Troop 132

The Troop’s first trip of the school year, led by JJ, Logan, and Ben, included a camping trip to Ft. Getty and sailing in Newport. It was a great success. Four J/22 sailboats and crews sailed Narragansett Bay under clear skies and winds from the ESE. The boys manned the helm, hoisted and trimmed sails and dodged most other boats. Before sailing, we toured Ft. Adams and went deep into listening tunnels constructed over 100 years ago that virtually intact. Right after the tour, our tour guide had the scouts bring out a 4lb cannon, cast by Paul Revere and the scouts fired two blank shots. Your Scoutmaster had a chance to fire the cannon which was a real treat. The meals were the best in memory and included stir fry, steak, potatoes, and fajitas. Good job.
On Sunday we had the opportunity to tour the Oliver Hazard Perry tall ship and assist with the bracing all of the yards. This means that all the yardarms on all three masts had to be changed and brought in closer. This required good communication and teamwork and a lot of individual work to coil down all of the lines. There’s a lot to learn from sailing including communication and teamwork. Thank you, Mr. Cancio, for honchoing and the great meal prepared for the adults. This meal will be hard to beat in the future.
The first Patrol Leader Council (PLC) meeting was held Monday 9/17. These meetings are for the senior leaders including patrol leaders and position of responsibility, such as scribe/historian and Den Chiefs. Miles Inman is the new scribe/historian and the Den Chiefs are Ben C, Simon, and Xander.  These monthly meetings are required for all positions of responsibility and they are held on a Monday at 6pm at Monument Hall. The boys have a meal budget and we usually have pizza. All the planning for the October Troop meetings and the Ramblewild camping trip campfire program were planned. At our last Troop meeting, the older scouts focused on working with the scouts who participated in the Trailblazer program during summer camp. This allowed the Trailblazer scouts to ask questions and to get their books updated.  The patrol leaders are tasked with this work and this will be helpful when planning camping trips to ensure that the younger scouts are getting the help they need to earn rank advancement. The next Troop meeting is one of our three yearly Troop Courts of Honor. Please come and support all the scouts who have earned merit badges, rank, or special awards.
On Sunday, October 7 from 3-4:30pm will be an Eagle Court of Honor for Mike Flannery and Will Duggan at the Scout House. Please come. It’s a great event for the younger scouts to see and what the older scouts have achieved through scouting. It’s a unique and inspiring program.

We are off to Newport, Rhode Island for some camping at Fort Getty and sailing J/22s at the Sail Newport facilities. We will have an opportunity to explore Fort Adams in the morning before sailing in the afternoon. For all of our trips, this is where scouts prepare, learn and practice cooking, camping and scout skills. It’s a great time to pick one or two items needed for advancement and work with the patrol leaders and senior scouts. Parents are always welcome to join us on our trips. Remember, we are boy-led Troop and the boys should work within the patrols and senior scout leaders. When I am asked a question, I usually say  “ask your PL or SPL”.

Thank you to JJ, Logan, and Xander for your service as SPL and ASPL’s. They did a great job over the summer as they all attended summer camp and they participated in the summer Emerson Troop meetings. New leaders were elected on 9/11: Congratulations to Nick as SPL and Kevin and Ben as the ASPL’s. The patrols also elected their leaders and congratulations to Nolan, Freddy, and Lucas as the new Patrol leaders. Over the next couple of weeks, will be transition to our newly elected and appointed positions which are typically held for three months which should allow for scouts to juggle school, work, and extracurricular activities.
Our last meeting went much later in the evening, as we had a lot of work to do which included electing leadership, launching popcorn sales, and preparing for our first outing. The SPL and ASPL’s will do better at ending on time and we will plan on troop a dismissal at 8:45.  At the PLC meetings, the PLC will map out the meetings for the month and get some advanced planning on the monthly camping trip.

Congratulations to Nolan Robert who earned Life rank, Johah Carter for earning 2nd class and Lucian Aibel who earned Tenderfoot. I would like to encourage all of the scouts to bring their scout books to Troop meetings and outings and identify what they need for the next rank. PARENTS: there is one requirement for the Scout rank that the boys need your help:  #6 - With your parent or guardian, complete the exercises in the pamphlet How to Protect Your Children From Child Abuse: A Parent’s Guide.  The Troop will help with the cyber chip portion of the rank.
The next PLC meeting is on Monday (9/17/18).

Note to SCOUTS:
Scouts that are interested in elected or appointed positions need to email JJ and me by September 8. The prerequisites are: SPL/ASPL = 15 years old and Star or higher. Patrol Leader = 13 years old and First Class or higher.  All other positions are appointed and need to be filled: Quarter Master (QM), Scribe/Historian, Den Chiefs, and Troop Guide. All positions require the commitment to the camping activities, monthly PLC meetings, weekly Troop meetings, and service projects for the next 3 months ending in December and attending monthly PLC. If you can’t make the commitment, then wait until you can commit and plan ahead.
Note to PARENTS:
If you have questions about the troop, scouting, or methods please ask your son first. They are the ones in the program and should have knowledge and understanding of how the troop works. If your child does not have the answers, please encourage them to speak to their patrol leader (who also signs off on advancements). If they still can’t get answers, they should ask the ASPL or SPL. This helps the scouts learn how to self-advocate. If you as the parent need a conversation with one of the Troop adult leaders, I am available before or after meetings if I am not working with the scouts. As an alternative, you can always reach out to our Troop Committee Chair (Curtis Gekle - [email protected]). I also would encourage you to come to our monthly Troop Committee Meetings.

If you child is reporting that they are having difficulty getting on my (Mr. Duggan) schedule, then the scout should email me ([email protected])
and copy Mr. Gekle ([email protected]) with the specific request. I know that it can be difficult to get my time at a Troop meeting, but the boys can email to help schedule a meeting. 
All:
Welcome back. Our first meeting of the year was full of announcements and opportunities for all ranks to get the most out of scouting. There is a full calendar of camping, service projects and adventure for the year ahead. Please take a look at the Troop activities and get them on your calendar now. Our troop is especially blessed to have so many older scouts engaged and active with scouting. Both Justin Reed and Will Duggan, both Eagles, will be helping this year. Also, Aiden is an Eagle Scout who has been an ASPL and he will be helping the troop in many ways. Life Scout Logan has completed his Eagle project and he is on his way to Eagle, as he will soon age out in October. Logan did a great job with a formidable project at the Episcopal Church on Elm Street. Ben Clarke (Life Scout, completed the Eagle project last year and presently working towards Eagle Rank) continues to stay engaged with the Troop. Yea!
The reason I bring up the older scouts, is that the younger scouts look up to the above-mentioned scouts as role models for living the Scout Law. This boys put the Troop above themselves and are ready to help others. We don’t need a lot of Troop 132 rules and regulations, because we use the Scout Law and Oath as our guides and the older scouts model that behavior. We also have additional senior scouts like Luke, JJ, Xander, Jacob, Miles, Nolan, and others who you will be hearing from soon as they discern their Eagle projects. Stay tuned for more info on Eagle projects.
·       Jacob is working on a project this weekend and will need help. Please sign up.
·       New scouts learned many skills during Trailblazers this summer at camp. We will be setting some time aside to review what they learned, answer questions and if ready, sign off in their scout books (which they should bring every Troop meeting).
·       Merit badges earned at camp have been submitted to Mr. O’Neil and will be awarded at the Tuesday 9/25 Court of Honor (COH). If you have any questions please follow up with Mr. O’Neil.
·       All family and friends are invited and strongly encouraged to attend the Troop Court of Honor on 9/25. There are only three Troop COHs per year and this is the time to recognize the effort of the boys. The boys learn, are tested, and recognized.