Our current first-year scouts will be patrol leaders in about three or four years. One way to be a good leader is first to be a good follower. Please help your son understand how important it is that he follows directions given to him by his patrol leader or assistant patrol leader on hikes. He should stay with his patrol and not drift off into other patrol campsites. Most of the patrol leaders are in eighth or ninth grade, and all have been in the troop at least two full years.

Every patrol leader has a duty roster prepared on the Monday before a hike so that all patrol members know their assignments for cooking, cleaning, and wood gathering, etc.  Please remind your son to do his fair share around the patrol campsite.

Troop leaders are teaching the patrol leaders how to be leaders. In most cases our patrol leaders have never before had the responsibility of leading a group of five to six other boys. The idea is to provide a lot of adult mentoring for the patrol leaders on the first few hikes and then back off to see if the patrol leader can lead his group the rest of the year. Scouting is a great leadership training experience for boys. If you can help your son be a good follower, then in a few years, we can help him be a great leader.

• Participate with your son, whether it be on the hikes or “behind the scenes”
• Get involved and stay involved with his progress in scouting
• Show up at meetings as you deem appropriate to let him know you are interested in his progress
• Check his Boy Scout Handbook periodically to see that he is on track for his next rank advancement
• Encourage your son to take charge of his scouting career
• Assist your son and encourage him to learn about his scouting skills and merit badges
• Talk to the Scoutmaster about any scheduling conflicts – beforehand!
• Be sure your son attends the hikes – these are important to his scouting career

• Don’t complete your son’s rank or merit badge requirements for him
• Don’t initial your son’s handbook – this is the responsibility of the Scoutmaster or other troop leaders.
• Don’t buy or allow your son to bring pop or candy on the hikes.  If your son has special diatary needs that necessitate snacking, please discuss it ahead of time with the Scoutmaster who will instruct your son’s patrol leader.
• Don’t pack your son’s clothes for the hike – he needs to do this himself. If he has packed it himself, he knows what he’s packed and where to find it.
• Don’t embark on merit badge requirements with your son until you have checked with the counselor for that badge to determine his requirements.
• Don’t make this a job for your son. Scouting is supposed to be fun! Let him discover some of the adventure himself.

We look forward to seeing everyone at first the camp-out (hike) in September. Learning camping, cooking, and other outdoor “scout skills” is the main focus of the September hike. We provide training for both first-year scouts and first-year dads typically learn as well. To accelerate independence and develop confidence, first-year scouts will be in different break-out groups during the weekend.

At a meeting prior to the first hike, each scout will be assigned to a Patrol. A Patrol is a group of seven or eight scouts who camp together and do hike activities as a unit. They are led by an older scout, the Patrol Leader, who is the first resource for questions from the first year Scouts.

At the first three Hikes (September, October, November), first year Scouts do not typically take part in the agenda of the older scouts, so that they may work on the Tenderfoot rank requirements.

Dinner is served to all Scouts and dads at about 8:15 PM or so on Friday night and you may arrive anytime between 5:00 PM and 7:00 PM.  It is easier to get the campsites set up before dark so please keep that in mind when possible.  Car pooling is a always a good idea and is often arranged informally at the troop meeting on the Monday before the hike. Scouts and dads also “sign up” to attend the hike on the sign-up sheet passed around at the troop meeting before the hike. Patrol leaders can help scouts find rides to the hike as a last resort. Maps to the hike campsite and driving directions are available on the troop website. The boys should bring their Boy Scout Handbooks and a pen on every hike.

An equipment list (gear) is provided in the first-year scout section on the website.

If first-year scouts and dads do not have backpacks, we suggest you use a duffle bag or soft sided bag to bring clothes and gear. Many first-year scouts will use the “points” they earn from selling Christmas wreaths to “buy” a really nice backpack and other gear at the Scout auction in early December. Our backpacking hike is in April and Scouts/dads can borrow a backpack if they still need one in April.

It may be cool, so bring wool socks and a fleece jacket and bring rain gear as always. Inexpensive hiking boots are a good idea. Spray boots with waterproofing material from an aerosol spray can if not already waterproof. It is not necessary to wear scout uniforms on hikes. Put some dry clothes in a Zip-Loc bag or equivalent in case of rain. Bring an extra trash bag or two to put duffle bags in to keep everything dry. We camp rain or shine and with rain gear and dining flys we have no problem. A small towel is a good idea to wipe off boots. The tents used by the scouts have floors and vestibules (entry ways for wet boots and gear). Each tent holds three to four scouts.

We need a BSA health forms (completed as part of registration) for every Scout and adult attending hikes.  A health form is provided on our Troop 174 website.

Most Scouts and Dads bring folding “bag chairs” of the kind people use to watch athletic events so that they have somewhere to sit.

Our first-year Scout plan shows what we will do on the hikes. The first-year scouts will sleep and eat in patrols but will advance in rank as a first-year group while the more senior scouts participate in other activities. All scouts cook by patrol. Please have the boys read the sections of the Boy Scout Handbook about knife, saw, ax use, and fire building.

Please contact the first-year scout leaders or Scoutmaster with any questions.

We break camp early Sunday morning and coffee, juice, milk, and donuts are served at the bus before circle up and dismissal. The goal is to allow time for everyone to get home on Sunday morning by about 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM for church, football practice, or other family activities.

Troop Committee (Parents)

Fathers of first-year scouts are encouraged to attend monthly troop committee meetings (parents only – no scouts) and join their sons on hikes. The committee operates the troop throughout the year and meets at 7:00 PM the first Wednesday of every month. First-year dads are encouraged to attend. After a one hour (max) session to review troop meetings and discuss the activities on the next hike, refreshments are served. Two dads serve as “Hike Reps” each month. These dads assist with coordinating the activities on the hikes following the plan established by the Troop Committee at the planning session the previous June. The Hike Reps describe the plan for the upcoming hike at the Troop Committee meeting and the Committee discusses the plan. Scoutmaster Frank Otte is our “Chief Operating Officer.” He reports to the Troop Committee and leads the scouts at all troop meetings and on all hikes.

Wreath Sales/Ski Trip

Each year the troop takes a trip to Winter Park, CO to ski over President’s Day weekend. Scouts can take this trip at no cost if they sell the required number of wreaths.  This is a great experience for the Scouts and we encourage all first-year scouts to participate. Even if Scouts do not intend to attend the ski trip, they will be required to sell wreaths as wreath sales support troop activities and purchase and provide maintenance of our camping equipment.

October Hike

For first-year scouts, help them stay dry by packing socks (several pairs) and underwear separately in 1 gallon Zip Loc bags. If their pack or bag gets wet, those important clothes will stay dry. Wool socks are best. DO NOT send cotton socks – once wet, they stay wet. Inexpensive polypropylene T-shirts are great and better than cotton. Everyone needs boots and rain gear of some kind. Tennis shoes in rainy or damp weather are cold. They need to be prepared for rain. Inside the tent, they need to keep sleeping bag and clothes from touching the tent wall since that is when water transfer happens.

Please bring rain gear and hiking boots (with two pair of socks) as in October we may be completing the 5-mile hike requirement for Tenderfoot rank. Inexpensive “clodhopper” boots can be obtained at Target and Wal-Mart. Use “spray-on” waterproofing treatment if boots are not waterproof. Bring a bottle to carry water on the hike. Stay warm with fleece pullovers and jackets rather than cotton sweatshirts (when cotton gets wet, it stays wet).

***We have reminded the first-year scouts to stay with their patrols in camp and participate in patrol meal preparation and cleanup. This is the second hike for the new scouts so we expect them to begin to assimilate into the troop and patrol structure and follow directions given by their patrol leader. Reminders from you about these matters at the drop-off are appreciated

BRING YOUR SCOUT HANDBOOK ON THE HIKE!

Board of Review (BoR)

You may hear during the Monday meetings of scheduled reviews for advancement called a Board of Review. First Years do not have to attend these; their advancement to Tenderfoot through Board of Review will be handled separately, by the first year leaders.

Weekly Meetings:

• If any of the first year scouts has makeup work missed from one of the hikes or meetings, November meetings are the time to catch up.
• Wreath money turn in: Starting the Monday after Thanksgiving, the scouts will turn in any collected wreath money, each Monday. Troop Committee members will re-count what the scout has counted, and any discrepancies corrected that night.

November Hike

We need for every first-year scout to attend the November Hike since this is the Tenderfoot board of reviews will be completed.

Advancement to Tenderfoot Rank on November Hike

The Tenderfoot Scoutmaster Conference and Board of Review will be held on Saturday during the hike. Each first-year scout will need to wear his Scout uniform shirt.  This is the one exception in which they will need a Scout uniform shirt on the hike. The scouts will need to bring that Scout uniform shirt to wear during the Tenderfoot Scoutmaster conference and board of review that will take place on the November hike. They also need their Boy Scout Handbook rope, and pen.

The Tenderfoot requirements can be found in the Boy Scout Handbook. Please make sure that your son reads this material carefully and is prepared to answer questions from a troop leader during the Scoutmaster conference on the November hike to show that he knows the material.

We have a chart showing each Scout’s progress to date. This will be emailed to the first year parents periodically, to review your scout’s progress. Any uncompleted requirements can be completed on this hike in the morning before the board of review.

If your son cannot attend the hike, please let us know. We will try to hold a special Scoutmaster conference and Board of Review at the scout meeting next Monday night for any scout not on the November hike due to illness or other significant family event. You will need to arrange that with us as we will be moving on to other work with the boys on the Monday after the hike.

Wreath Pickup – Saturday before Thanksgiving

• Wreaths sold by your scout will be ready for pick up at the Riviera Club parking lot on the Saturday morning before thanksgiving, starting at 8:00 AM to no later than 12:00 PM.
• All wreaths must be picked up on pick up day  Contact Wreath Chairman (David Diedrich) with questions.

Tenderfoot Court of Honor – Monday after Thanksgiving

Please plan to have your whole family join us on Monday night after Thanksgiving Day at 7:00 PM as we honor your son’s advancement to the first rank of Tenderfoot. Parents will “be on stage” with their son. Relatives are welcomed. This is a big deal and we hope that you can join us. Refreshments are served after the ceremony. Bring your camera.

No hike is scheduled in December yet it is an active month at Troop 174. First-year scouts need to make the first aid kits described on page 289 of the Scout Handbook at home. They need to bring these kits to the first Troop Meeting in January.

The Party Of The Year happens on a Saturday Night, Adults Only. Check the calendar for date and location. No fees to pay, nothing to bring, all is taken care of by the Troop leadership, just come and have fun.

A scout auction is held on a Sunday afternoon in December and Scouts bid against each other to acquire gear by redeeming “points” they earned by selling Christmas wreaths. Many first-year scouts can acquire a sleeping bag, thermal pad, or backpack if they sell enough wreaths to attend the ski trip.

Weekly Meetings:

• During the Monday night meetings, the new Tenderfoot Scouts again split off from the older scouts during merit badge classes, just as they did in the fall. The first-years will stay with the first year leaders, to begin work on their next rank. Many who are diligent in their efforts may achieve Second Class rank by the end of the Scout year.
• While the Scouts will have the benefit of a facilitator helping them on their path to the next rank, it is time for them to take charge of their advancement, keeping their scout book and the advancement record current, and taking the initiative to accomplish each of the Second Class requirements

Scout Physical:

• For any scouting activity of more than three days (including the ski trip and Ransburg summer camp), each Scout and adult Scouter must have a physician’s signature on BSA Med Form Part C. This entails taking a physical and having the doctor fill out and sign the BSA form.
• The troop is lucky to have the involvement of a number of parents who are physicians, and before some of the Monday meetings in January they offer physicals to any who show up, free of charge. You can of course go to your own physician, as long as they are fill out and sign BSA form Part C.

January Hike – Folding into the patrol with the older scouts

• If winter camping will be a new experience, it no doubt will be a source of some apprehension (for both the scout and any parents who will attend). Not to worry. Every preparation needed will be communicated to the scouts, and the patrol leaders will be a source of guidance and comfort to the first years. Your scout and you will be educated on everything you need. If your personal equipment is lacking, don’t be shy about speaking up; there is the equivalent of a small-retail-store’s-inventory of equipment among troop members, and all are happy to lend what you need to stay warm and dry.
• Now that the first year Scouts have achieved their first rank of Tenderfoot, they take part with their patrols in the same agenda as the older scouts.
• Part of the duties of each patrol is cleaning of tents after the hike. The First Years have been spared this duty while they acclimated into the Patrol and concentrated on achieving rank, but now are expected to contribute to this responsibility. On Sunday upon departing the hike, some First Year Scouts will be taking a tent home to be dried, cleaned, re-packed, and brought back to the Monday night meeting. All tents go to Mr. Slattery, equipment manager, at the Monday night meeting the next day.

Troop Committee Walk and meeting in February

• There is a Troop 174 tradition for the February Troop Committee meeting. It is a dinner at a local restaurant, preceded by the bridge walk. All are invited to both; there is a small cost for the dinner.  See the calendar for details but the walk departs from its starting point at 4:30 PM. The dinner is at 7:00 PM; check the troop calendar for location as the date approaches.

 Swim Test and water requirements for 2^nd Class and 1^st Class (Riviera Club):

• Sometime in February, March, or April, the troop sets up an opportunity for all scouts to take the BSA Swim test, which is good for one year. This will be important for any Scouts looking planning to attend Ransburg summer camp, participation in many of the summer High Adventure trips offered, as well as canoeing activities on the Troop’s monthly hikes.
• For First Years, we will also be completing the aquatic requirements for both their Second Class and First Class rank advancement. It is a great opportunity and every effort should be made to be there.

Weekly Meetings:

• The first years will continue their work with the first year leaders toward Second Class rank. Continue to bring scout book, pen, and rope to each meeting.
• There are only a couple general meetings during February, due to the ski trip and its planning meeting.

*** Note to Scouts and Parents: To pass the First Class Board of Review (they’ve got time, don’t rush), each Scout will need to know (i.e., memorize) the First Aid information in Chapter 11 (pp. 287-329). Please help your Scout begin to memorize this important information especially all information in “colored” boxes in Chapter 11. (Some of this information must be memorized for the Second Class Rank Board of Review.)

February High Adventure Ski Trip to Winter Park, Colorado

• For those scouts who qualified by selling the required number of wreath points, they may go on the Troop’s ski trip to Winter Park, CO for five days of high adventure. The trip Sheriff is Jim Kacius, who will be providing scouts and parents with full details during the Monday night meetings.
• The Monday night before the trip, there will be a meeting for all those going on the trip. Other scouts and parents get this Monday night and the Monday night following off.

Weekly Meetings:

• The first years will continue their work with the first year leaders toward Second Class rank. Continue to bring Boy Scout Handbook, pen, and rope to each meeting.
• At one of the meetings, the first year scouts will perform a practical compass exercise in preparation for the March orienteering hike.

March Hike – Orienteering

• On the March hike, the patrols compete against each other on an Orienteering course. They should have sturdy boots for a full day hike, and they should bring a day pack with spare socks and don’t forget that rain gear.
• The top patrol wins a grilled-steak dinner with all the trimmings, cooked by adults and served by a very special maître d’.
• Webelos Cub Scout groups often join us on Saturday as part of a visit to see and learn about Troop 174.

Planning for Summer Camp:

• A great opportunity for a first year scout to advance and have fun at the same time, is the Troop’s annual week at Ransburg Scout Reservation on the shores of beautiful Lake Monroe. While the trip doesn’t happen until June, information will start coming to you from the Camp Leaders starting in early March. Information will be coming by email, but can always be found on the Troop Ransburg web page, and at ransburgbsa.org.

Weekly Meetings:

• The first years will continue their work with the first year leaders toward Second Class rank. Continue to bring Boy Scout Handbook, pen, and rope to each meeting.
• At one of the meetings, all scouts will bring their pack for the April remote backpacking hike, fully outfitted for inspection.

April Hike – Remote Backpacking Hike – No Bus

On the April backpacking hike, the patrols put together everything they have learned during the year: outdoor skills, teamwork, preparation, wilderness orienteering, cooking… Trailed by shadow parents, the Patrol Leader will direct them from base camp out into the wilderness, make camp at suitable remote sites, and return Sunday morning to breakfast cooked by the base camp volunteers.

The bus does not provide normal food service for dads during this hike.

Pack light as the scouts do not need a lot of clothing. Contact your scout’s patrol leader if you have any questions as to what to bring. Please save room in your scout’s pack to carry food and other patrol items and equipment that will be split among the scouts by the patrol leader. Normally the patrol leader passes out patrol gear and the food each scout is expected to help carry. Scouts please do your best to pack and bring this to the meeting so you can be helped.

If you or your son do not have a suitable backpack, you will be able to borrow one from the troop.

There will be two parents shadowing each patrol and the patrols will be on their own. This is a scout-led hike and each patrol will camp two nights in different locations of their choosing and ordinarily no other patrols will be nearby. The shadow dads will be nearby and will observers only.

Weekly Meetings:

• The first years will wrap up their work with the first year leaders toward Second Class rank. Continue to bring Boy Scout Handbook, pen, and rope to each meeting.
• At one of the meetings, there will be an opportunity for the first years to sit for their Second Class rank Board of Review.

May “Fun” Hike

This last hike is for fun. We can help first-year scouts make-up for missed activities but no advancement is planned.

Troop Awards

We will pass out an award nomination form to first-year dads at the May Troop Committee. Please nominate those scouts (other than your son) that you have observed doing well this year. First-year scouts win awards so please nominate the scouts that you have seen do well. Don’t forget any helpful patrol leaders or senior scouts that you came in contact with.

Final Regular Weekly Meeting:

• This is an informal ‘loose-ends’ wrap-up. No uniform required, return all troop equipment that may have been separated during the year. First year leaders and the Scoutmaster are available to sign any requirements for the scouts to achieve their ranks and awards that will be bestowed at the Eagle Court of Honor in June.

End of Year Notes

Going forward, rank advancement to Star, Life, and Eagle will be at the Scout’s own pace and at their own direction vs. the first year leader approach.  Please review rank requirements (in the Boy Scout Handbook) carefully.

First aid knowledge can be challenging, which is why we recommend that Scouts take first-aid merit badge at summer camp and become first aid experts. As we have said throughout the year Troop 174 emphasizes first aid at the first class level since we camp out every month and the scouts are outside in the woods, sometimes on their own, and they need to be prepared to handle first aid problems themselves.

End-of-the-Year Eagle Court of Honor & Scout Awards Ceremony

Please join us at 4:00 PM. on the last Saturday in May or first in June (see calendar for exact date and venue) for the Eagle Court of Honor and awards picnic for all scouts. Families are welcome under the big tent and the food prepared by the bus crew is always great. First year scouts need to arrive at 3:00 PM to help direct parking and set up tables. Scouts need to wear full uniforms and first-year scouts are likely to win some troop awards as well as receive any second-class and first-class rank awards.

June Planning Session

All dads please join us. The Troop Committee plans the following Scout year’s events, calendar, and direction of the Troop at this meeting. Every other year we start with an adults only out-of-town Friday night campout and dinner with the planning meeting Saturday morning.  For every other year, we have a Saturday morning breakfast meeting at an event space in Indianapolis. The date is the weekend after the Eagle Court of Honor. We need first-year Troop Committee parents to attend and help make the plans for next year.  This is an important session and is a great opportunity to learn more and volunteer to help.

Camp Ransburg

There is a large amount of information on summer camp at Ransburg Scout Reservation on its dedicated web page so it will not be repeated here. Your first year scout should plan to attend the week at camp if at all possible. First and foremost, it is a lot of fun. Ransburg is a world-class scout camp on the shores of beautiful Lake Monroe near Bloomington, Indiana. Your son will earn – or get a solid start on – a good number of merit badges. He will also complete a number of the requirements to advance to the First Class rank. The week-long summer camp is a fantastic value – check it out.  Troop-designated adult leaders will also be on site so please let us know if you are interested in spending some time with the Troop at summer camp!