Tuesday, August 05, 2008
Camp Wrap-Up
Well, summer camp has come and gone for 2008, although for some, the aftereffects linger.... We had 16 of the 31 Scouts and Leaders who attended get sick, several of them after arriving home. FYI, we have addressed this issue with the Northeast Region of the Boy Scouts of America, and they are working with the Westchester-Putnam Council (the owner of Camp Read) to review the causes and treatments for the virus.
At any rate, it was a successful week for those working on Merit Badges and Advancements. Mr G advises that there were 79 Merit Badges earned along with several partials that can be finished up. In addition, we had 5 Scouts participating in the 'New Scout program' where they earned several requirements towards Tenderfoot, Second Class and First Class, as well as earning their Tote 'n Chip (which teaches correct usage of knife, ax and handsaw). Several of those Scouts proudly purchased their first knives at the Trading Post!
We also held one Board of Review for Rank Advancement, and Paul Gramieri advanced to Life Scout.
Our older Scouts also had a great time, with activities like zip-lining, COPE, horseback riding and caving (I hope to have pictures from the caves later this week).
Overall, sickness aside, I would have to say that the boys had a good time at camp, based on feedback I received from several of them. The new Scouts especially handled the rustic conditions well, and they always seemed to have a smile on their face!
Thanks to Marianne Baetz who as usual did a GREAT job in all of the pre-camp activities - getting all of the boys registered and signed up for their activities, hounding us for our medical forms and payments and generally making sure that everything is organized for camp! Marianne and Al also spent Wednesday at the camp, giving Mr G some needed time in a hotel room....
Special thanks go out to the leaders who took the time out of their busy schedules to spend part or all of the week at camp, dealing with all of the usual (and unusual) issues that arise. Chris Killmurray, Jim Kuchinski and Mike Moriarty all spent part of the week at camp. Marty Leichtman was there the entire week. And of course, a big THANK YOU to Mr G for hanging in there, in sickness (mostly) and health and keeping everything running (ahem) smoothly during the week. Without his leadership, I don't know how we'd have made it through! And he mostly stuck to his diet, too.....
One last picture, of the closing camp fire (and no, that's not one of our Scouts sitting too close) -
Check back later this week for the caving pictures.
Mr D
At any rate, it was a successful week for those working on Merit Badges and Advancements. Mr G advises that there were 79 Merit Badges earned along with several partials that can be finished up. In addition, we had 5 Scouts participating in the 'New Scout program' where they earned several requirements towards Tenderfoot, Second Class and First Class, as well as earning their Tote 'n Chip (which teaches correct usage of knife, ax and handsaw). Several of those Scouts proudly purchased their first knives at the Trading Post!
We also held one Board of Review for Rank Advancement, and Paul Gramieri advanced to Life Scout.
Our older Scouts also had a great time, with activities like zip-lining, COPE, horseback riding and caving (I hope to have pictures from the caves later this week).
Overall, sickness aside, I would have to say that the boys had a good time at camp, based on feedback I received from several of them. The new Scouts especially handled the rustic conditions well, and they always seemed to have a smile on their face!
Thanks to Marianne Baetz who as usual did a GREAT job in all of the pre-camp activities - getting all of the boys registered and signed up for their activities, hounding us for our medical forms and payments and generally making sure that everything is organized for camp! Marianne and Al also spent Wednesday at the camp, giving Mr G some needed time in a hotel room....
Special thanks go out to the leaders who took the time out of their busy schedules to spend part or all of the week at camp, dealing with all of the usual (and unusual) issues that arise. Chris Killmurray, Jim Kuchinski and Mike Moriarty all spent part of the week at camp. Marty Leichtman was there the entire week. And of course, a big THANK YOU to Mr G for hanging in there, in sickness (mostly) and health and keeping everything running (ahem) smoothly during the week. Without his leadership, I don't know how we'd have made it through! And he mostly stuck to his diet, too.....
One last picture, of the closing camp fire (and no, that's not one of our Scouts sitting too close) -
Check back later this week for the caving pictures.
Mr D
Friday, August 01, 2008
Exciting Update from Camp!
Troop 888 finishes 4th in the cardboard boat competition at the waterfront!
Cody K wins the 'Love Letter' competition - he won a dinner date with his favorite counselor!
Cody K wins the 'Love Letter' competition - he won a dinner date with his favorite counselor!
Last Full Day in Camp!
As we wind down camp, I hear from Mr G that most of the boys have finished their Merit Badges and basically just have a short class today to finalize.
Last night was Pirate Night! Some of the boys had come prepared with pirate paraphernalia, and of course, Mr Moriarty had some items - I hear a he had a dreadlock wig (what, no 'Beaver Pirate'?). Many Scouts wore their scarves as pirate do-rags.
5 Scouts were out overnight for the Wilderness Survival Merit Badge. They had to go out into the woods and build a shelter and spend the night in it. It's always fun when they come back into camp. They are usual pretty tired and fairly dirty! But they all survived!
Mr Moriarty reports that one Scout stopped him this morning and said, 'Mr M, is it true that time goes by faster if you are having fun? Because I am having so much fun that the week is flying by!' That's always great to hear and has pretty much been the word from the Scouts for the week.
I hope to have some new pictures to post later today, so check back this afternoon...
Mr D
Last night was Pirate Night! Some of the boys had come prepared with pirate paraphernalia, and of course, Mr Moriarty had some items - I hear a he had a dreadlock wig (what, no 'Beaver Pirate'?). Many Scouts wore their scarves as pirate do-rags.
5 Scouts were out overnight for the Wilderness Survival Merit Badge. They had to go out into the woods and build a shelter and spend the night in it. It's always fun when they come back into camp. They are usual pretty tired and fairly dirty! But they all survived!
Mr Moriarty reports that one Scout stopped him this morning and said, 'Mr M, is it true that time goes by faster if you are having fun? Because I am having so much fun that the week is flying by!' That's always great to hear and has pretty much been the word from the Scouts for the week.
I hope to have some new pictures to post later today, so check back this afternoon...
Mr D
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