Reaching New Heights

Dear Scouts,

I spent last weekend and part of the week sailing from Newport to Swansea (near Fall River), stopping along the way at Gloucester, Provincetown, Marion, Cuttyhunk (Elizabeth Islands) and on to Swansea in Narragansett Bay.  Will and I sailed about 175 miles with a lot of motoring since we either had too much wind from the wrong direction or not enough wind from the right direction. Such is sailing.

Sailing is a lot like camping. You carry everything you need, plan in advance, pack your gear, food, check the weather and off you go. As conditions change, you monitor and make adjustments. You always check your mates to see if everyone is ok. Glad to say we had a great time and covered a lot of miles and it was a great trip.

I hope school is off to a good start. Tommy’s Eagle Board of Review is Monday September 11, 2023, so we will move our PLC meeting to Monday September 18, 2023 starting at 6:30-8:00pm. All senior scouts are invited.

Our focus for this year will be to help scouts who want to, achieve the First Class rank. First Class is a big milestone in your scout journey, and requires meeting many requirements. Once you have achieved them, you know how to set up camp, what to bring and how to pack your gear, how to administer first aid, find your way (navigation), how to recognize animals and avoid poisonous plants, and how to demonstrate scout spirit. You also know your duty (to God, to country), and to help your patrol and troop. So this focus is important and will ensure the Troop has more .

Congratulations to the 8 scouts (Grady, Ethan, Matt, Nathaniel, Lincoln, Rowan, Eric M, Charlie) and 5 scouters (Mr. Ely, Ms. Green, Ms. Liazos, Ms. McLeod, Mr. Sprague) who hiked Mt. Frissell on August 20, as a kickoff for our "ANE" (Atop New England) adventure series. The Troop hiked through Connecticut, New York, and Massachusetts and reached the Connecticut high point! Great work Grady for arranging and promoting this exciting trip. For more information/pictures, see the trip report below.

We are also looking to schedule the follow up for the Automotive Maintenance Merit Badge. Just looking for a time that works for many of you. This is a good opportunity to learn how to maintain a vehicle. 
 
Welcome back and ith all the trees, limbs and branches down, it will be easy to do your good turn. Help a neighbor and help pick up after the thunderstorm!

YiS,
Mr. Duggan,  Scoutmaster