Hello Pack 1 families, Pack 1 Mpls. Cubmaster Greg Huff here.
I hope you had a great summer, full of sun and fun and making great family memories!
With the start of a new school year near, the launch of a new Scouting Season is close on the horizon as well. I and my fellow Pack 1 leaders sincerely hope your family will rejoin Pack 1 this year.
To reiterate, we're looking forward to reconnecting with not just your Scout, but your whole family. Pack 1 Mpls. is officially categorized as a "Family Pack" -- not all Packs are. That means that in addition to being a co-ed unit, we welcome and encourage full-family participation in our meetings, camps, outings and other activities. And this season, I'm happy to report, our program will include many more opportunities for full-family Scouting, including: four weekend camps, a Halloween Party, a Sled-O-Rama, the Pinewood Derby, the Blue & Gold Banquet and a once-monthly all-Pack meeting/adventure. Pack meetings will feature an interesting guest speaker or group, awarding of advancement badges/belt loops, skits or songs, and/or a fun activity or two. A Pack Adventure could be a hike, outdoor game, conservation project, or a field trip to an area state park or wildlife preserve, etc.
Re-Register Your Scouts Soon to Get Fun Gifts!
Have you re-registered your Scout(s) into Pack 1 for the 2022-23 Scouting Season? Do so soon and your Scout will receive several fun, Pinewood Derby-themed gifts:
A Hot-Wheels-style die-cast Race Car
A Pinewood Derby Kit
A Pit Pass that gives Scouts free access to racing events at local speedways
Entry into regional Pinewood Derby races in Spring 2023
To re-register your Scout(s) into Pack 1, click THIS LINK and follow the instructions on the page that opens.
If you know of another family interested in Cub Scouting, please forward this email to them -- we'd love to have them! In related news, I have Cub Scout recruiting materials, some customized for Pack 1, to share with all of you -- yard signs, flyers, "Pinewood Derby Drivers License" info cards, and more!
I will be giving Den Leaders a share of these materials soon. Connect with your Den Leader to get a yard sign. And grab some flyers too, if you know of a good public bulletin board or two in your neighborhood on which you could tack up one. If you'll be attending a community event in the next couple weeks, consider bringing your Scout in uniform, and bringing along some of our small handouts to give to any community members who notice the uniform and request information.
Save the Date! -- Pack & Den Meetings/Adventures 2022-23
Den Meetings/Adventures -- 2nd and 4th Mondays* of each month, 6:30-7:30 p.m. September 15, 2022 through May 22, 2023
Pack Meetings/Adventures -- 3rd Monday of every month,* 6:30-7:30 p.m. September 15, 2022 through May 22, 2023
* Except when/if the Monday falls on a holiday, or follows a camp weekend. More specifics about Den and Pack meetings can be found near the end of this letter. Visit our Pack 1 calendar for specific dates and locations: https://www.pack1mn.org/calendar
Save the Date! -- Camps & Activities 2022-23
Sept. 23-25: Fall Bring a Friend Weekend Camp -- Rum River Scout Camp
Oct. 29: Halloween Party -- Minnehaha United Methodist Church (MUMC), Gym & Fellowship Hall, 6-8:30 p.m.
Oct. 14-16: Fall Camp -- Stearns Scout Camp, Gagner & Heritage Lodges
Dec. 17: Sled-O-Rama -- Sibley Park sledding hill & Rec Center Community Room (in which to warm up and enjoy hot cocoa and snacks during and after sledding), 1-4 p.m.
Feb. 3-5: Winter Camp -- Fred C. Andersen Scout Camp, Swanson Lodge
April 14-16: Spring Camp -- Phililppo Scout Camp, Pike & Ramsey Lodges
April 22: Earth Day Community Service Project -- Project and location TBD
May 8: Pinewood Derby Cutting/Sanding Workshop -- MUMC, Fellowship Hall, 6-7:30 p.m.
May 20: Pinewood Derby -- MUMC, Fellowship Hall, 2-4 p.m.
June 10: Blue & Gold Banquet -- Nokomis Community Center, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Den & Pack Meetings/Adventures -- More Info
2nd-Monday Outdoor Den Adventures
On the 2nd Monday of each month in our Scouting season, each Pack 1 Den will meet for an outdoor Adventure in a Minneapolis Park.** Den Adventures, designed to fulfill rank-level advancement requirements and electives, will feature fun, healthy, physical activity and Scout fellowship in as close to nature as we can get within the city.
** When the weather cooperates. In cases of inclement weather, we'll meet in classrooms at Minnehaha United Methodist Church (MUMC).
September through October, when it's still relatively warm and the sun doesn't set too soon, Dens will meet for 2nd-Monday outdoor Adventures, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., in the section of Lake Nokomis Park located east of Lake Nokomis Community Center, just south of Lake Nokomis Playground, up on the bluff overlooking the lake (not the playground at Big Beach, nor the "Nokomis Park" with the ballfields on the lake's western shore). There's parking at the Community Center and in front of the playground. We'll return to Nokomis Park in the spring, once temps have warmed up again and we get more daylight -- in April & May.
November through February, Dens will meet for 2nd-Monday outdoor Adventures at Longfellow Park, which is very brightly lit on winter evenings/nights by big lights above the hockey rinks. Scouts and accompanying parents will, of course, want to Be Prepared and dress for the weather. Whatever you'd wear to go sledding will suffice nicely. We'll stay active and generate plenty of body heat!
4th-Monday Indoor Den Meetings -- Minnehaha United Methodist Church On 4th Mondays, September through May, Pack 1 Dens will meet in classrooms at MUMC. Indoor-meeting activities will be fun, creative and intellectually stimulating, and will engage Scouts to meet rank-level advancement and elective requirements. 3rd-Monday Pack Meetings/Adventures -- Locations TBD
We were not able to hold regular Pack meetings in the last two years, due to Covid. Hopefully, no significant new-strain outbreaks will require us to change our plans -- knock on a Whittlin' Chip!
All Scouts in all Dens are encouraged to attend Pack meetings. Parents and siblings are welcome as well. Pack meetings will feature an interesting guest speaker or group, awarding of advancement badges/belt loops, skits or songs, and/or a fun activity or two. Pack Adventures could be a hike, a field trip to an area state park or wildlife preserve, etc.
I look forward to seeing you all soon!
And here's that registration-info LINK one more time :-)
Yours in Scouting,
Greg Huff,
Pack 1 Mpls. Cubmaster www.pack1mn.com
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