On March 15, we will meet for our March Pack Meeting at the Pittsburgh Botanical Gardens in Oakdale (https://maps.app.goo.gl/rwL1gL8egLaJsJq38) to do some Geocaching. Their staff will lead us on a discussion of using technology and a program of finding caches in their garden. We’ll start with recognizing our scouts’ advancements at 9:30 AM. Then, the guided program will start at 10:00 AM and run until 11:30 AM. To cover admission to the garden, the pack will cover costs for leaders, scouts are asked to pay $5.00 and parents/siblings $10.00. Please sign up on the website here and you can pay with a check (get it to your den leader) or via Zelle.
Join our Pack July 11-13 at Laurel Highlands Council’s Camp Independence, for the ultimate Cub Scouting camping experience. Scouts, their leaders, and parents/guardians stay overnight two nights for three days at the camp, part of the council’s Heritage Reservation, nestled in the Laurel Highlands wilderness. The camp has many activities for the scouts to enjoy, like BB guns, archery, slingshots, climbing, hiking, swimming, fishing, boating, campfires, and more! For more information, see the council webpage for this event at: https://scoutingevent.com/527-2025CampIndependence
Camp is $275 for Scouts to spend three days and $120 for adults. Spots are still available! Please contact Jon Spink with any questions or if you’re interested at jon.spink@gmail.com
We had a terrific PInewood Derby on January 25th. There were some very fast cars racing and the creativity was evident as we had Scout Spirit cars, lunar landers, rockets, and surfing cars. Sponge Bob, Minecraft, Flower Power and pickle cars were flying down the track too!
The winners of each rank are below. These Scouts are invited to attend the Frontier District Pinewood Derby on March 1st at the Robinson Mall. Information will be communicated to the families of Scouts eligible to participate in this derby. All Scout families are invited to come and watch the derby which runs from 10:30AM to 4:30PM on March 1st. Arrow of Light 1. Oliviya V. 2. Aghanya S. 3. Caden W.
WEBELO 1. Owen G. 2. Nathan H. 3. Luke B.
Bear 1. Brycen C. 2. Owen R. 3. Jedi A.
Wolf 1. Lincoln H. 2. Raphael Z. 3. Adhrit S.
Tiger 1. Lucy M. 2. Joe K. 3. Tair S.
Lion 1. Anderson H. 2. Kellen S.
Our overall Pack winners were: First Place – Lucy M. a Tiger Scout Second Place – Owen G. a Webelo Scout Third Place – Lincoln H. a Wolf Scout
Thanks to all the parent and Scout volunteers who helped to make this event such a success!
Our February Pack meeting is our Annual Blue & Gold Banquet. This event will be held at the Fairview Firehall (Sunset Room) on Sunday, February 23rd from 3-6PM. The Pack meeting will start with our Opening Ceremony and Advancements for all Dens. Buffet dinner to follow. After dinner we will have the Arrow of Light Ceremony for our AOL Scouts followed by the Crossover Ceremony for our AOL scouts crossing over to a Troop.
To purchase tickets, complete the reservation form at the bottom of the flyer and either return with a check for the proper amount made payable to “Pack 843” by mailing the form to: Deb Whitewood 173 Greenwood Drive, Bridgeville PA 15017
OR
Email Deb Whitewood at whitewoodD@msn.com with the NAME and RANK of your Scout, and the number of Arrow of Light Scouts, Adults, Cub Scout or Children under 2 years of age. THEN make a payment via ZELLE to the Pack 843 Account administrated by Matt Bizzack at 724-350-2846.
This year we have five scouts crossing over to local Troops. This is a great event where the younger scouts learn about the Arrow of Light award and have exposure to local Troops. We encourage all scouts and families to join us for this event. Since there is a buffet dinner, there is a cost for this event which can be paid by cash, check (made out to Pack 843) or your scout account. If you have any questions, please email Deb Whitewood atwhitewoodd@msn.com
Pack 843’s Pinewood Derby will be held on Saturday, January 25 at The Table Church, 1120 Boyce Rd. in Upper St. Clair. Please see the schedule below for your Scout’s race time. Please plan to arrive 10-15 minutes before your race time. The race schedule will be as follows:
9:00 AM AOL (Fifth Grade)
9:30 AM WEBELO (Fourth Grade)
10:00 AM Bear (Third Grade)
10:30 AM Wolf (Second Grade)
12:15 PM Lions & Tiger (Kindergarten & First Grade)
12:45 PM Winner Race – Championships
Weigh in will occur Friday, January 24 from 6:30-8 PM. Bring your completed car to be weighed and make sure they are in accordance with the rules, be dropped off, and officially entered in the race roster. If you are not available at that date and time, please make arrangements with another scout to bring your car. All cars must be at the weigh-in in order to race!
Information about the rules and regulations for the Pinewood Derby can be found here: pinewood_derby_rules_2025
To help prepare for this event, we are hosting a build night at the Oakdale Community Center on January 15th from 6 – 8:00 PM. We will communicate how the Pinewood Derby runs, discuss the rules, and help you transform your block of wood to the car of your dreams.
To add to the excitement on race day, we will have four awards for each rank: BEST DECORATED MOST CREATIVE BEST SCOUT SPIRIT BEST THEME Scouts are encouraged to release their creative juices while building and decorating their cars!
On Sunday, December 8, Pack 843 will gather at the Oakdale Community Center for our next Pack meeting. All families are invited to come celebrate the many holidays taking place at this time of year! We’ll meet from 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM, but please consider coming early to help create crafts for the pack to sell at the holiday mart at the school on Dec. 13 – 14. We’ll be there at 2:00 PM to create and build. All families are asked to bring a dish(or dishes) to share, preferably from your family’s cultures/heritage. We will have some of the usual basic items (pizza, chips, fruit, cookies) and fun activities for our scouts to keep the time festive. The Oakdale Community Center has plenty of space for you to plug in your crock pots to keep the food warm until we eat – room to plug in Crock Pots, and a microwave to reheat anything if needed. Please sign up to let us know you’re attending and what you’re bringing. Please indicate the number of people attending in the “Item Quantity” field and the item you are bringing in that field.
On Wednesday, December 11th Pack 843 will be caroling at Celebration Villa at Lakemont. We will gather at 6:15PM and sing from 6:30-7:30PM. The residents are always very appreciative of our visit, so please come if you are able. Scouts and leaders should wear Class A’s.
Please sign up in advance so we know who to expect and how many song books to print. Sign up here: https://pack843.org/sign-ups/
The Arrow of Light Cub Scouts led an entertaining evening of Scout Skits on November 15th. All the ranks participated by performing a den song or skit. Crowd favorites were “Go Bannanas” and “Emergency Broadcast System.”
The Pack collected a variety of items to create placement bags for the Foster Love Project. These bags will be given to children entering foster care or experienceing other distressing situations. Thank you to everyone who participated.
On Sunday October 27, we’ll gather for our next Pack meeting at the Fairview Park Rotary Pavilion from 1-3 PM for a Tent or Treat and some Halloween fun! The scouts and their families can come in costume if they wish and decorate tents with the rest of their den. The pack will supply treats for the trick-or-treaters. Hope to see you there! Please sign up to let us know you’re coming to have some fall fun!
It took three tries, but Pack 843 finally was able to successfully perform the color guard duties on Sunday, September 8th at PNC Park prior to the Pirates baseball game. A big THANK YOU to all the families who stuck it out. It was all worth it to see the smiles on these Scouts’ faces!
