Troop 79 - The Scout
Charter - Southern Hills Christian Church
Edmond , Oklahoma
MARCH 2009
|*** WILDERNESS SURVIVAL ***
Troop 79 took to the Cookson hills of Northeastern Oklahoma for the February wilderness survival outing. Diamond H Ranch was the setting for this winter outing, and activities included wilderness survival instruction, shelter construction, orienteering, and putting their new survival skills to the test. Many of the boys braved cold temperatures in the neighborhood of 20o F on the second night of the outing in the shelters they had just assembled. This trip also included some of this exciting new property, located near Lake Tenkiller and just south of Cookson, OK. Diamond H includes 6,000 acres of hills and valleys, streams, and three large ponds perfect for all sorts of outdoor activities, and those that attended are looking forward to the next adventure at Diamond H.
*** SENIOR PATROL LEADER'S CORNER ***
Being an Assistant Senior Patrol leader has been challenging. There were a few incidences where I had to fill in for SPL Alex Hickerson at P.L.C. because he was injured. With Mr. BarnecheâÄ™s h™s help, I got through it and did a pretty good job. I had to present the SPL information at Troop Committee meeting. That was fun, because I got to tease my Dad at that meeting. I did my best, and learned from it. I helped some of the new Scouts. I showed Nolan Hill, where we have Troop meeting, activities, and explained how the meeting worked, and what to do and when.
Garrett Willis - ASPL
*** MONTHLY CAMPOUT ***
Roman Nose State Park In March, Troop 79 will travel to Roman Nose State Park. The Scouts have planned activities, including; mountain biking, hiking, camping and fishing. It will be the first campout that the new Scouts, the Eagle Patrol, will join in on the Scouting outdoor program. A Scouts first campout; the first steps on a path to Eagle Scout. What a journey it will be.
*** PATROL LEADERS COUNCIL MEETING ***
Five Tips for Being a Good Patrol Leader
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| Keep Your Word. Don't make promises you can't keep. |
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| Be Fair to All. A good leader shows no favorites. Don't allow friendships to keep you from being fair to all members of your patrol. Know who likes to do what, and assign duties to patrol members by what they like to do. |
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| Be a Good Communicator. You don't need a commanding voice to be a good leader, but you must be willing to step out front with an effective "Let's go." A good leader knows how to get and give information so that everyone understands what's going on. |
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| Be Flexible. Everything doesn't always go as planned. Be prepared to shift to "plan B" when "plan A" doesn't work. |
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| Be Organized. The time you spend planning will be repaid many times over. At patrol meetings, fill out the duty roster before going camping. |
*** UPCOMING CALENDAR ***
| March 2009 |
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| 24 | Meeting-Mountain Biking-Badgers |
| 27-29 | Campout-Roman Nose-Mountain Biking |
| 31 | Meeting-Astronomy-L. Bolts |
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| April 2009 |
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| 3-4 | New Parent ALT (Tentative) |
| 6 | PLC/Committee |
| 7 | Meeting-Court of Honor-F.-F. Squirrels |
| 14 | Meeting-Nuclear Science-Badgers |
| 18 | Scholarship Golf Tournament |
| 21 | Meeting-Pioneering-P. Fish |
| 24-26 | Campout--District Camporee |
*** ORDER OF THE ARROW ***
The Order of the Arrow in Troop 79 has been very busy. We have been working hard with our chapter on elections at different troops, with ours on March 3rd. We have also been working on our ceremonies including a Call-Out ceremony and dance we will do at Camporee. In addition, Troop 79 held a successful election for new inductees to the Order of the Arrow. Results are to be announced soon.
Wesley Seaman, Troop 79 - Order of the Arrow Representative
*** SCOUTMASTER'S CORNER ***
I write this note thinking of the many accomplishments of the Troop over the last month. Fresh off of a winter campout at Trapper's Rendezvous, the Troop sent 24 boys to Merit Badge College and already we are seeing the fruits of their labors. The very next day, we took part in Scout Sunday and had a great Pancake Breakfast and Bake Sale. By the way, thanks Mrs. Seaman for your efforts. They did not go unnoticed. We also had a great camp out at Diamond H, the Last Frontier Council's newest camp. The boys learned a bit about Wilderness Survival. Nine of the boys even made their own shelters and spent the night in them. In case you are interested, it got down to 20 degrees that night. None of them were worse for the wear the next morning thanks to some good teaching by Mr. Tigges. No doubt a few Wilderness Survival Merit Badges will be handed out soon.
Also, Eagle District held its annual banquet to honor our 2008 Eagles and the outstanding adult leaders of the District. Troop 79 was well represented with a large number of our scouters being recognized for their hard work. It is truly a testament to the fine program that is being put forth by the Troop and our adult leaders. Lord Baden Powell said âÄœThere is no teaching to compare with example.âÄù Our adult leaders are a fine example to the troop and the evidence is in the strength of the troop. To bring the month to a close, we managed to cross over a fine new class of Webelos. It appears we now have 11 new boys and will possibly get one more in the next week or so. In addition, those new boys also have some pretty terrific parents. This fresh infusion of scouting spirit will insure a strong troop for years to come. I want to be the first to welcome them openly to our troop family.
As I close, I would like to strongly encourage each of you to be making plans to attend Summer Camp this year. Mr. Reese has made some pretty good plans for us and I want each of you take full advantage of this opportunity to attend Camp Alexander in Colorado. Thanks and we will see you on the Scouting Trail.
Y.I.S., Mr. Barneche