I hope you had a great summer!  The troop is spinning back up and there are a lot of important things to go over, so please read this through.

First, this week we will transition back from summer meetings to the first of the regular scheduled meetings of the fall. As it is the first Wednesday of the Month, it is Class A.

We are only one week a way from the Troop Fall Kickoff Picnic and Court of Honor!  If you have not signed up, please do so ASAP! Help the planners plan! www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0c48a4ae238-2018 The picnic/CoH is at CoF and goes from 5pm to 7:30pm on Sunday, Sept 9th.

IMPORTANT: I have received reports that there was only ONE advancement (increase in rank) reported to Mr. Tucker since the last Court of Honor.  I know there are more than that! That means that scouts who advanced over the summer did bring their books back to Mr. Tucker to get it entered into Toopmaster. Scouts are reminded to do this at everymeeting. If you think your scout moved up in rank since the last CoH, please contact me immediately. We need to get patches, and add them to the program. Your scout must also bring their scoutbook to Wednesday’s meeting.

We have a busy, and exciting September. Our first campout is the Flying Circus Fall camporee. This is the weekend of September 28th. We will leave Friday at 4PM, and return Sunday Morning. We will use the September meetings to get our trailer and chuckboxes ready ahead of the camporee. So scouts should try to attend the next few meetings to help out. The camporee is not only a fun time, but an opportunity to reach out to webelos from nearby packs, as well as work on Merit badges. http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C4AACAE2CA7FA7-powhatan   More details on the camporee and merit badges offered will come out soon.

YIS, Gregg Dorn

More details on the camporee and merit badges offered will come out soon.
YIS, Gregg Dorn
…Sent from my Raspberry Pi

Sorry for the late notice, but we are going to hold the annual troop swim test *this Wednesday at Pinecrest Pool in place of Wednesday’s meeting. * Our attempts to get this done earlier with Oak Hill Community Center have been unsuccessful, so with time running out, we have elected to move the event to Pinecrest Pool, which is on the corner of Pinecrest Dr and Fox Mill Rd.
*If anyone is still in need of Scoutmaster Conferences please contact me. For Board of Reviews, please contact Mr. Tucker. *We will find a way to get these done this week.
*ALL active scouts and ASMs are requested to attend and take the test, regardless of whether you are going to summer camp. *
*Scouts and ASMs going on summer camp are expected to be there if at all possible.*
The swim test is an official BSA test that identifies each person as a *SWIMMER, BEGINNER or NONSWIMMER. * It must be taken every year, and held by a certified lifeguard. * All persons are considered nonswimmers until they take the BSA test with the troop. No exceptions. *
*If scouts and ASMs going to summer camp cannot take the test this Wednsday, they will need to do so at Camp Shenandoah. *That is historicaly a significant inconvenience, as you will get batched in with a few hundred other people.
The following is a description of the tests:
*Swimmer*
– Jump feet first < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Diving> into water over the head, level off, and begin swimming. – Swim 75 yards in a strong manner using one or more of the following strokes: sidestroke < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Sidestroke>, breaststroke < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Breaststroke>, trudgen < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Trudgen>, or crawl < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Crawl>; then swim 25 yards using an easy resting backstroke < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Backstroke>. – The 100 yards must be completed without stops and must include at least one sharp turn < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Swimming_turns>. – Rest by floating < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Floating>…Long enough to demonstrate ability to rest when exhausted.
*Beginner*
– Jump feet first < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Diving> into water over the head, level off, and begin swimming. – Swim 25 feet on the surface. – Stop, turn < meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Swimming_turns>, and resume swimming back to the starting place.
*Non-Swimmer*
– Did not complete either of the swimming tests.
Any questions, please let me know.
YIS, Gregg Dorn
…Sent from my Raspberry Pi

On Thursday, June 7th, the troop will go to the roll top Observatory at Turner Farm. This is an excellent opportunity to work on the Astronomy MB, or simply just to learn about and see celestial objects through a new million-dollar facility.
Please arrive at CoF by 6:15 PM. We expect to return no later than 9:30PM
We will start with a 20-30 minute discussion/classroom, followed by an hour of observation through the facility’s telescopes.
We do need drivers. Adults, when you sign up, please indicate how many scouts you can take.
If there is bad weather on the 7th, we will go the following night on Friday, June 8th.
SIGN-UP GENIUS LINK: www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0a4da9a62fa46-troop3

Tonight’s meeting is Patrol Leader Council. Only PLC members come tonight. PLC meeting is only 1 hour long, from 7pm to 8pm.
However, if you have checks and/or Medical Forms to turn in for summer camp, Kristen Schopp will be at CoF from 7 to 7:30.