Volume 2 | Issue 1 | Sarah Lindegren
From the Scoutmaster
A scout is…..cheerful.
Happy New Year Troop 111! I hope everyone is enjoying this period of rest and renewal before we begin a new year full of joy and adventure. We’ve passed the winter solstice – the darkest day of winter – but the next couple of months can test even the most cheerful of us with its chill, cloudy, and frequently wet days.
The poet Robert Frost writes in Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening about seeing the beauty in the things we may find dark and cold. His final words in the poem reflect on the fact that we can stop and appreciate the moment, but we have “promises to keep” and “miles to go.” Will we chose to move forward with a smile as we leave that snowy woods or do we brood upon the uncomfortability of the moment?
As scouts, I hope that we can lean into being cheerful. Let’s do our best to find ways to be a light in an otherwise dark and sometimes disheartening world.
It’s that Time of Year Again…
With all the calendars being changed over – I still use a paper calendar – it’s easy to forget the most important part of our Scouting year. These first two months are critical to the health of our Troop and we need your help!
First, many of us in the Troop have our registrations open for renewal. Here are some tips for success in ensuring the process goes smoothly.
- Review Your Information: Before you re-register, please review all personal information in your My.Scouting account. If your Scout is only linked with one parent, but should be linked with two, please make those adjustments. Also review contact information such as addresses, phone numbers, and emails. If you’re not getting emails and announcements from Scouting America, you probably need to update some information. Adults should also review the position their currently in. Are you in the right one? Should you be a Committee Member instead of an ASM or vice versa? Now is the time to make those changes.
- Combine Accounts: Some of us in the troop may have transferred from other Councils and with that comes multiple ID numbers. If that’s you or your scout, you can combine these two numbers into one account by using the Manage Member ID link when you first log into My.Scouting. This ensures that anything that has been completed before registering in our Council shows up in your current record.
- Update your Training: Specifically for adults, please make sure to take your Safeguarding Youth training for the year. My.Scouting will also tell you what other trainings you might be due for. Now is an excellent time to get those things out of the way. I highly recommend updating your Hazardous Weather Training while you’re at it.
- Pay your Annual Troop Dues: This past September the Troop switched from Scouts paying dues on a weekly basis to having dues paid as a one-time $100 fee. These dues should be paid to the Troop Treasurer by cash, check, or Venmo by 26 February. These fees are in addition to the fees required by National and Council when you re-register online.
We appreciate all you do to support the troop. We look forward to making 2026 even better!
S.A.F.E-T Moment
At least twice during a Scout’s career, you’ll see the following requirement for Scout rank and Star rank:
With your parent or guardian, complete the exercises in the pamphlet How to Protect Your Children From Child Abuse: A Parent’s Guide and view the Personal Safety Awareness videos (with your parent or guardian’s permission).
It’s my own personal perspective that this isn’t just something that should be done as a requirement. Scouts should review the pamphlet and the Personal Safety Awareness videos often as a check-in for themselves. Are you noticing what’s going on in the world around you? Are you paying attention to your actions online and in the troop? As a parent, make sure you’re checking in and help your Scouts to be mentally awake and morally straight!
January Events
- 4 January: Order of the Arrow Winter Banquet
- 5 January: Patrol Leaders Council
- 12 January: Troop Committee Meeting
- 17-18 January: Historic Trip to Baltimore, night on Coast Guard Cutter
Coming Soon…
February: Klondike Derby @ Camp Shenandoah
March: ZORT, Troop Elections, Order of the Arrow Elections, and Intro to Leadership Skills for Troops (ILST)
A Final Word…
Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening
by Robert Frost
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.