Use this category to add news to the Troop blog. News can be a collection of announcements, live updates (photos, videos, etc.) on outings, or any information that pertains to the entire Troop.
Head to the link below to sign up for our Flag Fundraiser for Flag Day. We still have all slots available. Also, I need your help for the July 4th holiday flags. I am taking this holiday off to travel, so I need a point person to help oversee this holiday. I will have the routes and buckets ready to go just need this person to open and close barn and be available to help where needed. This position is also available for a new organizer which I can train to take over. Thank you!
It is the first meeting of the month, which means Uniform Inspections! Class A with all the chest candy you can muster! Sashes, hats, neckerchiefs, you know, the works!
Rank Advancement is scheduled for tonight! If you are ready to get some of your skills and knowledge checked off, make sure you have your book and are ready to go. If needed, do a quick review before showing up tonight.
We had a great flag display yesterday! It went nice and smooth, except the flags were kind of wet due to the weather. So, we didn’t roll them all. Instead, we propped them up in the barn to dry. With all the Scouts tonight, we will spend a couple minutes rolling and stowing the flags; it should be pretty quick if everyone helps out.
Summer camp update. I got an email from Camp Cris Dobbins about uploading my own and my Scout’s medical forms. Parents: You likely got the same email. This means we will not do a “Troop upload” of medical documents and each individual Scout/Family is responsible for uploading their own medical documents. Well great! If you have any issues, let me know and we will figure it out.
Please send your medical forms to me via email, or you can give me a hard copy and I will scan them and give them back to you. I will then upload them to a secured folder so Shari Hughes (our outdoor coordinator) can upload them to Camp Cris Dobbins’ website.
This is a new process for us, since we have always had a hard copy of these documents in hand when we have gone to camp, so bear with us as we learn this too!
If you have any concerns about this process, please let me know and we will figure something out.
Here is the sign up for Flags. REMEMBER–Full Dress Uniform for flags -Class A, pants with belt loops – no athletic shorts (gotta look as professional as possible! Sash is optional since we will be climbing in and out of vehicles and all that – we don’t want it in the way.
It looks like we have the right number of Scouts and the right number of Drivers, but if you want to still help out on Monday, we could use a couple of Navigators to ride along with the Drivers and Scouts already signed up.
Also, the link above has the rest of the flag dates on there as well. If you can, throw your name in there and helpa troop out with showing freedom!
See you on Monday with donuts for all and coffee for adults.
Last week’s plan to reorganize the Patrols was pushed to this week due to our awesome FLAG SEASON (see below). The Scout leadership will conduct this process of reorganization under the watchful eye of the adults. The goal here is to have an even distribution of ranks and ages between the patrols. Ultimate veto power is held by adult leadership. New Patrol Names, Calls, Guidons, symbols, etc., will all be worked on tomorrow night.
Flags: there are five holidays we as a troop post flags. Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, and Veteran’s Day.
The Colorado Springs Rotary Club takes and manages the subscriptions for those who PAY ($75/2 years) for the honor of posting a flag in their yard each of these holidays. Yes, we have a duty to the subscribers who pay to have the flags posted. Remember that Scouting responsibility thing?
This means, we can’t just “not” do flags. We are the responsible party for posting these ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL SYMBOLS OF FREEDOM! We dress up, get fueled up on coffee and donuts, then post FREEDOM all around Mountain Shadows (and one ‘hood on the mesa). Then in the evening, we take them down, roll them up and store them for the next holiday. Remember: we salute the flag each time is it posted, and just prior to recovering it.
Here is the skinny on the flags. Basically, each flag costs the subscriber $7.50 to post and take down. The Rotary Club pays for new flags, and maintenance on them, so we don’t have to cover that. The $7.50 is divided three ways equally (Rotary Club, The Troop Operating Fund, and the Scout who posts the flag.
This means, of the eight slots for Scouts to sign up, all the flags are added up and divided amongst the eight Scouts. On average, it is around $60-65 per holiday the Scout can earn for about three total hours of work (once they get the route down and into the groove- this may take a couple of days on flags).
The money the Scout earns can be used for ANYTHING SCOUT RELATED!!! Annual Dues, Summer Camp registration fees, tuition to Scout related classes put on by Council (ours or another), equipment (as long as the item can be tagged against a rank or merit badge requirement), camping gear, etc. Basically, if you can think of a way to use that money for a Scouting item, then I think we can make it happen-just bring a receipt for reimbursement with an explanation…its all on the form! We had a Scout purchase a GoPro Hero 7 i think it was to aid in the Photography or Movie Making merit badge.
Parents, we also need your help and input. I know several of you are stepping up and working it–thank you very much! We need more involvement. Over the life of this program has made the troop nearly nearly $84,000; 50% of which has gone directly toward the Scouts who have participated. Help a Troop out! Get involved. I mean, where else can you help your kid earn $20 an hour, right?!?!
This is the only “Troop” centric fund raiser we do. Popcorn, Camp Cards, and Pizza Pals are all an individual effort. The proceeds the troop keeps pays for all the food we get to enjoy at our Courts of Honor, funds our Scholarship program, purchases new and maintains old equipment, buys fuel for our stoves, fuels our volunteer’s vehicles for those long road trips we have not taken in a couple years, trailer registration fees, etc. Troop dues pays for badges, and some other upkeep stuff as well as off-setting weekend camping trip stuffs.
Anyway, if you have any questions, please feel free to give me a shout. I am always here for you guys, except in July-I will not be here for you.
We usually link up at the barn at 6am, load flags, then roll out. Generally each route is done by 8-8:30. Then the evening pickup starts at 5pm, and gets done around 7 give or take. As the boys, Drivers, and Navigators learn the routes, they get faster, and some friendly competition breaks out via text messages from route to route. It is all in good fun and lending assistance to those on other routes is always offered (especially when there is a foot of snow during pickup that wasn’t there in the morning when we put flags out).
I really appreciate all the hard work the boys did on Tuesday fixing flags, so lets keep the momentum going! We are still in need of 1 Driver, 4 Navigators and 4 Scouts for our Memorial Day Flags. This fundraiser is our most lucrative for our troop and one of the easiest ways for the scouts to earn some money.
This post is just a reminder that we are guests in Wilson Church. We are authorized to use only a portion of the church which includes the main lobby, kitchen (on occasion), and sanctuary. We are NOT allowed to use the classrooms, or be in the classrooms AT ALL (due to Covid related issues).
We are also required to put the furniture back in the same configuration as we found it (think leave no trace) as well as clean and sanitize the areas we use as best we can (sanitizer on hard surfaces, etc.).
Please be mindful of the church and their wishes as we use their facilities and make sure we are doing the right thing each time we use the building.
We will also continue to conduct our final evening checks (cleaning and security) after our clean-up at the end of each meeting.
Tis the season to return to the barn! I know the weather is not really that welcoming for us to be outside; however, we like fire and outside stuff. So, we are going to meet tomorrow at the barn. First one there gets to prep the fire!
Also, Be Prepared! The weather may have a touch of rain for us, so make sure you are ready for that. We will focus tomorrow’s meeting on preparing for the upcoming Flags season. Our first Flags date is Memorial Day, just about two weeks from now. Basically, just making sure the flags we have are serviceable and ready to go without being torn or falling off of the pole. We will also go over the proper procedure of posting and recovering the flags.
There are still available slots for all the dates for the season (a total of five), so make sure you get in where you can! Scouts earn about $60/ flag day toward their Scouting account. Sign up below.
First of all, thanks for an awesome COH. Really well done by Mark and the Scout Leadership team.
Congratulations to those who earned rank advancements and merit badges. Well done by all of you.
And: Congratulations to those Scouts who were re-elected and elected into their positions: SPL: Mark ASPL: Evan PL/QM: Austin PL: Zander (new position) Scribe: Jefferson
As a reminder, since I get a few questions and such tnight about how we do things such as rank advancement and merit badges.
Rank Adv:
Scouts need to show thier skills and demonstrate their knowledge to two senior Scouts (PL then ASPL/SPL) on separate occasions (can be same night, just separately) prior to coming to an adult leader for sign off in thier book. the Scout Leaders should sign on the left side margin next to the rank requirement.
The first Four Ranks (Scout-1st Class) can be worked on simultaneously, but must be completed/finalized/awarded in order). Scouts can get onesies and twosies signed off by Scout Leaders and Adult Leaders as they go along. There is no need to wait until all the initials are gathered for an entire rank before getting an Adult to sign off on a requirement. One or two rank requirements signed off a week is not out of the realm of possibilities, and should be sought after as a progressive way to advance.
Why do we do it this way: The Scout seeking advancement will have two opportunities to reinforce their knowledge/skills with their peers prior to presenting to an adult leader (which may be intimidating for some Scouts). The Scout Leader will have the opportunity to teach the younger Scout the skills using the Scouting EDGE method (Explain, Demonstrate, Guide, Enable). Once the Scout has two sets of initials next (left side) to the rank requirement, they can present to an Adult Leader for final sign off (right side).
Merit Badges: There are several steps to obtaining a merit badge, which must be completed in order.
1 Pick a subject (MB to complete) 2 Get permission from the Scoutmaster (signed blue card)-this officially starts your MB journey-Scoutbook will be updated with the date on the Blue Card) 3 Seek out an official BSA certified counselor and coordinate with them (counselor must be YPT and registered with BSA to be a counselor) 4 Either learn from the Counselor, or demonstrate your previous knowledge to the satisfaction of the counselor and get them to complete your Blue Card. 5 Turn in your Blue Card to the Scoutmaster and get awarded at the next COH.
Scoutbook: Parents can sign off on items in scoutbook attesting to items given as “homework” if the Counselor for that particular Merit Badge has authorized this action. If not, parents should not sign anything in Scoutbook because we as a troop track these items for Courts of Honor and such. As a MB Counselor, I often authorize this action since I can’t be there for every Scout to watch them do the stuff I am counseling for, since I pretty much only do “mass merit badges” for the entire troop and i often assign most of the badgework as homework so the Scout is required to do research and bring back the information they have discovered. More on that as we go along.
If anyone has any questions or concerns, please let me know. Apologies for the long post.
Below are the results of the Knot Patrol Meeting. Something is wrong with the calendar on the website, but we are working to fix it.
Jun: 20-26 – Summer Camp @ Cris Dobbins Jul: 16-18 – Crags to Pikes Peak 14er campout Aug: 6-8 – Loop hike near Sedalia/Deckers Sep: 10-12 – Dino Death March Oct: 15-17 – Sand Dunes (Family style) Nov: 6 – 22 Mile Bike Ride (need to start the cycling MB for those who want/need it) Dec: 10-11 – Lock-in
As always, these are the best dates we came up with where there would be support to do what you as Scouts voted to do. If there are scheduling conflicts, we will workthem out and get out there Scouting!
When you have money in your Scout Account you can buy just about anything related to Scouting. Are you looking for a new sleeping bag or maybe a new hammock? Do you want to have some money to spend at Summer Camp or buy a new pocket knife? Well, with money in your Scout Account all this is possible and more and I am going to tell you how.
There is a new “channel” on the discord server labeled COH Elections.
If you would like to run for a leadership position, please throw your name and what position you want to run for. All “Hard Leadership” positions (SPL, ASPL, and PL) require a candidate speech to be given. Scribe, Historian, Quartermaster positions do not require a speech, but are very important roles and require you to be active for most of our meetings and events.
Anyway, check it out.
Remember that next tuesday is the COH, we will set up starting at 5:30 at the Church. Dinner at 6pm. CLASS A UNIFORMS!!!! I am sure I am forgetting something!
Please RSVP at the link above for the Court of Honor next tuesday night, May 11. We will set up around 5:30pm, serve food at 6pm, then move to the Sanctuary for the presentation of the awards and all that.
Bird Dog BBQ is catering the event, so we need good numbers on who will be in attendance. Of course, siblings and folks like that are allowed and expected so they can see you get what you have earned. Basically, we need solid attendance so we get the right amount of food for everyone.
This is a CLASS A event, full dress uniform, all that good stuff.
Elections will be held as well. If you would like to run for a leadership position, please prepare a 2-3 minute speech to present on why you should be voted into that position.
Positions up for election: All of them! SPL, ASPL, PL (x2), Scribe, Historian, and Quartermaster is what we generally have in “office”. SPL/ASPL are limited to First Class Rank and above, PL and the others can be any rank.
Troop, you all decided to play ultimate cabbage at Oak Valley Ranch Park. Since this is a game night, we start a bit earlier than normal. We will meet up at 6pm and close out around 8pm. Mr. Petree is bringing the cabbage.
See you guys there! Here is the location/directions. It is right off of Silent Rain Dr. From the Church, head north on Flying W Ranch Rd to the stoplight at Centennial. Turn left on Centennial and then turn left onto Silent Rain Dr, just a few hundred yards up. Follow Silent Rain until you see the park on the left.
Here is an opportunity to do some really fun white water rafting while we are at summer camp. We could also do this as part of a troop excursion this summer, if you all wanted to. We might be able to make that work.
The link below has all the info on it. Basically, in order to do it, we would need at least five Scouts to sign up. The cost is $75 (each) without transportation and $95 (each) for the River guys to drive the participants.
Right now there are 15 Scouts signed up for Camp. I have 10 merit badge selections completed. There have been some adjustments to the offerings, like ATV is not on the list for a Merit Badge, but I beleive you can spend free time there (this also may change again), so be flexible.
I need (I apologise if I may have overlooked what you already gave me) the following Scouts to get me their lists: I need three Primary and three Alternate choices!!!!!!! Text, email, phone call, carrier pigeon, just get the choices to me!
John R. WIlliam W. Jefferson H. Ethan M. Noah H.
Here are the offerings as of right now for merit badges: I am not sure if the ones with a “/” are concurrent offerings or not. Like If you sign up for Energy, youll got Electricity at the same time. Not sure, we will find out!
Energy/Electricity
Chemistry/ Nuclear Science
Astronomy/Space Exploration
Emergency Preparedness
First Aid
Camping/Pioneering
Search and Rescue/ Wilderness Survival/ Orienteering
Mamal Study/ Fish and Wildlife Management/ Forestry
Also, we are just about a month and a half away from attendance, which means you and your parents need to work on getting to see your doctor to get a physical completed. Need to have one within a year of attendance to camp. Here is a link to the forms. Need to ensure the form for Summer Camp is filled out by the doctor.
This week, we will be visited by representatives from the Ha-Kin-Skay-A-Ki Lodge, Order of the Arrow.
They will present an invormational video and give us an idea of what the OA is all about. Then they will hold an election for eligible Scouts to be inducted into the OA. I will not go into the details, but we do need as many Scouts as possible at the meeting for the voting process.
To be eligible, a Scout must be a First Class Scout, and have 15 nights in the past two years camping. Up to five of those nights can be a “long term camp” like summer camp, but no more than five nights can be counted in that way. The other 10 must be two or three night (weekend) events.
More on that from the OA reps on Tuesday night.
Just a reminder to get your MB selections in either to me on Tuesday or email them to me if you have not already done so. The sooner we get them in, the better chance you will have getting the choices you want.
Lastly, for those of you who missed this campout this weekend, we all had a really fun time. We had some special concocted brownies using 18 year old cocoa powder and coffee creamer, and even conducted a rescue mission for a lost chair, which entailed repelling (sort of) down a ravine. Pictures and video to be presented at the COH next month.
Gotta decide on game Night for next week as well, since the OA elections are this week.
We are a “GO” for the campout this weekend. Here is the itenerary:
We will link up at the Palmer Lake Reservoir Trailhead parking lot and head out from there. (5pm Friday to 8am Sunday)
I would like to get an early start to this adventure, so I am asking that we link up at the parking lot no later than 5pm, with a step-off no later than 5:30pm. (let me know if this is an issue-a group text will be coming out later tonight to make sure all parents of Scouts are aware of the details).
We will hike until the sun gets a little low in the sky find a place to camp and bed down for Friday night. Saturday will be a hike and play/learn type deal up to then back from the crash site to a camping point close to our starting point.
Sunday will be a short hike out, since we have a schedulling crunch to get this thing done. Therefore, we are looking to EXFIL from the Start/Stop parking lot around 8-8:30am. So, pareants, please plan for that timeline. You could always get a coffee in Monument on your way up to grab your Scout.
The Trail is called “Ice Cave Trail” and in Alltrails, you can find it under “Harrison Plane Crash via Ice Cave Trail” (link below).
Parking lot is in the image above, labeled in green as “Palmer Lake Reservoir Trailhead” Google maps link below.
Here (below link) is the map we will be using, to include our route to and from the crash site. Our overnights will be somewhere along this route.
If you have any questions, please let me know. If we need to cross load Scouts for transport, our current restrictions allow two households in a vehicle, so I think we can work some sort of transport deals. MASKS ARE STILL REQUIRED.
BSA Transport guidelines: Ensure family transportation to/from outing location (no unit carpooling). -Transport should be limited to the 10 person/two household limit shown under personal gathering size
Here is the latest information from Camp Cris Dobbins on MB selection. I have several MB lists from you guys, but I do not have them all. So, at the bottom of this post is a document we (as a troop) will use to select your merit badges for the duration of camp. The sooner you get me your picks, the better off you will be in getting what you want. You can download and fill out the form below and email it to me @ Geren.mcguire@hotmail.com. CCD has not posted the form yet (likely be posted to their site later today). The sooner the better!!!
Read below for the latest information on the CCD MB program.
Merit Badge Sign Up Process To avoid the “doubleknot dash”, this year we will have troops complete a Microsoft Form for each scout. You will be prompted to choose and rank 6 merit badges for each youth in priority order. Based on the availability of each merit badge, we will create schedules starting with the first pick. If a youth does not get the first couple merit badges on their list they will still have opportunities to work on them during Troop Activity Time.
Collect Merit Badge Preference List from each youth. Use this sample Planning Sheet – Click Here.
Go to the Merit Badge List Submission located on www.DenverBoyScouts.org/Dobbins available April 21st. (not available at the time of this post).
Complete the form for each youth attending camp. If changes are needed – please submit again & notice the Camp Director ASAP. Submissions will be accepted until the 11-Day Meeting. Schedules will be provided at Check-In or the Leader’s Meeting. Merit Badge Fees Some merit badges or activities require more resources than the camp is available to provide on a “free” basis. Some badges have an extra fee or require a kit to complete it. All fees and kits must be purchased at camp. Units have the option to make one “lump-sum” payment for these or Scouts can individually pay for them. This is up to the unit on how they want to handle fees. ❖ Rifle Ammo – $1 = 10 shots or $10 = 100 shots ❖ Shot Gun Ammo – $12 = 25 shots or $35 = 100 shots
Above is the signup for this weekend’s camping trip. I know many folks have stuff going on this month. No biggie. Our troop (loosely organized) policy states we need six Scouts to make a campout a go, plus two registered adults. Right now, we only have two Scouts signed up on the signup genius and one adult (me). We will be moving forward with the trip until Thursday evening around 7, when I will make the final determination on cancelling or not.
If you want to go, sign up at the link above, otherwise, we will just postpone this trip until next month.
Temps are supposed to be in the 60’s during the day and 30s overnight. Browse the Troop site for the packing list. Food is still on an individual basis due to covid (Pikes Peak BSA has not updated their stuff yet), but that list is also on the troop site.
Anyway, if you need a hammock, please state that on the sign up as well.
Welcome to the website of Boy Scout Troop 287 at Wilson United Methodist Church, located on the northwest side of Colorado Springs, CO, in school districts 11 and 20. We are in the BSA Pikes Peak Council, Frontier District.
To the left, you can view our news and events. Below you can browse information about our troop, subscribe to our blog by email, download documents, and access useful links.
Troop Camp Out (Fruita Mtn Biking) April 25, 2025 – April 27, 2025
North Fruita Desert Campground
Life to Eagle class May 13, 2025 at 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Zoom meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82778939654?pwd=aXRBNHRmZEU1VXI3b2ltM2R4WWtSUT09 Meeting ID: 827 7893 9654 Passcode: 200292
Troop Committee Meeting May 13, 2025 at 7:15 pm – 8:15 pm
Troop Meetings
Every Tuesday, 7-8:30 p.m.
Wilson Ranch Community Church
Scoutmaster: Anthony Turner
