Trail Talk – 12/22/25

Good afternoon Troop 244!!!

Happy Monday! Happy Winter/Christmas Break! Happy Holidays! This is a bit of an abbreviated Trail talk but still contains all those things to keep in mind! First Please remember that we DO NOT MEET over Winter Break. There will be NO troop meetings on Tuesday, Dec. 23 or Dec. 30. If you show up at the church, not only will there be no one there, but you won’t be able to get inside either! We will see you all again on Jan. 6!

IMPORTANT NOTES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS FOR THIS WEEK:

NO TROOP MEETINGS – There will be no meetings on Tuesday December 23 and Tuesday December 30. We will see you again on January 6th for our next troop meeting!

Family Troop 244 – As of now, we are working on this. I will let you know when it is a reality.

MERIT BADGES – I will be working on merit badge classes over break. If you did not finish your last merit badge, you will continue in that merit badge until you do. If you finished, I will put you in a new merit badge. We will be offering Cit. in the Nation this time around, instead of Cit. in the World. We will also be offering Emergency Prep this time around.

Registration – If you have not reregistered yet, I will be contacting you by email or over the phone to check on your status. I will do that over the next two weeks.

JANUARY CAMPOUT: PIONEER SCOUT RESERVATION – JANUARY 16TH – 18TH, 2026.  $45 per scout, $20 per adult. You can still sign up for this campout through Zeffy! Right now, we have about 13 adults and scouts signed up. The boys are currently winning the nice cabin! Girls, get in there and sign up!

Mackinac Service Contingent Dates – July 18 – 25th, 2026 You will need to submit an application by February 10th. Applications will be available at any of the Callout Nights for the 2026 Troop. Those nights are Jan. 27th and Feb. 5th at 7:00 pm at First Congregational Church in St. Joseph. There is also a Callout Night, specifically for Portage, on February 2nd at Portage Chapel Hil Church on Oakland Drive. Question, ask Mr. Carr.

Pictured Rocks Backpacking Trip – I will be looking at this trip more closely over break. I will be looking at numbers and making sure that I am ready to make reservations when the time comes. You can still sign up through Zeffy by paying the $25 deposit.

SUMMER CAMP 2026 June 21 – 27th, 2026! Keep this on your radar! Signup begins after break!

SwampBase Participants –You know who you are! Please continue to make monthly payments for your SwampBase Trek. $160/ month with the balance due by February 15th.  Questions about SwampBase, please see Mike King.

Philmont 2027 – Start making payments and start physical preparation. It is never too early to start!

Troop 244 Payment Portal – Zeffy. Our Zeffy page remains open for you to make payments or by troop merch! Wanna pay for the campout, Pictured Rocsk, SwampBase, Registration, etc. Go to the following link: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/ae9ef6d1-d95d-497f-bbb2-628736bd4b03?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR2JxFwNYscci1euCT8Pe2CU0xH82wHLqKJ_k7xvHpOi_cTzmUBCmfzkB_0_aem_Xl9toW0W0_LleQxg1UYLpg

Scoutmaster Minute  – I will keep this short and sweet. I want you all to know that during this next two weeks, while I will be working on scout stuff for Troop 244, I will also be taking a break. We all need to take time to recharge our batteries, and I need that time right now. I need to spend time with family and friends, and I need some rest and so that is my intent. I will spend time working for the troop, but you may not hear a ton from me over the next two weeks because I will be doing the work on my own time and at my own pace. If you need to get ahold of me, you always can but my response times might be slow and sluggish. You will get a trail talk this week and next and you may hear from me about things like registration, summer camp and the January campout but I don’t know when that will be. I will be communicating mostly with Sherry and Christy over the break about things for the troop. I am just asking that you all be patient during this time. This is a time of Joy; to be extremely thankful for our Blessings but it is also a time for rest. I hope that you all find the things that give you joy over the holidays and that you all take some time to rest as well.

This is just not a motto; this is a FACT:

“What Troop Does More!!” – 244!!!