All hands are needed for the Metro Credit Union Celebrates America Concert and Fireworks Show service project. This project consists of delivering letters to residents on June 26, distributing empty trash bags the evening before the concert on June 29, and cleaning up the part the morning after the concert at Memorial Park on June 30. You may want to attend the concert and fireworks show, too! Troop 42 is fortunate to be able to assist with the traditional concert that both earns income for the unit and provides service project hours for scouts who participate. Bring friends a family to help with the park cleanup Saturday morning because it is a large area with lots of rubbish left by concert-goers in the darkness. The more help the faster it goes.
Last day to sign up for Great Sand Dunes High Adventure is Saturday, June 30th. So far there’s space available and the Great Sand Dunes National Park is a natural wonder to experience. All high adventurers are invited on July 1 to participate in planning the activities and meals for the adventure. They will have the opportunity to choose from among hiking trails, a micro backpacking event, trail cooking, hiking with elevation gain, astronomy and nature study, and more. Many activities are inspired by and satisfy merit badge requirements. The adventure starts on a Tuesday evening and returns the following Monday, July 17-23.
The next troop meeting is July 9th. The following Saturday is Trailer Equipment Maintenance Day, and it sorely needs some cleaning and repair. It’s been two years since we’ve performed an inventory of tents and tent parts, balanced patrol box contents, and packed equipment with a smart load plan. The troop has recently had the broken door repaired and the wheels and tires replaced out the outside, now the inside needs work.
Note the Summer Court of Honor date has been changed to August to maximize recognition for scouts going on high adventure and other trips this summer. Keep up to date on troop events by logging into Scoutbook and by subscribing to the troop calendar at https://www.scoutbook.com/ics/52230.8D207.ics in your favorite calendar app.
Scout Sunday was a tremendous success for creating a presence visible to the entire church congregation who supports our troop, and providing them a delicious breakfast as a thank you. Several members of Dundee Pres. Church and staff remarked that is wonderful to see active boy scouts. Many have stories of their experiences as a boy scouts or leaders in Troop 42 and others units. Thank you to all who participated!
February cmpout is a cabin campuot out at Karp Pavilion at Camp Cedars. The Karp features bunks bed, a kitchen, and a large fireplace. Plan on outdoor events during the day but a warm dry place to sleep at night. The plan includes hiking and navigation by GPS and other first class advancement skills. If desired, bring a hand held GPS, smart phone with GPS app, and a snow sled if there’s still snow on the ground.
The February 12 troop meeting is an Open House for neighborhood cub scout pack Arrow of Light scouts as well as OA elections. Scouts are planning demonstration of campfire building, cooking, tenting, and high adventures. Members of the OA lodge are encouraged to wear their sashes.
Thursday evening is Joel’s Eagle Scout service project. Scouts are invited to Joel’s project, which is a charity for homeless people and veterans. Details will be distributed at the troop meeting on Monday.
The PLC met last Saturday for the semi-annual Annual Planning Conference and developed a troop program plan in support of their goals of creating interest in joining the troop among cub scouts, monthly outdoor events, and a variety of program features. Look for a troop program plan coming soon. The PLC will meet next on Monday, February 19, and a regular troop meeting is planned for the following Monday, February 26.
Lots of events scheduled in the next month. Here’s a quick review:
December 30: Christmas Tree Collection Community Service Conservation Project. Please RSVP in Scoutbook.
December 31, 2017: last day to turn in the Permission slip for the Klondike Derby at the early bird discount
January 1, 2018: Permission slips and YMCA Non-member Liability Waiver forms for Lock-In event due. Two forms are required, one for the YMCA, the other for troop to know how many people are attending for event and food planning.
January 5: Movie “Follow Me Boys” Details to be announced
January 6, 2018: Christmas Tree Community Service Conservation Project second day. Please RSVP in Scoutbook.
January 8, 2018: Permission slips for Klondike Derby due at troop meeting
January 12-13: Lock-in
January 15: PLC
January 19-21: Council Klondike Derby
January 22: Troop Meeting
January 29: Winter Court of Honor
All parents of Troop 42 scouts are invited to attend the Parent’s Meeting on Monday, September 25th, at 7 pm. The adult leadership will be on hand to describe upcoming troop events, advancement and service opportunities, and troop financing and fund raising to help your son have an excellent year of Scouting. We will also be updating troop records, including roster information and annual medical and health forms, and starting the annual rechartering process for next year. Save some time and have yours and your son’s Annual Health and Medical Record parts A and B already filled out. Spoiler alert: high adventure next July is backpacking, in the Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve in the Rocky Mountains front range in Colorado.
The BSA has introduced a new patch for the Solar Eclipse on August 21st. Since some of the best viewing is right here in Nebraska, I’m sure some of you have already made arrangements to view the eclipse. So if you already plan on viewing the eclipse, why not earn this patch.
There won’t be another total solar eclipse over the United States until 2024. After that, you must wait until 2045. In other words, when Aug. 21 arrives, make sure you’re ready.
How to earn the BSA 2017 Solar Eclipse patch
1. Locate a site suitable for viewing the eclipse. Search Google for “eclipse viewing” and the name of your city or town to find events near you.
2. Describe how to safely view the eclipse.
Never look directly at the sun. Instead, look directly at these tips from NASA on how to view the eclipse safely.
3. Discuss with your group what you saw and felt during the eclipse.
Post your comments and eclipse photos on social media using the hashtag #BSAEclipse2017.
4.Do the following:
Boy Scouts and Varsity Scouts: Draw a diagram of the positions of the moon, earth, and sun to show how the solar eclipse occurs.
Venturers: Research Sir Arthur Stanley Eddington’s 1919 experiment and discuss how it confirmed Einstein’s theory of general relativity.
5. Ask your unit leader to buy the 2017 Solar Eclipse patch.
More ideas
Find more ways to make the most of this STEM-heavy celestial event at http://www.scouting.org/eclipse2017.aspx.
Follow this link for more information and links to the NASA site.
Here’s how to earn the BSA 2017 Solar Eclipse patch on Aug. 21
If you decide to earn it; please let me, Julie Anderson, or Mr. A. know at the troop meeting on August 21.
Enjoy the amazing event!
Pam Anderson
Troop 42 Co-Advancement Coordinator
The goals the PLC developed at the summer Annual Planning Conference to plan this program are:
-Every scout ranks up at least once by the end of the year or JTE gold advancement category
-Achieve gold level JTE (9 campouts)
-Every scout sells $600 popcorn or greens or camp cards
-Continue advancement of new scouts
-Organize a troop high adventure
-promote more challenging program for older scouts
-service projects for church
Look for opportunities to achieve the goal on the troop calendar and program features in the coming months.
The centennial celebration was a great success! Everyone present remarks about how fun the skits were to watch, good to see old friends, how things have changed or haven’t since they were a boy scout, and the sensational presentation. The photo on the home page was taken at the centennial celebration. We learned of some of the troop historic patrol names, which included 8 Ball, Purple Parallelogram, and Flying Eagle. It’s a remarkable achievement for a volunteer organization to charter continuously and serve it’s community for 100 years! The event was outside on a warm July evening, in the shade of the trees on the street which was closed for the occasion.
The occasion is in the Dundee Memorial Park newsletter http://www.dundee-memorialpark.org/new-events/2017/7/7/boyscout-troop-42-celebrates-100th-birthday
A patriotic article in the July 4th Omaha World Herald mentions Troop 42 http://www.omaha.com/news/metro/in-the-world-s-largest-flag-hung-from-a-downtown/article_84537297-d878-56b6-bc32-3660c43b9f08.html
The Troop 42 Centennial Facebook page has the most up-to-date information https://www.facebook.com/OmahaTroop42Centenial/
Happy 100th, Troop 42!
Fourteen scouts from troop have had a great day at Camp Cedars! Check in went smoothly, with time to spare Sunday afternoon to set up our camp site to our liking. Three Feathers is a cozy campsite just perfect for the size of our troop. The troop attended both morning and evening flag ceremonies in uniform and on time, which is remarkable. The Patrol Method is working to distribute information – and there’s lots of details about where to be when with what equipment. A small amount of rain Monday morning kept temperatures in a tolerable range while everyone learned their program schedule. I am pleased with everyone’s spirit and motivation. Camping doesn’t get any better!
We’re very excited about summer camp! Here’s more information to help get ready and reference during camp, in no particular order:
Drop off for summer camp is 11:00 – 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, June 11, 2017, at the medical clinic, north lot, at 50th and Underwood. Pickup is 11 am Saturday, June 18th, also at the medical clinic lot. Scouts should be wearing their field uniform (class A) for the troop photograph taken during check in, and their uniform is required for evening ceremonies during camp. They should also wear a swim suit under their uniform and have a towel handy because the swim check is also part of the check-in Sunday afternoon.
Family Night is Friday evening, June 16th. Troop 42 will have a shelter area reserved for meeting and dining. Please bring whatever picnic style or take-out dinner you want for your Scout and your family. Another option is eating in the dining hall which costs $7 per person (excluding your Scout). Please notify Mr. A by Wednesday for planning purposes:
- The number of people visiting and eating in the dining hall, or
- The number of people visiting and bringing dinner for your scout(s), or
- You are not attending Family Night.
If you cannot make it out to Family Night, please notify Mr. Anderson or Mr. Beiermann and your Scout can dine with others at the shelter, if they wish, instead of going by themselves to the dining hall.
Family night events include flag lowering ceremony at 5:45, supper at 6:30 pm, and a campfire show at 8:30 pm. You may attend any part or all of it. Scouts should plan on staying at camp Friday night after family goes home to help with cleanup before we depart Saturday morning. Scouts are encouraged to send unneeded gear home with families to speed things up Saturday morning.
Please have your Scout pack with you. Many Scouts use a plastic tote to store their gear and a pillow case or mesh bag for dirty laundry. Make sure your son’s name and troop number is marked on everything.
This is going to be a great year for camping!
A Scout is helpful! Scouts representing Thunder Knights, Ion Dragons, Spartans, Radioactive Llamas, Wolverines, and Eagles Patrols planted 25 trees in Memorial Park to commemorate the Troop 42’s Centennial anniversary of continuous charter. Take a walk down the path on the west side of the park between Underwood Avenue and Dodge Street to see the results of their work. Do it again in fifty years to see how big the trees have become when the troop is celebrating its sesquicentennial! The new trees are several species including burr oak, Cyprus, and cottonwood, and were placed to fill in behind ash trees that are scheduled for removal.
Thanks to all the volunteers on Centennial Committee to plan the event, the City of Omaha for their support, and all the parents and scouts who helped with the labor on a very warm summer morning.
Scouts plant trees along the west path in Memorial Park to commemorate the troop centennial in 2017.
