Photography Belt Loop

A special thanks to Jeff Lukas for setting up all of the technical details.  Click here for a link to the smugmug hosting site.

If you have some pictures that you’d like to upload directly to a gallery, let us know, and we’ll send you a link.  We’re also glad to upload from DVD or flash drives.  We can also set up a gallery for past events (such as Dozin’ with the Dinos, or Pinewood Derby), so if you have a lot of pictures that you’d care to share, let us know and we can set  it up.  Right now there are just two galleries one is made up of the pictures from the Blue & Gold slideshow and the other is a set of pictures from White Pines (thanks to Carrie Staubus and Mary Ellen Parks).

A final note:  If any of our cub scout parents have a special interest in serving as a photography coordinator, please let us know (pack24riverside@gmail.com).

• June 24:  Bike Hike.   We’ll continue our tradition of hitting a forest preserve trail for a long bike ride and serve some refreshments to re-energize our scouts after the trip.  Bear leader Chris Pacourek will coordinate this event.
• July 4:   Parade & Lemonade Stand.  Our scouts serve as the color guard at the beginning of Riverside’s Independence Day Parade.  Our fresh-squeezed lemonade is a huge hit at the party afterwards in Guthrie Park.  Thanks to both Karen and Mike Ryan for serving as co-chairpersons for this event.  We’re looking for volunteers to help make this event as successful as it was last year, so if you’re to lend a hand, please click here to be a part of the committee.
• July 29:  Water park outing.  We’re going to check out Raging Waves water park in Yorkville for this year’s water park adventure and it sounds absolutely fabulous.  Bear leader Jeff Lukas is coordinating this outing.
• August 19:  Summer Picnic.  Last year’s picnic involved water bottle rockets, a bounce house, and epic water balloon fight and, of course, some tasty grilling.  Webelos leader Tim Ozga is making the arrangements.

Also mark September 7, 8 & 9 since just after school begins, we will be heading back to the Warren Dunes near Sawyer, MI for our fall camping trip.

Remember that the Pack meeting tonight (May 8th) is graduation, so bring a snack to share with your fellow scout families and also a box of cereal to support the ongoing RPC food drive.

Our pack meeting this Tuesday evening is the last one we will have before our summer break.  Please bring your scout since this is our graduation, where will be recognizing the accomplishments of the scouts and giving them their rank emblems.  We’ll also be providing all scouts with their cub scout books for their next ranks, as well as the new neckerchief and slide.

In honor of the occasion, we ask all families to bring a dessert to share, cookies, cakes, serving-sized fruit or something similar would be great.

We’ll also review our upcoming summer activities which will feature a bike hike, parade / lemonade stand, waterpark and summer picnic.

Finally, please bring one or more boxes of cereal with your scout to this meeting.  In May, our host organization Riverside Presbyterian Church, is participating in a cereal drive to provide food to disadvantaged kids during the summer months.  Thank you for helping RPC fight hunger in our community.

See our previous posts for more information about this event.

Our next Pack Meeting is Tuesday, April 10 at the RPC Social Hall.  A few of the events we are planning include:

• Tug-of-war
• Puppet show from the Webelos scouts
• Presentation from the Friends of Scouting
• Tiger scout healthy eating tips featuring the food pyramid
• White Pines Ranch details

April 10 is also the deadline to register & pay for Chicago Rush outing on May 6 (click here for additional details on this fun outing).

Scout Night is May 6

We’ve updated the registration for the outing to see the Chicago Rush arena football team on May 6.  Two important changes to bring to your attention:

• Registration will end on Tuesday, April 10.  This is the night of our April Pack Meeting, so be sure to mark your calendars.   The earlier deadline was recommended by the Rush as a way to be sure we get better tickets when we submit our bulk order.
• You have the option to use PayPal to pay for this event, which should make it easier than running across town to deliver checks to your den leader.

Click here to register.  More details on this event can be found on our prior post, or email us at pack24riverside@gmail.com.

Chicago Rush QB Justin Roper

He told us all about the differences between arena football and the traditional outdoor version of the game.  He also taught us about some quarterback fundamentals: balance, lunge, and swing the hammer high!  I think we also all have a much better understanding of “quick-release” mechanics, thanks to Justin.  Thanks to his visit, we also received a bunch of neat posters and flyers.

As he mentioned during his visit, the Rush are going to host scout night on May 6 when they play the Iowa Barnstormers.  In addition to watching some great fast-paced football, scouts and their families will have the chance to benefit from:

• Reduced price admission for scouts, and a portion of the proceeds from each ticket sale will be donated to support the Des Plaines Valley Council.
• Pre-game festivities, in-game promotions, and scout-exclusive raffles for Rush prizes.
• All scouts will receive a free Chicago Rush Scout Patch
• Scouts and families can stay after the game for autographs from their favorite Rush players.

Scout Night is May 6

The game against the Barnstormers is scheduled for 3pm on Sunday, May 6.  The Rush play at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, IL, which is a 20 minute drive up First Avenue / River Road from Riverside.  We are going to register as a group, and registration will close on Tuesday April 10th; this is the date of our April pack meeting.  

A seating chart for the types of tickets can be found here 2012_RUSH_SCOUTDAY.  Note that we are only going to purchase tickets in bulk for families that register for the blue or purple seating areas.  Last year, most families chose to register for the lower-cost “purple” tickets.  If you have any questions: email us at pack24riverside@gmail.com.

Click here to register today!

Here’s a pro tip,  bring your payment and waiver to the Pack Meeting at RPC this Tuesday, March 13 at 7:15pm CT.  We will also have printed forms at the meeting but you can complete these in advance.

• Click print a form of the waiver:  White Pines Waiver
• Click to print the emergency medical contact form:   White Pines Medical

Any questions?  Ask your den leader or email us at pack24riverside@gmail.com.

After adjusting our pack meeting schedule in January and February for the Pinewood Derby and Blue & Gold, we are back to our usual time for the meetings for the rest of the school year.  We meet during the second Tuesday of the month, so the  dates for our next three pack meetings are set for March 13, April 10 and May 8.

During our March pack meeting, we will be visited by a representative from the Chicago Rush arena football team to discuss the upcoming scout night on May 6, and a representative from the Des Plaines Valley Council will preview the summer camping options for scouts.  We’ll also give an update on the upcoming outing to White Pines Ranch which is scheduled for April 20-22.

Speaking of White Pines, remember that registration closes on March 16, since the ranch requires us to give a firm headcount 30 days in advance of arrival.  Email us at pack24riverside@gmail.com with any questions on this event.

Please remember to arrive a few minutes before your shift officially begins in order to understand your assignments.  All scouts should wear their “Class A” uniforms with neckercheif and slide.  Parents should be on hand to help if possible or enjoy some pancakes during the shift your son is working. 

If you can’t make the shift that you have registered for, please let your den leader know immediately.