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Troop 60 Newsletter: October/November 2025
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OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2025

Namaste, Scouts & Families!


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



SCOUTMASTER CORNER

Dear Scouts and families,

We had a great September theme of “Fitness and Health,” during which Scouts spent two troop meetings moving and thinking about healthy habits in their everyday life. They also planned out their campout for duties, investigating who had the coolest (but still healthy!) meal ideas, and then headed to the Rishikesh hills.

There’s a lot that every Scout needs to learn about the outdoors and always being prepared. After arriving at our campsite, we set off by getting wood logs and kindling ready, learning how to use an ax,  and starting a proper campfire! Following these lessons, the Scouts were let loose on the high ropes for some adventurous fun among the treetops.

Day 2 sent us on a half-day hike filled with spiders at every curve, culminating with a beautiful waterfall experience. Scouts were amazed by the diversity of plants, insects, and animals along the way. Back at camp that afternoon, we embarked on two service projects: Some Scouts helped dig an irrigation ditch for our campsite, while others planted potatoes and picked up litter at a nearby village. Good on all you Scouts for doing a “Good Turn” for conservation efforts and the community!

Day 3 took us down to the Ganges, where six rafts headed out to master the river currents. It was a prized blast after a strenuous prior day. The Scouts got into numerous splashing games, dunked their heads, and even jumped in for a full-body Ganges experience. During our final evening, we retired a U.S. flag in a special campfire ceremony.

Thank you to all our leaders who planned this great adventure for our Troop 60 and all leaders who could attend and support a great experience for our kids.

Coming up this month is not just one, but two themes. The Scouts will begin with the topic of backpacking at our Oct. 7 meeting, to get ready for Troop 60’s Fall Break adventure. Next up is service and volunteering to get those good deeds implemented into daily awareness. We are looking forward to a new awesome month of Scouting!

Sincerely,

60G Scoutmaster Verena & 60B Scoutmaster Anthony

UPCOMING MEETINGS & EVENTS

Save the Dates

The Troop 60 PLC and Committee are planning the following activities for next school year. Events take place at AES unless otherwise stated. Please check WhatsApp or with your Senior Patrol Leader (SPL) or Scoutmaster for any additional dates that may be more specific to your leadership role or patrol. For a printout option, use this link.


Far East Council Camps

Troop 60 falls under the Far East Council, which covers Scouting America units across Asia. The FEC runs several camps over the winter, spring, and summer breaks; Troop 60 scouts and adult leaders are welcome to attend on their own even if Troop 60 does not have enough interest to assemble an official delegation. (Troop 60B’s former SPL Zoravar attended Camp Okami in Japan last summer, for example.)

Please talk to your Scoutmaster if you may be interested in attending any of these camps:

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SCOUT LEADER SPOTLIGHT

Katharina Leuschner, 
Nightingale Patrol Leader, 60G

ADULT LEADER SPOTLIGHT

Alana Hughes,
Assistant Scoutmaster, 60G

VOLUNTEER CORNER

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, especially as we currently have a few vacancies (see below) and anticipate more with next summer’s seasonal turnover of diplomats moving on to new posts plus aging-out families. Please contact Committee Secretary Runa Gokhale if you’re interested in helping out in any capacity, ranging from helping organize outdoor activities to keeping our website updated.

Seeking Merit Badge Counselors

Troop 60 helps Scouts earn merit badges throughout the year. Helping Scouts on their journey to achieving their goals is a rewarding experience, so please take five minutes to click here to explore the merit badges and think about which one(s) you can help teach — with help from the merit badge pamphlet, of course! Questions? Please contact Merit Badge Coordinator Jason Morris.

Thank You, Adult & Scout Leaders!

Troop 60 Committee

Troop 60B

Troop 60G

MONTH IN REVIEW & PHOTO GALLERY

August 24: Court of Honor

Troop 60 holds a Court of Honor three times a year to formally recognize Scouts who have moved up in rank and any merit badges earned since the previous COH. At our August 24 ceremony, emceed by Troop 60B’s Jason Hardison and 60G’s Katharina Leuschner, we awarded more than 160 merit badges, rank advancements, and other patches earned since our May 18 COH (mostly at Scouting America summer camps in the U.S., Croatia, and Thailand). Keep up the great work, and save the date for our next COH: Sunday, December 14.

Sept. 25-28: Rishikesh

By Ananth Gokhale, 60B Scribe/Historian

Our first campout of the school year was a great adventure for 35 Scouts and 14 adult leaders who boarded buses from AES before dawn on Sept. 25 for the 6-hour ride north.

There were lots of fun and challenging activities like the ropes course, conservation service projects, Firem’n Chit, a half-day hike to a beautiful waterfall, and rafting in the Ganges River.

Each night, we enjoyed lots of songs and skits — ”K-pop Demon Hunters” and “Something, Parts 1-4” seemed like the biggest hits — performed by the campfire. [Editor’s Note: We also ceremonially retired an American flag in the campfire; see here and here for more information on how and why Scouting America units have the privilege of doing this.]

Overall, this was a great opportunity to bond as patrols and with fellow scouts, and also to get to know people better. (The scouts in the Dodo Patrol tent seemed to really bond with the wildlife!) The experience required a bit of stepping outside of your comfort zone, but was really fun.

Oct. 4: AES Diwali Dhamaka

Thank you to the 17 Scouts and 13 adults who helped staff our Cold Drinks booth at the annual AES Diwali party! Thanks to your hard work, the Troop sold more than 1,000 drinks to help offset future camping and equipment costs. Ranking of drinks from most to least popular:

  1. Bottled water (runaway hit!)
  2. ⁠⁠Coke
  3. ⁠⁠Sprite
  4. Fanta
  5. ⁠⁠Diet Coke
  6. ⁠⁠Sparkling water
  7. ⁠⁠Limca
  8. Lemonade (RAW brand)
  9. ⁠⁠ThumsUp

Special thanks to the Troop 60 Scouts who helped the crowd work up a thirst by performing the increasingly world-famous “Coincidance” (a Camp Thailand production) on the event stage:

Our next Cold Drinks booth fundraising opportunity will be at the AES International Food Fair (IFF) on Sunday, Feb. 8, noon to 4 p.m. (plus 30 minutes set-up and take-down time before and after the event). Save the date!

UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN

Reach out via our Troop 60 WhatsApp community, email scoutmasterboys@bsatroop60.in (Troop 60B) or scoutmastergirls@bsatroop60.in (Troop 60G), or click on these links for helpful information: