Monday, June 17th 2019
Your Scouts and Scouters started the day off right. Most arose before reveille and donned their class B's in preparation for breakfast. Four of our Scouts, however, headed to the dining hall bedecked in their sharpest class A's. Austin Reid, James Morales, Robby Paul, and Will Harris had the signal honor of hoisting our troop flag over the Cloud L. Cray Flag Plaza in honor of our being awarded "Sharpest Unit" honors the previous evening. In this, they joined the staff flag squads. The U.S. flag, of course, was raised first, as befits its due respect. The flag of the state of Missouri followed, and then the Venturing Crew 311 (the crew for Camp Geiger Staffers), Lastly, our Scouts raised the Troop 451 flag.
They dispatched their duty with dignity and pride. It is great to be a part of such a great troop!
Mondays bring French toast fingers and link sausage with which to assuage one's pangs of hunger. After nearly a whole day at camp and a good night's sleep, appetites are such that everything tastes good. Drown anything in enough syrup and it's bound to taste pretty good! The sausages are suitably savory as well. In addition to the hot fare, cold cereal, milk, and fresh fruit are on offer. For almost every meal, seconds are available and this morning, even thirds were offered on everything, including the sausage.
Considering there are some six-hundred souls on camp this week, the fact that there is surplus available is pleasantly surprising. If anyone leaves the hall hungry, they've only themselves to blame.
Many meals at camp include some smidgen of silliness and today's morning diversion was a game of The Price is Right, featuring two campers, one of who was our own Marshall Hayden! He gladly headed to the dais, joined by the other camper/competitor where they were asked to speculate on the price of a wooden walking stick. Initially, both Scouts guessed high and so another round was offered. This time, sadly, while both boys' guesses were close, the other contestant came closer. It would have been great had the outcome been different but it was still fun to see young Mr. Hayden represent our troop in front of nearly 600 assembled campers.
After breakfast, everyone returns to camp to get whatever they may need for their merit badge classes, which begin at 9:00 am. We like keeping our campsite ship shape so everyone sets about making up their cot, ensuring tent flaps are properly tied shut, and policing the nearby environs for trash. Of course, for most of us, making up one's cot means spreading out one's sleeping bag neatly.
Because the Scouts need to head to classes, some of the clean-up falls to our Scouters. Chores such as cleaning the showers and associated facilities in the storm shelter fall to the adults and we also take on cleaning up the pavilion. These pavilions are a fine feature resulting from the vision of those who foresaw the possibilities storm shelters presented. Each shelter has a footprint of about 20 by 40 feet. They are built into the hillside such that the roof of the shelter is level with the top of the hill. The roof is flat and, like the rest of these bunker-like installations, is made of thick, steel-reinforced concrete. Its 20' x 40' flat surface offers a great opportunity and, in each campsite, the shelter is surmounted by a pavilion.
This means that every campsite has a covered area where Scouts can work on their Mic-O-Say costumes, review merit badge requirements, shoot the breeze, or simply hanging out. Each pavilion sports several picnic tables and has sufficient space for folks to set up their own chains if they so desire. If the weather is rainy but otherwise-unthreatening, these pavilions offer a dry refuge to gather. Like the water heaters mentioned previously, such luxuries were not, unsurprisingly, supported by the FEMA grants and, instead, each pavilion was funded by private sources. We campers are grateful for the thoughtful generosity of others.
Improved safety, better sanitary facilities, and cool pavilions too! What's not to love about the Storm Shelters?
Our first year Scouts headed off to Camp Geiger's own Trail to First Class while older Scouts headed off to work on merit badges. Shortly before 12:30, all campers again assembled on the flag plaza before filing into the Dining Hall for a lunch of chili dogs and Fritos. Once again, the fresh salad bar is a favorite with Scouters and Scouts alike. For lunch too, fresh fruit and vegetables (baby carrots) adorned the table. Again, if anyone did not get enough to eat, it is not from want of food being available.
The afternoon was filled with more merit badge classes. Members of the Tribe of Mic-O-Say, the honor camping society of the Pony Express Council, gathered wherever it is that tribesmen gather to discharge whatever duties are incumbent upon them.
Dinner was the ever-popular chicken Alfredo with green beans.
This evening, there are many unscheduled activities available. Many Scouts and Scouters headed down to the Cowboy Action range. In 2018, our Troop 451 adults worked on preparing this range as part of their Hammerhead Day service to the camp. All the targets on the range are 'reactive' which makes for a great change of pace from punching holes in paper. This event consists of firing six rounds from a .22 caliber revolver (for which reason the event is restricted to those 14 years of age or older) a lever-action .22 repeater, and a side-by-side 20 gauge coach gun. Austin Reid, James Morales, Ramsey Eschilman, Robby Paul, Jay Jay Rawson, Lance Brooks, Phillip Pratt, and yours truly all partook of the opportunity to try a little old-West-inspired action. It was fun.
Then, it was back to camp as the darkness came, as it does, to end our day. After pursuing various divertimenti, our people all headed to bed shortly after the "lights out" call of "Taps" sounded.
Now, your correspondent finds that the only other person up is our dedicated Scout Master and thus, must now wrap up today's report. Keep an eye out for more anon.
And so to cot.
They dispatched their duty with dignity and pride. It is great to be a part of such a great troop!
Mondays bring French toast fingers and link sausage with which to assuage one's pangs of hunger. After nearly a whole day at camp and a good night's sleep, appetites are such that everything tastes good. Drown anything in enough syrup and it's bound to taste pretty good! The sausages are suitably savory as well. In addition to the hot fare, cold cereal, milk, and fresh fruit are on offer. For almost every meal, seconds are available and this morning, even thirds were offered on everything, including the sausage.
Considering there are some six-hundred souls on camp this week, the fact that there is surplus available is pleasantly surprising. If anyone leaves the hall hungry, they've only themselves to blame.
Many meals at camp include some smidgen of silliness and today's morning diversion was a game of The Price is Right, featuring two campers, one of who was our own Marshall Hayden! He gladly headed to the dais, joined by the other camper/competitor where they were asked to speculate on the price of a wooden walking stick. Initially, both Scouts guessed high and so another round was offered. This time, sadly, while both boys' guesses were close, the other contestant came closer. It would have been great had the outcome been different but it was still fun to see young Mr. Hayden represent our troop in front of nearly 600 assembled campers.
After breakfast, everyone returns to camp to get whatever they may need for their merit badge classes, which begin at 9:00 am. We like keeping our campsite ship shape so everyone sets about making up their cot, ensuring tent flaps are properly tied shut, and policing the nearby environs for trash. Of course, for most of us, making up one's cot means spreading out one's sleeping bag neatly.
Because the Scouts need to head to classes, some of the clean-up falls to our Scouters. Chores such as cleaning the showers and associated facilities in the storm shelter fall to the adults and we also take on cleaning up the pavilion. These pavilions are a fine feature resulting from the vision of those who foresaw the possibilities storm shelters presented. Each shelter has a footprint of about 20 by 40 feet. They are built into the hillside such that the roof of the shelter is level with the top of the hill. The roof is flat and, like the rest of these bunker-like installations, is made of thick, steel-reinforced concrete. Its 20' x 40' flat surface offers a great opportunity and, in each campsite, the shelter is surmounted by a pavilion.
This means that every campsite has a covered area where Scouts can work on their Mic-O-Say costumes, review merit badge requirements, shoot the breeze, or simply hanging out. Each pavilion sports several picnic tables and has sufficient space for folks to set up their own chains if they so desire. If the weather is rainy but otherwise-unthreatening, these pavilions offer a dry refuge to gather. Like the water heaters mentioned previously, such luxuries were not, unsurprisingly, supported by the FEMA grants and, instead, each pavilion was funded by private sources. We campers are grateful for the thoughtful generosity of others.
Improved safety, better sanitary facilities, and cool pavilions too! What's not to love about the Storm Shelters?
Our first year Scouts headed off to Camp Geiger's own Trail to First Class while older Scouts headed off to work on merit badges. Shortly before 12:30, all campers again assembled on the flag plaza before filing into the Dining Hall for a lunch of chili dogs and Fritos. Once again, the fresh salad bar is a favorite with Scouters and Scouts alike. For lunch too, fresh fruit and vegetables (baby carrots) adorned the table. Again, if anyone did not get enough to eat, it is not from want of food being available.
The afternoon was filled with more merit badge classes. Members of the Tribe of Mic-O-Say, the honor camping society of the Pony Express Council, gathered wherever it is that tribesmen gather to discharge whatever duties are incumbent upon them.
Dinner was the ever-popular chicken Alfredo with green beans.
This evening, there are many unscheduled activities available. Many Scouts and Scouters headed down to the Cowboy Action range. In 2018, our Troop 451 adults worked on preparing this range as part of their Hammerhead Day service to the camp. All the targets on the range are 'reactive' which makes for a great change of pace from punching holes in paper. This event consists of firing six rounds from a .22 caliber revolver (for which reason the event is restricted to those 14 years of age or older) a lever-action .22 repeater, and a side-by-side 20 gauge coach gun. Austin Reid, James Morales, Ramsey Eschilman, Robby Paul, Jay Jay Rawson, Lance Brooks, Phillip Pratt, and yours truly all partook of the opportunity to try a little old-West-inspired action. It was fun.
Then, it was back to camp as the darkness came, as it does, to end our day. After pursuing various divertimenti, our people all headed to bed shortly after the "lights out" call of "Taps" sounded.
Now, your correspondent finds that the only other person up is our dedicated Scout Master and thus, must now wrap up today's report. Keep an eye out for more anon.
And so to cot.
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