Den Baskets Update

We're still looking for a couple of volunteers to help put together our den gift baskets that will be auctioned off at the Blue and Gold ceremony. To help make our volunteers' job easier, we would sure appreciate it if everybody would bring a small cash donation (suggested amount is $10.00 per Scout, but whatever you can do would be most appreciated) to tomorrow night's den meeting. Our volunteers will then be able to buy items to put together a "theme" basket. This might make it easier than having our volunteers request each family to purchase an item to match the basket's theme. Thank you so much for supporting our Scouts and our Pack!

Den Meeting Tomorrow: Bring Those Pinewood Derby Cars!

Tomorrow night we're combining Dens 11 and 13 for a Pinewood Derby Showcase and the whole family is invited! We'll have name cards to display next to each Scout's car. We'll also have oreo cookies and capri suns for the Scouts and their siblings. We'll also pass out some belt loops, some Pinewood Derby patches, and the boys progress toward rank beads. We're looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night!

We Need Two Volunteers To Coordinate Gift Baskets!

Hello Wonderful Den Moms and Dads!

There is going to be a silent auction at the Blue and Gold Banquet in February to help cover the cost of food, awards, decorations and thank you gifts. Each den is going to contribute a "gift basket" that will be auctioned off at the banquet. Our very own Jennifer Stork is coordinating the entire effort for the Pack. What Jennifer needs is for at least one parent to e-mail Jennifer at jenniferstork1@yahoo.com and take charge of putting Den 11's basket together.

Volunteering for this responsibility means: (1) collecting items from each family in the den to contribute to our den basket's theme; (2) wrapping the collected items in an attractive basket with cellophane; (3) providing a list of items in the basket along with a total value of those items; and (4) having the basket ready and available for pickup by Monday, Feb. 22. This should be fun and our volunteer can even help decide what our basket's theme should be.

One more thought. The basket that brings in the most money is going to win a special prize that rhymes with ice cream party. Considering the size of our den, I think we could probably contribute TWO baskets to the blue and gold. Why not double the odds of winning that special prize?! Just a thought.

Please e-mail Jennifer no later than next Wednesday, Feb. 3 (and please cc: me at tkeller@ij.org) to let her know that you're willing to coordinate this fun project.

THANK YOU for your faithfulness! We love our extended Den Family!

There Are New Belt Loops To Earn!!

Yes, there is now a Video Game Belt Loop. And several of our Scouts, including my two boys, have already earned it! My boys were so motivated by the Video Game belt loop that they went the extra mile to earn their video game pin as well. There are many new belt loops like Hiking, Skateboarding, Pet Care, Good Manners, Family Travel, Reading and Writing, and Hockey.

You can go to:

www.boyscouttrail.com/cub-scouts/acad-sports.asp

And click on the name of the belt loop to find out the requirements. In all, there are now 28 sport and 25 academic belt loops and pins your scout can earn. I'm sure we will do some of the new belt loops together as a Den: like Kickball.

Also, some of them require your Scout to make a poster and share it with the Den. We would love to make time for these types of presentations! Just e-mail or call us before the Den Meeting so we know to leave some time!

HAVE FUN!

Next Den Meeting: Pinewood Derby Showcase!!

We want your Scout to show off his Pinewood Derby car at the next Den Meeting (which is Monday, February 1st)! We are going to combine the Bear and Tiger dens and have a good ol' fashioned Pinewood Derby Showcase. We'd love for parents and siblings to attend and really "ooh" and "aah" over the boys cars. I've heard repeatedly that many parents and kids did not get to see all of the cars. This is your chance and your Scout's chance to show off his hard work!

We'll have some light refreshments for the Scouts and their siblings (sorry adults, we'll just have stuff for the kiddos).

We'll also have a combined awards ceremony during the Den Meeting where we will (1) give all the Scouts a Pinewood Derby patch and a special, individualized recognition for a job well done on their car; (2) give out belt loops and pins; and (3) hand out rank advancement beads.

I Need Pinewood Derby Pictures!!!!

Congratulations to all the Bears in Den 11--with special congrats to Conner H. for winning 1st in Bear Rank and to Tristan for winning 1st in Den! Way to go boys! Of course, every one of our Scouts was a winner at the Pinewood Derby. The boys worked hard on their cars and it showed! You could see the boys personalities reflected in their designs and in their attention to detail.

For some reason, I don't have a lot of pictures of our Bears so please send me pictures at tkeller@ij.org and I'll get them up on the blog!

No Den Meeting On Monday: Next Den Meeting Is February 1st!

There is no Den Meeting this coming Monday.

Our next Den Meeting will be Monday, Febraury 1st at 6:30pm at the church. We would strongly encourage you to use this time to finish your Bear Requirements!

I'll post Pinewood Derby pictures and let you know the plan for the February 1st Den Meeting very soon.

Blue and Gold Invites At Pinewood Derby!

I just learned that you will be able to pick up the invitations to the Blue and Gold ceremony tomorrow at the Pinewood Derby. The invites will be near the concession stand and they will be separated by Den and will have your Scout's name on it. If you have multiple Scouts, the invitations for all your Scouts will be with the oldest boy's name/den.

You may complete the invitation and pay for Blue and Gold tomorrow at the Derby. Scouts are free, but each adult is $8 and every additional child is $5.00. The ceremony will be catered by Famous Dave's BBQ. Exact change only, please; or a check made out to Pack 524. You may also mail the RSVP to Jim Malinski at the address in the invitation, or even drop it off in person.

RSVPs are due no later than February 12. Your Scout must have completed his Rank Requirements in order to RSVP. This should provide an incentive to wrap up those requirements!!!

Hope to see you at the Derby tomorrow and Blue and Gold in February!!!

Pinewood Derby Last Minute Details

I saw some pretty cool looking Pinewood Derby cars at the Weigh-In tonight! I'm sure that everybody got this information from Scott, but I thought I would reiterate:

Dress warm. Bring money if you want to buy hot dogs from the Pack. As an official Scouting event, the technically proper attire is full uniforms. I'm sure they'll let you race even if you aren't in uniform, but I thought you'd like to know. There is no back-up "rain" location. Tumbleweed Park is it come rain or shine. But that should be fine as we're under a huge ramada.

We will have some activities if weather permits, otherwise the playground will have to occupy the Scouts (the playground is underneath an enormous ramada itself).

Pinewood Derby Weigh In Locations Announced

You Should Have Received an e-mail from our Cub Master Phillip Privett with the details concerning the Pinewood Derby Drop Off this Wednesday and Thursday. If you did not receive such an e-mail, please tell me and I will do my best to get you on Phillip's e-mail distribution list. Phillip's e-mail is pasted below:

DROP OFF INFO: Wednesday and Thursday

Please drop off your car for weigh-in this week. Cars must be weighed and dropped off Wed or Thursday prior to the race. Once you drop it off, we will hold the car until the race.

We have two opportunities for you to drop it off:

Option 1 is Wednesday, Jan 20 at Quail Haven Park (Next to San Tan Elementary School on Adams). We will be at the basket ball courts north the school from 6-8 PM

Option 2 is Thursday, Jan 21 at First Baptist Church Chandler (where we meet for Pack meetings.) We will be in the Foyer of the church from 6-8 PM.

We will have small scales to weigh in the cars. Please remember they should be no more than 5 oz. We will have small weights, tape, glue, etc to add any weight you need when we weigh it.

Once again, when you drop off your car, we will hold the car until the race to keep it safe.

PLEASE WATCH E-MAIL for updates to Wednesday’s location in case it changes based on the weather this week.

RACE DAY

Date: Saturday, January 23

Time: 1-5 PM

Location: Tumbleweed Park (corner of McQueen and Germann)

Under the Large Pavilion (the same location as last year’s Blue and Gold Banquet)

We will have a lot of things going on for the kids, but this location should help us keep things moving, allow the scouts a place to play when not racing, and provide plenty of space. There will be a group manning a refreshment stand, but you might want to bring drinks or other snacks if you want. Please watch for more info from the race committee this week!

Still No Word on Weigh-In Location

Hello faithful parents! I still have not heard about where we are going to go for the Pinewood Derby weigh-in, but the weigh-in is this week! That means you need to finish up those cars so that you can drop them off either Wednesday or Thursday night (Jan. 20 or 21) between 6 and 8pm. I can't wait to see all of the Scout's creative paint jobs at the Derby next Saturday! I'll let you know where to go for the weigh in as soon as I hear about the location!

All Tied Up And Nowhere To Go!

We may have gotten a late start tonight, but we did our best to keep things on track. Our fearless leader Harlan Stork taught us four different knots (Requirement 22b) and how to whip the end of a rope (Requirement 22a). I don't think anybody mastered tonight's knot exercises (though Connor came pretty close), but the Scouts did their best. We also made a volcano (which counts as Requirement 21d), after a bit of work finding a decent source for warm water at the church. We'll let each Scout make their own volcano at the next Den Meeting!

Please remember to finish up those requirements for the Bear Rank by the end of the month! Blue and Gold is coming up in February and we want everybody to be awarded their rank at this fun ceremony!

Our Cutting Edge Event!

Chuck Canode earned our Wood Chucking Chuck Award--and our eternal gratitude--by donating his time, tools, and talent at our first annual Pinewood Derby workshop. All of the boys and parents who participated were thrilled to get some expert help cutting out their cars. Next stop: the racing pits! Good luck Bears!

3 Derby Updates: Any volunteers?

I have 3 Pinewood Derby Updates:

(1) There will be a "weigh in" the evenings of January 20 (a Wednesday) and January 21 (a Thursday) between 6:00pm and 8:00pm each night. The location for this weigh-in is still to be determined. Here is what will happen: your Scout's car will be weighed and collected. You will not see your car again until race day. Scouts will be permitted to place their cars on the track for their races.

(2) Chuck Canode will bring a scale to Monday's Den Meeting if you would like to weigh your car. Simple weights can be purchased at Michaels, Hobby Lobby, and the Scout Shop. These include weight you can screw in, drill a hole and stick in, and even peel and stick weights.

(3) And finally, the Pack is looking for volunteers to help out the day of the race. We're looking for score keepers, finish line judges, staging coordinators, and refreshments volunteers. We could also use some volunteers for the weigh-in. Can you help? Shoot me an e-mail at tkeller@ij.org if you can volunteer and I'll hook you up with Scott Bomberg who is chairing the Pinewood Derby Committee.

Bring Those Books On Monday Night!!

Please BRING your Bear Handbooks to the Den Meeting on Monday night! Invitations to the Blue and Gold ceremony will go out this month to all of those Scouts who have earned their Bear Ranks. We need to know where everybody is on their achievements so that we can help everybody get over the finish line. We want the entire den invited to the ceremony!

Cookie Connection

Yep, it is my favorite time of year: time to buy girl scout cookies! But some of you may not know a girl scout! I've got a solution for your problem. Baylee Kempiak is a girl scout. Her daddy is Jon Kempiak, one of Tiger Den 13's great co-den leaders. Baylee has set a goal of selling 1,000 boxes of cookies. She is also selling cookies that she plans to give to less fortunate families through House of Refuge in Mesa. So, whether you are looking to buy some cookies for your family, or for a family in tight circumstances, you may contact Baylee through her Mom, Kymberly, at kkempiak@hotmail.com.

Den Meeting on Monday, Jan. 11!

We have a Den Meeting on Monday, Jan. 11 at 6:30pm!! We will be working on Achievement 21d, which is making a model of a mountain. And our mountain is going to be a volcano. A volcano that explodes. Okay, it might not look exactly like the picture in this blog post, but it will be fun. We will also work on Achievements 22a, b, c, and d, "tying it all up" - with ropes. Any Scouts who act up may find themselves in a tied spot. Ha!

REMEMBER: The Blue and Gold Ceremony is in February! Invitations will be going out soon! We REALLY, REALLY need to wrap up those Bear Requirements this month so that everybody earns their Bear Rank for the B&G. Let me and or Harlan know how we can help!!!!

The Secret of Our Success!

Honorary Den Leader Jennifer Stork makes Harlan and Tim look like they're organized and on the ball, but she's the real magic maker in Den 11. Thanks Jennifer for keeping the books organized and the den meetings on track. And for doing all of that work with such a big smile! We sure appreciate all your hard work!

Power Up!

The boys had fun playing with simple snap circuits tonight in honor of this month's theme "Power Up!" They also joined with the Tigers to cut out their Pinewood Derby patterns tonight and to prep their cars for this Saturday's Cutting Edge Event featuring the woodworking talents of our very own Chuck Canode. The event will be this Saturday, January 9 at the Keller house.

Here is the current sign up:

2:30pm: Ponders (Stratton and Stetson) and Fenders (Cayman and Caleb) and Nails (Connor and Brayden)

2:45pm: Storks (Tucker and Carson) and Kellers (Daniel and Benjamin)

3:00pm: Ahnens (Tristan and Brayden) and Slatterys (Matthew and Michael) and Reileys(Andrew and a friend).

Chuck is willing to be there from 2:00pm to 4:00pm, so there is still plenty of time to sign up. Just e-mail me at tkeller@ij.org and copy Mr. Canode at chuck@tarrs.com to sign up. If we can keep it to less than two hours, I'm sure Mr. Canode won't complain, but we want to make sure that everybody gets the help they need so please sign up if you need a helping hand with this aspect of the Pinewood Derby! No need to sign up if you have the tools and skills to tackle this project on your own!

If you need directions to the Keller house, please send me an e-mail and I'll send you directions.

I also have copies of the basic Pinewood Derby car patterns that I can e-mail you.

And I have Pinewood Derby instructions that I can e-mail in case you've lost the instructions provided at the Pack Meeting.

Feel free to bring the Canodes some chocolate as a thank you for their generous gift of time, tools, and talent!!

Details for Pinewood Derby Cutting Event

At tomorrow night's Den Meeting, we will have a sign up sheet for the Saturday, Jan. 9 cutting event at the Keller house. Chuck Canode can be there from 2pm to 4pm to make the initial cut for the cars. Because we have the potential for 24 boys to show up, we figure it will be easier if we stagger folks throughout the afternoon.

We will ask folks to sign up to arrive during a fifteen minute window sometime between 2pm and 4pm. Of course, if it turns out that you can't make it during the time slot you sign up for tomorrow, that will be fine. We're simply trying to stagger the Scouts. Of course, if on Saturday, Jan.9 it turns out you can't make it, a phone call to Lisa Keller at 480-899-5236 would be most appreciated.

I'll also have directions to the Keller house available at the Den Meeting. We live very close to First Baptist Church were we meet for the Den Meetings.

See you tomorrow night!

Den Meeting on Monday, Jan. 4 @ 6:30pm!

We've got a Den Meeting on Monday, Jan. 4! We will have some simple designs for your Pinewood Derby cars. Please BRING your blocks of wood with you to the meeting! We will actually place the designs on the cars at the meeting. On Sat., Jan. 9, in the afternoon, we will host a Cutting Edge event at the Keller house (featuring master craftsman Chuck Canode and his band saw) where we can do the initial cut on the cars. Of course, if you plan to do all of the designing and cutting yourself that is totally fine. If you plan to join us for the the Cutting Edge event please e-mail Tim Keller at tkeller@ij.org or tell Tim at the Den Meeting that you plan to participate.

We will also introduce the boys to this months theme: Power Up! We will use simple circuits from a kit to build a radio and a voice recorder. Time permitting, we will also play a game of Charades.