested in inviting to the weekend.  Mr. Martin has been contacting multiple packs in the area, and we have been receiving RSVPs, but he may have missed your old pack or an acquaintance you would like to share in the fun.  The next two meetings will include a focus on the scout skills and skits that the patrols will be performing for this outing, so please plan also to attend both meetings as well as the weekend.  It is a great opportunity to show off the best of T648 to the outside world.

On the horizon, please plan on providing support for young Mr. Finnegan’s Eagle project at McDowell Mountain Regional Park on the 28^th.  And don’t forget we have the ski outing in early February.  Pray for snow!  And can you believe it is already time to start planning for summer camp??  Stay tuned later this month for upcoming details on that no-to-be missed mid July experience at Camp Geronimo.

See you at Tuesday’s meeting – bring a couple skit ideas for your patrol meetings (look up ‘boy scouts campfire skits’ online to get started).

Mr. Cole

Hello everyone,

This is just a quick reminder about tomorrows meeting. We will be back at the church and it will be about the upcoming Webelos weekend. For the past few weeks I have been asking everyone to come up with ideas for what they should do as their activity for the weekend. This is the week we will be planning so please bring those ideas!

To the patrol leaders this meeting is essentially mandatory attendance, as we need you to both plan the ideas and attend the PLC.

Remember also that if you know anyone interested in seeing what boyscouting is like to invite them to attend.

Hope you all had a great break and are ready to begin a new year!

-JR

Happy New Year, T648!  It is with hope that I look to transition into 2012 after what sometimes felt like the year the earth went wild in 2011.  With cultural, natural, and financial upheavals worldwide, the lows seemed lower, and the outcomes more ominous than in recent memory.  This Arizonan of Norwegian descent was shocked first at the January lunatic shootings of Ms Giffords and others in our home state, and later of the senseless shootings of school children outside of Oslo.  The earthquakes seemed scarier,
the flooding more devastating, the twisters more destructive – as we continue to become more globally aware.  Think we have it bad financially – look at Greece.  Think our government and Occupy Wall Street are a pain – try the turmoil in Syria, Libya, Yemen or Egypt on for size.  As bad as our two record Arizona fires were, they could not hold a candle to the tsunami’s destruction in Japan.  Today I give thanks for Ms. Giffords’ health…and for ours, for our opportunities at work and that more Americans are finding work, and for the way people have pulled together to help those who have been quaked and shaken, stormed and blown.  2011 may have been a bit rocky at times, but together it feels like we are have taken the lumps and kept on truckin’ – and hope springs eternal as the calendar page flips forward to a new and fresh year of opportunity.

As crazy as the world around us was, we had an awesome year in T648, filled with outstanding outings, advancement, service projects and fundraising opportunities.  This week we begin anew, with Patrol Leadership Council at 6PM tomorrow followed by our troop meeting.  We will be preparing for Webelos weekend in the McDowell Mountains coming up the 20^th through the 22^nd – one of our annual outing highlights of the year.  For calendar planning purposes, please also consider Mr. Finnegan’s Eagle project on January 28^th, as he pursues his fight against invasive species of weeds in our parks, and the annual ski outing to the White Mountains on February 4^th.  For those of you who love to bring the whole family camping, make sure you plan to join us outside of Tucson March 23^rd– 25^th at our annual Family Camp.

We have begun planning for summer camp which is just a little more than a half year away.  With last year being our ‘out of council’ year, this year we will be at our home camp – Camp Geronimo.  The cost should be under $400 with the smaller gas consumption, and we will have multiple fundraising opportunities before then to assist the boys with financing.  I encourage everyone to plan on attending, as it is great for patrol bonding, merit badge increasing, skills development, advancement opportunities, and an all around fun week in the woods.  Being less than two hours away, it is also a terrific opportunity for adult leaders and dads to spend less than an entire week getting at least a taste of the fun at camp with the troop by staying a night or two.  Stay tuned for further information forthcoming soon!

I look forward with great optimism to diving into 2012 with T648.  See you tomorrow night!

Mr. Cole

Hello everyone!

I’d just like to remind you all that tonight’s meeting will be at the REI located next to the target across from Paradise Valley Mall. The address is 12634 N. Paradise Village Parkway, and our meeting location is to your left as you enter the store, up the staircase in the open meeting room on the second floor. We will be following the normal meeting schedule(7:00-8:30) and will have two guest speakers who are some of our troops eagle alumni who are home for the holidays.

Hope to see you there!

-JR

I hope that you have had a festive Christmas week, and that much time with family has been enjoyed by all.

A quick reminder:  I announced last week that we would not be able to meet at our normal location as Blessed Sacrament closes for the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day.  As a result, Mr. Butler has arranged for our meeting to be held at the REI store across the street from Paradise Valley Mall.  The street address is 12634 N. Paradise Village Parkway, and our meeting location is to your left as you enter the store, up the staircase in the open meeting room on the second floor.  We will be meeting as usual from 7-8:30, and will have as special guest speakers two Eagle alumni from our troop that are home for the holidays.  Please join us if you are in town next week.

Happy Christmas Eve, Merry Christmas to you and yours, and I look forward to seeing you next week!

Mr. Cole

Good evening,

I hope that your holiday season is treating you well thus far.  I have had a relaxing evening up until now contemplating my egg nog.  It does make me wonder about egg nog, though.  Now, I certainly know that eggs come from hens, but where do nogs come from?  In fact, what in tarnation IS a nog? (I ask, as I scratch my noggin).  And even if one knew what a nog was, why would one combine it with an egg?  And which came first – the nog or the egg?   If I look at the ingredients, there isn’t anything close to a nog listed – although there is something called ‘guar gum’ – don’t get me started on that!  OK, enough of this – I no longer am scratching my noggin, I am now rubbing my temples with a very large noggin-ache.  (Editorial comment – My wife tells me to tell you that the strongest thing put in our egg nog tonight was nutmeg).  On to much more interesting topics…..

Tomorrow night is our troop meeting.  With so many people out of town, we may not have full patrols in attendance , so come with warm layers to keep our options open for both indoor and outdoor activities.  Remember as well that next week on the 27th we plan to have a reunion of former Eagles from our troop.  Come hear how T648 prepared them for the challenges they face in such varied roles as special forces and big business.  We will be meeting at a location other than Blessed Sacrament for that week only, so stay tuned for further updates on venue.

Thanks to everyone who participated last week in the parents meeting, and especially for the large number of volunteers who will be taking an even more active role in our troop going forward in 2012.  It is your active support that will continue our troop thriving for years to come.  T648’s scouts are very blessed!

May you and your loved ones have a blessed holiday season.

Mr. Cole

Good soggy evening!

A reminder to be prepared tomorrow night for the troop meeting.  It will most likely still be wet, and we have been known to have a uniform inspection or a geocaching exercise or two – come rain or shine.  Dress for success – or at least warmly and dryly!

A reminder as well that tomorrow is the parent night during the troop meeting from 7PM to 8:30PM.  We welcome all parents and interested friends of T648 to a discussion on the troop’s organization, events, committee and other key functions as we move into 2012.

I hope that your family plans are coming together nicely for the upcoming Christmas vacation.  If you are remaining in town, please join us on the 27th.  We will have two of our alumni with us that evening, and they will be sharing with us their lives after T648.  It is pretty amazing the kinds of things that a scouting start will bring you!  Come and see – and hear – with the Hawks.

See you tomorrow night!

Mr. Cole

Greetings!

We will hold a Troop 648 Parent Meeting next week on Tuesday, 12/13/11 during the regular troop meeting in one of the classrooms adjacent to our usual meeting room. The parent meeting will begin shortly after 7pm and should last about an hour.

I would like to welcome each family to attend while your sons are at the usual meeting. All parents, guardians, and/or interested parties are welcome. At the meeting we will:

• discuss upcoming events
• share information about the Troop in 2012
• review opportunities to get involved
• look ahead to summer camp 2012

I will look forward to seeing everyone next week!

Best regards,

Mr. Benyi

Good morning!

It was into an ominous cloud hanging over the Superstitions our intrepid backpackers headed this weekend, but a marvelous walk in the park ensued.  Dry all the way in, passing a magnificent balancing rock and views of sunlit Weaver’s needle, the boys set up camp in a small thicket of trees at Bluff’s Spring around noon as a steady sprinkle began.  During the slow and peaceful rain that
continued until after dark, we set about learning about nature – which turned out to include two ‘largests’.  After a terrific day hike, we marveled over the 50-in-1 saguaro, thought by some to be the largest now that the ‘Grand One’ died after the Cave Creek fire.  Google ‘50-in-1 saguaro’ – you’ll be amazed!  Later, some natural historical folks came to our camp asking if they could ‘check up on her’.  Turns out that they were caretakers for the National Historical Register, and were coming out to check on the tree the
adults had set up camp under, as it created the only 3×5 dry spot in the neighborhood.  It is the largest Sugar Sumac in the country – who knew!  Speaking of who knew, who knew that breaking down your tent poles in the early dawn after an all day rain followed by a below freezing night could be such a challenge?  Who knew that attempting to eat a Power Bar under those same conditions is like trying to bite plywood?  Amazing the things one learns on the outstanding opportunities we have to explore our world.  The views of snow on the mesas, sunlight breaking through thick fog in the valleys – what an awesome end to a wonderful weekend!

I hope that your holiday plans are coming together nicely.  We will have few activities upcoming, other than our weekly troop meetings during this busy holiday season.  Young Mr. McFetters is coordinating a donation gathering for US service men and women, supporting ‘Packages from Home’.  Please bring food, hygiene, or recreational items to the troop meeting on Tuesday for inclusion in this day-brightener for our troops.  Please contact Mr. McFetters with any questions.  We will be having PLC tomorrow night before the troop meeting, and on the 13^th, we are planning to have a parent meeting from 7-8:30 during the troop meeting.  Come explore and plan with us, and perhaps find ways to participate in areas of focus for our troop in 2012.

Looking ahead, we are anticipating having one of our own Eagles return to a holiday meeting and describe the amazing military career he has embarked upon since being a member of T648.  We have Webelos Weekend on January 20^th, so all boys should
plan to attend and support our troop in representing ourselves well to our guests.  For you skiers, the snow is already approaching 30 inches in the White Mountains – building a good base for our outing on 2/3.  And don’t forget the family campout coming on 3/23 at Catalina State Park north of Tucson – the one time a year your whole family can join your troop family on a camping outing.

See you tomorrow night at scout meeting

Mr. Cole.