Pack 987 will be returning to Camp Snyder for our spring campout and rocket launch on April 28-30. Our March 16 Pack meeting will focus on getting scouts ready for the campout and we will build rockets at our April 20 meeting. Please also mark you calendar for our Pack hike at the Billy Goat Trail which will take place on May 7. More details on timing for campout and hike will be forthcoming.

Please take a moment to sign up to bring a dish and supplies to our Blue & Gold celebration at our February Pack. We also need volunteers to help set up and break down the room. Blue and Gold Banquets are a tradition in Cub Scout packs. They are a celebration of the anniversary of the founding of the BSA on February 8, 1910, and a time when we celebrate the hard work of our scouts, scouters, and parent volunteers. This is Pack 987's first ever potluck and we hope you will help make it a success.

The Bobcat Rank Patch is the first badge earned in Cub Scouts and signals that a scout knows the signs, symbols, and big ideas of Scouting. All first year scouts Tigers (1st grade) and older should be working toward earning this patch. To earn this patch, scouts needs to meet these seven requirements: 1. Learn and say the Scout Oath (with help if needed), 2. Learn and say the Scout Law, (with help if needed), 3. Show the Cub Scout sign, 4. Show the Cub Scout handshake, 5. Say the Cub Scout motto, 6. Show the Cub Scout salute, 7. With a parent or guardian, complete the exercises in the pamphlet How to Protect Your Children From Child Abuse: A Parent's Guide. Parents, please email Brian McCabe if your new scout has meet these requirements but has not yet received their Bobcat patch. We hope to award these patches at our February Pack meeting.

Our Pinewood Derby is just around the corner and will take place at Emmanual Lutheran Church on Saturday, January 21. Like in previous years, car check-in will take place the night before on Friday from 7-8 pm. Be sure to check out the official race rules as you help you scout with his car. Contact Cubmaster Matt if you need help cutting your scout's car.

We are looking to bring back a Pack 987 tradition that has been on hiatus for several years -- our Winter Overnighter. If there is sufficient interest, Pack 987 will be overnighting on the USS Wisconsin, a retired US Navy Battleship, in Norfolk, VA on Saturday, February 25. To make the trip happen, we will need a commitment from a minimum of 25 participants to secure a reservation. If your family would like to participate, please complete this webform ASAP and let us know you are a firm commitment to attend this event.

We will not have our normal Pack meeting in December, but will instead be visiting the Udvar Hazy Center (14390 Air and Space Museum Pkwy, Chantilly, VA 20151) on Saturday, December 17th @ 10 am. Scouts will be completing a scavenger hunt and they can also take part in a "Forces of Flight" demonstration from 11-11:30 am. Parking at Udvar Hazy costs $15 but admission is free. Please register on the Pack 987 website so we have an accurate headcount. Scouts should wear class A uniforms.