Boy Scouts of America - February 2012 Calendar of Events For the real calendar, go to www.bsatroop389.com. Click on Activities Troop Calendar All regular meetings are located at the Lincoln School MP room from 6:30 7:30 pm. The first meeting of the month is a Field Uniform inspection (Class A). Feb. 4 Moose Patrol and Dragon Patrol Meetings Feb. 6 Troop Meeting; Committee Meeting, 6:45 PM; Buffalo Patrol Meeting Feb. 11 Moose Patrol Meeting Feb. 13, 20 No Troop Meetings (School closed) Feb. 17-19 Klondike snow camporee (Cisco Grove) Feb. 27 No Troop Meeting; PLC (Patrol Leader's Council), 6:30 PM Committee Meeting, 6:45 PM Looking Ahead. Mar. 2-4 OA Spring Fellowship campout Mar. 3 Pack 46 Blue & Gold/Arrow Of Light/Bridging Mar. 15 Pack 389 Arrow Of Light/Bridging Ceremony Mar. 16-18 Klondike (Tahoe Regional Park) Scoutmasters Make a Quinzee Shelter Troop 389 Scouts Smile While Lassen Fumes at the Sulphur Works The Best Patrol Meeting Ever! By: Brett Spiess When my patrol (Buffalos) went to the Fishing Expo at Cal Expo, we were amazed at how many cool things they had there. We first went to the main tent and saw many cool boats. [Continued on Page 3] Buffalo Patrol at the Fishing Expo Page 1 of 6
David was here Page 2 of 6
[Continued from Page 1] We also got to learn to make our own fly fishing flies!! We all caught trout in a inside pond! We all did a fishing simulator and shot guns! Also, I ate a monster corn dog. After the great day we went to Mel s Diner for a great dinner! We all came home with so many epic prizes and free gear including graphite fly fishing poles, camo gear, hats, a $100 Archery gift certificate, and much more. It was AWESOME! It was the best of all patrol meetings we have ever done. It will be hard to top it! Thank you very much to Mr. Respicio and Mr. and Mrs. Graham for coming along and letting us have a good time! Page 3 of 6
Scoutmaster Minute: Training Once a year, the Golden Empire Council offers classes of interest to all Scout parents. The Saturday smorgasbord of seminars provides a venue for Scouters to learn new skills, share ideas, and sharpen leadership vision. While some units ignore this opportunity to improve, Troop 389 came out in full force. Six adults from our Troop attended classes, while two of our Assistant Scoutmasters, Richard Saldivar and Ray Grant taught their own courses. Hats off to our Scouts, Kobie R., Jason P., Steven C., and Daniel R., who also attended, learning about such topics as Den Chief training and Leave No Trace. Snow Didn't Stop Them! Assistant Scoutmasters Tim Graham (far left) and Steve Pruitt (second from right) completed their Okpik training in January. Okpik, the Inuit term for Snowy Owl, is the cold-weather camping awareness course offered by the Golden Empire Council's High Adventure Team. This training allows our Troop to participate in Councilsponsored Klondike campouts. Be sure to thank these two gentlemen for giving up two weekends to learn how to keep our Scouts safe in the snow. I firmly believe that in order to have the best Troop, you must have the most training. I've been to more Scout training sessions than I care to admit, but I still come away with ideas to help our Troop improve. A couple of my favorite classes: Mainstreaming Scouts with Special Needs and Desert Camping. Next year, I hope you'll consider coming with us to the University of Scouting to gather more ideas to make our Troop the best that it can be. Steve and Tim pitching a tent in the snow Page 4 of 6
Family Life Hmmm. Anyone remember the Family Life Merit Badge? Some boys started it almost a year ago and haven t completed it yet! If you re not sure if you signed up or not, please call or email, or talk to me at a troop meeting. Remember, there is no time limit (except your Eagle project) to getting this done, but the one year anniversary is coming up for 10 of you. Thanks, Mrs. Graham Did you know that... There were seven different patrol meetings in the month of January? Two patrols have nearly completed their requirements for National Honor Patrol? Two more patrols are on their way to National Honor Patrol? National Honor Patrol recipients receive a special patch that is worn next to the patrol patch on their uniform? At Court of Honor, Scoutmaster checks ID on Eagle Scout and new ASM, Greg G. National Boy Scout Jamboree 2013 HOW DO I SIGN UP? Just go the GEC website at www.gec-bsa.org, www.gec-bsa.org, click on Program, then National Jamboree. Join several Scouts from our Troop and visit Historical sites in D.C., Pennsylvania, Gettysburg, and Camp with 40,000 Boy Scouts from around the nation! (July 11-25, 2013) CJ's Service Project was Tougher than he Originally Thought! Life Rank Service Project To attain the rank of Life Scout, one of the requirements is to take part in service projects totaling at least 6 hours of work. These projects must be approved by your Scoutmaster (Req. #4). CJ S. recently completed this requirement by organizing a service project at the Yuba County Animal Care Service. He and several other Scouts from our Troop cleaned and reorganized the sheds. In fact, they did such a great job that the Shelter ran out of jobs for them to do! Great job, CJ and Troop 389! Page 5 of 6
How to build a quinzee snow shelter By Rosemarie Colombraro Illustrations by Matthew Vincent From the January 2006 issue of Boys' Life magazine Step 3: Use the last foot of snow to make elevated snowbeds. Dig a narrow trench between the beds all the way to the ground. This allows cold air to flow down and out of the quinzee. Poke a small ventilation hole near the top of the dome. A quinzee is a simple shelter made by hollowing out a big pile of snow. They can take several hours to build, but are an effective way to stay warm when camping in the winter. Here s how to build one. BUILDING A QUINZEE Step 1: Shovel a pile of snow into a mound seven to eight feet high and big enough around to hold two people once it is hollowed out. Mix snow of different temperatures to cause it to harden, or sinter. Flip the snow over so it mixes when you pile it into a mound. Step 3 Step 4 Step 4: Building a quinzee will make you sweat. Prevent hypothermia by changing into warm dry clothes after you finish building your shelter. Make sure you mark your entrance in case it gets covered with snow while you are away having fun. Keep a small shovel inside in case you need to dig your way out. Step 1 Step 2 Step 2: Shape the mound into a dome and allow it to sinter for about 90 minutes. Then begin to hollow out the mound. Dig a small entrance on the downhill side. Smooth out the walls and ceiling. The walls should be one to two feet thick. Poke measuring sticks through from the outside of the mound, so you will know to stop hollowing out the inside when you see the ends of the sticks. Hollow the shelter out from the top down. WINTER CAMPING TIPS - If you have to visit the latrine in the middle of the night, eat a snack afterward to help warm up your body and get back to sleep. Don t worry about keeping the snacks in your quinzee when you camp in winter, you don t have to worry about bears. - Jell-O gelatin mix makes a great hot drink. Store Jello-O powder in refillable backpacking tubes and add it to hot water. Try cherry Jell-O in instant hot chocolate! - Eat your meals from their packages. Vacuumsealed meals and packages of oatmeal can be opened and used as bowls. If you don t rip the top off completely, you ll have only one piece of trash to dispose of. - Bury your water jugs in a snowdrift. The snow insulates the water and keeps it from freezing. http://boyslife.org/outdoors/outdoorarticles/2992/how-to-build-a-quinzee-snow-shelter/ Page 6 of 6