Den 5

Just wanted to welcome all the scouts and parents to Den 5, one of the Webelos II dens.  Additionally, I would like to address:

1. Den Meetings

I would like to get together twice a month as a den, in addition to the pack functions.  There will also be a few times when we will attend a Boy Scout meeting or function to help earn an achievement and to get the boys familiar with what will be coming next. 

Last year we met on Wednesdays at 3:30 - 5:00 p.m. roughly every other week.  I think I read that Ethan has swimming until 3:30, so would 3:45 to 5:00 (or maybe 5:15) on Wednesdays (roughly every other) work for everyone?  My suggested schedule would be:

September 15th
September 29th
October 6th (on this meeting, if its more convenient, we could start later so the den meeting ends right before the pack meeting begins)
October 20th
November 10th
November 24th
December 8th

We may vary the meeting time or day if we have a parent who is helping with a particular activity and is unavailable in the day, but I'll give plenty of notice so that we can coordinate schedules.  Also, we will occasionally meet with the other Webelos II den for fun activities. 

2. Earning the Arrow of Light Award

As you may remember from our meeting, we put the experienced Webelos scouts in the same den because they all have their Webelos badge and we can work towards earning the coveted Arrow of Light award.  There may be a few achievements that some scouts have completed and others have not, but we'll work that out soon.

The plan is to do most of the work at our meetings (or at Boy Scout meetings/outings), but there may be some things to do at home.  In the next week, I hope to get out an email that lays out what each boy needs, and identify if there is anything that needs to be done at home.

3.  Getting Started

One of the requirements for earning the Arrow of Light is to be an active den member for six months after ending the fourth grade.  I'd like to get the clock rolling on that, so I'd ask that before the pack meeting, could each scout take a look at the Arrow of Light requirements on page 63 of their handbook?  If you don't have your book or prefer to view online, here is a link:

http://usscouts.org/advance/cubscout/arrowoflight.asp.

4. Pack Meeting

The first pack meeting is on Wednesday, September 8th at 6:00 p.m.  Could get there at 5:30 p.m. and have a quick get together meeting?  We can cover a few preliminary items and go over what we need to do for the flag ceremony in the meeting. 

5. Blog

I keep a blog for the den which I update occasionally.  I will try to put any general emails about the den on the blog as well.  The blog address is :   http://pack701den5webelos.blogspot.com/