Boy Scout Troop 81, Circle Ten Council, Richardson Texas, Home Page

	Boy Scout Troop 81 Richardson, Texas
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	Committee Minutes - 2000
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January campout review (Craig Cox) This 3-day campout at Camp Pioneer in Arkansas was generally judged to be a success. Troop committee recommends that the PLC schedule next year's January campout for MLK weekend and consider going to another Council's Scout Camp. Family campout (Craig Cox) Campout is scheduled for February 19-20 (after lunch Saturday through lunch Sunday) at Fort Parker SP. Program will follow last year's schedule. Patrols will plan demonstrations of scout skills. A Court of Honor will be held Saturday evening. Camporee (Dan Lassiter) Webelos and parents will pay Camporee fee ($9). They are responsible for their own transportation. Troop 81 will pay for and provide all Webelos meals except Saturday dinner. Campout costs for Troop 81 scouts will cover scout and adult registrations and transportation and all meals except Saturday dinner. Grub money should be collected for Saturday dinner. Patrol counselors should, by February 7, submit a list of scouts who are eligible for OA tapeout. Requirements are two years active scouting, 15 nights of campouts, including 1 long-term campout. Eagle Scout Report Travis Thompson presented his project proposal. The project is to paint the exterior of four cabins and one lodge at Briarwood Retreat Center. The troop committee approved the proposal, with the recommendation that staffing of the project using more Troop 81 scouts be given more consideration. Jason Harris has made little progress on a project. Lou has reviewed the first draft of Chris Kelly's project proposal. Lou has not reviewed Jirah Cox's project proposal. A board of review for Matt Myres is in process of being scheduled. Eagle candidates' meeting is planned for Sunday, March 19. Financial Report (Pat Thompson) December financial summary was distributed. 5-month YTD income is $12,342. YTD expenses are $8,696. Variance from budget is a surplus of $1,875. Roundtable (Pat Kelly) Scoutmaster Fundamentals class is scheduled for February. Woodbadge is scheduled for Philmont (June) and Cherokee (fall). PLC (Jirah Cox) Next PLC is scheduled for 6:00 PM, January 24 before regular troop meeting. New Scouts (Craig Cox) Troop is able to accomodate up to 3 new patrols next year and does not expect that applications will exceed that. Troop will send an adult representative to Pack 871's bridging ceremony on March 28. Membership/Position changes (Craig Cox) - No report OLD BUSINESS Trailer painting Pat Kelly volunteered to have Troop 81 vinyl signs put on both trailers for a cost previously budgeted, or less. If less, the excess will be allocated to purchase equipment to be decided later. Troop committee approved this action. Philmont (Pat Kelly) Troop is still wait-listed for 2000 and 2001. Seabase (Mark Steger) Troop is still wait-listed for 2000. NEW BUSINESS Campout information Julie Goundry requested that the troop provide better information to parents about campout location, emergency phone numbers, departure and return schedule, information contacts, etc. Recent campouts have not even followed existing troop procedures in this regard. Craig Cox took the action for working with Julie on drafting a template for a letter to be included in the information packet that is sent home before all campouts. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be February 16 at Yale Elementary. (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes February 16, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Craig Cox, Pat Kelly, Pat Thompson, Dan Lassiter, Lou Hocker, Larry Herrin, Tom Schob, Bill Scott, Bonnie Branch, Richard Carter, Mark Steger Scouts: Jirah Cox, Ben Nichols Meeting conducted by: Craig Cox Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES Family campout (Craig Cox) Campout is Feb 19-20 at Fort Parker SP. There are 84 people registered, including 29 scouts. Capacity is 96. Last year 105 people attended. Five demonstration events are planned. A fire building contest will be held. A Court of Honor will be held Saturday evening. A mobilization drill on Sunday will be planned by Pat Kelly. Camporee (Ben Nichols) Campout is March 31-April 2 at Camp James Ray (formerly Camp Grayson). Meet at RBF at 6:00 PM Friday. Return to Blockbuster at 1:00 PM Sunday. Preliminary cost estimate is $25 per scout, which includes Camporee fee, transportation, and all meals except for Saturday dinner. Fees are due March 13. Webelos and parents will pay Camporee fee ($9). They are responsible for their own transportation. Troop 81 will pay for and provide all Webelos meals except Saturday dinner. Camporee flyer should be amended to include information for Webelos and given to Pack liaisons to distribute to Webelos. Eagle Scout Report Four scouts are actively working on Eagle project planning. Jason Harris is planning a painting project for church. A special troop committee meeting will be convened at family camp to review his project plan. Lou plans to meet with Chris Kelly to review progress on his project planning. Lou has not met with Jirah Cox yet. Aaron Whitaker is tentatively planning to build a jungle jim set for church. Eagle candidates' meeting is planned for Sunday, March 19, 2:00 PM. Financial Report (Pat Thompson) January financial summary was distributed. 6-month YTD income is $13,517. YTD expenses are $10,221. Variance from budget is a surplus of $2,075. Roundtable (Pat Kelly) OA elections are due to district by March 10. Troop now has OA members trained to run the election. Woodbadge is scheduled for Cherokee in the fall. Canoe Base has openings for individual scouts. Scout show is scheduled for May 13 at Market Hall. PLC (Jirah Cox) January campout was reviewed by PLC. Leaving at 6:00 AM was unpopular, but 4 hour drive was not a complaint. Mobilization was popular. Family camp, Camporee, and April campout planning was discussed by PLC. Final selection on the candidates for a new hat design will be made by PLC on Monday, Feb 21. After review by troop committee, the short list of candidates will be presented to the whole troop for a final vote. Troop reiterated its desire that the hat color stand out for easy identification. New Scouts (Craig Cox) - no report Membership/Position changes (Craig Cox) Rechartering of Troop 81 is complete, covering 69 scouts and 31 adults. Dan Lassiter will pass on responsibility as Assistant Scoutmaster for first year scouts to Tom Schob for next year. OLD BUSINESS Trailer painting Pat Kelly got a quote for decals for our two trailers. Cost will be $138 per decal (2 per trailer), plus a $45 setup charge. Simple numerical decals to differentiate the trailers will be put on the doors. Troop committee approved this expenditure. Philmont (Pat Kelly) A 2000 trek is out and a 2001 trek is unlikely. Seabase (Ellen Steger) A 2000 boat is out, but the rumor is that the base is being expanded and 2001 boats are likely to be more easily available. Ellen Steger will coordinate. She will have flyers to pass out at Family Camp. NEW BUSINESS Property owner on southeast corner of Plano and Arapaho offered to pay the troop $50 to pick up trash between fence and curb. Owner will pay for each such cleanup. Troop committee accepted the proposal. Scouts will be given the choice of applying the funds to their scout account or taking service hours in lieu of pay. Larry Herrin reported that some scouts are not appearing in full class A uniform at boards of review for rank advancements. Troop committee reiterated its support for the current troop uniform policy and pledged to do a better job of enforcing it. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be March 22 at Yale Elementary. (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes March 22, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Craig Cox, Pat Kelly, Pat Thompson, Lou Hocker, Larry Herrin, Tom Schob, Bonnie Branch, Richard Carter, Tracy Russell, Dan Lassiter, Coby Davis, Scott Moore, George Kerr, Steve Juett, Bob Reilly, Mark Steger Scouts: Jirah Cox Meeting conducted by: Craig Cox Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES Family Camp (Craig Cox) February Family Camp came in under budget by about $70. Troop Committee approved a motion to reserve Fort Parker SP for February, 2001 Family Camp. Bonnie will make reservations. PLC complimented the food. Most of the patrol demonstrations went OK. Troop mobilization was OK but not as much fun as January's. Camporee (Dan Lassiter) Campout is March 31-April 2 at Camp James Ray (formerly Camp Grayson). Meet at RBF at 6:00 PM Friday. Return to Blockbuster at 1:00 PM Sunday. Planned attendance: 23 scouts, 18 Webelos, 10 adults from troop plus Webelos dads. April campout (Bob Reilly) Campout will be April 28-30 at Dinosaur Valley State Park Major activity will be a 3-4 mile backpack hike to the remote camping area for Saturday night camp. Bob will investigate whether a tour of Glen Rose nuclear power plant is possible. Troop meeting on April 10 will be used for backpack presentations. Bob Reilly, Richard Carter and Jason Harris will plan these presentations. April 17 and 24 will be merit badge make-ups and patrol campout planning. Summer camp (Craig Cox) Mailing will be sent to scouts' homes within a week. Registration and fee downpayment will be collected April 3, from 6-8 PM. Pat Kelly will contact Council to request special arrangements for Webelos, who don't join the troop until April 10. Scott Moore tentatively plans to be Campmaster. Larry Herrin will be Medical Officer. Eagle Scout Report (Lou Hocker) Jason Harris completed his Eagle requirements (with three hours to spare!) Chris Kelly and Jirah Cox are overdue to have Lou review their project plans. Eagle candidates' meeting is rescheduled for Sunday, March 26, 1:30 PM at RBFC. Financial Report (Pat Thompson) February financial summary was distributed. 7-month YTD income is $15,058. YTD expenses are $14,010. Variance from budget is a deficit of $71.73. PLC (Jirah Cox) February Family Camp was reviewed. See above. Troop will participate in Scout Show on May 13 at Market Hall. PLC needs to decide on a merit badge to present. Pat Kelly will get tickets. Troop vote on new hat design will be taken March 27. New Scouts (Craig Cox) - no report Membership/Position changes (Craig Cox) - no report OLD BUSINESS Trailer painting (Pat Kelly) Decals (same as T-shirt design) were put on each trailer, along with trailer number. Cost will be paid by a friend of scouting solicited by Pat Kelly. Philmont (Pat Kelly) A 2000 trek is out. Troop is on wait list for 2001. Seabase (Ellen Steger) Reservations for three boats for 2001 will be attempted April 1. NEW BUSINESS Last meeting, troop committee agreed to pick up trash between fence and curb on property on southeast corner of Plano and Arapaho. Scouts will be given the choice of applying the funds to their scout account or taking service hours in lieu of pay. Now owner has offered to pay the troop to mow the grass as well. George Kerr will organize scouts for this continuing project. MST Pack 727 will have their Arrow of Light ceremony at Bonham State Park. Scott Moore volunteered to represent the Troop. Troop strategic planning Larry Herrin proposes solutions to several perceived problems faced by the troop. Change the two-year merit badge cycle to three years. Consider doing away with teaching merit badges at troop meetings altogether. Insert more "fun" activities in the troop meeting schedule Increase patrol leader tenure from six months to twelve months Integrate patrols without regard to age. Discussion raised other issues in need of strategic planning: campouts, long-range troop growth, adult leadership succession. Troop Committee agreed to form a task force of 5-7 adults to perform strategic planning and draft proposals for committee review prior to end of May. Larry Herrin will choose and head up the task force. Meetings will be open to anyone with interest. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be April 19 at Yale Elementary. (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes April 19, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Craig Cox, Lou Hocker, Larry Herrin, Tom Schob, Bill Scott, Bonnie Branch, Richard Carter, Mark Steger, Tracy Russell, Bill Merriman, Dan Lassiter, David Knust, Ed Nichols, Jeff Branch, George Kerr, Bob Rielly, Teresa Burlingame, Charlie Hood, Sharon Hood, Gregg Irvin Scouts: Jirah Cox, Doug Rielly Meeting conducted by: Craig Cox Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES April campout (Doug Rielly) Campout will be weekend of Apr 28-30 at Dinosaur Valley State Park. Main activity will be a backpack hike to a remote campsite. Alternate activities will be to visit the Commanche Peak nuclear power plant and Trail to First Class program for new first year scouts. Eagle Scout Report (Lou Hocker) Lou has reviewed first drafts of project plans for Jeff Collins and Jirah Cox. Eagle candidates' meeting was held on March 26. Three scouts attended. Financial Report (Pat Thompson via Bonnie Branch) March financial summary was distributed. 7-month YTD income is $16,244. YTD expenses are $15,467. Variance from budget is a deficit of $217. PLC (Jirah Cox) Camporee assessment was positive. Some complaints about staff preparation and difficulty of some events. Troop participated in all competitions and did well. Scout show tickets are available for sale. Planning was done for softball game and court of honor. New Scouts (Tom Schob) 20 Webelos joined the troop at Monday's troop meeting. One older scout joined as well. Membership/Position changes (Craig Cox) - no report Subcommittee Report (Larry Herrin) A subcommittee held several meetings to consider proposals made at the last troop committee meeting. These involved integrating patrols with different age groups, restructuring patrol meetings to balance merit badge classes with other activities, and extending tenure of patrol leaders to one year. Craig Cox expressed his opinion of the mission of our troop, which should form the framework of this discussion. The mission is to foster scouting skills, leadership, merit badges, and retention because scouting is perceived as being fun. Subcommittee presented a draft plan for vertically integrated patrols. It consists of six patrols of approximately 12 boys each, with a mix of ages. All of the full committee discussion was on this proposal, which was considered the most urgent because of the formation of new first year patrols and the upcoming PLC for planning next year's schedule. Craig asked for a sense of the committee on how to proceed. Three options were presented: Reject proposal for integration of patrols (3 in favor) Move ahead with plan for integration of patrols (4 in favor) Table decision tonight and continue discussions (13 in favor) Bill Merriman moved that the discussion about realigning patrols should continue at the troop committee level, with involvement of scouts, until consensus is reached. Motion carried 18 to 1. Larry Herrin distributed a draft of a proposal for change to the structure and agenda of troop meetings. Draft is attached for committee consideration before next troop committee meeting. OLD BUSINESS Philmont (Pat Kelly) - no report Seabase (Ellen Steger) - no report NEW BUSINESS News from last troop meeting: Scouts elected C J Carter as Senior Patrol Leader for 2000-2001 year. Scouts voted to keep the same troop hats for next year: red with Texas Rangers' "T" and small "81" FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be May 17 at RBFC (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes May 17, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Craig Cox, Pat Kelly, Tracy Russell, Bob Rielly, Larry Herrin, Bill Scott, Pat Thompson, Mark Steger, Tom Schob, Dan Lassiter, Richard Carter, Pat Brassfield, Tammy Coble, Teresa Burlingame, Bonnie Branch Scouts: Doug Rielly Meeting conducted by: Craig Cox Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES Summer camp (Craig Cox) Planned attendance at summer camp currently is over 50 scouts. Mark Steger will be camp master. Mark Steger will hold a question and answer session for scouts and parents on May 30 at 7:00 PM at RBFC. Financial Report (Pat Thompson) April financial summary was distributed. 8-month YTD income is $21,689. YTD expenses are $19,073. Variance from budget is a surplus of $1,670. Should we end the year with a surplus, Pat recommends the committee consider accelerating payment on our pledge to RBFC. Decision can be deferred until fall. Eagle Scout Report (Lou Hocker) - no report PLC Annual calendar planning meeting will be June 5, 7-9 PM, at RBFC New Scouts - no report Membership/Position changes (Craig Cox) The current adult roster was passed out. A version of it can also be found on the troop Web site. Craig asked committee members to notify him of any additions or changes to phone numbers, e-mails, troop position, etc. OLD BUSINESS Philmont (Pat Kelly) - Troop did not get a trek for 2001. Seabase (Ellen Steger via Mark Steger) Troop is on the wait list for 2001. Adult Guidelines for Campouts (Craig Cox) Craig passed out guidelines for adult participation on campouts. It will be added to the adult notebook that is passed out to new adults each year. NEW BUSINESS Troop Organizational Planning (Larry Herrin) A subcommittee chaired by Larry Herrin held several meetings to consider proposals for restructuring the troop. These involved integrating patrols with different age groups (discussed at the April troop committee meeting), restructuring patrol meetings to balance merit badge classes with other activities, and extending tenure of patrol leaders to one year. The committee discussed the proposal for changing the agenda of Monday night troop meetings. A copy of the proposal was distributed. Changes include: having different agendas for pre- and post-campout meetings to ensure adequate time for campout planning and wrap-up scheduling merit badge classes after the full troop meeting keeping the existing two-year track of required merit badges, but possibly including another track of non-required merit badges and scheduling games, patrol competitions, guest speakers, etc; Bill Scott volunteered to be the "fun master" in charge of coordinating the games and patrol competitions. The committee accepted. Craig Cox moved that the committee assign responsibility for implementing the proposal, including getting adequate input and support from the scouts, to a team consisting of three adults and two scouts (Bonnie Branch, Larry Herrin, Mark Steger, SPL and ASPL for troop meetings). The committee approved the motion unanimously. Troop Strategic Planning (Craig Cox) Craig Cox distributed copies of a strategic planning worksheet. It identifies troop purposes, goals, critical success factors, performance metrics, and objective and subjective factors that determine the success of the troop. He called for inputs from the committee to identify strengths and needs of the current program along with possible improvement. Craig will collect and organize the feedback to guide further discussion. Send comments and suggestions by e-mail to Craig. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be June 28 at RBFC Richard Carter has Scout software that is available for the troop to migrate its recordkeeping to. (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes June 28, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Craig Cox, Bill Scott, Pat Thompson, Bonnie Branch, Tom Schob, George Kerr, Pat Brassfield, Floyd Hodges, Richard Carter, Craig Christiansen Scouts: CJ Carter Meeting conducted by: Craig Cox Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES Summer camp (Mark Steger) Camp was attended by 50 boys and 5 adults, with 3 more adults attending 2 or 3 nights. Boys earned 96 merit badges and had 19 partials. Overall assessment of Camp Constantin program was good, with exception of merit badge signup for sailing, skiing, and motorboating, which was poorly handled. Incidences of homesickness, illness, and injury were down compared to last year. Morale was high and the boys in general enjoyed camp. Financial Report (Pat Thompson) May financial summary was distributed. 9-month YTD income is $21,710. YTD expenses are $20,561. Variance from budget is a surplus of $704. Pat moved that the troop accelerate its payment on our pledge to RBFC, contingent on expected receipt of accounts receivable. Motion passed. Bonnie Branch has a card for tax exempt purchases from Office Depot. Eagle Scout Report (Lou Hocker) Travis Thompson completed his Eagle project. No progress on projects from Jeff Collins, Jirah Cox and Chris Kelly, who have completed drafts. PLC (CJ Carter) CJ distributed a preliminary roster of scouts filling troop positions for next year. 2000-2001 campout schedule was distributed. Schedule includes dates for SPL/SM approval and presentations to PLC, troop committee, and full troop. Both APL and APL of the responsible patrol will be asked to present to troop committee. Campout schedule: Sep: Water Skiing (Viper) Oct: War Games (Scorpion) Nov: Mountain biking (Stag) Dec: Winter camp (Balloo Bear) Jan: Military base (Flaming Arrow) Feb: Family camp (Balloo Bear and PLC) Mar: Camporee (Dragon) Apr: Rapelling (Lightning) New Scouts - no report Membership/Position changes - no report OLD BUSINESS Philmont (Pat Kelly) - Troop did not get a trek for 2001. Seabase (Ellen Steger via Mark Steger) Troop is on the wait list for 2001 and expects to clear. Scoutmaster Selection Committee Craig Cox reported that Pat Kelly has requested that a successor be identified by the beginning of the scout year, with Pat serving until after Family Camp, when he would step down and his successor take over. A selection committee made up of Ed Nichols, Bill Merriman, Bonnie Branch and Craig Cox has been formed. Craig will request that his own successor be found after a new scoutmaster is named. Pat Thompson asked that a successor for troop treasurer be found soon to work with him on next year's budget. Strategic Goals and Organizational Alignment Craig has received no feedback yet to his strategic planning worksheet. Opinions on the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities for the troop were again solicited. Charter Change Troop charter has required that either the committee chair or the scoutmaster be a member of RBFC. RBFC agreed to relax this requirement. In future, the minimum requirement is for the charter organization rep to be an active member of the troop. NEW BUSINESS Calendar (Bonnie Branch) Draft calendar was distributed and reviewed. Final calendar will be distributed to the troop in the fall. Fall schedule begins Aug 7 with a PLC meeting. First full troop meeting will be the pool party and adult mentor training on Aug 14. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be August 9 at RBFC. (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes August 9, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Craig Cox, Pat Kelly, Bob Rielly, Larry Herrin, Bill Scott, Pat Thompson, Mark Steger, Dan Lassiter, Richard Carter, Pat Brassfield, Bonnie Branch, Lou Hocker, Carl Bonds, Rita Bonds, Dan Merriman Scouts: CJ Carter, Ben Scott Meeting conducted by: Craig Cox Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES September campout (Ben Scott) Date: Sep 8-10, 2000 Location: Cypress Springs Theme: water sports Cost: $20 plus grub money Merit Badges: Water skiing, Camping, Wilderness survival Action items: check availability of proper gear for safe swim and safety afloat for swimming and boating PLC Annual calendar planning meeting was held Swim Party is Monday, August 14, 6:30 - 8:30 PM at RBFC. Setup (refreshments) is Scorpion. Cleanup is Stag. August 21 meeting assignments: Setup - Flaming Arrow; Opening - Viper; Closing - Dragon; Cleanup - Lightning September campout will be water sports at Cypress Springs October campout will be water games at Shepard AFB Scouts should begin submitting ideas for Scout Show Troop meeting openings and closings should not be taken from Scout Handbook and should be thought-provoking (no jokes). Closing should include review of Scout knowledge (e.g., outdoor code) Financial Report (Pat Thompson) July financial summary was distributed. 12-month income was $25,435. Expenses were $25,448. Variance from budget is a deficit of $12.66. Troop 81 paid off its pledge to RBFC building program early. Potential budget expenditures were brainstormed. Items identified include a CPR dummy, possibly tents or chuck boxes. An inventory of all troop camping equipment is recommended. Bonnie suggested that the troop assign tents to individual scouts for the whole year, thus establishing ownership and encouraging better care. Recommendation was referred to SPL to review gray notebook policy with PLC and ensure policy is updated, if necessary, and deployed in time for first campout. Eagle Scout Report (Lou Hocker) Travis Thompson is ready for a Board of Review, to be led by Richard Carter on August 18 Project discussions have begun with Aaron Whitaker, Jordan Benoit, Jason Kizzia, Scott Steger, Tucker Livingston, CJ Carter No progress for Jeff Collins, Jirah Cox, Chris Kelly Lou suggested that the committee review of projects focus on being a positive experience for the scout, shortening the discussion, and avoiding excessive nitpicking. Dan Lassiter recommended that the Committee assign a subcommittee to review Eagle projects. Calendar (Bonnie Branch) Preliminary calendar for merit badge classes was distributed. Membership/Position changes (Craig Cox) Several parents were approached about their interest in replacing Pat Kelly as Scoutmaster. No one has volunteered, but discussions continue with a hope of finalizing a decision in the next month or so. Adult roster is being updated by Craig. Mentor training will be held during the Pool Party. OLD BUSINESS Philmont (Pat Kelly) - Troop did not get a trek for 2001. Seabase (Ellen Steger via Mark Steger) Troop cleared wait list for 2001. Two boats are being reserved using the signup list created last Spring. Northern Tier Rita Bonds volunteered to organize a canoe trip at Northern Tier (Minnesota) NEW BUSINESS Nothing to report FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be September 20 in Yale Elementary Library Proposal to establish a subcommittee for reviewing Eagle projects (Dan Lassiter) (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes September 20, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Dan Merriman, Lou Hocker, Pat Thompson, Richard Carter, Larry Herrin, Mark Steger, Bonnie Branch, George Kerr, Dan Lassiter, Bill Scott, Tom Schob, Pat Kelly Scouts: CJ Carter, Cliff Coble, Jason Brassfield Meeting conducted by: Mark Steger Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES October campout (Cliff Coble, Jason Brassfield) Date: Oct 27-29, 2000 Location: Shepard Air Force Base Annex Theme: war games Cost: $21.50 (estimated) plus grub money Merit Badges: Camping, Wilderness Survival Bill Scott will buy one additional stove designed for cooking during fire bans and evaluate it and the need for more stoves during this campout. PLC September campout was reviewed. Consensus was that it went well. October campout (war games) was planned. November campout (mountain bike) planning was begun. Court of Honor assignments were made. Troop will participate in popcorn sales in October on an individual basis. Financial Report (Pat Thompson) August financial summary was distributed. 1-month income was $5,051. Expenses were $4,085. Variance from budget is a deficit of $965. A proposed budget for 2000-2001 was distributed. Budgeted income and expenses amount to $32,550. (1999-2000 expenses were $25,448; income was $25435.) Largest increase in budget is due to plans to attend Seabase in 2001 ($7,400). Budget was approved unanimously by the Troop Committee. Eagle Scout Report (Lou Hocker) Travis Thompson completed his Eagle requirements. Aaron Whitaker completed his project on Sep 2 and is pressed by time to complete all his requirements. Jordan Benoit ran out of time for his project. Jason Kizzia's project is scheduled for this Saturday. 2nd draft of project plan was received from Chris Kelly. No change on Jeff Collins, Jirah Cox, Scott Steger, Tucker Livingston, Matt Scott. A subcommittee reviewed Jason Kizzia's and Aaron Whitaker's projects, instead of the full committee. This worked well, allowing more time and no distractions, but it did reduce the number of adults that the Scouts had the pleasure of presenting to. Dan Lassiter proposed that the committee name an Eagle subcommittee to review Eagle projects. Subcommittee will be made up of 12 adults, with at least 6 in attendance at Eagle project reviews, including the committee chair (or his designee), the Scoutmaster (or an Asst. Scoutmaster) and at least 4 other members of the subcommittee. All committee members are always welcome to attend Eagle project reviews. The committee approved this proposal. Membership/Position changes (Craig Cox) George Kerr resigned as Quartermaster. Pat Thompson reiterated his desire to step down as Treasurer. More participation from all parents is urgently needed. OLD BUSINESS Philmont (Pat Kelly) No change in status. Next opportunity for a trek is 2002. Richard Carter recommended that the troop cooperate with other troops in the area to increase our chances of placing boys in a trek. Seabase (Ellen Steger via Mark Steger) Troop has two boats for 2001. A third has 5 crew already, but will not make unless we find 3 more scouts very soon. Please contact Ellen Steger (972-669-9469) if anyone knows of Scouts interested in Seabase 2001. If necessary to fill a boat and not deprive qualified and interested boys of this adventure, the troop will invite other troops and, on an exception basis, will waive the troop's own requirements for up to half the crew (3 boys), for boys 14 or older. Committee approved this exception policy. Scoutmaster selection committee (Craig Cox - absent) Committee has met once and will meet again soon. No report is ready. Strategic Goals and Organization Alignment (Craig Cox - absent) One comment sheet has been received. NEW BUSINESS Oak Leaf Training Scouts are encouraged to attend this training at Camp James Ray the weekend of Oct 14. Contact Pat Kelly, if interested. Calendar Calendar for spring merit badge classes was distributed. Webelos visit in the fall will be changed to Oct 16 and Dec 4. Camporee date was corrected to Mar 23. Spring softball game (Apr 30) and Court of Honor (May 7) were moved up to avoid a conflict with an Apollo band concert. Spring calendar revisions will be distributed to parents at the October Court of Honor. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be October 18 in Yale Elementary Library (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes October 18, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Ed Nichols, Bill Merriman, Pat Thompson, Richard Carter, Mark Steger, Bill Scott, Larry Herrin, Bonnie Branch, Pat Kelly, Lou Hocker, Dan Lassiter Scouts: CJ Carter, Matt Scott Meeting conducted by: Mark Steger Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES October campout Date: Oct 27-29, 2000 Planning report was presented at last meeting. Campout preparations are all proceeding as planned. November campout (Matt Scott) Date: Nov 10-12, 2000 Location: Lake Ray Roberts State Park Theme: mountain biking Cost: $14 (estimated) plus grub money Winter Camp Dan Lassiter volunteered to coordinate, if no other volunteer steps forward. Any adults who are willing to attend camp should contact Dan. Camp will not happen without adult participation. Registration and fees are due December 1. Summer Camp Troop will put down a $10 deposit for 50 scouts for summer camp 2001 at Camp Constantin. Pat Thompson volunteered to get this to Council before the Nov 10 due date. Any adults who are willing to attend camp should contact Mark Steger. Philmont (Pat Kelly) Reservations for 2002 will be accepted October 28. Mark Steger will solicit volunteers to make calls, possibly in partnership with Troop 777. Seabase (Ellen Steger) Three boats are reserved for summer 2001, with 50% deposits received from all crew. PLC (CJ Carter) No PLC was scheduled since the last troop committee meeting. Financial Report (Pat Thompson) September financial summary was distributed. 2-month income was $6,066. Expenses were $2,423. Variance from budget is a surplus of $436. Eagle Scout Report (Lou Hocker) Aaron Whitaker completed his board of review. Jason Kizzia's project (bike rodeo) went off on schedule. Matt Lassiter and John Mowrey are actively planning projects. Calendar (Bonnie Branch) No changes Membership/Position changes Bill Scott succeeded George Kerr as adult Quartermaster. The troop thanks George for all his contributions in this position and thanks Bill for taking it over. A successor to Bill Scout as "funmaster" is needed. This adult will coordinate games and other patrol competitions at regular Monday troop meetings. Volunteers for Pack liaisons were received at May Court of Honor, as well as several other positions. Mark will begin to contact these volunteers to fill positions. Pat Thompson will contact a volunteer to succeed him as Treasurer. The Scoutmaster Selection Subcommittee chaired by Craig Cox reports no decisions have been made, but it plans another meeting this week. More participation from all parents is needed. NEW BUSINESS Oak Leaf Training Four Troop 81 scouts, all second year scouts from the Lightning Patrol, completed this leadership training. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be November 15 in Yale Elementary Library (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes November 15, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Craig Cox, Pat Kelly, Richard Carter, Bob Rielly, Pat Thompson, Bill Merriman, Bill Scott, Charlie Hood, Dan Lassiter, Floyd Hodges, Larry Herrin, George Kerr, Bonnie Branch, Tom Schob, Mark Steger Scouts: CJ Carter Meeting conducted by: Craig Cox Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES November campout (Bill Scott) 25 Scouts attended the mountain biking campout at Lake Ray Roberts State Park. Campout was successful. PLC recommends that we do another such campout in future. Troop has a shortage of adults willing and able to pull trailers. Reimbursement ($0.15/mile) is insufficient to cover costs. Bob Rielly and Bill Scott will prepare options for consideration by the Committee. Winter Camp (Dan Lassiter) No adult volunteers have been identified to run Winter Camp. A few dads might be willing to take a day to help set-up or take-down, but without a couple volunteers to cover the rest of the time, Winter Camp for Troop 81 will have to be cancelled. Volunteers should contact Dan. Philmont (Mark Steger) Rita Bonds and Ellen Steger called for 2002 reservations and the troop was put on the wait list, probably too far down to clear. Tom Schob suggested that the Troop consider planning its own alternative high adventure back packing trek. Seabase (Mark Steger) Ellen Steger has three boats reserved for summer 2001. PLC (CJ Carter) Changes were instituted in how tents are checked out. Tents will now be assigned to Scouts for the whole year, with the Scouts responsible for maintaining them, and paying for replacements and repairs in cases of negligence. Keeping the trailers locked more often during the November campout helped keep gear in order. Plans to assign other gear (like lanterns) to patrols in the same way as tents were discussed. Winter Camp info was presented. Issues remaining on January campout were not ready to be discussed. Patrol assignments for demos during Family Camp were planned. Financial Report (Pat Thompson) October financial summary was distributed. 3-month income was $12,167. Expenses were $8,663. Variance from budget is a deficit of $81.12. Popcorn sales amounted to $1447, resulting in about $400 for individual Scout accounts. Troop has about $230 surplus, which needs to be sold to prevent a loss for the troop. Membership/Position changes Mark Steger volunteered to accept the position of Troop Committee Chairman for 2001-2002, succeeding Craig Cox, conditional on acceptance by the Troop Committee and RBFC. The Scoutmaster Selection Subcommittee chaired by Craig Cox reports that no volunteers for a new Scoutmaster have emerged. The Subcommittee suggests that Troop 81 puts too much responsibility on one person and expects him to serve for several years. An alternative, recommended by the Committee, is to distribute the responsibilities among a Senior Scoutmaster and four other Scoutmasters (Camping, Meetings, Advancement, and Leadership). Terms of office will be expected to be one year, with encouragement to re-up for multiple terms. The Troop Committee unanimously approved the proposed adult leadership model. The Subcommittee will proceed with filling the revised positions. NEW BUSINESS Leadership criteria for advancement (Tom Schob) Monitoring of troop guides' performance has shown that most troop guides are getting credit for only a fraction of the time served in that position, because of absences from campouts or weekly meetings or failure to be prepared. The troop supported Tom's practice of setting expectations and holding Scouts to those expectations in order to be credited with service. Mentors were reminded to communicate progress to Scouts. Position tracking sheets are a good tool to do this. First Year Program (Tom Schob) There is some concern that the first year scouts are not all advancing at a pace to achieve First Class this year. Integrated Patrols Larry Herrin moved that the troop move to integrated patrols (that is, inclusion of Scouts of different ages in each patrol) in time for absorbing Webelos in April, 2001. A plan for achieving this should be presented to the Troop Committee at or before the February Committee meeting. The motion passed with no objection, with two abstentions. Mark Steger volunteered to form a subcommittee to form a plan of migration to this concept. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be December 13 in Yale Elementary Library (note: this is one week earlier than usual). (back to top) (printable view) BSA Troop 81 Troop Committee Meeting Minutes December 13, 2000 ATTENDEES Adults: Craig Cox, Craig Christiansen, Lou Hocker, Bill Merriman, Charlie Hood, Dave Knust, Dan Lassiter, Pat Thompson, Ed Nichols, Richard Carter, Mary Lee Homan, Bob Rielly, Larry Herrin, Bonnie Branch, Mark Steger Scouts: CJ Carter Meeting conducted by: Craig Cox Minutes recorded by: Mark Steger PRELIMINARIES Eagle Scouts (Lou Hocker) Travis Thompson plans an Eagle ceremony Jan 7. Aaron Whitaker completed his paperwork and is ready to plan an Eagle ceremony. Jason Kizzia and Matt Lassiter completed their projects. Lou has begun preparing to pass the position of Eagle Scout coordinator to Pat Kelly. Winter Camp (Dan Lassiter) Camp is Dec 27-31. Dennis McCarthy will be campmaster. Troop will join with a contingency troop so that we have two-deep leadership. Other adults are welcome and encouraged to spend even a day, a night, or more. Six scouts will be in main camp. One in horseback camp. January Camp (Dan Lassiter) January campout (Feb 2-4) will be at Ft Sill, Oklahoma. Bunking will be in barracks and meals will be supplied by the camp. Recreation opportunities include military museum, indoor swimming, gymnasium, and movie theatre. Cost is $43 per Scout, including meals. PLC (CJ Carter) No PLC meeting was held. Financial Report (Pat Thompson) November financial summary was distributed. 4-month income was $14,631. Expenses were $12,039. Variance from budget is a deficit of $784. Membership/Position changes The Scoutmaster Selection Subcommittee chaired by Craig Cox presented a slate of candidates for adult leadership positions for the 2001-2002 troop year. Troop Committee approved the slate unanimously. Senior Scoutmaster: Ed Nichols Assistant Senior Scoutmaster: Dan Lassiter Scoutmaster - Camping: Richard Carter Scoutmaster - Meetings: Bill Merriman Scoutmaster - Leadership: Tom Schob Scoutmaster - Advancement: Bonnie Branch Committee Chair: Mark Steger Treasurer: TBD Dates for beginning the terms for these positions are still to be determined, but will be sometime between the February and May Courts of Honor. Integrated Patrols (Mark Steger) A subcommittee met to plan implementation of the committee's decision to integrate patrols for the 2001-2002 troop year. The subcommittee selected a model that integrates patrols from top to bottom, with some younger scouts, some older scouts, and some in between. The Troop Committee approved the recommendation of the subcommittee by 12-3. Working out how many patrols we should have and how to make individual assignments to patrols will be left to the Scouts. The Troop Committee assigned the SPL and an integrated set of Scouts chosen by him, mentored by Ed and Mark, to work up 2-3 different methods for doing this and present them to the troop at the Jan 29 meeting for the troop to select one for execution. The SPL should present the alternatives to the Troop Committee at the January meeting. The Troop Committee unanimously approved this motion, with one abstention. NEW BUSINESS Troop Trailers (Bob Rielly) The troop has a problem in that we are not getting enough adults to tow trailers to campouts. A subcommittee recommends that we increase the reimbursement to the sum of the reimbursement for carrying Scouts (currently $0.25 per mile) plus the federal tax benefit (currently $0.32 per mile) for towing one of the two troop trailers. The Troop Committee unanimously approved this recommendation. The subcommittee also recommends that we lighten the load in the trailers to reduce the wear on cars. The subcommittee is in search of a place to store extra equipment. The subcommittee also recommends that personal gear be transported in personal cars rather than the troop trailer, where practical. FUTURE AGENDA TOPICS Next Troop Committee meeting will be January 17 in Yale Elementary Library. (back to top)