Troop News : OA, Art Show, COH, City Hall, Camp Thunder

Despite some rain...we had a great time at the Annual Order of the Arrow Fall Fellowship at Camp Comer with more than 350 Arrowmen attending and getting into the competitive sports and recreational activities Saturday. We took the bus on Saturday morning to help on on transportation this time, and to lessen Friday night shoolsports and band events, and pooled and pitched in for gas expenses with thirteen other Scouts for the ride. Pictures to be published by Mr. Simon on the Troop Web Site tonight. Thanks to B Debalsi, A Turner, J Taylor, S and S Hardy for attending and representing the Troop. New Coosa 50 Lodge officers for 2010 were elected. Our own Chapter (Nunne-Hi) elections will be announced quickly.

Thanks to Captain Kelly Gandy we have a special Guest Speaker tonight. He is a long time and dedicated miltary weapons collector that the Scouts will find interesting as he talks to the history of the firearms he will have on hand. Captain Skinner is also a military historian and we will be working into Shiloh this year with him. Mr. Bolding is giving the Scoutmaster's Minute.

THE SCOUTS NEED TO ARRIVE EARLY TONIGHT (6:30 PM) to help in taking down and to help Mr. Branin in storing our backpacking gear which was too wet to pack last Monday at the PLC/Committee Meeting.

The Scout also needs to be present tonight in order to sign up for next Friday and Saturday (Oct 2 and 3) to help out with the Annnul Bluff Park Art show the Troop services each year. Remember, Venture I and II have to help out at 10:00 PM, as we traditionally meet on Friday night (October 2) , to cut up the Hoover Lion's Club Bar-B-Q for the Art Show. Please encourage attendance so we can be out of there in an hour. He needs to wear work clothes, not the uniform. We are also counting on him to be there in uniform some time on Saturday to help out with all we have to do.

As also announced, We will need Scouts at 6:30 AM on Saturday (October 3) to help set up the traditional Troop Tarp for the Bluff Park Bake Sale for the Art Show as well as our Troop area for Day Care, water and ice cream sales starting at 7:30 AM. Then we work in shifts, which we will schedule tonight for the remainder of the day. We will need uniformed leaders through out also, and especially at 4:30 PM for about an hour to help with the take down. In a nutshell, he doesn't have to be there all day, but he is expected to be on the schedule sometime on Saturday other than Friday night helping with all we have to do on Saturday for service. Please encourage attendance..we are counting on him and leaders being there to help out. If you don't want to buy a bar-B-Q sandwich for lunch, bring your own snacks or lunch. We will be selling water, ice cream, picking up litter, and trash bags, securing the art in the center, in uniform (without neckerchief or merit badge sash) all day long.

Families will be better off taking the bus into the Park from scheduled and published newspaper announcements from the Shades Mountain Shopping center and other locations in Hoover, or having someone drop you off and walk in from the drop off points....as parking will not be available in the immediate vicinity except by the Hut Friday evening and early Saturday Morning.

NOTE: We are going to move Troop elections up to October 12 at the regular meeting. This will be the normal six month rotation for all Scout positions of responsibility as elected by the Scouts, so please encourage his attendance. We will also be having a special guest speaker that night for the program. Mr. Elmore is giving the Scoutmaster's Minute. The Court of Honor for rank advancement, merit badges, and new leadership positions will be on November 2 in our regualr fashion at the Bluff Park United Methodist Church Reid Crotty Fellowship Hall with more announced as we get closer.

The regular meeting on Monday October 19 is important because we are going to the Hoover City Hall City Council Meeting room so all the Scouts who need attending at a Council Meeting for the Citizen in the Community Merit badge can meet the requirment. WE WILL LEAVE FROM THE HUT AT 5:30 PM ON THE BUS TO GET THERE BY 5:45 TO LEAD THE OPENING FLAG CEREMONY. Except for the Senior Patrol Leader, If he already has the merit badge, he not not attend. We will return at about 7:00 PM for a short program at the Hut. Mr. Morrow is giving the Scoutmaster's minute and the Senior will have announcements to make.

Thanks to the work of Mr. Eggers and Ruth Mathis, the Trip in October is to Camp Thunder in Georgia. The Troop has never been there before and we are going to be doing the low COPE (confidence building course) High COPE, as well as rappelling and climbing. We need a good turn out to keep the cost low for the bus trip to Camp Thunder. We will leave Friday evening as usual and return on Sunday at the usual time.

Then there is ou annual trip to Shiloh National Military Park. Remember, this is one our best and biggest trips wi th the WEBELO II joining us. Historically for this trip, the leaders prepare meals for the Scouts on the Campout...so if you don't really want to make one of the treks (hikes) to earn the Shiloh Veteran Hiker award for all six trails of more than ten mile, please plan on attending to help Mr. Smith with our meals and othe logistics (November 13-15). This is important for us and the boys.

Mr. Dean Snow (Troop 97 and the Vulcan District Training Coordinator) visited the PLC and Committee Meeting last Monday and the Troop has decided to have him take individual pictures of all the Scouts and uniformed leaders as a Composite picture probably in November. A date will be announced for the event on a normal Monday meeting night with a program simultaneously happening while the pictures are being taken. More information wil also be announced about this as the time gets closer.

Thanks to the efforts of Mr. Young, we are definitely going to Northern Tier in Minnesota/Canada during the first of July 2010. Watch for notices by Mr. Young for payments and information meetings.

Remember to mark your calendars for setting up the tree Lot the first Friday after Thanksgiving. Dr. Hamilton will be announcing when the trees are coming in so we can unload them at the lot as usual.

Please keep the Martin Luther King holiday, 2010 open as we intend to canoe the Okefenokee Swamp (State Park) that weekend. It is a ten hour drive and weather permitting a great trip for camping and canoing in south Georgia.

On January 9, 2010 we will have the usual Troop Planning Conference in the Bluff Park United Methodist Church Class rooms. This is a one day, one night lock in for planning 2010..He should plan on being there. We will need some leaders present at all time to help out with this, especially setting up trips for 2010.

Finally, in February, 2010 we will have our annual Leadership Training for all Scouts who haven't attended yet (used to be called Junior Leader Training (Troop JLT) and is now called Troop Leadership Training. This lasts most of one Saturday we will schedule at the Church. If he hasn't attended last year, please make sure he attends in 2010. Once he attends he can wear the "Trained" patch on his uniform. This is required in order to be the Senior Patrol leader and is an excellent course for an introduction to basic small unit leadership concepts and practices.

Thanks for all your support...encourage attendance....

Yours in Scouting (YiS) Dan s
"Delivering the Promise"