If your scout has been working on his personal fitness merit badge requirements, please mark your calendars for Saturday, July 16 at 8am.  We will have a meeting at Riverside Presbyterian Church  to have a final assessment of each scouts’ fitness which includes the timed mile run, flexibility, strength and BMI.  The merit badge requires improvement on each of these measurements, and we will compare from the results we measured at troop meetings over the spring.  Other requirements to be completed include the following:

• The scout’s 90 day exercise log.  Scouts should record all physical activity including sports practices & games, individual conditioning plans, and of course any hikes or biking / kayaking / canoeing a scout has participated in with the troop.
• A completed merit badge worksheet.  The scouts will work through the non-exercise requirements with the merit badge counselors during this meeting.  Note that one of the requirements is to have a scout have a physical exam from a physician, and all scouts going to Tesomas must complete this by July 1.

We expect the meeting will last until 11:00am.  If your scout cannot make this meeting, we will look to schedule another meeting in August before the start of school.  We will bring BSA blue cards to this meeting, so your scout does not need to obtain one in advance.  Please email , stlanken@yahoo.com, jiminov@hotmail.com, or hdrubio@gmail.com with any questions.

This Thursday, June 16th, Kit K. will be taking a group of scouts to the Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful recycling facility. Scouts will help melt down the old crayons and make new ones, as well as see the different recycling processes. The facility is in Rockford and scouts should meet at 288 Gage Road at 8:00 am and will get back around 4:00 pm. Please email Kit at kit6789@att.net with your name and contact information if you plan on attending.

Kit K’s Eagle Project needs help peeling and sorting the crayons he has collected. The process will occur at 288 Gage Road in Riverside at the following times (food and refreshments provided) :

Thursday, June 9th from 1-4pm

Friday, June 10th from 9:30am-12

Monday, June 13th from 1-4pm

Show up whenever you are available. Any questions can be sent to Kit’s email address at kit6789@att.net.

The Patrol Leaders Council will meet on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. in the Westminster Room at RPC.

All Scouts who are signed up for the Kankakee outing must report on WEDNESDAY at 6:30 p.m. for Patrol assignments, equipment check, menu planning, shopping and bike check. All Scouts who signed up for the bike ride at Kankakee should ride their bikes over on Wednesday with helmets to ensure they are in good working order for the 10-mile bike ride on Saturday.

Troop 24 is planning an overnight camp-out at Kankakee River State Park, leaving Friday, June 10, and returning Sunday, June 12.

Scouts should come prepared to camp in tents for two nights.   We have two activities planned (we will need several adults to sign up as leaders/chaperones in order to have enough volunteers for this outing):

Canoeing/Kayaking:  The canoeing/kayaking will be a 12-mile, 3-5 hour trip on Saturday, outfitted by Reed’s.

• Scouts MUST be First Class or above  in order to canoe or kayak.
  
• Scouts MUST have earned the Swimming Merit Badge in order to canoe or kayak.
• Kayaking is recommended for scouts with kayaking experience. Scouts will be in single kayaks and will need to be fit/strong enough to paddle for the full 12 miles.
• Scouts must print and have a parent sign the  Reeds waiver in order to participate.

or

Bicycling: The biking will be done on a 10.5 mile paved bike path through the park.

• Biking is available for scouts who are Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, or older scouts who have not earned the Swimming Merit Badge, or those who do not want to canoe/kayak.
• Scouts must wear a helmet to bike.
• Scout parents must make sure that the scout’s bicycle is in good working order prior to the outing.

We Need Parent Help:

In order to offer two activities we need many adults to participate.  If you are able to attend this outing and help out by either chaperoning the biking or the canoe/kayaking we would really appreciate the help.  Or if you can drive scouts either to or from this outing; please consider helping our leaders in this way.    If you would like to attend, please fill out the Leader/Chaperone Registration form; if you are willing to help drive, please indicate on your Scout’s Registration form your willingness to drive.  The nice thing about Kankakee is that it is only about 1-hour drive, so you can join whenever it works in your schedule.

Logistics:

• Please drop your Scout off at RPC at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. We will return about noon on Sunday.
• Scouts who are canoeing or kayaking must print and have a parent sign the  Reeds waiver in order to participate.
• Scouts must have a bike helmet if they are biking.
• Deadline for signing up for the outing is Sunday, June 5.
• The Scout cost for this outing is $40 for food/camp fee, and $34  for canoeing (2 per canoe) or $46 for a single kayak.
• We will provide transportation for the all bikes in one of the two Troop trailers.

Please fill out a form for each scout and each leader/chaperone. Scouts and Leaders must register and pay by Sunday June 5.

• Scout Form
• Leader/Chaperone Form

Contact Susan Lynch with questions.