December 12 – Geo Caching Pack Meeting, 1-3PM at Fairview Park

Januaray 22 – Pinewood Derby Races, 9AM-5PM at Crossroads Church.

February 20 – Blue & Gold Dinner/AOL Crossover, 3-6PM at Fairview Firehall.

Join us for an evening of classic Scout Skits on November 14th from 1-3PM at the Oakdale Community Center, 104 Seminary Avenue, Oakdale, PA 15071.

In addition to the entertainment, two important things will be happening during this Pack Meeting. First, 2022 dues will be collected, so parents and guardians, don’t forget your credit card or checkbook. Once your Scout’s dues are paid, they will receive their Pinewood Derby kit. The Pinewood Derby will be held in January, so get your kit early!

Second, the Pack will be participating in a service project to benefit the Foster Love Project which serves children in foster care in our region. Deb Whitewood, who has been volunteering with the Foster Love Project since its inception, will be coodinating the packing of 20 transition bags. These bags will be given to children when they enter a foster care placement. Your den leader will communicate to you what items you are to donate for the transition bags. If you cannot attend the Pack Meeting on November 14, please get your items to your Den Leader before that date.

We will hold our next Pack meeting on October 24th at Boys Home Pavilion. Scouts should gather at 1PM to build and decorate the tent for their den. We will have fun crafts, Tent or Treating candy, and a drink for the Scouts and their siblings. Advancements will also be distributed, so please plan on attending. Scouts and their siblings are encouraged to wear a costume. We will finish around 3PM.

Please bring a chair and mask for each participant. Sign ups are mandatory for this pack meeting, so sign up here indicating how many children will be Tent or Treating.
http://pack843.org/sign-ups/

Our monthly Pack meeting will be held on Friday, September 24th at Fairview Park Entrance Pavilion from 6:30 to 8:00PM. We will have an Ice Cream Social with single servings of ice cream and toppings distributed by Scout Leaders. Advancements will be awarded to the Scouts as well.

Please note, the playground will be off limits to Scouts during the Pack meeting. This is to ensure the Scouts are focused and to prevent unattended play. Please bring a camp chair and a mask for all participants. This will be great opportunity for everyone to meet our new scouts and their families. Reserve a spot for your family today! http://pack843.org/sign-ups/

We had tons of fun on our August Family Pack Campout! Join us for the last campout of the season on September 10-12 at Raccoon Creek State Park.

Our first den meetings will be held on September 8th at the Entrance Pavilion of Fairview Park. We will gather at 6:15PM and split into dens at 6:30PM. Future den meetings will be discussed by your Den Leader at the conclusion of your Scout’s den meeting.

If you have any questions about Den Meetings, please contact Deb Whitewood at whitewoodD@msn.com.

Fourteen Scouts and sixteen parents from Pack 843 attended Resident Camp at Camp Independence on the Heritage Reservation from July 29 through August 2.
We had a wonderful time hiking, swimming, doing shooting sports, climbing and even BMX bike riding! Evenings were spent enjoying our Pack time around the campfire.
We thank Deekota Yadav for coordinating this successful event.

Did you know that Pack 843 accepts donated uniforms and passes them along to new Scouts, or growing Scouts?

If you need to size up, we currently have the following inventory available:

4 Youth XL Shirts

1 Youth L Shirt

2 Youth L Shirts

2 Youth M Shirts

1 size 10 Youth Pants w/ zipper to Shorts

2 Tiger Hats & Neckerchiefs & Slides

1 Tiger Hat & Neckerchief

1 Bear Neckerchief

1 Bear Hat, Neckerchief & Slide

1 Wolf Hat, Neckerchief & Slide

Contact Deb Whitewood to claim or donate uniform items at WhitewoodD@msn.com

We had such a successful Pack Family Campout in June! Our Scouting families really enjoyed themselves and are eager to camp again. Therefore I believe that our second and third Pack Family Campouts at Raccoon Creek State Park will fill up fast! These campouts will be held August 20-22 and September 10-12 respectively at the Sioux Group B Camping site. (You can join us for one night or both.) This is a primitive camping site with vault toilets and water nearby. There is plenty of room for families to set up tents and for the Scouts to play. There are no showers on site, but there are basic shower facilities at the beach where we will spend time on Saturday and Sunday.

NEW: There is a $5 per person fee, up to $20 for a family. This fee will cover the cost of the food for dinner on Saturday, which the Pack will provide. Fees will be due upon arrival at the campsite. No-show’s will be charged $10 per family.

We will work on some advancement requirements on this trip. We will also hike, swim, fish, do some crafts, go boating and cook over the campfire. There will be time for the Scouts to have fun with their friends and for the adults to socialize.

In order to mitigate concerns regarding COVID-19, all families will bring their own food and prepare their own meals, with the exception of the dinner on Saturday. We will have tin foil pockets for dinner that evening which adult leaders will assist the Scouts in preparing in a sanitary manner. If you would prefer to prepare your family’s own dinner meal on Saturday, please let Deb Whitewood know so that we don’t over purchase the food items. We will have hand sanitizer and hand washing stations available, and a team of parent volunteers will sanitize the bathrooms and water spout regularly. All participants should have a mask available if social distancing cannot be maintained.

We understand that some Scouts and their families would prefer to not camp overnight, yet would like to join us for the activities on Saturday. We suggest meeting us at the campsite on Saturday morning no later than 9:00 AM so that you can join us for the hike, or at noon for lunch (pack your own) and the lake activities in the afternoon. Please wear closed toed shoes and bring a water bottle and small backpack for this hike.

Sign up here for the August trip: https://pack843.org/sign-ups/

Sign up here for the September trip: https://pack843.org/sign-ups/

If you have any questions, please contact Deb Whitewood at whitewoodD@msn.com.

If your family would like to camp, but does not have a tent or other equipment, please contact Deb Whitewood at the email address above. Deb has plenty of equipment to lend out.

A few notes:

• All participants must complete Forms A & B prior to arrival at the campsite. https://filestore.scouting.org/filestore/HealthSafety/pdf/680-001_AB.pdf
• (None of these forms need to be signed by a doctor.)
• Please remember to bring all necessary medications to the campsite. Parents are responsible for securing medications safely and administering them to their Scout. Refrigeration of medications is available with Deb Whitewood, please contact her in advance. 
• Alcohol is strictly forbidden at any BSA function. Secondly, alcoholic beverages are not allowed in PA State Parks. Please do not bring any alcoholic beverages on this campout.
• Ice and fishing bait are available for purchase at the beach concession stand which is a short drive from the campsite.
• Knives are optional. Scouts may only use knives or have them in their possession if they have achieved their Whittling Chip.
• Adults who will be actively fishing are required to have a fishing license. Scouts do not need a license to fish. Deb Whitewood will have fishing gear available for Scouts who would like to try fishing. Fishing licenses can be obtained online at https://www.pa.wildlifelicense.com/start.php
• Deb will have three kayaks available for Scouts and their families to try out for 30 minute periods of time.
• Kayaks/canoes are available for rent from a concessionaire on a first come, first served basis. If you plan on boating on Saturday (from 1:30-4PM) or Sunday (from 10AM-12:30PM), you can contact them at (724) 899-4130. The address is 430 Raccoon Park Rd, Clinton, PA 15026.

Sincerely,

Deb Whitewood