Scoutmaster's Minute

4 April 2006

Hello friends of Troop 41-

Does it seem as though winter passed very quickly? I don't remember any major weather problems, so we got off pretty easy this year. The Klondike Derby was certainly a change from 2005, with shirt-sleeve weather instead of record low temperatures! Nonetheless, it's great to see thiings coming out of their winter slumbers - flowers, birds, barbecues, and even Troop 41.

One thing new with the troop are new scouts! Welcome to our five new first year scouts - they look to be a great addition to the troop, and most of them have already joined in on troop activities. Our troop membership is now 30 scouts! We've come along ways in our first 2 1/2 years.

While the Klondike Derby and Ski Trips are great activities, I always look forward to getting my tent out again, for "real" camping trips. This year our first spring trip was a new one - Antietam battleground. It was also a new type of trip, as most of the troop toured the battlefield by bicycle. We had twenty-one youth and seven adults, and the trip went off without a hitch. While it was a bit chilly, the twenty folks on bicycles had no problem keeping warm on Saturday! What absolutely made the trip for me was watching how our troop handled camp. We set up around 11:00 at night on Friday, after the quiet hours had started, and ended up with the neatest site of any troop there. Despite the long day on Saturday, cleanup on Sunday was as smooth as we've ever had. I often say that if the troop is working as it should, the scouts take me camping, rather than vice-versa. This is as close as we've ever come to that. Thanks guys!

Our camporee is at the end of April, and promises to be a good one. For the first time since I've been involved, we will be combining with another district for the camporee, so we should have twice the fun! Don't miss it.

Rounding out the year, we'll have a canoe trip in May, and in early June we'll again be going to the Patriot Days Encampment. Of course, we've also got summer camp in July, and the Seabase trip in August is coming up on us soon. As usual, we'll be busy!

As always, if you have any questions, comments, or problems, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Al Folsom

215-343-6851

alan@folsoms.net

Scoutmaster's Minute

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