Memorial Day Weekend

​It's Memorial Day Weekend . . . Time for  the Annual Bike Trip 
May 26, 2023
Dear Scouts,

We are off to Nantucket this weekend as part of our annual Family Bike Trip, which rotates between Cape Cod (rail trail and Camp Greenough), Martha’s Vineyard (Family Campground), and Nantucket (Camp Richards). This trip is structured with the purpose of introducing new families and scouts into our troop. Cross-over scouts and families (siblings) and families of all our scouts are invited. The design is for families and new scouts to “see in actions” how the scouts work in patrols, set up camp, cook, and in this trip, bike together.

Our older scouts who usually hold positions of responsibility ranging from Senior Patrol Leaders (SPL) and Assistant PL (ASPL), and all those in the PLC (Patrol Leadership Council) usually attend so that new scouts have an understanding of who is who in the troop, the jobs that are needed to keep the troop moving and to ask questions as they start the journey through the ranks and learn more. The bike trip is also an opportunity for adult families and siblings (all welcome) to come and have some fun.

This weekend we will take the ferry to Nantucket. Scouts will have their bikes and a day pack and all the gear (tents, food, stoves) will be loaded into the truck/trailer to journey to Camp Richards. There are opportunities to visit the whaling museum, life saving station, beach, biking and of course ice cream. Most likely there will be other scouts at Camp Richards and it’s a good opportunity to talk to other scouts from other troops. I hope and encourage all our scouts to attend and realize this has been a very busy (perhaps too busy between cross over, drop off (different dates), and the bike trip.

In the past, the Cross Over was the same date as the Drop Off / Swap Off (DOSO), and we usually don’t schedule more than one major troop activity in a month and do our best to spread them over the year.

This year’s DOSO was coordinated by our budding Assistant Scout Master Lucien Aibel. Lucien asked how he could help out and dived in as a veteran of many DOSO events. It is fantastic to have Lucien (a former SPL) take this on. We have a special troop with many older scouts (now adults) jumping in to help. You see them at meetings, at service projects and trips like this weekend, where both Cameron and Lucas will be coming and Jonah came (in a sling) to help with bike safety! Fantastic group of young men!

Advancement Corner
Many of the scouts have been working hard to earn ranks. I encourage all scouts under First Class rank to focus on advancements. First Class is an important rank and requires many skills to master. It also means you are eligible for some high adventure trips and Order of the Arrow. It also means you can function within the troop with more independence and have the skills to set up camp, cook/clean, provide first aid and know your way (navigation) and know what is out there (animals) and what to stay away from (poisonous plants), and how to build things that help (lashings & some pioneering) - it’s a big rank!

In our troop, we do our best to give out the badge when it's earned (most of the time we have some, sometimes not). Congratulations! The following scouts have successfully passed their Boards of Review, and have earned ranks:

• Adam; Scout
• Ben: Scout
• Charlie: Scout
• Matt: Life Scout

Keep up the good scouting and do your good turn daily!

YiS,
Mr. Duggan, Scoutmaster