Weather Hazard Trained adults required for all campouts

Starting on January 1st, 2009, each unit Tour Permit submitted to the Council will require the inclusion of the name of at least one adult who is trained and current in the new “Weather Hazard” Training program. All leaders and youth thirteen years of age or older are encouraged to take the online course. The course is presented in a multimedia format with many interactive features. Planning for weather and the sources of weather information available is a large part of the presentation. Many topics are discussed including: lightning, thunderstorms, hail, cold and hot weather, floods, tornados, wind and hurricanes. Of the top causes for injuries nationwide, lightning continues to hurt our Scouts.

ps. Happy New Year!

T399 Parent Meeting Highlights

T399 Parents:

Highlights from our meeting last night:

Communication Changes:
Jan 1, 2009, I will no longer send individual emails. All my communications will be conducted via our website via the Committee Chair Blog. In order to continue staying informed about T399 activities, you must go to www.troop399.org and register. At the meeting we walked through the steps of subscribing; it is a very simple three-step process. Please contact me if you have trouble registering.

Camp-outs:
#1 Winter Camp: Detailed hand-outs were given and we discussed camp-out details. If you have a Scout attending Winter Camp and you did not attend the meeting last night, contact Nick Fox for details. email address. Thanks to Nick and Phil Condra for organizing our Winter Camp-out. T399 has 25 Scouts attending.

#2 Jan Camp-out: NASA & Camp Strake. Jan 23, 24, 25, two nights at Camp Strake and a Saturday trip to NASA.

#3 Feb Camp-out: Location change: Now the camp-out is a backpacking weekend at El Rancho Cima on Feb 6, 7, 8.

Important Dates:

#1 Spaghetti Supper is Sunday, Feb 8th (at the end of our backpacking weekend). We will need many parent volunteers. Julian Fontana is the Chair.

#2 Court of Honor, Tuesday, Jan 27th 7:00 pm TUMC Fellowship Hall. This ceremony will also include passing of leadership from Mark Marshall to Dirk Heinen. Please plan on coming to this important Court of Honor.

#3 Friends of Scouting: Nick Fox is spearheading the FOS effort and he is encouraging anyone who wants a tax write-off this year, they can make a contribution now that will count for T399 in 2009. You can make contributions on-line and be sure to put Troop 399.

Count down: 14 days to Blog only communications. Are you registered and ready?

Don B. Mauro
dmauro21@gmail.com
512/657-0195

"It is the mission of the Boy Scouts of America to serve others by helping them to install values in young people and, in other ways, to prepare them to make ethical choices over their lifetime in achieving their full potential.

The values we strive to install are based on those found in the Scout Oath and Law."

T399 Parent Meeting 12/16, 7pm @ TUMC

T399 Parents,
Please join us tomorrow night for a T399 Parent meeting at 7 pm, TUMC.
Parents with Scouts attending Winter Camp should consider this an important meeting to attend. Nick Fox (the Dad) will be at the meeting to discuss the logistics. Bring your questions and notepad for the details.

We also have three Boards of Review scheduled for tomorrow. If you are able to participate in a Board of Review please e-mail me to let me know. If nine parents volunteer this should only take 15 minutes. We will also assist parents who haven't signed up for our Blog at this upcoming meeting by taking the process step-by-step.

Attention** important email communication warning: On Jan 1, 2009 I will
be communicating with T399 parents via our website Blog site, and only via our Blog site. Have you signed up yet for our Blog? If not, starting in the New year you will no longer be receiving critical T399 information via
email from me. To date, 30 T399 families have registered on our Blog. So
there are remaining families/parents that have yet to register. Now is the
time (it only takes a few minutes). How do you know if you have
registered? This email will be sent via the Blog, so if you don't receive
it again from the Blog, then you are NOT registered. Need help? Attend
the Parent meeting tonight and we will do it together. www.troop399.org

Count down of 16 days until Blog only communications from Committee Chair
Don. Are you ready?

Hope you are enjoying this holiday season & hope to see you tomorrow night,

Don B. Mauro
dmauro21@gmail.com
512/657-0195

"It is the mission of the Boy Scouts of America to serve others by helping them to install values in young people and, in other ways, to prepare them to make ethical choices over their lifetime in achieving their full potential.
The values we strive to install are based on those found in the Scout Oath and Law."

T-399 Merit Badge University Eagle Merit Badges

T399 Parents:

Last night a number of parents asked me if Troop 399 Scouts could get credit for Eagle required merit badge work at Merit Badge University.

The Answer: Troop 399 does not allow credit for Eagle required merit badge work completed at Merit Badge University. These merit badges can be worked on during summer camp and winter camp and through a Troop 399 Merit Badge Counselor during the year.

This has been a long standing rule in T399. Please follow-up with Mark or Dirk for further explanation.

Jonathon Box Eagle Project

Dear Scouts and Parents,

Please come to my Eagle Project on Saturday December 6th from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM. It will be in the 6th grade courtyard at O. Henry Middle School. We will be building a rock-lined path and two garden beds for the environmental club. Pizza and drinks will be provided. Wear work clothes and bring gloves. Close-toed shoes are also necessary. Please bring shovels, picks, and rakes. O. Henry is located at the intersection of Exposition Blvd. and W. 10th Street. Enter through the side entrance on W. 10th St. There will be signs.

Thank you,
Jonathan Box

T399: Winter Camp - Last Call

T399 Parents:

Last Call for sign-up for Winter Camp, Dec 20 - 23 at LPSR, Lost Pines.
Deadline is November 30th. We have a few remaining spots on our current
reservation, but those will disappear after November 30th. Sign-Up at
www.troop399.org. Winter Camp is an excellent opportunity for Scouts to
earn Eagle required merit badges. Attached is an information packet for
your Scout's review. The cost for Winter Camp is $155. Total fee is due
now, if you paid a $50 deposit, you will owe the remainder ($105). I will ask Dirk to put a PayPal link on the Web site for us to use.

If you have signed-up already, you need to choose your Merit Badge classes.
Review the information packet under Announcements tab at www.troop399.org and notify Nick Fox (the Dad) at nfox@velaw.com. Nick will be registering all participants.

Nick Fox (the Dad) is your contact for any questions regarding Winter Camp, nfox@velaw.com.

T399 Announcements

T399 Parents:

1. The PLC (Patrol Leader Council) meeting for Tuesday, November 18th
has been rescheduled to Tuesday, November 25th.

2. Troop 399 General Meeting for Tuesday, November 25th has been
cancelled. The Troop will meet next on Tuesday, December 2nd for our General Meeting.

3. Merit Badge University registration is open and in the first week
over 700 people have registered. Please go to www.utmbu.org to register.
The date for Merit Badge University is February 21, 2009. This is an excellent opportunity for your Scout to receive up to 4 merit badges in one day. Cost is $7.50 per badge. Please contact me if you have any questions.

Don B. Mauro
dmauro21@gmail.com
512/657-0195

"It is the mission of the Boy Scouts of America to serve others by helping them to install values in young people and, in other ways, to prepare them to make ethical choices over their lifetime in achieving their full potential.

The values we strive to install are based on those found in the Scout Oath and Law."