The fallen leaves blowing in the wind have now have become falling snowflakes and the cold temperatures certainly remind us of the upcoming season. While most people head indoors, our scouts are still outside doing community service events, experiencing the out of doors, and having fun!
Thank you to all of the Troop and Pack 401 families that helped make Scouting for Food the best year yet!! WE collected over 4,500 pieces of food! The St. James Community Food Pantry was very appreciative for the supply of food for the upcoming Holidays. Thank you everyone for your help placing and collecting the bags. Arrowhead District collected approximately 55,000 pieces with 22 units participating. A big THANK YOU to all those that helped make this a success.
With the start of the holiday season here, the scouts will have many opportunities to participate in Community Service events. There will be Pie Bakes for Christmas. This event benefits the St. James Food Pantry directly. The Box Wrap at St. Joseph’s Hospital is another Community Service event the scouts will have opportunity to participate in.
Community Service can be done outside of scouts. If you participate in a project outside of scouts, please inform Mr. Sanborn. You can receive Service hour credits.
I would also like to thank those adults that have volunteered to coordinate the various events on the scout calendar. For those of you that have not yet signed up don’t worry. There are still events to work on. Ask what you can do to help. The assistance you provide will make this a better program for all of the scouts.
*Marsha Kofman, rdhetal@yahoo.com , 429-0794
*As stated in the Troop 401 Policies and Procedures, dues and registration fees must be paid to date in order to participate in an event and campout. Make sure you are current. If you need to hand things in or just double check contact Mr. Sanborn.
AS THE UPCOMING BAD WEATHER APPROACHES REMEMBER:
IF THERE IS NO SCHOOL THERE IS NO SCOUTS!!!
Shaw’s Receipts
Thank you to all of those families that have been saving their Shaw’s receipts. We have collected nearly $700 that can be used towards our scouting activities. Many thanks and keep them coming! Dee Berube is the volunteer in charge of this fundraiser.
Community Service
Community Service Hours and Reading Merit Badge Volunteer Hours
Library Book Sale help is scheduled! Set up is Thursday January 29th at the Library. Time TBD. Break down of sale is Sunday February 1st, time TBD. We help the library staff by moving boxes of books and setting up tables. We can also use the help of a few parents with pickup trucks or vans. Mark your 2009 calendars.
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Sledding ADULT COORDINATOR STILL NEEDED. |
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NO! You don’t have to sell it! We are having a day at the movies for you and all your fellow troop members.
What Movie: Bedtime Stories starring Adam Sandler
When: Tuesday, December 30th
Where: Meet at the Church and on to Chunky’s in Nashua
Time: 10:30 am (approximately, Chunky’s will confirm the Thursday before)
Transportation: Carpool (we may need another van and a couple more adult chaperones)
Cost: Maximum of $11.00 per Boy Scout (depending on head count this # will most likely be less)
*This includes All-You-Can-Eat Pizza, Popcorn, Soda, and a Hot Fudge Sundae & Admission
Extras: Parents, Brothers, Sister, Cub Scouts etc… are $16 per person
*Please RSVP (whether the response is yes or no) to Mrs. Thomson at mlissat@comcast.net or 429-2805.*
Our popcorn sales were a success, total sales were $9,445.00. Thank you to all the boys for your hard work. Congratulations to Brendan and Holden who were both winners in the weekly fill a sheet drawing. Brendan won a scooter and Holden won a Lego Set! We also want to thank Erica Beck for all their hard work organizing this fundraiser.
Committee Meetings are open to all Troop adults. They are on the second Thursday of each month at St. James Church, 7 PM. Hope to see you there. The Troop committee oversees the events that the scouts have chosen. We also make sure that the scouts and leaders have the necessary materials and training to have these events happen.
Everyone’s help is always welcome.
District Roundtable is on the second Wednesday of each month. It takes place at the Church of Latter Day Saints, in Nashua, at 7 PM. All Leaders and troop adults are encouraged to attend. Valuable information about upcoming events is made available at this monthly training meeting.
After three years of managing the Troop 401 financial pages, Mr. Rick Allard has decided to step down as Treasurer. He has spent many long hours sorting through popcorn and wreath credits and dues payments and piles of receipts. His hard work is greatly appreciated.
Mr. Allard is turning the accounts and paperwork over to Mrs. Margaret Brodell. Mrs. Brodell will now be the person to discuss all of your Scouting Finances. I personally want to thank Mrs. Brodell for her valuable time that she has chosen to give to Troop 401. Thank you.
Also, On behalf of St. James UMC, we'd like to thank Mr. Seeley and his assistants for all of your hard work in removing the mold and accompanying odors. The basement has never smelled better!
Thank you again,
Lisa Sanborn - Charter Organization Rep.
Want to be a participant in the monthly newsletter? Do some research to provide the recipe of the month or any other helpful tip that your fellow Scout members can use. They will be collected and one or more may be published each month. Email your ideas to Mrs. Thomson at mlissat@comcast.net
When planning and packing your meals for a camping trip, and even more important a back packing trip, it is very important to prepare your meals. This is done in a few different ways. Looking towards your meal preparation, if you are planning on a stir fry cut your meat at home and package or freeze it in plastic zipper bags. Cutting meat beforehand eliminates the need and risk of cutting it in the field and cross contamination through the knives. Freezing the meat will also help it keep longer in the cooler and help keep other items cool as well. Cutting the vegetables at home also eliminated the need to do it in the field. You can also pre-measure your spices and put them in a small zipper bags, this way you leave the bottles of spice at home. If you are hiking weight is everything. If you don’t need it or won’t use all of an item leave it at home. This means de-trash everything. For example, sausages packed in sealed bags then put in a card board box, leave the box at home. When making pancakes just take what you need. Even think of powdered milk. If you have water or a water purified then you should reconstitute you milk in the field. If you need peanut butter think of the half used jar at home. You don’t need to buy a new one, and you sure won’t use a whole jar on the trip. It’s messy but a small amount in a zipper bag works well also.
When planning your meals take just what you need, de-trash before you leave home. Last but not least think weight, anything you are not going to use is excess weight you are going to have to carry when hiking. If you are base camping think of all the trash we have to take home, and the food wasted because it was not used.
Mr. Milton
This is easy, a camp favorite, and will serve four easily. When base camping, you can afford to pack the pots and utensils to make this in camp.
Utensils: Pot that fits the meat and pasta
Serving spoon
Ingredients: 1LB 85% ground beef
1lb pasta (Rotini) cork screw pasta works well
1 jar or can of sauce
Boil water and place the pasta in the pot to cook. Take a piece out to check if it is done. It should be soft but not mushy. This is called “al dente”. Next take the pasta out of the pot and put aside. Empty the water out and put the meat in the pot and brown it. Empty out the grease and add the pasta back in as well as the sauce. Heat it through and you are ready to eat.
Back packing has a twist. You can cook the pasta and meat at home and split each in four separate Ziploc bags. As you can tell I like Ziploc bags (you should see Thanksgiving dinner clean-up). Next pack a can or jar of sauce or re-pack it in a screw lid Tupperware. No need for a can opener this way. Then each scout can take their own portion of dinner. Using their personal cook kit each Scout can reheat their own dinner. This eliminates the need for a pot and serving spoon. Once again, remember when back packing weight is everything. The challenge is to get your pack as light as possible and still have everything you need.
Mr. Milton
I am the new “publisher” of the newsletter. Please feel free to contact me anytime with words of wisdom, creative ideas, pictures etc. Melissa Thomson, mlissat@comcast.net, 429-2805