Events planned for the scouts are available on our Troop Calendar at http://troop24riverside.com/view-calendar/. In addition to the Troop events, you can see the vacation days and major events for Hauser, RB, and Komarek, if you want to check for possible conflicts. We use a Google calendar, which you can import to your own Google calendar or several other calendar formats (Outlook, iCalendar, etc.) Please let us know if you notice any omissions or errors on the calendar.

Upcoming events include:
Sept. 9 Overnight at Scout Cabin SIGN-UP
Sept. 23-25 DPVC Camporall at Rochelle SIGN-UP
Sept. 28 Service project – Greater Chicago Food Depository
Oct. 1 Day trip to Cantigny for Civil War reenactment
Oct. 21-23 Troop camp-out at White Pines

The Boy Scout Troop Committee is responsible for conducting the business of the troop, setting policy, and helping the Scoutmaster and Scouts with the outdoor program and other planned activities. The committee also has the responsibility to provide adults for boards of review. This is an important responsibility and is one area where help is always needed and appreciated. The committee consists of parent volunteers who fulfill various roles on the committee. http://meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Troop_Committee

The first meeting of Troop 24’s Troop Committee will be Tuesday, September 6, at 7:00 p.m. in the Westminster Room (downstairs) at RPC. Scout parents are always welcome. The meetings are generally on the first Tuesday of every month. The only exception this year is our January meeting, which is on the second Tuesday. The dates are:

September 6
October 4
November 1
December 6
January 10
February 7
March 6
April 3
May 1

Troop 24 is planning an overnight camp-out at the Scout Cabin in Riverside for our first meeting of the year, on Friday, September 9, 2011, with a campfire and weiner roast late in the evening. Scouts should be dropped off at the Scout Cabin at 7:00 p.m. and picked up on Saturday morning by 9:00. Scouts should come prepared to sleep in tents for the night. There is NO COST for this outing.

Because this is an overnight outing, we need a permission form for each scout. Please be sure your scout is registered for this event. To register: http://troop24riverside.com/2011/08/scout-cabin-campout-form/

Troop 24 will be attending the Des Plaines Valley Council’s 2011 Camporall.  This year’s theme is Planting the Seeds for Tomorrow.  This Council-wide event will be Sept. 23-25 at the Scout Adventure Camp in Rochelle, Illinois.  Our Hauser 6th graders will be returning from Lorado Taft on Sept. 23; therefore, scouts will have the option to leave Riverside on Friday evening, Sept. 23, or Saturday morning, September 24. We will need drivers for both departure times.

Activities include: Railroad Merit Badge, Scout Craft, Pioneering, Cooking, Fire building contests, Orienteering, Knot Tying, Gear Vendor Displays, Inter-Troop Dodge Ball, Ultimate Frisbee, Friday Night Cracker Barrel, Tree Planting, Rock ‘n Roll Fire Bowl, OA Ceremonial Display, and an ecumenical worship service.

There will also be some adult training available, including Merit Badge Counselor Training.

The cost per scout is $35.  Please register online and pay for each scout via WePay by September 18.

Congratulations to Troop 24’s newest Eagle Scout, Ben Cox!

In case you have misplaced the packing list, you can print a copy from here: Camp Mach Packing List

Scouts should be at the Hauser parking lot at 7:00 a.m. on Sunday. Please be sure your scout has a sack lunch (preferred as it saves time) or money for lunch at a fast food restaurant. Scouts may wish to bring some money for snacks at the trading post. They should definitely have money for lunch on the way back–make sure to tell them to save back enough for a fast food lunch.

Swimsuit & towel should be packed on top, readily accessible, for swimming on Sunday. There are thunderstorms in the forecast for tomorrow, so be sure rain gear is also toward the top.

In case of emergency, the Camp Mach address and phone number is:

Camp Mach Kin O Siew
Troop #24/Black Oak
W11895 Outlet Drive
Elcho, WI 54428
715-275-3580

Some scouts signed up for merit badge classes at Camp Mach that may be difficult to complete at camp unless they work on some requirements before they leave. If a scout does not complete a merit badge while at camp, a partial completion will be issued, stating which requirements were successfully completed. The scout can finish the remaining requirements after finding a merit badge counselor through the Council. A couple of other merit badge classes require you to bring specific supplies to camp. In case you don’t remember what you signed up for, here are the merit badges that may not be able to be completed entirely at camp without advance work:

REQUIRE WORK BEFORE CAMP

Camping – Andersen, Gomorczak, Hartwig, Johnson, K.Kodama – Camping Requirement 9 requires a scout to have completed 20 days and nights of camping as well as specific activities on those camp-outs

Cooking – Buckley, Buffo, Cervanka, Connelly, Corrigan, Hajer, Kinnan, R.Kodama, Korslund, Lennon, B.Lulich, Lynch, McCoy, A. Ourth, Ozga, Pipal, Robertson, Robling, Skiest – Cooking Requirements 3 & 4 require that the scout plan a 2-day campout menu and prepare 4 of the meals. Requirement 7 requires that a scout plan and prepare meals at home.

Environmental Science – Andersen, Corrigan, Gryczan, Hartwig, Johnson, Lennon, Salij, Skiest – Environmental Science Requirement 3e requires research on an endangered species found in Illinois. This should be done prior to camp.

Orienteering – Lanken, Mercado, Quinn – Orienteering Requirement 7 requires that the scout take part in 3 orienteering events and write a report on each one. Requirement 8 requires the scout to set up an orienteering course.

Pioneering – Lanken, Mercado, Suriano – Pioneering Requirement 2 requires completion of 1st Class requirement 7a, b, c. Requirement 9 requires design and construction of a pioneering project.

Reptile & Amphibian Study – Suriano – Reptile & Amphibian Requirement 8 requires keeping a reptile or amphibian as a pet for at least one month and keeping a log of its care.

REQUIRE SUPPLIES TO BE BROUGHT TO CAMP

Swimming – first year campers plus Corrigan, Dunn, Flaherty, Lemon, Quinn, Suriano, Williams, Zalewski – Swimming Requirement 4 requires the following items – each scout should bring his own: long pants, long-sleeve button-up shirt, socks, old shoes, all of which will go in the water

Wilderness Survival – Bensfield, Gomorczak, Hoadley, McCoy – Scouts should be aware that this class requires them to build a shelter from natural materials, and spend a night in the shelter. Wilderness Survival Requirement 5 requires scouts to make a personal survival kit. Supplies for the kit should be brought to camp. An example of a survival kit can be found here: http://www.e-scoutcraft.com/film_can/survival_kit.html

REQUIRE PURCHASE OF KITS AT CAMP (BRING MONEY) OR PRIOR TO CAMP (AT SCOUT STORE).

Basketry – Buffo, Corrigan – Few scouts complete all three basket projects while at camp. It helps to have at least one done at home prior to camp.

Leatherwork – Derosier, Dunn, Flaherty, Lemon, Suriano

Woodcarving – Aieta, Derosier, Dunn, Gryczan, Hajer, R.Kodama, Korslund, Lemon, B.Lulich, E.Ourth, Quinn, Suriano, Williams

The American Numismatic Association will be sponsoring a Coin Collecting Merit Badge workshop on Saturday, August 20, noon-2:00 p.m., at the Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont. Some of our scouts have taken this workshop in the past, and it’s very well done. Please refer to the pre-requisites on the information form. If you plan to attend this workshop, you must obtain a blue card from a Troop 24 Scoutmaster to take with you.