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Troop 60 Newsletter: August/September 2024
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AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2024

Namaste, Scouts & Families!


Following up on our February, March/April, and May newsletters, please read on for the highlights so far, plus important updates and volunteer opportunities for the months ahead.



SCOUTMASTER’S CORNER

Welcome back to Scouts for the new school year! We have another big year of fun and challenging activities planned.

While we said goodbye to several Troop 60 Scouts who finished their time in Delhi in May and June, we have already had 15 more Scouts join for the new school year. Welcome to all our new families!

The summer break saw 19 of our Scouts attend six different summer camps! Scroll down for some of their stories and photos. Our Court of Honor on Sept. 1 will highlight these and other summer season achievements, and will also be a chance to share what we have planned for this year. We hope to see you there.

Congratulations to all the newly elected youth leaders — many of you are coming into a role for the first time, or taking on a different role to what you did previously. This is both exciting and challenging, so be kind to yourselves and others as you all grow and learn. Our leaders will come together this weekend to complete Introduction to Leadership Skills for Troops (ILST) Training,  to better understand their responsibilities, support one another and foster leadership and team building amongst our Troop.

Here’s to a great year of Scouting ahead!

60G Scoutmaster Alanna & 60B Scoutmaster Tyler


VOLUNTEER CORNER

Welcome, New & Returning Leaders

Troop 60B

Troop 60G

Troop 60 Committee

Parents: Troop 60 Needs You!

The BSA Troop 60 Committee runs Boards of Review for Scout rank advancement, sets troop policies, and handles administrative functions, allowing the Scoutmasters and Assistant Scoutmasters to focus on working directly with the Scouts. We invite more parents to join us to help keep Troop 60 running smoothly. Please contact Runa Gokhale if you’re interested in one of these vacancies — or stepping up in any other capacity (including as a merit badge counselor).

UPCOMING MEETINGS & EVENTS

Save the Dates

These are confirmed activities involving the full troop. Please check WhatsApp or with your SPL or Scoutmaster for any additional dates that are specific to your leadership role or patrol.

Sunday, Sept. 1: Court of Honor

Troop 60 holds a Court of Honor three times a year to formally recognize the Scouts who have moved up in rank and any merit badges earned since the previous COH. This event will include a uniform inspection, so Scouts should make sure they have all their uniform parts and patches sewn and displayed correctly. This is a time for family and friends to come and celebrate our Scouts and enjoy each other’s company. We look forward to celebrating with you! This month’s ceremony will be followed by a potluck meal; please sign up and let us know what dish you plan to share.

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SCOUT LEADER SPOTLIGHT

Sophia Abrams
Assistant Senior Patrol Leader, 60G

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ADULT LEADER SPOTLIGHT

 Michele Barker, 
Committee Chair

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MONTH IN REVIEW & PHOTO GALLERY

Summer 2024 Camps

A week of camping at a BSA Summer Camp is a chance to spend time outdoors with fellow Scouts, make new friends, employ the Patrol Method, earn merit badges, and try new things. Among Troop 60 Scouts and adult leaders, more than a dozen attended Camp Tifie in Utah (June 22-29), a smaller group flew our flag at Camp Mongolia (July 28-August 3), and others attended BSA camps in Michigan, New Mexico, and elsewhere in the U.S.

June 2024: Camp Tifie (Utah)

SCOUT HIGHLIGHTS

Sophia Abrams: In June, I attended my first Scout summer camp at Camp Tifie in the hills of Utah. The camp was located within pristine hills where the views were perfect. At Camp Tifie, there were many merit badge opportunities and options for activities. The activities included zip-lining, swimming, and service projects. Scouts and adults had to show true Scouting spirit to be able to surpass the weather challenges. A few times during the camp, we were forced to seek shelter due to severe lightning storms. During these moments, Scouts made the best of the time by bonding together and playing card games. Overall, Camp Tifie was a wonderful experience for me because I was able to meet many Scouts and appreciate the diversity of Scouting worldwide while earning merit badges. It improved my Scouting skills and made me more resilient.

Ananth Gokhale: I attended my first Scout camp this summer. It was so fun. There was lots of stuff to do. There was lots of free time to do merit badges and swim. We could also go to the trading post to buy snacks and stuff for merit badges. It was interesting sleeping in a tent for a whole week. On the first day we went on a hike in Capitol Reef National Park. Camp Tifie was an amazing summer camp experience. I can’t wait to do more!

Carson DeWaal: Camp Tifie was my first Scout camp experience since crossing over to BSA, and it was an epic adventure, from the merit badges to the free time to the trading post and even sleeping! We also went to Utah’s Capitol Reef National Park for a hike! I made a few friends with the Wyoming troop and even traded handkerchiefs with them. We also participated in a pentathlon and campfire skits! Overall Camp Tifie was an experience I will never forget.

Teagan Hughes: I found that the coolest part of Camp Tifie was the rifle shooting merit badge. It was hard to get the shots I needed in the time limit but I still did it and then me and R.J. enjoyed celebrating that we got the merit badge.

ADULT LEADER HIGHLIGHTS

ASM Mike Barker: It was a privilege and an honor to be at camp with such a great group of scouts and leaders.  I was so impressed to see Scouts fixing steps as a service project, leading songs at a campfire, working on merit badges during free time, persevering at the rifle range attempting to qualify; and supporting one another through one of the most impressive lightning storms we may ever see!  More importantly, I was so proud to see how they treated one another and others during the whole week.  It was a great Scouting experience.

July 2024: Camp Woodruff (Georgia)

By Ariv Chudasama, 60B Eagles Patrol Leader

The Woodruff camp in Georgia is 4-6 square miles and has a lake, parking lot, field, and 28 campsites. There were roughly 500 scouts and adults there so getting food took some time.

Getting food took about an hour and 20 minutes, they served a variety of foods ranging from beef burgers to french toast, and with all meals you could take whatever you wanted for the 15 options and there were also preference lines at every meal. At lunch, you could choose from five different lunch spots all across the camp so you don’t have to walk far. My favorite meal was the first day's breakfast with bacon, French toast, eggs, yogurt, and pancakes.

There were over 150 merit badges offered, some of which were two merit badges in one slot, there were five slots for merit badges, two after breakfast, two after lunch, and one after dinner, and all the slots were optional. Like any other camp, there was an opening and closing campfire with a fireworks show. Tents were provided at the campsites but they weren’t the best, although there was a provisional troop I only saw people from within the US. The merit badges I took were pottery, sculpture, camping, emergency preparedness, personal fitness, and motorboating.

There were eight awards at the camp: the hiker award, the sustainability award, the swimming award, the geocaching award, the honor troop, and so on. The two I chose to do were the sustainability and geocaching awards. For sustainability, you had to learn all about what the camp did to protect the environment. For geocaching, you had to find 10 of 15 geocaches. My troop was also able to get the honor troop award.

The Scout Shop at the camp was called the Trading Post and had merch, patches, and knives.   Overall the camp was an enjoyable experience and I'd go there again.

July-August 2024: Camp Mongolia

SCOUT HIGHLIGHTS

Rohan Smith: I loved doing all the merit badges at camp, making a shelter in the forest for the wilderness survival merit badge, and seeing the big birds of prey.

Kieran Smith: I loved doing the wilderness survival merit badge in the woods and making a shelter and waking up to wild horses running right outside my shelter. I loved learning about the Mongolian culture.

Charlie Parsons, Jr.: I really liked when we threw the frisbee during free time. There were some other kids that played with us, we got to become their friends and we had fun.

ADULT LEADER HIGHLIGHTS

ASM Greg Smith: I enjoyed joining Troop 60’s adventure the Trilogy Scouts Camp in Mongolia in 2024. As we flew in to Mongolia we were struck by the breathtaking landscapes, the vast, undeveloped open plains and the rugged mountains. The weather was pleasant and the Mongolian people were welcoming and worked hard to make the camp a success. The merit badges classes were great and the scouts formed rich friendships among the troops from 14 nations. I was personally thankful for the chance to hike off into the hills surrounding the camp, coming up through the fragrant pine forests to find panoramic vistas that seemed to stretch out for hundreds of miles. Our trip together to Mongolia was an unforgettable experience.

ASM Charlie Parsons, Sr: Scouts came from all across Southeast Asia and East Asia to Camp Mongolia. It was a great way to cross-pollinate. The weather was near about perfect, we all learned about Mongolian culture, adults helped serve as a merit badge counselor and sometimes served on Boards of Review or as shower monitors for youth (to ensure no silliness or fighting), and we all slept in tents all week with no mosquitos at night.

June-July 2024: Rayado Trek (New Mexico)
By Abe McKenney, 60B alumnus

This summer, I completed the Scouting Rayado Trek. This took place in Philmont Scout Ranch in Northeast New Mexico, USA. Rayado is a three week backpacking experience that is completed with other Scouts and two Philmont rangers. I found this to be an amazing experience where I learned a lot about Philmont, Scouting, and myself. Over 20 days, I hiked 180 miles and had a ton of fun. Rayado is all about expecting the unexpected, so you won’t know a lot about what will happen until you are on trail.

Philmont has a ton of activities that I was able to do including hiking, horseback riding, climbing, shooting and any other Scouting related activity you can think of. You have to be 15 years old to complete this trek, but Philmont offers several other programs for younger scouts.

Philmont is great for all kinds of fun. During Rayado, I experienced type 1 and type 2 fun. Type 1 is fun at the moment: an exciting climb, a great shooting activity, an animal sighting or even a fun camp meal. Type 2 is an experience that is not fun in the moment. It is a hard challenge that you might struggle to make it through, but look back on as a great experience and worth the effort it took.

Overall, Philmont is a great place with tons of opportunity for all scouts. The National Scouting Museum is well worth a visit too. As you choose your own adventure in Scouting, I highly recommend a trip to Philmont and if you are ready for a challenge, completing the Rayado Trek.

Top 5 Things About Scout Camp (Michigan)
By Jaya & Rohan Stapleton, 60G & 60B alumni

1. COMMUNITY: Scout camp is a great time to meet new Scouts and friends. Even though my sister and I went to Scout camp alone, with people we didn’t know, we were still able to fit in and have fun. We got to meet people and experience summer camp with new friends. The community was always friendly, inclusive, and kind to us, including the staff and people from other troops. Most of the staff were young adults or teenagers. They helped bring the camp to life and were always trying to make our week unforgettable. While getting our meals, there were totems that we could get to have different staff members sit with us. We would always have a pleasant conversation that always upped our day.

2: MERIT BADGES: In Camp Owasippe, there was a wide range of merit badges to choose from.  Each merit badge was hosted in a different section of the camp depending on what its focus was. For example, environmental merit badges like weather, environmental science and fishing were hosted in “Eco-Con”, but Scouting skills merit badges like pioneering, emergency preparedness and first aid were in “Scoutcraft”. The merit badges were hosted by our youth staff who helped make our merit badges more fun and interactive. There were also a bunch of walk in merit badges to earn including fishing, textiles, music, woodworking and basketry.

3. FIRE BOWL (campfire): The fire bowl is a fun and entertaining bonfire to bring Scouts closer together with unique skits and songs that get “a little bit louder and a little bit worse” as you dive deeper into the program. During summer camp, there were two fire bowls, one on the first day and one on the last. The first fire bowl was a great way to get to know the staff because they were the ones performing. Later throughout the week, your troop could prepare a skit or song to perform at the second fire bowl. At the ending fire bowl, we got to see the performances that the other troops prepared and we got to perform with our troop! The second fire bowl contained exciting awards and achievements that were given to some Scouts and troops to finish up summer camp.

4. EVENTS: Throughout camp there were multiple events that brought camp up a notch. This included the Scouting county fair, the camp cup, horseback riding, many water sports, and more. The camp cup was a friendly competition between each of the troops to see which one could get the glory and bragging rights to the Wolverine camp cup. There were many opportunities to gain points for the camp cup. Some of the challenges were the Scoutmaster belly flop, water polo, mario kart race, cardboard boat race, Scouting trivia, and the troop cook-off. Our troop placed in third in the camp cup competition.

Halfway through the week there was a horseback riding overnight event where we got to know, ride, and take care of our horses. It was also a great way for us to bond with our friends through some exciting card games.

At the Scouting county fair there were bouncy castles, potato sack races, tug of war, cornhole, tether ball, gaga ball, tie-dye, a raffle and so much more!

There was also an event called Sight Night where we got to make our own food with our troop and invited the staff to hangout and eat some pizza at our camp. We also made a fire and performed some small skits and song for our troop and guests.

5. NATURE: Camp Wolverine has some goooooooooood views. Our camp was right on the edge of Lake Wolverine and provided some gorgeous sightseeing opportunities when the sun went down. In the mornings, mist would be visible on the surface of the lake cascading light and creating vibrant colorful rainbows that shifted like the Northern Lights. There were a beautiful variety of mushrooms and plants that gave the camp its life.

EXTRAS: In the camp you could find a blast from the past in a old-timey town called Flintlock. This 19th century town had a crafty touch to it. They had a bundle of walk-in merit badges that utilized a forge, a carpenters tent, a weavers bench, a leather workshop, and a music studio. The people of the Flintlock area were always cheerful and gladly helped us acquire new merit badges.


UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN

Don’t be a stranger! Reach out via WhatsApp to anyone mentioned in this newsletter, email scoutmasterboys@bsatroop60.in (Troop 60B) or scoutmastergirls@bsatroop60.in (Troop 60G), or click on these links for helpful information: