15 May – Troop Meeting – Iron Chef Competition

19 May – Hiking Merit Badge – 1st 10-mile hike, Leesburg Historical Trail (Leader is Chuck Berninger, charles@berninger.us)

– Class A Uniform
– Duty Patrol is Challengers
If you have any items at home that belong in your Patrol’s chuck-box, be sure to bring it all to this meeting; cleaned and ready to use! The meeting will start in the Fellowship Hall where the cooking competition will be explained and ingredients will be handed out. Each patrol will then create a special dish using the Chuck-boxes and the ingredients. Everything will be provided, however if you have some favorite spices, you may want to bring them to add to the flavor of your Patrol’s creation. The Patrols will set up Chuck-boxes in the VDOT lot under the lights to cook. The leadership team will taste-test each patrol’s creation and determine a winner. Typically, someone will need to take home utensils and pots to be cleaned afterwards. Also, bring containers to take home left-overs of the delectable delights. ADULT support will be greatly appreciated as usual!

This year we will do six hikes from the American Historical Trails registry of sites such as Leesburg, Washington DC, Manassas Battlefield, and Alexandria. Participating scouts can work on the Hiking merit badge which can be used for their Eagle Scout rank. In addition to meeting merit badge requirements each trail is replete with historic references making the trek an educational experience. A note of caution though. None of the planned hikes are intense in terms of topography however, they can present a challenge due to their length. All scouts need to be prepared to finish the hike if they participate.

Meet at the church at 6:00 pm on Friday 20 April. Please eat your evening meal before arriving! Wear your Class A uniform and bring your signed Permission Slip (see attached). We will load the trailer and vehicles and drive to the Teets property (about 90 minutes). Depending on how many adults are camping with us, we may need additional drivers to get the scouts to the campout (directions attached). Friday evening will include camp set-up and a campfire.

– Class A Uniform

– Duty Patrol is the Panthers
A. New Scouts Shakedown: All new scouts need to pack and bring all their gear as if they were going to the campout (packing list with notes is attached). The Troop Guides and assistants will inspect all items to assure that each scout has brought all required items and they are appropriate for camping (e.g. sleeping bags are adequate for cold weather, they have rain gear, extra clothes, etc.). This covers Tenderfoot Requirement #1. (FYI for new scout parents - the only fee for the campout is the $10 fee for food which goes to the patrol grubmaster.)

I have lots of people to thank this week:

- Thank you everyone for supporting the Court of Honor last week, and special thanks to the parents who helped with the reception on the snacks & drinks tables. Congratulations to Mr. Talley for being named “Scouter of the Year 2011!