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LISBON — Cub Scout Pack 109 of Lisbon recently celebrated new Scouts joining the pack with its annual Knights of Columbus camp out. The event is simple in its design because the pack meets Saturday after lunch, spends the night and leaves after breakfast the next morning.
Even at this short event, Scouts learn how to color T-shirts, safely use knives, whittle, start a roaring campfire, perform skits, sing songs and make dinner: — prep, cook and clean. The year starts right after LCS has its open house in August, resulting in school age kids wanting to learn more about everything they can see. New scouts are young boys and girls who want to experience things and learn at the same time.
These youths are celebrated every year when the pack gathers at Knights of Columbus building Lisbon Street. Scouts start arriving and immediately begin setting up. New members are oriented to the area and often receive help setting up, but the Scouts do most of the work.
The pack aims to teach Scouts how to do things for themselves and for others. The Scouts selected a site for their tents, explained the rationale for their selection, and then set their tents up. Afterwards, they all began coloring tees for further use. The pack is well known, by all Maine troops and packs, for their dyed tee shirts.
The scouts do get plenty of play time, but many are happy to do scouting tasks and consider them to be fun. For instance, the Bear Den saw 12 scouts using plastic knives to carve soap. This was intended practice for the ensuing use of knives because the same Scouts learned how to cut vegetables up for salads when they were done.
This den made a spaghetti dinner that fed the entire pack — Scouts, siblings and parents alike. They rotated through stations while wearing serving gloves, washed veggies, cut multiple types of vegetables, made garlic bread, cooked the sauce and noodles before serving the entire pack and washed all utensils utilized. They even sanitized the counter tops.
Meanwhile, another den practiced a variety of knots and multiple ways of tying those knots. A second den, consisting of our youngest scouts, earned their Bobcat badges by reading the Scout Oath and Law while proving that they understood the meanings of both.
The big fun comes at night though. Scout leaders start a bonfire and Scouts organize to create skits and sing songs for all to enjoy. New Scouts are encouraged to learn songs and lead their peers as way of getting them to come out of their shells. These aren’t just any songs; these are “repeat after me” and “repeat after me and do what I do” songs. Every parent and sibling must stand, sing every word uttered by the scouts leading, and some songs require everyone to actually jump up, turn around, and perform unique movements. The scouts love it! They get loud and happy at the same time.
Adding to their fun at the overnight trip, many Scouts enjoyed learning more about the conservation of Owls in Maine during a presentation by Chewonki. This presentation was held just prior to the overnight at Aubuchon’s Hardware in Lisbon. The Scouts looked on as small owls, held by trained professionals, were on exhibit. The Scouts learned about the lives of these rarely-seen but often-heard creatures during this session.
For more information about these events and more, please contact the pack at Pack109.lisbon@gmail.com or on facebook — Pack109.Lisbon.
