24 scouts sold popcorn this fall and can use the popcorn money earned for partial payment of Camp Mach. If you don’t remember how much of a discount you earned, please contact Deb Cox or Nancy Hopkins. Remember, permission slips are due by Friday, January 25 for the early bird rate of $200.

Camp Mach permission slips are due by January 25 if you want to pay the discounted rate of $200. After January 25, it will cost $225 per scout. Please turn in your permission slips and payment at the Troop meeting on January 24, or drop it off to Nancy Hopkins.

The date of the camp is Sunday, July 27 through Saturday, August 2.

Scouts who cross over in February have until April 30 to pay the “early bird” discounted rate of $200; after April 30 the rate will be $225.

The Voyageur Trace Klondike Derby is on Saturday, 2/9, in Bemis Woods South, Western Springs. The cost is $6.50 per person. The permission slip is due Thursday, 1/24. All scouts should bring a sack lunch and a can of non-cream soup, and wear clothing appropriate to the weather. In the morning patrols will go from station to station for games and challenges. The Klondike Derby is in the afternoon, with Troop 24 defending their title of fastest sled. We will need parents to drive there and back, and we may need parents to help at the Derby.

Troop 24’s annual week-long camp at Camp Mach-Kin-O-Siew in Elcho, Wisconsin is scheduled for Sunday, July 27 through Saturday, August 2.

The cost per scout is $200, if paid by January 25, or $225 if paid after January 25. The deadline for signing up is Thursday, May 29. (Scouts who cross over in February have until April 30 to pay the “early bird” discounted rate of $200; after April 30 the rate will be $225.) Permission slips with payment should be turned in at a Troop Meeting or to Nancy Hopkins.

See our photo gallery for photos from last year’s trip to Camp Mach.

There are new photos in the Troop Photo Gallery from the recent Eagle Cave trip, as well as the November orienteering outing. Also now in the gallery are photos from the 2006 Eagle Cave trip previously posted as a Powerpoint presentation. Thanks to everyone who shared their pictures. If any scouts or parents have photos you would like added to the Gallery, please send them to Nancy Hopkins.

The National Eagle Scout Association wants to contact every living Eagle Scout and register his achievements, past and present. If you know an Eagle Scout, please alert him about this important project. Visit the NESA website for more information.

Des Plaines Valley Council has the following Boy Scout Training opportunities available in January. For the full training calendar, visit the DPVC website.

New Leader Essentials – January 12, 10:00-12:00, Willard School, 1250 Ashland Avenue, Forest Park. New Leader Essentials is an introductory session that highlights the values, aims, history, funding, and methods of Scouting. Following Fast Start Training (which is an online class), this is the first segment of Basic Leader Training for Cub Scout, Boy Scout, and Venturing Leaders. Online Registration Form

Scoutmaster/Asst. Scoutmaster – January 22, 24, 29 for all Scoutmasters and Assistant Scoutmasters, and transitioning Webelos leaders. This session concentrates on Troop operation. All three sessions are required.

Troop Committee Training – January 29 – The Troop Committee Training builds working committees that provide better service to units. This training will help committee members understand the importance of their role in the committee. Committee members take New Leader Essentials, then Troop Committee Training. (Troop Committee training is also available as an online class. If you have taken New Leader Essentials as a Cub Scout Leader you don’t need to take it again.)

Outdoor Leader Skills – April 11-13 – You may want to mark your calendar for this class, which is offered only twice each year, and is recommended for everyone working with the Scouts out of doors or camping. This weekend event is offered at Camp Tomo-Chi-Chi Knolls. You must attend the entire weekend.

The National Youth Protection Committee recommended additions to Boy Scout rank requirements that were approved and will become effective January 1, 2008. These changes will help advance the importance of Youth Protection training beyond the initial Boy Scout joining requirements, and keep youth informed and actively engaged in understanding the key elements of personal safety and protection.

The changes will be represented in the 2008 Boy Scout Requirements book and the revised ninth printing of the 11th edition of the Boy Scout Handbook.

Tenderfoot Rank
Revised requirement 9:

Explain the importance of the buddy system as it relates to your personal safety on outings and in your neighborhood. Describe what a bully is and how you should respond to one.

Second Class Rank
New requirement 8b:

Explain the three R’s of personal safety and protection.

First Class Rank
New requirement 12:

Describe the three things you should avoid doing related to use of the Internet. Describe a cyberbully and how you should respond to one.

The Troop Committee meeting is Tuesday, January 8, at 7:00 pm,  in the RPC upstairs “parlor.”  Parents are welcome (& encouraged) to attend.

The Troop Meeting on Thursday, January 10, will be held in the Social Hall instead of the gym because the Cub Scouts will be setting up the Pinewood Derby track in the gym.