The path to Eagle Scout comes in many shapes and sizes. No two scouts share the same path. The basics are the same, the requirements are the same but the actual journey is the decision of the individual scout.
We could not be more proud to announce Trevor Nigus as the newest Eagle Scout of Crew 91. We are incredibly proud of you, Trevor, and all you have accomplished. Congratulations!
Goodness are we excited to tell you about all the activities of Crew 91. But nothing could excite us more than to announce Trevor has begun his Eagle Scout Service Project! Woot, woot!!
Over the past four months Trevor has been collaborating with the Chilllicothe Historical Society to bring you a renovated cottage. He has diligently sought out advisors to help him along his way. With an adult representative each from the Historical Society and the Crew, Trevor has laid the foundations to complete his Eagle Project well in advanced of the date desired by the Historical Society.
The little cottage behind the main building of the Chillicothe Historical Society used to be a detached garage. Today it functions as a Cottage with displays about the local area. However, it has been in need of an exterior overhaul for sometime. When Trevor approached the Historical Society it did not take long for them to propose residing The Cottage, painting the windows, replacing two exterior doors, and repairing an exterior light fixture. The old wood siding was peeling and chipping and the windows were looking a little dreary.
Trevor’s first day of service got off to a great start on Saturday, April 11. While a couple of people worked on replacing the exterior doors the rest of the group got started with the residing. Goodness, what a difference vibrant white vinyl siding makes on a building with previously cracked and chipped paint!
After just a few hours of service the siding was coming right along. The side door was a little bit of struggle but the volunteers persevered and the stubborn exterior door was conquered! Trevor has done a great job not only organizing the necessary supplies for the project but seeking guidance from more experienced adults to learn the ins and outs of residing a building. He’s learned new skills and in turn taught others the skills he has learned. In the end, that’s the purpose of an Eagle Scout Service Project, to grow and then to grow others. Nothing like the teaching E.D.G.E at work!
The last couple of days Chillicothe has been pummeled with wind, rain, hail and crazy weather. The straight line winds which coursed through our little town left quite a wake, espeically in the north end of town.
Though we as a crew have been unable to help as a group with clean up there have been scouts all over town lending a hand. Between the power lines snapped in two and the dozens of trees ripped from the earth there’s quite a little mess. Monday early morning knocked power out of half the city and closed the entire school district. The roads were flooded and delayed getting to and from work.
Courtesy of Trevor J. Nigus
The really wonderful thing about living in a small town: your volunteer fire department, your police department and the community as a whole. Everyone working together to remove debris and picking up the pieces to start another day.
Kudos to the members of Crew 91 who were out and about lending a hand. And a huge thank you to the men and women of our volunteer fire department and the police department for their relentless services.
It’s pretty fabulous to travel by train. There’s way more room for wandering and for sleeping and overall better experiences.
We’ve managed to make some friends from Michigan. Playing ‘Boy Scout’ and euchre in the cafe with our new scouting family. We’ve shared our Twizzlers and Capri Suns and escaped onto the platform in Kansas City.
Trevor made friends with a few conductors and engineers and they’ve said they’ll give him a tour of the Galesburg Amtrak. There was a crazy card game with pizza on the line.
Now we’re back on the rails and everyone is mostly winding down. Tanner ‘s been sleeping for sometime curled in a little ball and Megan’s all comfy next to the window.
It’s bound to be a great trip!
Only in the scouting world do crazy youth and adults, pack up their backpacks and head to the local parks to lug around 35-50lbs on their backs. To some, we’re crazy. To us, it’s just a regular Saturday morning.
With only 10 days before we depart for Philmont Scout Ranch we made our way to the trails of Forest Park Nature Center for an early morning prep hike. We decided to be adventurous and take the Pimiteoui Trail up to Grandview Drive in Peoria Heights. It’s a nice hike to Grandview Drive with trails very reminiscent of Philmont. And as the name implies, the view is quite spectacular.
Grandview Drive
After a few hours of wandering around and running into a few turkeys we made our way back to Chillicothe sticky and sweaty. To escape the heat for bit we had lunch indoors and reviewed a list of “Do Not Forget to Bring With You” items. Number one item not to forget: Hiking Boots! Sounds a little crazy but you’d be surprised how easy it is to leave for the train without your boots.
A quick shakedown of everyone’s gear and a run through on using backpacking stoves and the water filter made for a very productive Saturday. And that was all before 3pm! There’s sure to be a competition between the ladies and the fellas on tearing down tents while on the trail. The adults can’t wait to see how long it takes for the teams to tear down their tent and be ready in the morning! We’ll let you know the outcome.
Rerolling the tent…the fifth time
Just 10 days. Wow. It’s going to be amazing.
A small merry band of Philmont enthusiasts went for a hike last night. We sure were hoping for fine weather and got quite the opposite. The late afternoon rain was sure to bring a cooling of the 90+ temps Central Illinois was experiencing. We were COMPLETELY wrong!
By the time we arrived at Robinson Park the heat was oppressive and the humidity was through the roof. We only had to walk a short way before we found ourselves drenched in a salty, sticky sweat. Carrying an additional 30-40lbs didn’t help us stay cool either.
The only perks of this lovely stroll were all the wildlife we were able to see. No, we are not counting the gnats and mosquitoes that plagued us for the two hours! We’re referring to all the deer who were out and about last night. We practically ran into a handful as they stood in the trails. In total we observed at least 11 deer at Robinson Park. It was wonderful.
May always seems to be a flurry of activity. Between weddings, and graduations and the occasional Venturing activity the month quickly fades into June. We don’t know about you but is it hard to sit through graduations ceremonies without thinking of Scouting songs? It is for us! One particular song automatically starts rolling through the brain…My Turtle Swims Sideways.
Inevitably as soon as Pomp and Circumstance makes its way into the audience this little ditty comes to mind:
My turtle swims sideways
Your turtle swims upside down
My turtle swims sideways
Your turtle is dead!
In our little crew we have had quite the graduation season. We have one crew member graduating from every level of education. We cannot be more proud of all everyone has accomplished and cannot wait to see what their futures have in store.
Graduating from Chillicothe Elementary Center is our dear Megan. Megan has been hanging out with the crew for the past 7-8 months as an unofficial member of the crew. In order to be a full-fledged youth in any Venture Crew you must be either 14 years old or 13 and completed 8th grade. Well, congratulations, Megan! You’ve successfully conquered junior high and are heading off to high school!
Leaving Illinois Valley Central High School as a well-rounded senior is our enthusiastic Tanner. Tanner has quite the scouting career starting as far back as a Cub Scout, moving into Boy Scouts, attaining the rank of Eagle Scout and joining Crew 91. Kudos to you, Tanner and best of luck as you attend Illinois Central College this fall!
Not to be excluded from the excitement, Arielle graduated from Moody Bible Institute with a Bachelor of Arts in Pre-Counseling. Though too old to be a youth of Crew 91, Arielle made the transition to Associate Crew Advisor as soon as she was eligible. Congratulations on a job well done for successfully navigating through the challenges of college life! Best wishes as you hit the pavement!
So the next time you’re sitting through graduation and cannot wait for Pomp and Circumstance to quit repeating itself, just sing a Crew 91 favorite: My Turtle Swims Sidesways.
The Boy Scout world is full if music. What you consider music and really is music could be two separate ideas entirely. However, singing off key or yelling at the top of your lungs is a common occurrence in scouting land.
Our crew is no different. We chant, sing in rounds, perform little skits and break into song all the time. You will be hard pressed to find an activity where some kind of music does not make an appearance.
When we went to Philmont Scout Ranch in 2011 a whole bunch of us listened to country music. A handful did not appreciate the finer qualities of country music and would bust out in:
“Barges are there treasures in your hold, do you fight with pirates big and bold. Barges I would like to sail with you, I would like to sail the ocean blue.”
You sing Barges in a round and it was a sure fire way to stop the singing of country music – everyone would jump right in and finish the song To this day Barges is the perfect way to change the song or subject. Just as a side note, the anti-country music fellows has been converted!
If we’re not singing a round you might find us singing an action song. There is nothing better than a little enthusiasm and jumping and ‘do as I do’ songs to get your crew ready for a night of excitement. They’re also great for a lull in a program or for when you need to break up a training weekend. One of our favorites is quick and simple:
“Have you ever gone fishing on a bright summer day with all the little fishies swimming in the bay? With their hands in their pockets and their pockets in their pants all the little fishies do the hootchie kootchie dance.’
Or maybe you might prefer Gray Squirrel for a quick and easy action song. Many times you will find Gray Squirrel used when a member of a troop or crew forgets to bring a water bottle, their merit badge sash or the lunch. The poor unsuspecting soul has to sing Gray Squirrel with all the motions and if everyone is nice they might join in the merriment:
“Gray squirrel, gray squirrel shake your bushy tail. Gray Squirrel, gray squirrel shake your bushy tail. Crinkle up your little nose, stick a nut between your toes. Gray squirrel, gray squirrel shake your bushy tail.”
So matter the type of song, we’re game. We may look silly but we don’t really mind. It brings a smile to our faces and to those around us who think us crazy, we’ll let you in our secret…we are. 🙂
When we told our friends, family and co-workers we were going to go camping this past weekend we received the, “Are you crazy?” look. You know the one. It’s the look where one eyebrow raises, the mouth gapes open and a slight gasp for air follows. Here in good ol’ Chillicothe, Illinois we are having all kinds of fun in the extreme cold.
The Camp Wokanda Face
But a subzero temperatures were not going to keep us from our annual cabin camping at Camp Wokanda. There it is, the key word, cabin. We don’t mind the cold but we’re not completely off our rockers!
Wash your dishes with a sock?
The weekend was laid back and easy. We snuggled in Friday night for chili, snacks, games and a movie. A new member joined us for her first campout with the crew and here’s hoping we didn’t scare her away. Sleeping did not even require the sleeping bag!
Service & Fun
No need to get out into the frigid weather too early on a Saturday morning so we had a late start to breakfast. Made our way to a little service project clearing felled trees and took a break to sled. It’s slightly tricky to avoid trees, stumps and people. We managed to survive and get back in time for lunch and the remainder of the service project.
Never a dull moment
Nothing too exciting but the weather was brisk, new friendships were made and most importantly we presented a crew member with the rank of Life Scout. Times are always good when spent among friends, especially while ‘camping’ at Camp Wokanda.
Our new Life Scout!
There are a whole lot of things that make Venturing an incredible program: high adventure, scuba diving, marshmallow wars, leadership training and team building activities. But the most amazing things about Venturing are the friendships forged.
January has brought a lot of cold and a bunch of snow. We thought skiing would be a great way to take advantage of the weather. We planned a little Venturing ski trip but things did not pan out as expected. Our skiing trip was cancelled.
It was the Saturday before MLK Day and a small group of friends, who just happened to be Venture Scouts, decided even though the Crew was not going to ski they were going to go skiing. Monday morning a group of eight friends and two family members made their way to Dubuque, IA.
Despite the Crew skiing activity being cancelled this group of friends decided to make a day for themselves. Venturing is not just about getting together a few times a month, hanging out, having a good time and then going back to life as it was. Venturing is about the friendships that span beyond the meeting and into every day life and follow you throughout the rest of your life. Skiing at Sundown Mountain on January 20 is proof our Crew is made of friends who have become family.
Escape with Venture Crew 91 