Join us for the December Pack Meeting

The whole family is invited to the Pack meeting on Monday, December 10th at 7pm in the Social Level. The meeting will start promptly at 7:00 pm, so please arrive a little early if possible.

• Our Webelos IIs will receive their Arrow of Light, the highest award in cub scouting. Venture Crew 483 will participate in the memorable ceremony.
• Someone special will visit our pack, with a surprise for all...

Hope to see you there!

November Pack Meeting

The whole family is invited to the Pack meeting on Monday, November 12th at 7pm in the Social Level. Come see what your scout has been up to for the last month.

Other items of interest:

• Prizes will be presented to scouts that participated in the Popcorn fundraiser
• Awards and belt loops will be presented to scouts
• A special flag ceremony
• Uniform inspection
• A game and treat too

Hope to see you there!

Fall Family Campout

Are you ready for some good, old fashioned fun?! The Pack Fall Family Camp Out is almost here! Join us on Friday, October 5th at Walnut Creek Lake Recreation Area. We arrive at 5pm on Friday and will leave by about 9am Saturday morning.  Don't forget that this is also our Pack Meeting for October. You don't want to miss the scouts performing skits and the fun campfire songs (also our new Bobcats will be awarded their patches). The entire family is invited for all the fun. Join us for our cookout, games, and treats – rain or shine.  Food and drinks will be provided by the pack. All are invited to camp overnight, but if you cannot stay overnight please join us for the pack meeting and campfire...

Google map to the tent camping site at Walnut Creek: map 

(Walnut Creek Lake Recreation Area is located near 96th and Schram, south of Highway 370.)

Please, remember this is Nebraska in October - the weather is *very* unpredictable (70F? 40F? Who knows!) So Be Prepared and bring some heavier coats and blankets just to be safe.
If you would like to camp, but do not have a tent, please contact your den leader or email rick.denne@cox.net. Several families have extra tents and would be happy to help you out.

Tentative agenda for Friday evening:
5:00-6:00 Camp setup
6:00-6:30 Dinner
6:30-7:30 Nature Hikes, by group
7:30-8:00 S'mores
8:00-9:00 Pack meeting
9:00-9:30 Flag retirement
10:00 Lights Out

Suggested items to bring:
* tent
* sleeping bag
* pillow
* flashlight
* bug spray
* Class B pack t-shirt (uniforms are unnecessary)
  (any t-shirt is fine if you don't have the pack t-shirt)
* appropriate clothes (sweatshirt, jeans)
* rain gear (just in case)
* snacks
* medications
* camera

Optional items:
* camp chair
* canteen
* football, Frisbee
* lantern
* air mattress or cot
* first aid kit
* "substitute food" if your child has food allergies

Please no TVs, radios, alcohol, or weapons (excepting a scout approved pocketknife for those scouts who have a Whittling Chip).

See you there!

Join us for the September Pack Meeting

The whole family is invited to the Pack meeting on Monday, September 10th at 7pm in the Social Level.

We have a lot to cover this meeting:

• Summer awards (patches, belt loops, etc.)
• Popcorn fundraiser kick-off!
• Annual scout registration ($50 per scout, +$10 for new scout, +$10 for Boys Life, +$10 Class B T-shirt)
• Upcoming events (Family Fun Festival, Fall Family Campout, Vala's Pumpkin Patch)

Parents, please bring your checkbook - we need to get our scouts registered early this year. Thanks!

1st Pack Meeting of the Year!

Welcome back, scout families! We kick off our scouting year with the first Pack meeting on Tuesday, August 21st at 7pm in the Social Level. (Pack meetings are for ALL cub scouts, 1st - 5th grade.) This meeting will have some info for kids coming to check out our Pack, but will mostly be a fun time: Wildlife Encounters will visit with lots of cool and exotic animals. Don't miss it!

To see where St. Columbkille is located, click here. The Social Level is the lower level, below the church; enter from the south doors.

Scouting for Food 2012

Saturday April 7th is the kick-off for the annual food collection drive, "Scouting For Food". Our Pack will place hangers on doors in the neighborhood behind Super Target. The hangers ask homeowners to place food donations outside 1 week later on April 14th, when our scouts will pick up the donations for delivery to the food bank.

Last year, Scouts and volunteers collected over 500,000 items of food for those in need in 484 communities served by the Mid-America Council. This community-wide drive helps reinforce the value of the Scout motto, “Doing a Good Turn Daily.”

We need all scouts and leaders to meet at 8:45 am at the north St. Columbkille school lot (by the library) on both April 7th and April 14th. Please wear class A uniforms (blues and neckerchief). If we have a lot of help we can get this done more quickly. Sibling and adult help is also welcome. Please, we need everyone to help accomplish this task!

Note: Our District (Wagon Wheel) is using a different Scouting for Food schedule than the rest of the Council, so don't get confused if you see different dates.

Though April 7th is Holy Saturday, I cannot think of a better way to conclude Lent than by collecting food donations to help those that need our prayers. Thank you for your help!

Click here to see a video about Scouting for Food in our area.

Here Comes the Pinewood Derby!

The Pinewood Derby is almost here!

Friday March 16 Weigh-in #1 6:00pm - 7:30pm (Scout Center)
Sunday March 18 Weigh-in #2 12:30pm - 1:30pm (Social Level)
Sunday March 18 Pack Meeting/Pinewood Derby 2pm (Social Level)

Notes:

• After weigh-in, cars must stay with the Pack derby committee
• Your car must be entered at one of the weigh-ins (don't forget to name your car!)
  
• Snacks will be provided at the Derby
  
• Scouts will race within each group (e.g. Tigers vs Tigers)
• Each scout will race 4 times (once on each of the 4 lanes)
• After the scouts are done, there will be an open race for anyone to enter (adults included)
• Do not put a number sticker on your car - the leaders will number the cars
• Weights, graphite, and tools will be available at the weigh-ins to help gain or lose weight (to stay under 5 oz)
• During this week, the official scale and 'measuring box' can be made available at the scout center for checking your weight and dimensions during den meetings. Contact your den leader if you would like to pre-test your car.
• The winner of each rank (Tigers, Wolves, Bears, Webelos) will advance to the District Derby, held in April. The 2nd best time in each rank will be an alternate for that Derby. (Note, ranks that have multiple dens still only yield a single 1st place).
• The complete set of Pack 359 Pinewood Derby rules was emailed out last month. If you lost your copy of rules, please contact your den leader for a replacement.
  

Remember what's important about the Derby!
1. Working together - the scout and adult should build the car together, according to the ability of the scout's age (as much as possible, especially for the younger scouts). It's about learning, not perfection :O)
2. Learning about tools - the scout should learn something about the tools and materials used
3. ! Sportsmanship ! - the scout needs to be a good sport whether he wins or loses. Please prepare your scout for the races by stressing this point. We just want everyone to have fun :O)

Don't forget there is an Open Class race following the rank races, open to all adults, siblings, etc.

If you have any questions please reply to derby.pack359@gmail.com or contact your den leader.

We need several volunteers to help set up the track on race day (at noon) and to clean up after the derby. If you can help, please email derby.pack359@gmail.com. Thanks!

See you at the Derby!

Mahoney Ice Skating Sun Jan 29 (Sunday)

Hey Cubs!

We'll meet at the Mahoney craft center (ask at the entry booth for directions) at 2pm. The craft center closes at 4pm. We'll then meet at the activity center for ice skating at 3:30pm. We'll start with a safety discussion and then skate. Scouts can earn their ice skating belt loop by attending.

Currently the forecast for Sunday is mid 30s, so ice skating (hopefully) should be good-to-go! But please check your email before leaving for Mahoney.

Remember:

1. The ice rink is a covered, but outside rink. Please dress accordingly. The rink is adjacent to the indoor activity center though, so warming up is easy.

2. If you don't know where the craft center is, just ask at the park entrance booth - they'll tell you the directions.

3. If driving conditions or the condition of the ice rink isn't satisfactory then we will cancel via email. Check your email before you leave for Mahoney!

4. Of course parents should skate with their scout, if necessary.

5. Here is the google map to Mahoney, if you are not familiar:

http://goo.gl/bfOV4

6. You can purchase ceramics and leather products to paint and work at the craft center for a reasonable price. Here are the costs:

Craft Center is open 11-4

Skating is open 11-6

Costs:

Park Entry – Daily $4 (you can purchase an annual pass for your vehicle for a bit more)

Entrance to the Activity center AND Skating - $2

Skate Rental - $3

Leather craft and pottery items range from $3 to $18 average, you can spend more on bigger pottery items.

Hope to see you there!

Winter Lock-in on 1/13 (Friday)

Join us for the Winter Lock-in on Friday, January 13th at 7:00 pm in the Social Level. Families are invited for the Pack Meeting and a movie with popcorn. Scouts (and adults) are invited to stay the night. (Please eat dinner before arriving.)

IMPORTANT: scouts that participated in a religious emblem program (e.g. Light of Christ, Parvuli Dei) should bring their completed booklet to this lock-in for Mr. Denne to sign as 'completed'. If you cannot attend this lock-in then please contact Rick Denne at rick.denne@cox.net to schedule a time to stop by his home for the signature. Thank you!

Agenda:

• 7pm Pack meeting (awards, etc)
• 7:30pm Scout activity
• 8pm Movie (with popcorn)
• 10pm Lights out
• 7am Donuts
• 8am Leave for home

Things to bring if you are staying overnight:

• sleeping bag
• air mattress or pad, something to sleep on
• pajamas
• toothbrush/toothpaste
• pillow
• flashlight
• earplugs (snoring defense for adults)

Since this is an overnight event, Class A uniforms (blues and neckerchief) are not necessary – the yellow pack t-shirts are ok for the Lock-in on Friday. Also, a parent must stay with their scout if they are sleeping in the Social Level.

Again, only scouts can stay overnight, not their siblings, so that our group doesn't get unmanageable :O) Thanks for your understanding...