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April 13, 2006
Dear Cub Scout Leader:
Hope everyone is having a
glorious spring!!! It is beautiful outside!!! Unaka District has a lot to be
happy about right now—we have a new, excited District Executive, Mark Janeway.
Mark is originally from Maryville, is a graduate of ETSU, and a great
outdoorsman and athlete. WELCOME, MARK!!! We look forward to working with
you!!!
We recently held our
District Pinewood Derby, where 37 Cub Scouts from
throughout the district raced their little hearts out at Calhoun Elementary.
Our overall winners for the day were 1st place—Tiger Cub Hunter Clark
of Pack 616; 2nd—Wolf Brodie Miller of Pack 614, and 3rd—Bear
Tristan Sneed from Pack 616. Our other winners were: Tigers: 1st
place Hunter Clark, 2nd place Joshua Mathews of Pack 114, and 3rd
place Greyson Boyd of Pack 114; Wolves: 1st Brodie Miller, 2nd
Jonathan Bailey of Pack 614, and 3rd Bryce Frerichs of Pack 114;
Bears: 1st Tristan Sneed, 2nd Michael Townsend of
Pack 616, and 3rd Jaxon Dixon of Pack 616; and Webelos: 1st
Treavor Johnson of Pack 74, 2nd Brent Firestone of Pack 616, and 3rd
Nathan McDowell of Pack 114. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WHO ATTENDED--every
boy there was a winner!! Also, many thanks to Phil and Christy Seibert and Pack
616 for a wonderful job on the derby!!
Our next special district event will be our
PIRATE GOLD RUSH (please note the change of event—a hike is not
possible at this site!!) on Saturday, May 6th, from 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.
at the spring camporee on Layman Farm (Old Browder Farm) between Niota and
Sweetwater. (located at the Monroe County line—turn at the pond and go in front
of Browder Church. Cubs should park along side of the road and will be doing
activities in the field next to the road). While there, the head pirate,
Blackbeard (??),
will roam the “ship”, looking for any scoundrels brave enough to carry more than
3 pieces of gold. Those caught with too many gold pieces will be thrown into
the “brig” for a few minutes. Boys work to collect beads, which will be counted
at the end of the day for prizes.
This is definitely a family event!! I hope
you will encourage your boys to attend!! Don’t forget that each pack is
responsible for at least 2 games or activities for the boys, to be played with
the gold pieces collected. You will need a container of some kind to put the
gold in that the boys hand you each time they play or do your station. Please
try to make your station one the boys will want to play! Decorating
pirate-style would be nice, as well as dressing up like pirates yourselves.
Please don’t forget ice water and cups for your pack—it gets very hot in the
sun!!
Fishing will be available at the pond
(located back off the road), but there MUST be a parent with each Scout at all
times. We do hope many of you will still plan to stay for the Order of the
Arrow “Tap-Out Ceremony”, which begins at dusk. This is a beautiful ceremony,
rich with tradition. Those of you who do plan to stay should remember to
bring your own supper to cook/eat. Please know that Spring Camporee
commemorative patches will be available at the Gold Rush for any and all Cub
Scouts at a price of $1.00 each.
You need to know that this is my last
newsletter of the year, since the Gold Rush is the last event of the Cub Scout
year, except for local Cub Scout camps. Yes, camps is correct, as
you now have the option of two local Cub Scout
camps this year!!! The first camp is a Twilight Camp in Madisonville
at Huston Park, from 5:00 – 9:00 p.m. (delivery time no earlier than 4:45,
pick-up time no later than 9:15) the week of June 19th – 23rd.
Melanie Carr and Becky Webb have been to national camp school and are ready to
organize a brand new camp in Madisonville. WAY TO GO MELANIE AND
BECKY!!! All boys entering 1st through 5th grade
throughout the district are invited to attend; rising Tiger Cubs must
have a parent attend with them. The theme is “CUBS AND BUGS!!” They
are still looking for staff. Please call Melanie at 423-295-4346 for more
information.
Please know that the twilight camp
fee is $50 for Scouts or non-Scouts before May 19th; that
fee includes a T-shirt. There will be a $10 discount for the children of camp
workers, and a $5 fee for tagalongs (younger siblings of campers). Also, they
need your help collecting the following items:
- clear 2- or 3-liter plastic bottles
(for bug habitats)
- big coffee cans or smaller peanut
cans with tight-fitting lids (for making ice cream)
The following week, June 26th –
30th, Leona Layman will direct a Day Camp at Knox Park in Athens
from 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. each day. The theme will also be “BUG OUT WITH
CUBS AND BUGS!!” Please call Leona at 745-9307 or 745-0075 or Margie Witt
at 920-0425 for more information or to volunteer time or supplies. Speaking
of supplies, they need the following items for camp:
- canning jars with rings
(for ant farms)
- PVC pipe
(for marshmallow shooters)
Again, camp is for soon-to-be Tiger Cubs
and up, entering 1st through 5th graders. Fees for
day camp are:
- $45 for Scouts (includes t-shirt)
- $50 for Non-Scouts
- $25 for workers’ children
- $5 t-shirt fee for Staff and PeeWees
Applications
are ready now and will be passed out at the Roundtable and available for
pick-up at the Crafters’ Closet or online at our district website
www.unakascouts.com. Please
give your parents these dates and begin soliciting day camp supplies!! A lot
of work has to take place between now and June 19th!! Please know
that we still need leaders, as well as snacks and action activities.
Please know that there are
camperships available for needy Scouts, from the council as well as from
our district (our Roundtable dues!). Cubmasters should decide what boys
receive the forms from the Council. Cubmasters should also submit names to
Leona or Melanie for consideration for local camperships as soon as
possible. Local camperships do not cover the entire cost of camp, but
generally are for one half of the expenses, as we are able to provide.
I need to let you know:
--that Phil Seibert would like to offer
all the Packs in the district the chance to list contact
information on our district website (still www.unakascouts.com) so
that potential Scouts and their parents can know where and when the different
packs meet. Each unit that would like to be listed should email Phil at
PhilSeib@philseib.cnc.net
and give him the following information: Cubmaster’s name and phone number, as
well as the pack/den meeting time and place. I don’t know about the rest of
you, but I truly appreciate all the time and effort Phil puts into this
website. It is a wonderful asset to our entire district!!!
--that our next Roundtable will be
Thursday, May 11th at 7:00 p.m. in Mars Hill Church’s Fellowship
Hall. Please plan to attend this fun evening, as we conduct our long-awaited
AUCTION with our hard-earned Cub Scout Bucks. Everyone is asked to bring
their required 3 items each for the auction, as well as a dessert and drinks.
Your items could be ones you have had donated by area businesses, or homemade
items—but whichever, we must have things to auction or there can be no
auction. Please do your share and help us all reap the rewards of all our
efforts this year!! Come and see just how greedy we sweet leaders can be. . .
--that there is a weekend event planned
for all Cub Scouts, Tigers to Webelos, called “Cub Family Camp”, at Camp Buck
Toms, on Saturday and Sunday April 29th – 30th. As
indicated, this is a family event, for ages 3 and above. The fee is $25 per
person, ($10 for 3, 4 and 5 year olds), and includes the Saturday supper and
Sunday breakfast. Tents and cots will be available, as well as opportunities
to do nothing at all, or lots of outdoor activities, such as fishing, crafts,
archery, BB guns, etc.
The deadline for registration is April 14th;
there may be late fees added after that time. If for some reason you cannot
attend this particular weekend, please be aware that there will be another
Family Camping weekend in the fall, August 26th – 27th
and October 14th – 15th.
--that Webelos Resident Camp is
scheduled for 2 different sessions, the first Thursday, July 20th
– Sunday, July 23rd --or--Thursday, July 27th – Sunday,
July 30th. . The cost is $85 per boy and $50 per adult. There is
a required adult to boy ratio of 1 to 4. This event is for all present Bears
(rising Webelos) and 1st year Webelos (rising 2nd year
Webelos).
--that you can obtain registration forms for all of the council camping
activities listed at the following address:
www.bsa-gsmc.org/events/2006_gsmc_camping_v3.pdf.
I promise it works—even I could bring up this
information!!!!!
--that Webelos who will be crossing over to a
troop this spring are eligible for Boy Scout Resident camp in June. If this
is the first year in a Boy Scout troop, they are eligible for a one-time $40
discount on the cost of summer camp! To get this discount, Scouts should
contact the OA representative for their troop. . . .
--that Dollywood is sponsoring Scout Days on
Friday, June 9th and June 10th !!! Tickets must be
pre-ordered by May 26th and are $25 plus tax ($27.90); you can pay
extra for breakfast and for lunch, as well as for special activities. Please
call 1-888-428-6789 or visit their website at
www.dollywood.com
for more specific information and order forms.
--that the Chattanooga Lookouts are
planning a SCOUT DAY AT BELLSOUTH PARK on Sunday, July 16th. All
Scouts and leaders in uniform will receive discounted tickets for $1.00;
family members and friends for $4.00, and group fees (25 or more) for $2.00
each. Please know that Packs registering before July 1st will
receive a patch commemorating Scout Day! For more information, please call
Karrie Ward at 423-267-2208.
--that the next training event is the “Introduction
to Outdoor Leadership Skills" course on May 20th – 21st
(2 day course with overnight involved; costs $25, which includes dinner on
Saturday night) This course is the final part of Scoutmaster specific
training, but our Training Chairman, Phil Seibert, is making is available to
Cub Scout leaders as well. He feels that it would be very helpful to the
Webelos leaders in particular.
--that Unaka District will have a Friends of Scouting Banquet this year
after all!!! Tuesday, May 23rd at Springbrook Golf and Country
Club, Coach Bruce Pearl of UT Basketball fame will be our guest speaker,
starting at 6:30 p.m. All Scouters are invited to attend this fun
fund-raising event!! He should be exciting if nothing else!!!
Thanks for all your time and efforts
this program year! I look forward to working with you to offer our district Cub
Scouts high quality events next year!! See you at the Gold Rush!!!!!!
Connie Akers
Unaka Program Chairman
746-9132
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