Pack 439 is an organization of families that works together
in a way consistent with our basic philosophy: developing
responsibility, leadership, and outdoor skills in children. Our focus
is on core scouting principles: outdoor adventure,
safety, and emergency preparation. Some favorite activities are
archery, astronomy, animal tracking, camping, fire safety and
first aid for people and animals, wildlife conservation and
ecology, and, now, whatever your family is interested in. The
national organization formally recognizes boys from first to
fifth grade as cub scouts; we welcome siblings of either gender
as equal members and include them in activities, and realize
that younger children are part of our community also.
Pack439 is hosted by Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church. We
typically attend church as a pack once a year on "Scout Sunday"
in February, but do not actively promote any particular
religion as a pack.
We believe in hands-on learning -- for
example, boys learn geology while gold prospecting, they learn safety and rope
work with climbing walls, and environmentalism and animal
identification with camping and hiking. We camp twice each fall, twice in the spring, and at least once in the summer. Advancement and awards
come along the way, but are second to the children's growth and
fun. We emphasize that our pack is hands-on and adventurous,
and sometimes this means older children have to teach younger
ones, that there are physically challenging and tough
activities, and that sometimes burnt fingers come with learning
to cook over a campfire. All families are expected to
participate; we have a good culture we will help the families
integrate into, and look after each other's children as needed,
but the expectation is you'll need to help, and your own
children will benefit in direct proportion with your own
participation.
The pack meets every Monday EXCEPT when
- School is not in session, either for major breaks or
holidays, or
- We have had a weekend event.
We do not keep a regular meeting schedule in the summer, but try to have at least one activity a month.
The whole pack participates in meetings, with break-outs to
age-specific different activities only as necessary. The
schedule, as currently planned, is listed below (with DPS
calendar added), and is available online through Google
calendars (www.tinyurl.com/pack439). It WILL change as we
fine-tune events in accordance with opportunities and needs of
the families involved. Communication generally takes place
through the mailing list "pack439@capanalytics.com", which any
member can post to.
Costs and other requirements: $38/yearly dues with Boy's
Life Magazine, payable in the fall. Children will need a
uniform, and an age-appropriate scout book, available from the
Scout Store, 3231 Atlantic Avenue in Raleigh, or online at
www.scoutstuff.org. Camping trips and events may be extra, with
typical costs for camping of about $12/person/day for food.
Camping trips will require a good sleeping bag and ground pad;
other equipment is nice, but the pack is sufficiently
well-equipped with tents, cooking gear, and other items to
provide for you. Prior camping experience is not needed. Group
cooking duty for meals on camping trips is assigned to a family
on a rotating basis. Fundraising details will be discussed, but
historically we have done something like a barbecue dinner
fundraiser at the church. This requires a day of hard work,
with organizational work prior, but typically will pay pack
expenses for a year. We do not do popcorn, cookies, or any
ongoing door-to-door sales operations.
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