Boy Scout Troop 1001

Hello all Scouts and Scouters,

As part of our gradual transition to a new Scoutmaster I have been asked to write this week's Scoutmaster Update.

Derby Day is just around the corner. The Patrols should be nearly ready to unveil their awe-inspiring designs and take on the competition during our next campout at the end of this month, January 30th.

Our OA representative, Travis L., has asked for OA volunteers to help staff Camporee. This is a great experience as well as an opportunity for our OA members to actively support this important Scouting event. Remember, not everyone is chosen to be part of the Order of the Arrow. OA members are chosen for their exemplary Scouting spirit and dedication to cheerful service to others. Please talk to Travis L. if you are considering helping out.

Our next meeting will consist of an orienteering course and training on measuring heights. Each Scout should bring his compass and Scout book to the meeting. A flashlight and jacket would also be helpful as the course will be outdoors. Please review pages 118 - 125 in the Scout handbook to prepare. These essential Scouting skills are where most troops score low during Camporee. Careful attention to detail and a little practice should be all it takes to master Orienteering.

This Saturday, January 17th, we will be honoring three recent Eagle Scouts in the sanctuary of the church. If you received an Evite and have not yet responded, please do so.

We have a church workday planned Saturday, January 24th from 8:30am until Noon. All scouts needing service hours or just some fresh air and fellowship should plan to attend. A Scout is Helpful.

Yours in Scouting,
Assistant Scoutmaster Payette

Hello all Scouts and Scouters,

The new year is here and that means Derby Day is near! Patrols have been busy designing and building vehicles powered by legs, gravity and no hydrocarbons. The only carbon footprint we will contribute to is the CO₂ the scouts expel as they propel their vehicles down the raceway at our next campout coming up at the end of the month, January 30th.

In the meantime our next meeting will consist of an indoor orienteering course. Each scout should bring his compass and scout book to the meeting. Please review pages 118 - 125 in the scout handbook to prepare.

We have a church workday planned January 24th from 8:30am until Noon. All scouts needing service hours or just some fresh air and fellowship should plan to attend.

This Saturday, January 10th, and next Saturday, the 17th, we will be honoring our recent Eagle Scouts in the sanctuary of the church. If you received an Evite and have not yet responded, please do so.

I hope your holiday brought you the blessing of the season. I look forward to another great year. May you and your family prosper in 2009.

Yours in Scouting,
Scoutmaster Coon

Hello all Scouts and Scouters,

This Saturday the troop will be forming up at 7:30 am at Mustang-Eagle Stadium adjacent to Richardson High School to participate in the annual Richardson Christmas Parade! We need a good turnout of scouts to march and help us win our category in the parade. In addition to scouts marching we will be towing our trailer to help promote the troop in the community. Please bring a new unwrapped toy or $10 to support the less fortunate this Christmas season. A scout is helpful.

Monday night is our Fall Court of Honor to be held at  Trinity Bible Church. The dinner will commence promptly at 6  pm with recognition ceremony to begin at 7 pm. The event will be catered at a cost of $10 per person and children under 10 years of age will be free. Several patrols have volunteered to help set up and clean up afterword. The setup crew will need to arrive by 4:30 pm and the cleanup crew should be finished by 9:30pm. Please respond to your Evite with the number of family and friends you plan to bring. If you did not get an Evite and plan to attend the dinner please contact the Webmaster.

I look forward to seeing most of you Saturday in the Mustang-Eagle Stadium parking lot at 7:30 am.

Yours in Scouting,
Scoutmaster Coon

Hello all Scouts and Scouters,

We have one more meeting before the fall Court of Honor. All scouts needing to finish up a few items on a merit badge or for rank advancement should be busy during the Thanksgiving weekend.

I will be available for Scoutmaster Conferences on Monday evening. Three scouts have already signed up to meet me between 6:00 and 7:00pm. I will meet with other scouts as time permits during the regular meeting. If you need a board of review make sure to confirm with Mr. Miller by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it before next Monday night.

I wish you a special Thanksgiving with your families. Thank you all for being a part of the Troop 1001 Family.

Yours in Scouting,
Scoutmaster Coon

Hello all Scouts and Scouters,

We had great turnout and better than expected weather for this past weekend's annual campout at Ken Raney's ranch. A big thanks to Mr. Raney, Mr. Wakefield & sons, Mr. Breaux and his friend John who made the event a memorable one for all. Thanks to all the Freebird adults who stepped up to cook, clean and carry, making a lighter load for all. Parents, if you are not yet a Freebird just come to our meetings on Monday and learn how you too can soar.

The next two meetings will be focused on advancement in preparation for our Court of Honor to be held Monday December 8th at Trinity Bible Church. Scouts will receive recognition for merit badges earned since summer camp as well as rank advancement they have achieved. All patrol leaders and the senior patrol will be hosting round-robin training during the next two weeks to help scouts move up in rank.

I will be having Scoutmaster conferences with scouts who are ready to move up in rank and who have their books properly signed off. We will need adults to participate in boards of review for those scouts. Please contact Mr. Miller if you are available during the next two meetings. Training for boards of review will be held during the November 24 meeting by Mr. Reisinger.

I look forward to seeing you all next Monday night at TBC.

Yours in Scouting,
Scoutmaster Coon

Hello all Scouts and Scouters,

Whoo Hoo! The best campout of the year is upon us! It is time to go to Raney's Ranch, Quail Alley, near Breckenridge, Texas. We will be fishing and shooting shotguns in addition to the archery and BB gun range. And that's just the usual stuff.

This year lucky scouts that choose to participate will have the opportunity to scout out historic Texas trails while working toward an Historic Trails Award. There are possibly three historic wagon trails that cross Mr. Raney's ranch. Using topographic maps and GPS units we have the challenge to find them. This is a great opportunity to bring the past into the present.

A five mile hike is planned for those scouts working toward their first class rank advancement. How cool is the opportunity to find an historic trail while working on advancement? Let's go find history together.

I am looking forward to the great skits planned for Saturday night's campfire. Parents, have your scout share his patrol's skit or at least remind him I expect to see a good one from his patrol. It may get cold at night so pack for the weather.

Scouts should pack up Thursday evening so they will be on time at the church by 5:30pm Friday evening with a sack dinner in hand. Money and permission slips should have been turned in this past Monday, if not, please have both ready so we can get on the road early.

I look forward to seeing you all Friday at TBC.

Yours in Scouting,
Scoutmaster Coon

Hello all Scouts and Scouters,

We are in the busy time of year for scouting, two weekends ago we helped clean up the church yard, last weekend we had a fantastic campout which included Troop 118 of Hamilton Park along with five Webelos & parents as guests. Thank you to Scouts Ray P. and Ryan C. for taking such good care of the Webelos and to Scouter Mr. Reavis for arranging the joint campout with Troop 118. Mr. Goad also did a great job getting a perfect site for our First Aid/Physical Fitness Olympics. If your scout attended he probably came home tired from all the fun.

I mentioned it is a busy time of year, this weekend members of Troop 1001 will be manning the archery range for Webelos Woods. All those that volunteered to staff will need to be in the TBC parking lot Saturday morning at 6:00am for an early departure. We will arrive at Camp Cherokee near Athens about 8:00am to set up the archery range. The first event will start at 9:00am. We will be home Saturday evening around 9:00pm. This event will complete the service hours required for rank advancement.

SPL Richard H. established a new policy for scouts holding a leadership position in the troop. There have been too many unexcused absences at meetings and campouts by those individuals holding leadership positions like patrol leader, historian, instructor, troop guide, etcetera. The new policy states that any absence must be explained in a 200 word essay to be given to Richard at the next regular meeting. He is tired of excuses like "I have to go to the birthday party of my sister's best friend's mother's dog". When a leader doesn't attend it sets a bad example for others.

The exception to this policy is for those that have contacted SPL Richard in advance with a reasonable explanation of the absence. For example, we missed some troop members at last week's campout while they were competing at a regional band competition. We are proud to know that several of our troop members will be at the State Competition Band event this coming weekend. No essay is necessary from them, but we do hope a trophy accompanies them home. Good luck at the state competition!

Raney's Ranch is our next campout to be held at Quail Alley on November 14-16 at Mr. Raney's ranch near Ranger, Texas. It is always one of the most talked about campouts of the year. We will have only two regular meetings preceding the campout so make sure your scout attends both of these important meetings. We will be covering gun safety, archery safety, how to handle a fishing pole and rules of the ranch. If you are going to the campout do not miss the next two Monday meetings.

The First Aid Merit badge class and the God and Country Award class will be held at 6:00pm preceding the regular meeting.

I look forward to seeing you all Monday night at Trinity Bible Church.

Yours in Scouting,
Scoutmaster Coon

Hello all Scouts and Scouters,

We have a weekend of fun planned at Eisenhower State Park on Lake Texoma. We will be forming up at the church at 5:30pm Friday evening for a quick departure.

In addition to the Olympic events planned by the PLC for physical fitness and first aid, the Freebird Patrol will be providing pumpkins for a patrol pumpkin carving contest. If we have a fire ban we can still have the jack-o-lanterns warm us at our Saturday night campfire. All scouts planning to attend should bring a signed permission slip on Friday. If you have not paid $10 for food please bring that along with your Friday evening along with a sack meal and appropriate camping gear. It may get a little chilly this time of year, so pack accordingly. Be sure and pack your class B uniform to participate in the Olympic events on Saturday.

I know this is a busy week for many scouts in football and band so several have planned to come out early Saturday morning. We need adults to drive on Friday and Saturday morning as well. We did not have enough adults sign up to drive Monday night to take the number of scouts signed up to attend. If you did not sign up to drive on Monday night and can volunteer to do so please email Mr. Goad at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it with your vehicle description, license plate number and insurance coverage if he does not already have it on file.

We will be camping with Troop 118 and also having Webelos guests on Saturday. We need a good turnout for this special event to help Mr. Reavis complete his Woodbadge ticket.

I look forward to seeing you on Friday at Trinity Bible Church.

Yours in Scouting,
Scoutmaster Coon