Committee Structure

As our Troop has grown and dealt with growing pains, the Troop Committee has concluded that its structure must be changed in order to be effective in governing and responding to the needs of the Troop. We are making a transition to subcommittees for detailed discussions and development of the program elements, and a Troop committee for review and approval of the recommendations and actions of the subcommittees. With this structure, there will be more opportunities for scout parents to contribute to the Troop as members or leaders of the functional sub-committees. The precise structure will be posted on the troop Website.

March Activities

• An Eagle project is scheduled for March 10 at the Roundhouse on the Manhattan Beach Pier.
• The Shotgun Outing is targeted for Saturday March 16. Final arrangements are being made. An announcement will be made when the plans are finalized.
• The Spring Rock Hike is scheduled for March 22-24 at Joshua Tree. Sign-up sheets are available and are filling quickly. The Rock Climbing Instructor course will not be held until the fall. March 20 is the night at the Rock Gym and belay training will be available.
• The Spring Court of Honor is scheduled at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, March 26 at the O'Donnell Center. All families are urged to attend to provide positive support for the Scouts.
• New Parent orientation is scheduled for 6:30 pm at the American Martyrs School Hall on March 7 prior to the committee meeting. A second session is scheduled for 7:30 pm, March 13 at the Grandview School Cafeteria.
• A special Youth Protection session for the Troop adults is scheduled for 7:30 pm at the O'Donnell Center on Thursday, March 14. The training is open to all the BSA Units in the area.

April Activities

• Backpack equipment orientation for parents is scheduled for Saturday, April 13 at 9 am to 12 noon at the scout house.
• The spring camporee will occur the weekend of April 20/21. Order of the Arrow tap out will take place at the Camporee.
• The Catalina hike is scheduled for April 5 to 7. There are 25 scouts and adults currently signed up.
• An Eagle Service Project is on the calendar for April 27-28. The committee noted that the Eagle Candidate would need to schedule a review of his project with the Eagle Scout Coordinator, Senior Scoutmaster and members of the Troop Committee before his project can be approved to proceed to District review.
• First Aid and CPR training for adults will be scheduled in April and May.

Discussions of Past Events

• An Eagle Service Project at the Arroyo Seco canyon was held on February 23-24.
• The Cross Country Ski Hike to Mt. Pinos was cancelled due to lack of snow.
• The Order of the Arrow election was held on February 19.
• Adult Backpack Leader Training was held on February 15-17 at the Will J Reid Scout Park in Long Beach. Two adults from our troop became certified High Adventure Team Leaders.

Committee Chairman Report

• All but one subcommittee chair positions have been named. We are still looking for a Ceremonies chair.
• Subcommittee chairs will be seeking out and identifying their subcommittee members during March. All subcommittee chairs should be ready to report on their subcommittee plans/actions at the April Committee meeting.

Scoutmaster Reports

• The Green group scoutmaster reported that patrol meetings centralized at Pennekamp have begun and are generally going well. Organizing and running effective games for a group that size is proving to be a challenge. New ideas are welcome.
• The Blue group scoutmaster reported that he just returned from a successful District Eagle Character Board (congratulations to Mike!). Also, sign-ups for Spring Camporee must be in by March 26th.

Treasurer's Report

• Troop finances appear to be normal/healthy for this point in the year.

Subcommittee Reports

• Long Term 2002/Backpacking Subcommittee - We have four long-term hikes planned for this year, including one to the Philmont Scout Ranch. Because of the trailhead permit availability, the long terms will be: Monday, July 29 to Tuesday, August 6, and Monday, August 5 to Tuesday, August 13, both on the Whitney Loop; and Sunday, August 25 to Saturday, August 31 on the Silver Moccasin Trail. Sign-ups are currently being taken for these trips. The Philmont trip in August has been filled and attendees are now being asked to pay their first $200 deposit.
• Summer Camp Subcommittee - We have 32 scouts signed up for the 32 spots at Emerald Bay and 27 scouts for the 32 spots at Circle X. The parent's meeting for both summer camps will be held on June 6 at the Scout House. Medical exam night is scheduled for June 12. (More information on both events will be disseminated during May.)
• Merit Badge Subcommittee - The special Troop 849 Swimming merit badge class at Cabrillo beginning on April 21 is now full. Scouts can sign up for the June version of this merit badge class now.
• Training Subcommittee - We have four scouts signed up to attend the Junior Leader Training Council weeklong training at Camp Pepperdine (Lake Arrowhead) in August. We also have two scouts who will be on JLTC staff that week.

Other Discussion Items

• The importance of proper authorization and coordination of changes (i.e. committee approval) to schedules and meetings was emphasized. There have been some recent calendar changes, which were not authorized and/or properly communicated, that inconvenienced some people.
• Suggestions/ideas for improving the Troop are always welcomed and should be directed to the Committee Chairman or Asst. Committee Chairman.

The next Troop Committee Meeting will be Thursday, April 11th, 2002 (note that this is the second Thursday because of Spring Break), at The School Hall, at American Martyrs School at 7:30 PM.

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