During a recent Cub Scout sign-up night for Pack 309 in Augusta, Cubmaster Margaret Jordan looked at the clock in the Garrett Elementary School cafeteria. "Wow," she said. The clock read 6:40 p.m. The sign-up night started at 6:30 p.m. Jordan was surprised because 16 interested families had come and registered to join the pack and the sign-up night appeared to be completed only 10 minutes after it was scheduled to start.
Packs district-wide have had great success implementing the new station-by-station format recommended this year for its sign-up nights. So far, through the use of this method, packs in Creek River District have recruited 181 new Cub Scouts this fall. That's an average of 10 new Cub Scouts per pack. Some packs have doubled in size.
This method has proved to be so successful because families who arrive early can move through each of the five recommended stations to register their boy to join a Cub Scout pack at their own pace. Boys started arriving as early as 6:15 p.m. for Pack 309 and continued funneling through the cafeteria at a steady pace for the next 25 minutes. At the next meeting, the pack picked up an additional two leaders.
As of Sept. 6, the top five packs for Fall Roundup recruiting were:
Pack 8 -- 24
Pack 345 -- 20
Pack 75 -- 19
Pack 45 -- 16
Pack 309 -- 16
Pack 413 -- 15
The district has seen remarkable growth in the past two years. Last year, we grew by more than 135 Cub Scouts. In the spring, about 90 new Cub Scouts joined district packs. In the fall, we have already added 181 new Cub Scouts. New Cub Scouts are joining every day and packs are embracing new ways to instill positive values in area youth. Last year, two district packs (8 and 1510) added a Lions den to their program. After a successful first year, the Boy Scouts of America decided to expand the program. Please welcome Packs 75 and 825 as the newest Lions members!
Much of our recent success, has resulted from the district and its packs and troops firming up its leadership committees. This summer, the district welcomed Stephen Montgomery as its new chairman to fill out its "Key 3," pictured above. The Key 3 includes, from left to right, District Executive Wesley Brown, District Chair Stephen Montgomery and District Commissioner CJ Mitchell. The district also welcomed Dave Foreman as its new Finance Chair, Alice Montgomery as its Activities and Civics Service Chair and Whit Morgan as its Public Relations Chair. A number of packs welcomed new Cubmasters, committee members and den leaders. The district restarted its historic Boy Scout troop in Wrens (Troop 202) and is aggressively working to start new troops in Millen and Sardis. There is also great interest to start a new Cub Scout pack in Louisville this fall.
In collaboration with volunteers council-wide, Creek River District is leading efforts to organize this year's Spook-o-ree. Pack 413 Cubmaster Esther Jackson is leading the effort as event chairman and has met with a planning committee to organize the event since June. As a result, the leader's guide was included in this year's recruitment packets, about 10 troops have volunteered to help teach Webelos programming and staff haunted activities, and four exploring posts and civic clubs have said they will attend to promote first responder awareness and anti-bullying messages. Shirley Stapleton, a parent with Pack 75 in Swainsboro, designed and will produce this year's T-shirt (pictured above). Please support the district and council, and register to attend this event at this link.
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