We have wrapped up our Troop Meetings for the Month of November. Next week 11/21 is Thanksgiving Week and I know that many families will start their travel plans and/or will be getting ready to host family for the holiday.
The following week 11/28 we would potentially be having a meeting, however St. John's has asked everyone to stay out of the church as they prepare for their Christmas Fair on Saturday 12/2. If you are interested in checking out the Church Fair, it runs from 9AM - 2PM. They will have Handmade Crafts, Wreaths, Cookie Walk, Raffles, Silent Auction, Gift Baskets, Santa Elves and more!
The PLC and Troop Committee will plan to meet on Tuesday 11/28 (Virtually) to plan out December Troop Meetings and monthly trips this winter/spring.
In December, the Troop will be meeting 12/5, 12/12, and 12/19
Recent Troop Trips
9 of our Scouts camped out this past weekend at Nobscot Scout Reservation in Sudbury, MA. The Troop learned how to do orienteering, how to put up a dining fly or tarp properly and the knots needed to do so, worked on their trail cooking and foil pack cooking skills, and explored a bit of outer space with a telescope and some astronomy lessons. They also hiked to the very top of Nobscot where they could see the Boston Skyline. A very special thanks to Mr. Latshaw for helping to guide the Scouts, as well as Mr. Killiany and Mr. Mietlicki for braving the chilly temps. All reports were that the Scouts had a really good trip!
In December, Troop 29 will be heading to Camp Squanto in Plymouth. We have a Cabin reserved for the weekend of 12/15 - 12/17. On Saturday we plan to travel to the National Cemetery in Bourne (on Cape Cod) to take part in Wreaths Across America at 12PM. This is a special service event that occurs at Cemeteries throughout the Country on the same day. Civic Groups, Scout Troops, and individuals come together to help place wreaths on the graves of US Veterans who are interred at that particular cemetery. Click the link for more information on Wreaths Across America. After the ceremony and wreath laying, we will travel back to Squanto for advancement, games, dinner, and age appropriate movies. There is still time to sign up on the Signup Genius link December Camp Squanto
In January we are planning to travel out to the Western part of the state to Moses Scout Reservation. The trip will be the weekend of January 19 - 21st. We have a cabin reserved for this trip as well. The plan, as long as there is enough snow is to go cross country skiing at Maple Corner Farm in Granville, MA. It is only about a 20 minute drive from the Camp. Please be on the lookout for a signup genius for this trip and additional details soon.
Community Service
The Scouts have done an amazing job with community service this fall. Helping to unload the Pumpkin Truck, running the Church Haunted House, and Scouting for Food are all very worthwhile ways that Troop 29 has given service in Franklin. If any Scout needs their service hours verified or signed off for rank advancement, please have them see Mr. Batten, Patrick, or Alex.
Advancement
As noted above, Scouts have been earning service hours towards rank advancement over the past several weeks. The Scouts who attended the orienteering trip this past weekend should be able to check of 1st Class requirement 4A. There are probably additional requirements that can be checked off as well. Things like gather wood and starting a fire, cooking, tying knots, orienting a map, hiking 5 miles with a map & compass....these are all things that the Scouts should be able to go through their books and then ask the SPL, ASPL, or one of the Scoutmasters for their initials. We will be encouraging the Scouts to keep moving forward with their journey to the next rank or their first rank of Scout.
A helpful tip is to have the Scout spend about 20 minutes going through his handbook each week to see what requirements need to be signed off. If there are things that he is unsure of, he can refer to the page number in his handbook listed for the requirement. Keeping notes in a little notebook or on flash cards of which requirements the Scout wants to get tested on or get signed off for each meeting and outing will help ensure that he is ready when he asks to have his book signed.
Summer Camp
The votes were counted and Troop 29 will be returning to Camp Yawgoog again this summer. We have reserved the TUOCS Campsite in Camp Three Point. Please mark your calendars for the week of July 21 - July 28th for Summer Camp!!!
Please share this information with your Scout and/or have them signup for the Troop News Blog so that they can receive emails automatically each month.
