Boy Scout Troop 55
Glen Ridge, NJ 07028
MSG.GLENRIDGESCOUTS.COM

Arctic Challenge

Hello All,
Our first trip of the new year is coming up this weekend (1/21-1/22). We will be participating in the newly designed Arctic Challenge at Camp Glen Gray. Senior Patrol will be going up Friday evening with me and Mr. Davitt. We will likely leave around 7:00. The rest of the troop should meet at Linden Saturday morning for a 7:30 AM departure. I will have the troop sled at Glen Gray with the necessary materials for the challenge.

Senior Patrol will be running the "Leave no Trace" town. We will set this up Saturday morning before participants arrive. We will be staying in a heated cabin near the dining hall. Dinner will be provided by the Cedar Grove troop on Saturday night. Scouts should bring lunch for Saturday. If desired, Scouts can bring breakfast for Sunday but we won't be cooking anything.

It will be cold and it might even snow. Everyone should dress appropriately. If you don't know what to bring please contact your patrol leader. If you don't know who your patrol leader is...please contact me.

I need to let the camp know how many people will be attending as soon as possible. Please RSVP to me at your earliest convenience. Cost will vary depending on how many participate (the more people that go the cheaper it will be per person). Dinner on Saturday is $10 each plus whatever the cabin and participation fees come out to. I will have Paula (our new treasurer) send out bills on our return. 

Please let me know if you have questions.

See you there,

Jeff
Posted by Jeff P. at Monday, January 16, 2012 4:25 PM | Add Comment

Meeting Cancelled 1/9/2012

Hello All,
I've just been informed that the custodian is ill and so the school will not be open for our meeting tonight. Unfortunately, this means we will not have a meeting before our upcoming Klondike trip on 1/21. I will be calling everyone to update them on this trip and try to make arrangements over the phone. As you all know, next Monday is MLK Holiday so we won't have a meeting that day either. Still, plan for the Klondike at Glen Gray.  I'll be in touch...

Jeff
Posted by Jeff P. at Monday, January 09, 2012 10:35 AM | Add Comment

Parent's meeting redux

Ok, let's try again....

There will not be a meeting 1/16 as it is MLK day. So, we'll schedule the meeting for the next Monday 1/23.

Best,
Jeff
Posted by Jeff P. at Thursday, January 05, 2012 11:25 PM | Add Comment

Parent's meeting postponed until 1/16

Hello All,
By popular request we've postponed the parent's meeting scheduled for 1/9 until the following Monday 1/16. This will be held during the regularly scheduled Scout meeting at Linden at 7:30 PM. Up for discussion will be nominations / election for various troop positions including Scout Master. I hope everyone will attend.

Best,
Jeff
Posted by Jeff P. at Thursday, January 05, 2012 9:07 PM | View Comments (1) | Add Comment

Refreshments Needed!!

Hello All,
Sorry about last week's meeting. Normally I am given some advance notice when the custodian will be out. That wasn't the case this time.

We have traditionally held a "holiday party" during the last meeting of the year. This year is no exception. This coming Monday will be the last meeting of 2011. Additionally, the Webelos from Pack 1 will be joining us to learn a little more about Scouts and to fulfill their Arrow of Light requirements. All Scouts are encouraged to attend and share stories of their adventures so far. Parents and siblings are invited to join us as well.

I'm hoping each Scout's family can donate either treats or drinks to the fray. I'll bring cups, ice, plates napkins etc.  Please let me know what you can send and I'll try to tweak it appropriately.

Thanks,
Jeff
Posted by Jeff P. at Thursday, December 15, 2011 7:49 PM | View Comments (2) | Add Comment

Leadership Positions

Dear Troop 55 parents,

As most of you know, circumstances in my life will demand that I transition out of my current role as Troop 55 Scoutmaster by the end of this school year.  In fact, considering that we have to re-charter with the District and BSA in February, I think it’s most appropriate that I pass the torch (at least formally) before that time, so the new Scoutmaster can be listed on the 2012 charter.

John Rue (Jack’s dad), currently one of our two Assistant Scoutmasters, has expressed a willingness to serve in the Scoutmaster role, at least for next year.  But John has asked me to first be sure that anyone else who is interested in the job also has a chance to volunteer.  John has also asked that we conduct a formal election (even if he turns out to be unopposed), to be held only after John and any other candidates have been given an opportunity to explain how they’d like to see the Troop continue to evolve and grow in the near and medium term future.

One goal that John’s already shared with me, and with which I fully agree, is to revitalize the Troop Committee, so that the Scoutmaster is more clearly implementing decisions made by the Committee, rather than making such decisions on his own.  To that end, Frank Reda (Julian’s dad) has volunteered to be the interim chair of the Committee (just through the next meeting, at which the election of both a new Scoutmaster and a new Committee Chair will take place).  Both in light of how busy folks can be during the holidays, and also to give people a chance to volunteer, we’d like to schedule that meeting right after New Year – probably concurrently with the first weekly Troop meeting of 2012.

So please save the date (tentatively January 9, 2012) for the Committee meeting/election.  And in the meantime, if you would like to volunteer either as Scoutmaster or Committee Chair, please email Frank at frankreda@comcast.net.

Best regards,

Jeff


Posted by Jeff P. at Friday, December 09, 2011 3:07 PM | Add Comment

Harriman trip: Maps

Here are a few maps for the trip this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Overview map of the Harriman hike
Friday hiking map
Saturday hiking map
Sunday hiking map

Here's a link to directions to the parking area. The parking area is at Tiorati Circle in Harriman State Park, NY.
http://g.co/maps/y4ak3

Posted by John D. at Tuesday, November 22, 2011 2:17 PM | View Comments (1) | Add Comment

Train Trip Changes

Hello All,
Due to the incoming N'or Easter we're changing our trip plans a bit. We will still meet tomorrow morning at the GR train station around 6:45. We'll take the train in to Penn and hike to Grand Central. From there we'll take a train North to Cold Springs, NY where we will spend the day hiking and honing our cooking skills. We will not spend the night. We should be back in GR around 6:45 PM. Patrols should plan to bring the food they were planning to have for dinner and we will cook it for lunch. Senior Patrol and Adults can bring food or buy it in Cold Springs. 

Everyone should pack as though they will be spending the night. This means tents, clothes etc. We need to be prepared in case we get stuck up there and need to spend the night. It will be cold and wet. Everyone should have layered clothing, a pack cover and a poncho or rain clothes. Don't forget a hat, gloves and an extra pair of socks.

Please call or e-mail if you have questions.

See you in the morning,
Jeff
Posted by Jeff P. at Friday, October 28, 2011 5:58 PM | View Comments (1) | Add Comment

Upcoming Train Trip

Hello All,
Following are a few details on the upcoming trip this weekend (10/29 and 10/30):

We need to meet at the GR Train Station at 6:45 am Saturday Morning. We will take the 7:00 train to Penn Station and we will then walk to Grand Central Station where we will pick up a 9:00 train to our destination near Pawling, NY. Tickets from Glen Ridge are $6.50 each way and the tickets to Pawling are $28.00 round trip. The Pawling fare is less for 11 year olds. Please make sure you come with cash for the train tickets. 

When we reach Pawling we will disembark at a train stop designated for hikers on the Appalachian Trail. We will hike approximately 3-4 miles to a shelter where we will set up camp. Patrols will be cooking together and their menus have been planned and (hopefully) executed. If you have questions, please contact your patrol leader. Patrol tents will be supplied as well. Patrols will be preparing dinner Saturday evening and breakfast Sunday morning. Everyone should bring a lunch for Saturday and money for BBQ lunch on Sunday ($10 or so). Adults and Senior patrol members are responsible for their own food and shelter. We should be back to the GR Train station around 5 pm Sunday.

A few tips:
Everyone should bring the following:
Pack
Sleeping bag
Sleeping Pad
warm clothes
hat
flashlight
knife
personal mess kit
toiletries

This is a "shake down" hike designed to prepare everyone for the "big hike" in Harriman State Park next month. Please let me know if you have more questions. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone on this trip.

jeffpitcher@comcast.net  or 973-650-3232
Best,
Jeff
Posted by Jeff P. at Tuesday, October 25, 2011 6:26 PM | Add Comment

Train to the Trail

There will be a detailed "blog blast" later today/tonight on this weekend's camping trip, but I just wanted to note 2 things.

1) It will be cold this weekend in Pawling, NY. We're looking for low temperatures near 32 degrees and highs in the 40s. Be sure, you have hat /gloves, hand warmers/warm clothes packed.

 2) There is parking near the shelter that we're camping at. So if somebody wants to come up later on Saturday or drop off people later on Saturday, it's possible. Pawling, NY is about a 90 minute trip(each way) from Glen Ridge.
Posted by John D. at Tuesday, October 25, 2011 1:51 PM | Add Comment
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