November 30, 2021

Posted on by Troop 177 Webmaster

In this week’s newsletter

Meeting this Week

For this meeting, we’ll be combining our theme of requirements and advancement. We’ll be doing the Push-up, Sit-up, Sit-and-reach, and Mile Run requirements. If you have a stopwatch, definitely bring it. That’d be super helpful. We’ll also be doing first aid requirements; if you have a first aid kit, bring it. I’ll have bandages and such as well as my own first aid kit. See you Tuesday and I hope you enjoy(ed) your holidays!  

Troop Changes

We’re going to begin doing Patrol Leader Councils (PLCs). For December and January they will be the first Tuesday of the month, but for the other months they will be the last meeting of the month. I’ll email the Patrol Lead Council (SPL, ASPL, Patrol Leaders, and Scribe) with more information. 

Upcoming Event

On December 14th, we will be doing a white elephant gift trade as well as decorating name sticks for an advancement board. If you’re going to bring a gift for the white elephant, please keep the gifts under $20 and scout appropriate. I’d recommend buying them sooner rather than later. More on that meeting to come.

Court of Honor December 7th

Next Tuesday we will hold a join Court of Honor with Troop 77. If you need to be an MC for a Court of Honor for the Communications Merit Badge and would like to volunteer please let Autumn know ASAP.

December Camping Trip

Our December Campout is a trip to Georgia’s “Little Grand Canyon”, Providence Canyon State Park. Known as one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Georgia, Providence Canyon provides some of the most unique and scenic views in the state. Find all of the details and register on the Camping and Outings Page.

Cumberland Island Camping Trip

We have extended the deadline for registration for Cumberland Island to Wednesday November 17th, and made some changes to transportation plan, lowering the cost of the trip. For parents and Scouts who did not experience many Troop campouts prior to COVID, you are accustomed to transporting your Scout to and from the campout. With this trip, we are returning to Attending Adults driving all Scouts and every Scout will have a ride to and from the campout. Just as we would have done on the coach bus, wearing masks are assumed at this point. As we get closer to the campout, COVID precautions will be determined. Get details and the registration link on the Camping and Outings Page.

Philmont High Adventure Base 2023

As hard as it is to believe, It is time to start making plans for Troop 177’s first Philmont trip during the the Summer of 2023. If you have any interest (no matter how remote) in attending Philmont 2023 (which will be a combined Units trip with Troop 77, Troop 177, and Venture Crew 77; although, you do not have to be in a co-ed Crew if you don’t want to be), then please email Mr. Cole at ctcole0308@gmail.com and put “PHILMONT 2023” in the Subject line. You can attend Philmont with us in 2023 if you are 14 by the Summer of 2023 time (for practical purposes, please use June 1st as our departure date; although, our actual departure date will likely be later in the summer), OR if you are 13 and have COMPLETED the 8th Grade by the Summer of 2023. While it appears travel and ancillary costs will remain relatively close in 2023 to what they are right now for our 2022 trip, Philmont is raising its prices again. Our best guess estimate is your total all-in cost for 2023 (Philmont fees, Travel (air and ground) fees, Miscellaneous fees, and Souvenirs) will be approximately $2,800. Keep in mind there are a limited number of Philmont Scholarships that are available and other activities (such as fundraising) that can be done to help mitigate some of the costs. In addition, we are constantly evaluating travel options and costs to be as Thrifty as possible. As some of you may know, Philmonts’ fees remained virtually unchanged or increased nominally for decades, and the now consistent nearly 10% year-over-year fee increases are simply a normalization of what probably should have been happening for the last 20 years and wasn’t.

The lottery for Philmont opens this week and we need to know how many spots to reserve. If you are at all interested in going, please contact Mr. Cole by the end of our meeting on Tuesday to let him know you are interested.

Service Opportunities

We have updated the Community Service Page with a number of opportunities coming up this fall. Service hours are required for all ranks, and many merit badges and awards (like the 50th Anniversary EPA Award).

Oak Grove Youth Christmas Tree Lot

The OGUMC Youth Christmas Tree lot is back in 2021! This is a great opportunity to earn service hours. There are 2 ways to serve:

  • Set up the lot on Saturday, November 20: We need 8 scouts to set up the Christmas Tree Lot on Saturday, November 20 from 1-3 PM. Please sign up as individuals or (better yet) as a patrol Troop 77 Christmas Tree Lot Setup Signup.
  • Staff the lot! Youth and adults are needed every day to staff the Christmas Tree Lot! Put your sales skills to work, and help families find the PERFECT tree! Sign up for an available shift on the OGUMC Christmas Tree Lot Signup Form.

Merit Badge Opportunities

We have three classes left for 2021:

On Tuesday, November 16th, join Chayne Sparagowski of the Atlanta-Fulton County Emergency Management Agency for Emergency Preparedness merit badge. Please note that the class starts at 6:00! For more information and to sign up, click here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c054fa4aa2baaf94-emergency

Our Weather merit badge class with Mr. Taylor has been rescheduled for Sunday, November 28th. If you are interested, follow the link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c054fa4aa2baaf94-weather

Atlanta Area Council offers many merit badge offerings throughout the year.
More information about these and other Merit Badge programs at: https://www.atlantabsa.org/meritbadgedays

Chattahoochee Nature Center offers nature themed merit badge classes on the weekends in the Spring through Fall. There are no upcoming classes, but check back often for new offerings.
For more information and to register visit: https://www.chattnaturecenter.org/education/scouts/scouts-bsa/

Dunwoody Nature Center also offers a number of nature related Merit Badges. Upcoming classes include: Environmental Science January 15 & 16, and Bird Study February 19.
Learn more and register at: https://dunwoodynature.org/scout-merit-badges/

Daniel Boone Council headquartered in Asheville, NC has a rolling slate of virtual merit badge programs, with new merit badges offered every week. These are usually two sessions in the late afternoon or evening. There are quite a few popular merit badges including a large selection of Eagle Required. These usually fill up, but if you look at later weeks, there are plenty of seats still open.
Learn more and register at: https://www.danielboonecouncil.org/virtual

Merit Badge Process

For any Merit Badge that a Scout works on, the first step in the process is to have a discussion with the Scoutmaster or Assistant Scoutmaster and get a signed blue card. While Troop 177 has embraced digital blue cards, Scouts still need to have a discussion with one of the adult leaders in the troop and get either a physical or digital sign off before beginning wok on the Merit Badge. You are welcome to sign up for any of the Merit Badges offerings that are listed on the website, please remember to talk to Mr. Taylor or one of the ASMs to get approval for the merit badge before taking the class.

Troop Communication

Please be sure to join our Remind Classes to get notifications on all of the Troop 177 happenings. There is an app, but you can choose to get notifications via text messages or email.

Troop 177 Parents

Troop 177 Scouts