Troop 4 - Grapevine, Texas

ADVANCEMENTS by John Flynn -- Erik G., Second Class and Jared C. First Class. A complete list of summer camp merit badges and advancements will be published after the August. Monday, August 1 is the deadline for all advancements and merit badges to be turned in for the Aug. 14 Court of Honor.

2005 NATIONAL BOY SCOUT JAMBOREE -- For the latest information on the ongoing 2005 U.S. Boy Scout National Jamboree click on: http://www.bsajamboree.org/ Former Troop 4 Eagle Scout and OA Representative Matthew Fertitta is a staff member at the current Jamboree. Life Scout Ken C. attended the 2001 Jamboree, while Eagle Scout Advisor Tom Anderson was a staff member at the Amateur Radio display and Radio Merit Badge program on the Merit Badge Midway at the 1997 Jamboree. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the adult leaders who lost their life Monday in a tragic accident at the Jamboree and wish a speedy recovery to those adults injured. The Western Alaska Council's website is http://www.bsawac.org for information if anyone would like to send a sympathy card. Additional Jamboree information can be found at http://jambo.forscom.army.mil/ Merit badge information is at http://jambo.forscom.army.mil/meritbadgemidway.htm
When Tom Anderson was on staff, the U.S. Army assigned a 2-star major general to act as a liaison between the Jamboree and the Army, since the Jamboree is held at Fort A..P. Hill Va., near Fredericksburg.

CLIMBING AT MINERAL WELLS STATE PARK by Dan Berry -- On June 18th, we took a day trip to Mineral Wells State Park to go rock climbing. 10 scouts and visiting Cub Scout (Andrew B., Jeff C., Ken C., Nicholas C., Kyle C., Cole J., Drew J., Abi K., Kevin M., Ryan M. and Nathan S.) and 7 adults met at the scout hut at 5:15 am and left at 5:40 after all permission forms were completed and coffee cups were emptied. We got to the park at 7:00 and were one of the earliest groups there. This gave us the opportunity to select the initial routes that we wanted before others had grabbed them. We started with a fairly easy climb and setup the rappel route near by. During the day, the climbing routes were moved and the scouts had an opportunity to try a total of four different climbing routes. In addition to climbing and rappelling, scouts had the opportunity to belay (control the top rope so that a climber that slips does not fall far) under the watchful eye of one of the climbing instructors. While climbing, rappelling and belaying are all requirements of the climbing merit badge, it turns out that they are plain old fun too. On returning to the scout hut at the end of the day, the drivers did compare notes and apparently there were a number of tired scouts who did take advantage of the ride home to catch up on some sleep. This was a great event. We had two scouts complete the Climbing Merit Badge and several other boys complete a good portion of the outdoor requirements. In total 34 climbs and 12 rappels were completed on this outing. We will plan the August climbing campout at Sid Richardson to work on the balance of these requirements. The assistance of the adults (Jeff Carter, Dan Berry, Gilbert Jordan, Juan Corona, Linda Mitchell, John Flynn, and Sean Flynn) in helping to supervising the climbing was invaluable. Also a special thanks to Ken Schiller for the loan of his climbing equipment, which allowed us to set up multiple climbing routes, and Sean Flynn and Ken C. for their work in supervising the set up of the routes and training. The older scouts helped set up routes and coached other climbers. And most important, we had a fun, safe event thanks to the father/son certified rock climbing instructor team of John and Sean. Thanks go to them for organizing the day, bringing the food and showing the new scouts the ropes so to speak.

PHILMONT TREK IN 2006 by John Flynn -- The Longhorn Council has awarded Troop 4 a 2006 Philmont trek as part of the Longhorn Council Philmont contingent. Scouts who meet eligibility requirements have received previous notification. These requirements are: Age 14 by January 1, 2006; or Age 13 and completion of the 8th grade before the trek date. There is more than just meeting the age requirements. The commitment to become a crew member will require all participants to successfully complete Philmont shakedown events including a 4 day backpacking trip this fall and possibly again in the spring. The purpose of these events is to introduce the skills and knowledge needed for the Philmont trek, physical conditioning and most importantly building a crew mentality. The minimum crew size is 7 and maximum is 12. The maximum number of adults is 4 and in all cases the number of youth participating must be greater than the number of adults. In addition to the crew conditioning events, all participants must pass a Philmont physical. The Philmont fee is $520.00 per person. This does not include other costs such as transportation and travel meal costs. The first payment of $260 is due in September. The trek dates are Monday July 17, 2006 (starts with lunch at Philmont) and ends with breakfast on Saturday July 29, 2006. In planning for the trek you should add an additional day for travel before and after the trek. That is we would leave CCF on Sunday, July 16 and plan to return on Sunday July 30. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. John Flynn 817-481-7908 or johnlflynn@yahoo.com

SPL ELECTION -- Election of a new senior patrol leader will be held during the Aug. 14 Court of Honor at CCF at 3 p.m. SPL nomination speeches will be made at the Aug. 8 troop meeting and Assistant Scoutmaster Steve Brewton will meet with parents on the importance of the Court of Honor.

POPCORN KERNEL NEEDED -- A chairman or "kernel" is needed for the troop's annual popcorn sale this fall. It will be divided into two parts, the "Show and Sell" where scouts have boxes of popcorn to sell and later the "Take Order" part where scouts take orders and product is delivered later. Contact Committee Chairman Dick Cureton to volunteer.

TROOP 4 BOR's -- Troop 4 boards of review are held the first and third Monday meetings. Scouts are required to fill out a BOR request form available from the troop scribe. Also all scouts are requested to bring their scout handbooks to each meeting so rank advancement requirements can be checked off. Scouts should report merit badge completions and rank advancements as soon as possible to Advancement Chairperson John Flynn in person, johnlflynn@yahoo.com or phone (817) 481-7908. It is the scout's responsibility to make sure Mr. Flynn is aware of their rank advancement.