CUBMASTER'S MINUTE: Just Believe

by Bonnie Wurtz, Pack 43 Cubmaster

About a week prior to the Thanksgiving Holiday, my son Aiden and I were walking in the mall. Not really wanting to be there, I was in such a rush to get what I needed from one of the shops and get out quickly.
As we were walking through the crowd of people, my son started pulling on my arm. “MOMMY LOOK !! MOMMY LOOK !!”

I didn’t want to stop and see what had caught his attention, because I was focused on one thing. (Get what I wanted and GET OUT), I never even looked up, I said… “NO Aiden,” we've got to go.

“BUT MOMMY LOOK!!”  and he again pulled on my arm.

By this time I was getting frustrated with him, because he was pulling me in the opposite direction I wanted to go.  What could be SO important?  Once again I said NO and we continued on our “mission” “But Mommy ITS HIM !”

That’s when I stopped and looked over to where he was pointing. There, in the middle of the busy mall, stood a jolly looking man dressed in a red t-shirt and khaki shorts with flip flops. Knowing my son had just mistaken him for Santa Claus, the nice man just turned and look at my son and waved.

The look in my son’s eyes at that moment will forever be in my heart.

Being the brave little man he is, Aiden went over to this gentleman (with me close behind) and started talking to him as if he was the JOLLY OLD ELF himself.

I just smiled at the nice man and thanked him for taking the time out of his busy day to make my son's day.
This “Santa” stood there for the better half of 20 minutes talking with my son, about everything from LEGOS, to asking him how he lost his tooth. And my son thought he had the ‘411’ on Santa,
As we walked away, my heart smiled. I couldn’t believe that a total stranger would take the time out of his day to talk to a little 4 Year old boy who thought he was Santa….

I walked away believing that there are kind people left in this world.

I walked away believing in people again.

I walked away believing that sometimes that the little things DO matter,if you just stop and look around.
I guess you can say I walked away BELIEVEING.

So as you’re rushing around with all the hustle and bustle of this holiday season, take a minute to look up, to see all the wonders around us, and do something nice.

Something as small as just smiling at a stranger, wishing them a happy holiday, holding a door open for someone who needs an extra hand, lend an ear to someone that just wants to talk, Drop that extra change in the Salvation Army Bell Ringer pot, or just “do a good turn daily.”

You never know how much those little things will make a difference, and you might just be surprised at the positive impact it makes on someone else.

The Holiday spirit is in all of us, if you JUST BELIEVE.

SCOUT STORIES: My Day at the Tiger Growl

 by Caleb Merrifield, Tiger Cub

For those who haven't heard of it before, the Tiger Growl is a yearly event that is exclusively for our new Tiger scouts and their parent partners. This event gives the Tigers a chance to learn some of the principals of Cub Scouts wrapped in a wild, fun, informative day. This year, two of our Tiger cubs, Daniel Martin and Caleb Merrifield attended the Tiger Growl. This is Caleb's account of the day:

First We had to get our color flag, and me and my mom were yellow.

There were lots of games. We played a squirting game where you get blindfolded and you have a bottle filled with water that squirts, and if you hear the bells you squirt people. We also played a game where you dump water into a water tank and try to make a golf ball go up to the top. Then we played Over/Under where you pass a cup full of water over and under and the first team to fill up a bucket wins, but if it knocks over you have to do it all over again.

Then we had a scavenger hunt where you had to find lots of stuff - like 10 things! Like, gotta find a person in the military... someone from Maryland... a Girlscout... That's all I can remember.

We also had lunch there, We ate hamburgers and hotdogs with some chips.

And that's all we did.

Oh we also slinged dog food at aliens with sling shots.

I had a really good time with my mom at Tiger Growl.

Pack 43 Newsletter: November 2011

What a great pack meeting tonight!! Every den demonstrated a new skill or project they worked on in the past month - the Tigers talked about the Tiger Growl, the Wolves showed off their new den flag, the Bears recited  their Bobcat badge requirements, the Webelos 1 showed their stretcher making skills, and the Webelos 2 talked about what they have learned about managing family finances and showed off their family tree charts.

We also talked about the origins and the importance of Veterans day. The boys worked together on a poster to tell our veterans "Thank You for Our Freedom". The boys gave a Cub Scout Salute with the poster, and we took pictures, which we have posted on our website, and on The WWII Museum's million thanks page. We will also be presenting our poster to the Safety Harbor American Legion on Veterans Day.

Our newsletter this month expands upon the themes of the month and gives you all the news and information about Pack 43! Read all about it in our November Newsletter!

Pack 43 Fall Fundraiser

Pack 43 is holding a Fall fundraiser! After the popularity of the candle fundraiser earlier this year, we have decided to make this our next fundraising effort. Not only will we have the same amazingly delicious smelling candles to sell, we have increased the items we will be offering to a lot more than just candles!

We need your help to help the pack go! Send your out of state friends and family to this website so they can view the catalogue of offerings online to choose what they wish to order. Best of all, your gifts will arrive in plenty of time to include them in your holiday packages!

Click any of the images below to zoom in:

      

      

      

      

Are you Ready for Coastal Cleanup?

Coastal Cleanup is this Saturday! This is one of the most important events of the year in terms of impact to the community and learning about things like conservation, environmentalism and preservation. Coastal Cleanup contributes to a large number of skill and achievements you can earn toward your den badge, arrow points, elective belt loops and pins, and prestigious Cub Scouting awards. It only happens once a year, so you definitely don't want to miss it! Plus it's loads of fun!!

Meet us at 8:00am at the Safety Harbor Marina

View Larger Map



Here's what you will earn simply by participating in Coastal Cleanup:

Available to ALL Scouts
Cub Scout World Conservation Award - Step 4
Leave No Trace - Step 1, 2 (partial), 4
Outdoor Activity - Step 1, 3, 5, 6, 13

Sports & Academics
Citizenship Belt Loop - Step 3
Citizenship Pin - Step 9
Wildlife Conservation Belt Loop - Step 1
Wildlife Conservation Pin - Step 8, 9
Hiking Belt Loop - Steps 1,2, 3 (All requirements!)

Tiger Cubs
Let's Go Outdoors - Step 5G
Cleanup Treasure Hunt - Step A

Wolf Den
Your Living World - Step 7b, 7d
Lets Go Camping - Step 23d

Bear Den
Take Care of Your Planet - Step 6g
Family Outdoor Adventures - Step 12b, 12d
Water and Soil Conservation - Step 15e
Let's Go Camping - Step 25b

Webelos 1&2
Family Member - Step 13
Naturalist - Step 11,12
Outdoorsman - Step 5, 6, 9

October 2011 Pack Newsletter

So much was covered in this month's Pack Meeting, that it's hard to keep track of everything! Never fear! We've taken the time to write down everything you need to know about the events coming up in the next month, the status of the pack and den, and included a special article written by one of our very own cub scouts about what he's learned from scouting.

Read All About it here!

SCOUT STORIES: Making a Difference in Cub Scouts

 by Jonathan Allen, WEBELOS 2

These are all things I’ve learned while being in Cub scouts. You start in Cub scouts as a Tiger Cub, and then you move to being a Wolf Cub. After that, you move into the Bear den. Later you become a Webelos one and two. In Webelos one you start training to become a Boy Scout.

I have earned many badges; beginning with the Bobcat badge. My uniform displays most of my awards such as traveler, naturalist, athlete, fitness, and citizen. I am currently working on my Webelos badge as I train to become a Boy Scout.

Boy Scouts have been around for 100 years. A scout is Trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent. This is known as the Scout Law. These traits have been passed down through the years.

Scouts are known for helping the community.

Last fall I participated in Scouting For Food. My pack and I collected food from neighbors and gave them to a food pantry. This is a program that feeds people when they need help.

Scouting also has a Leave No Trace awareness campaign. This reminds everyone not to litter or leave behind any trash or trace.

I honor the phrase “to do my duty to God and my country” by learning about and respecting the American flag. I learned how to display, carry and fold the flag.  My pack also helped a local group properly retire old flags.

I love helping the community and making a difference.

I love being a part of Cub scouts, and you could join too!!