Troop 281 Cincinnati, OH

Flames, Trucks, and Extinguishers This week we held our troop meeting at an Anderson Township fire station. We met at a fire station at which Mr. Reid works to learn about firetrucks, fire extinguishers, and other things. We divided into several groups and went to our areas. Half of the troop went with Mr. Reid to learn about the firetruck and the gear it carries. The other half went with Mr. Ashley to learn about fire extinguishers and use a fire extinguisher simulator. After the groups were done, they switched places. After we were all done, the meeting ended. It was a fun meeting with lots of learning.

Whippoorwill Tent Setup 2014 This Saturday we went to Camp Whippoorwill to set up tents for the Girl Scouts. Unlike other things, this was not a service project, but a fundraiser for the troop. In other words, the Girl Scouts pay us to set up their tents. We met at the church, waited around for the others, and got into cars to go to Whippoorwill. Once we got there, a man from the camp gave us instructions, as well as a demonstration of setting up a tent. So, for four hours, we worked. You may think that's a long time, but it is typical. Each tent holds four cots, though it could hold eight. The tents are made of thick canvas and are supported by a permanent wooden frame. Each campsite had plenty of them and there were also plenty of campsites. For the rest of the morning and a while in the afternoon, we unfolded, spread, clipped, erected, and loaded. Some people took long, heavy poles made out of wood and attached them to tents, some clipped tents ...

Equipment Care and the Golden Spoon At this week's troop meeting, we learned about equipment, C 2 O, and taking proper care of equipment. Morgan T., the quartermaster, Mr. Ross and Mr. Smith, the troop equipment coordinators, and Dr. Reynolds, who has been helping with tents, gave demonstrations about caring for patrol boxes, setting up and caring for tents, and other things relating to the troop's equipment. We also found out about new tents and labeled equipment and patrol boxes, thanks to the hard work of Mr. Ross, Mr. Smith, and others in the troop. After we finished, we found out who won the Golden Spoon Award. Mr. Smith and Mr. Ross held up the Golden Spoon and announced the winner for the month: The Golden Eagles! The Eagles were given the Spoon to hang on their patrol box, and then everyone circled up. After, the Eagles got candy as an additional prize. This week's meeting was productive and... golden.

The Great Escape! For this month's campout, we headed to Camp Friedlander to do: The Great Escape!!! The Great Escape is a game that covers the whole camp. Each patrol in our troop competes against each other. We have to go around and collect clues that help us get to other clues, and once we collect them all, we turn them in. Whoever does it in the shortest amount of time wins. Sounds easy, right? Not when you factor in the darkness and the guards (the adults and youth staff). If you get caught by a guard, your patrol has to go to jail: the island in the middle of the lake. Mr. Todd, the jail keeper, makes you demonstrate a Scout skill (like tying a knot) to get out. Luckily, it wasn't that way the whole time. It only lasted for a few hours, on Saturday evening. The rest of the campout was a little more... relaxed. When we got to Camp Friedlander, we walked in, following the trailer. Then we stopped at the Stewart Campsite, located near the Dining Hall. Aft...

Orienteering (and Dodgeball) Meeting What made this week special was the new Scouts. Yep. It's that time of year again. This week was their first meeting as members of the troop. There are two new Scout patrols now. One is the Stinging Scorpions, and the other is called the Invincible Panthers. For all of those new members of our troop to fit in when we fell in, everyone had to scoot down. The Golden Eagles even had to move to the middle wall instead of the usual back wall. After the flag ceremony, the new patrols gave their names and yells. After that, we had our skill session. This week, we had an orienteering skill session, put on by Brent P. and Hayden B. We learned about using maps, compasses, and other things to get around on an orienteering course or a trail. After this, we (of coarse) played dodgeball. After a long game, it was time to circle up. This week's circle was HUGE with all of the new families in it. It stretched to very edge of the ...

Pancakes in the Woods Service Project This weekend, the troop had a service project at California Woods. Every year California Woods holds an event called Pancake in the Woods. Basically, you go there, eat pancakes and other good food, and learn about things like making butter and maple syrup. Believe it or not, it's a pretty big operation. Well, the troop helped that operation go smoothly. We directed traffic (there is a lot of it), gave visitors important information, and other things like that. Before we did that stuff, we were given instruction on how to do everything. Then we were given neon vests and radios (one per group of three) and were sent off to our jobs. Those of us who were there were doing one of the following jobs. In the beginning: Directing traffic and parking cars at the front lot, giving out info and parking cars at the main lot, eating (not that eating is a job...), or waiting for the call for overflow parking to open up. In the ...

Planing, Plotting, Achieving, and Tapping This week, we planned for the Great Escape Campout. The patrols wrote down meals, duties, and jobs (grubmaster, flag bearer, etc.) for our March campout. Also, this month's Boards of Review were taking place. (They were this week because last week was Trampoline Dodgeball.) After that, we had to fall in and circle up, closing the meeting. Well, this time, the circle lasted quite a while. For one thing, along with some other announcements, several Scouts were recognized for completing their Boards of Review. After that came something a bit longer. Mr. Todd presented the rank patch to Troop 281's newest Eagle Scout: Ben M. This was special because he is also the current Senior Patrol Leader. That means he completed the Eagle rank along with all of his SPL duties. Wow! So Ben's family came up to pin on his hard earned Eagle badge- upside down, of course. The other thing we did in the circle was the OA Tap Out Cere...