Sorting Awards: A Way To Get Involved

Harlan handing out awards

Wow! Over 300 awards were given out at last night's Pack Meeting. Marisa Roembke sorted all of those awards by Den and placed them into individual bags and labeled them with each boys names! That is quite a task and one for which she deserves tremendous thanks and kudes. She would be thrilled to find a handful of volunteers willing to help sort awards for future Pack Meetings. If you are interested in this once-a-month service opportunity, e-mail Marisa at mroembke@cox.net.

Bobcats!

Proud Den Leaders with their awesome den

Owen

Justin

Cayman

Conner

Connor

Matthew

Daniel

The boys of Den 11 earned their Bobcat badges last night!! In a special ceremony at the end of the Pack Meeting, each parent painted their son's face. The three painted lines stand for Doing Their Best, Courage, and Knowing Right From Wrong as they follow the Bear Scout trail. The boys then pinned their parents with a Bobcat pin. The boys worked hard to earn their badges by memorizing the Cub Scout Oath, the Law of the Pack, and the Boy Scout Motto, as well as learning the Cub Scout salute, sign, and handshake! What a terrific group of Scouts! We are so proud of each and every one of them for working hard and taking their first step toward earning their Bear rank. Way to go boys!!!!!

We missed our friend Micah, but he was anxiously awaiting news of the birth of his baby sister Abigail Joanna!!! Congrats, Micah! We'll make sure you get your Bobcat badge soon enough!

(I'm missing a picture of Tristan getting his face painted, so if somebody has a picture of him during the ceremony please send it to tkeller@ij.org)

How Does My Scout Earn His Bear Rank?

To earn his Bear Rank, your Scout must complete 12 of the 24 Bear "Achievements" in the Cub Scout Bear Handbook. There are four different "categories" of Achievements: God, Country, Family and Self.

He must complete at least:

One of the God Achievements;

Three of the Country Achievements;

Four of the Family Achievements; and

Four of the Self Achievements.

You and your Scout can pick which of the Achievements to complete in order to earn the Bear Rank.

In order to complete an Achievement, there are several "Requirements" that must be met. The Cub Scout Bear Handbook tells you which and/or how many Requirements must be done in order to complete a specific Achievement.

We will be working on several Achievements (specifically, Achievements 5 and 7) in upcoming Den Meetings. I will also post separately with more information as those Den Meetings get closer so you will know exactly which Requirements we plan to complete under those Achievements. In the meantime, I'll keep the Calendar updated with information about meeting times and what Achievements we plan to work on in the Den Meetings.

The goal is that every Scout earns his Bear Rank by the end of January so that he can receive his Rank at the Blue and Gold Banquet on Saturday, February 27th.

If you haven't already, I suggest reading the Parent Introduction in the Cub Scout handbook (only 8 pages) and then e-mailing Tim or Harlan with any questions.

How Does My Scout Earn Belt Loops?

Last night at the Pack Meeting you heard a lot of Scouts earning "belt loops." The nifty and ultra cool metal loops that slip onto your Scout's belt and declares that he has learned a few things about an academic area or a particular sport.

So, how does your little man get in on the action?

It's easy! You can find a list of all the possible belt loops and the requirements for earning a belt loop at:

http://meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Cub_Scout_Worksheets

Just click on the name of the belt loop and the requirements will pop up. There are always three relatively simple requirements necessary to earn a belt loop. Once you decide which belt loops you and your Scout would like to pursue, just print out a worksheet, fill it out, and then turn it in at a Den Meeting and we'll make sure he get the award at the next Pack Meeting (the Pack covers the costs of all the awards). He can earn as many as he would like. So have fun!

A note on Pins:

If your Scout is not content with just earning a belt loop, he may go further and choose five additional requirements from the list of ten or so and earn a pin in addition to the belt loop (you'll find the list on the same worksheet that you print for the belt loop). Your Scout can't wear the pins on his uniform, but I'm sure that you can find a special way to display them at home.

UPDATED: There is a vest that you may purchase at the Scout store. You may place pins and patches earned, but that are not appropriate for uniforms (like the Camping patch), on the vest. There are no requirements to "earn" the vest, you may purchase it (or not) at your discretion.

Getting Into The Act

Ready to get their awards

Our Pack meeting is this coming Monday, September 28 at 7:00pm at First Baptist Church of Chandler! This month each Scout in Den 11 earned their Bobcat badge (well, except for Tucker who earned his Bobcat two years ago as a Tiger Scout). The Bobcat badge award ceremony requires some Parent Participation!

As I understand it, all of the boys who earned their Bobcat badge will be called up to the stage at the same time, along with a parent. Each boy will be recognized by name individually, but the ceremony itself is a "group" ceremony. Parents will paint their sons faces with a Q-tip (just a few simple lines) and the boys will actually give a Bobcat pin to their parents. (This is my first ceremony, so the actual ceremony may not be exactly as I've described, but the most important thing to know is that parents will be participating in the ceremony. )

Also, our Den is responsible for the Gathering Activity before the Pack Meeting. Harlan and I have everything planned, the boys just need to show up and have FUN.

See you on Monday night!

(FYI: I am trying to arrange things so that we work on some of the requirements for Achievement 5 (Sharing your world with Wildlife) at the Oct. 12 Den Meeting and then some of the requirements for Achievement 7 (Law Enforcement is a Big Job) on Nov. 16 Den Meeting)

More details on the October and November Den Meetings will follow soon.

Send Us Your Pics

If you have pictures from the camping trip to add to the blog, feel free to e-mail them to tkeller@ij.org! We would love to add them to the post!

Rained Out - But They'll Be Rescheduled (Or Not)

Pack Leader Phillip P. working on Map & Compass Belt Loop with the boys

Astronomy Belt Loop

Jim M. and the Bone Box

Owen and Justin earning their Map & Compass belt loop

The boys working on their Astronomy belt loop

Noah and Mr. Keller running for shelter before the rain hits

UPDATED: Congrats to Cayman, Conner, Connor, Daniel, Justin and Owen for earning their Map and Compass belt loops at the camping trip! And to Cayman, Conner, Conner, Justin, and Owen for earning their Astronomy belt loops! This means we probably won't be doing these two belt loops during our den meetings. Again, we'll update you on our specific October den meeting activities soon!

Our planned belt loop activities were rained out, but we will work on those activities in our den meetings. Hopefully some of the boys were able to earn a belt loop during the planned Pack activities on Saturday afternoon.

We might do our map and compass as soon as our Oct. 5 den meeting-but don't hold us to that just yet. We'll send out our plans for the next den meeting shortly after the Sept. 28 Pack Meeting. See you at the Pack meeting!

Over The Hills and Through The Woods

Mr. Keller walking with Owen

Mr. Stork shouldering Mr. Keller's "burden" - Noah

Boys and Leaders from Tiger Den 13 and Bear Den 11

Bear Den 11's Fearless Leader Mr. Stork

Bear Den 11's Co-Leader Mr. Keller with his boy Noah

Mr. Kendall and his boys

Pack 524 after their successful hike!

On Saturday morning, Pack 524 and Den 11 took a two-hour hike led by Pack Leader Jim Malinski. The kids did a terrific job over some rough terrain. As we neared the end of the hike, we started hearing thunder and pretty soon after that we had rain and hail!

Deep In The Woods

Carson (Tiger Den 11) and Tucker

Justin, Daniel, Owen, Cayman, and Connor

Justin

Connor helped set up at least 4 tents!

Daniel, Justin and Connor

Connor reading jokes at the opening campfire

Pack 524 had its Fall camping trip the 18-20th of September and Bear Den 11 was well represented! Families began arriving Friday afternoon. We worked together to set up our tents. Seeing the team work was fantastic! On Friday night there was an opening campfire. We enjoyed hearing some of the boys tell jokes and seeing the boys participate in a flag retirement ceremony. After the opening campfire, there was a night hike and throughout the evening the elk, owls, and coyotes sang to us!

Leave Your Uniforms Behind

We are looking forward to a FUN family camp out this weekend! Harlan and I will be bringing the materials to work on three or four belt loops--weather and time permitting: Astronomy, Map and Compass, Geography, and Baseball. (No mandatory participation)

You do not need your uniforms on the trip, so we suggest that you leave them behind so they don't get dirty. Everybody should have received an agenda from the Pack and some ideas from Tim about how to make this weekend really count by accomplishing some requirements toward Bear rank. If you didn't receive these, please e-mail Tim at tkeller@ij.org and he will send you copies.

Calendar Update

I just received a note from the Pack that the October Pack meeting is going to be moved from Monday, October 26 to Monday, October 19. The time will remain 7pm.

So, that means we will move our Den 11 and Den 13 combined Sports Belt Loop night to Monday, October 26 (still at 6:30pm). We will announce the location soon, but it will be at a public park in either Chandler or Gilbert.

Don't Miss the September 28 Pack Meeting!

EVERY Boy in Bear Den 11 earned their Bobcat badge! If all goes according to "the plan" every boy will be awarded their Bobcat badge at the upcoming Pack Meeting on Monday, September 28 at 7:00pm in the main sanctuary of First Baptist Church of Chandler. There is NO Den Meeting on Monday, September 21.

It's All In The Book

We highly recommend that you take some time to read the introduction in the Bear Scout Handbook. It will really help you get a handle on everything we are doing in the Den Meetings--and the things that you as a family can do between meetings to help your Scout earn his Bear rank. The parent introduction is only 8 pages. You will be signing the book as your Scout completes the requirements for each rank Achievement. Once your Scout has completed all of the requirements for an Achievement on the Bear Trail, place a note in their book and we will record it in our official Den Records so that we can monitor his progression toward earning his Bear rank. The goal is to earn the Bear rank by the end of January. Please feel free to call, e-mail, or ask Harlan or Tim any questions.

First Den Meeting!

Harlan and I had a fantastic time tonight at our first Den Meeting! The boys helped create a Den Code of Conduct, did a little get-to-know-you activity, and ran a water balloon relay race. We're off to a great start and it is only going to get more fun as we all get to know each other.

First Den Meeting Coming Up!

Our first Den Meeting is on Monday, September 14th. We will meet at First Baptist Church of Chandler at 6:30pm in Room A103. We will have a get-to-know-you activity, a uniform inspection, establish a code of conduct, and of course play some games. We will also be recording any rank advancement requirements that you may have completed. Parents, please place a note in your scout's handbook with the pages that need a Den Leader's signature. And remember, parents are welcome to stay at the Den Meetings. Your scout should wear his uniform, bring his Bear Handbook, and be ready to have fun with his den mates!