Pack 273 is an all volunteer organization comprised primarily of boys that attend Brooks Hill School. We are members of the Towpath District in the Otetiana Council of Boy Scouts. Boys are allowed to join cub scouts when they reach the age of 7, or when they are in the first grade, and continue until the fifth grade. Cub scouts is a great organization that focuses on three fundamentals: duty to God, duty to others, and duty to self.
We currently have about 50 boys, evenly divided across five cub scout levels in seven dens: Tigers (first graders), Wolves (second graders), Bears (third graders) , Webelos I (fourth graders) and Webelos II (fifth graders). We hold monthly pack meetings from September to April, starting with the opening campfire at Camp Piperwood each fall and ending with the Blue and Gold Banquet and the Crossover Ceremony for Webelos II scouts in April. In between, we have pack Olympics, Rock Climbing, Christmas ornament making, the pinewood derby, and much more. Although we don't meet formally over the summer, there are still a number of great family events to attend, including Red Wings games, a canoe trip, Memorial Day and Fourth of July Parades, bike trips, hikes and a Buffalo Bills exhibition game.
Each meets at least once a month separate from the pack meetings. The focus of the den meetings is to complete the achievements necessary to move to the next level of scouting. "Go and See It" activities are a big part of den achievments. Go and See Its include museam, police station, TV studio, fire station and nature park visits.
Our pack is self-funded through fundraisers (annual popcorn sales and a car wash each June), as well as charter fees and fees for special events. The pack (and Boy Scouts of America) are not-for-profit. None of our leaders are compensated; we are a fully volunteer-run organization. For many years, the pack has benfitted from the generous donation of time and effort on the part of our scout parents (and siblings) as den leaders, committee members, event organizers and pack officers. These leadership roles can be as enriching to the parents as the scouting is to their sons, and we are constantly searching for new activities and events to help our scouts grow in their duty to God, duty to others and duty to themselves!
