is dedicated to helping boys grow in their leadership skills through positive interactions with older and more experienced scouts and also through leading younger scouts, all in a safe, supervised environment.

 

Each year the scouts in the troop plan the acitivites for the year, with events typically planned monthly from September through June.  Popular events are held almost every year, such as the Cape Cod bicycle trip.  Other trips have included backpacking at Mount Greylock or Mount Monadnock, snowshoeing, and white water rafting (both photos and writeups of the trips are available).  The week long summer camp at Camp Resolute is another highlight in which many of the scouts participate.

 

When a scout first joins, the emphasis is on learning the basic scouting skills, both from the boy scout handbook and from the older scouts.  As the scout progresses to Tenderfoot, Second Class, and First Class the scout becomes more and more proficient at first aid, knots and lashings, camping, cooking, all while learning both how to prepare for a safe camping experience and how to react calmly when there is an inevitable sprained ankle or rainstorm.

 

After the scout has learned the basics there are many leadership opportunities available both to help cement the scout's skills and to help the scout teach the skills to incoming scouts.  Scouts may serve as patrol leaders, who are responsible their patrol's preparedness and who also serve on the Patrol Leader's Council (PLC) to help guide the activities of the troop as a whole.  Scouts may also hold leadership positions within the troop, such as quatermaster, scribe, webmaster, assistant senior patrol leader, and senior patrol leader, who leads the entire troop during the weekly meetings and during other activities.

 

While the scouts are under the supervision of the scoutmaster and the assistant scoutmaster, the emphasis is always on the scouts providing the leadership and the adults providing whatever coaching is necessary.  There are regular leadership training sessions held for the scouts, using the Boy Scout Troop Leadership Training materials, to ensure that the scouts understand their position and are equipped with the necessary skills.