Joining
My child has never camped. Is that a problem?
No — it is the normal starting point. New Scouts join the New Scout Patrol, where older Scouts trained as Troop Guides teach them how to pack, pitch a tent, cook on a camp stove and look after themselves outdoors. Nobody expects a new Scout to arrive knowing any of it.
Does my child need to have been a Cub Scout?
No. Many of our Scouts joined without ever being in a Pack. If your child is ten or eleven and has never been near Scouting, they are exactly who the programme is designed for.
Is it too late to join?
A young person can join up to their eighteenth birthday. Joining at thirteen or fourteen is perfectly normal — the first-year skills are taught to whoever needs them, whenever they arrive.
Can girls join?
Yes. From 20 September 2026, Troops 44 and 45 become a single family troop, so girls and boys register with the same unit and camp with the same troop. Troop 45 was chartered in 2019 to give girls in our community the same programme; from this September everyone is simply Troop 44.
Can we visit before deciding?
Please do. Come to any Monday meeting — no need to call ahead. You are also welcome to come on a campout with us before you join, which tells you far more about a troop than an evening in a church hall.
Time
How much time does this actually take?
Meetings are Monday evenings, 7:00 to 8:15, on school days. There is a campout most months from September through May, usually leaving Friday evening and back Saturday or Sunday. Summer camp is one week in June.
That is the full programme. Most families do not do all of it.
My child plays a sport. Can they still be a Scout?
Yes, and many of ours do. Scouts advance at their own pace here. We understand that seasons clash, exams happen and families have other commitments — Scouts come when they can. A Scout who misses a term of meetings for baseball has not fallen behind; they pick up where they left off.
Do we have to go to everything?
No. Camping is where most of the learning happens, so we encourage it, but there is no attendance requirement and no penalty for missing a month.
Parents
Do parents have to camp?
No. Parents are welcome on every campout and many come, but it is not required, and plenty of Scouts camp with the troop while their parents stay home.
What we do ask is that every family helps with something across the year — driving to a trailhead, helping at the pumpkin patch, sitting on the committee, or counselling a merit badge in whatever you happen to know about. The troop runs on parents. It does not run on all of them doing everything.
If I come camping, do I look after my own child?
Not quite, and this surprises people coming from Cub Scouts. Scouts camp with their patrol, cook with their patrol and clean up with their patrol. Adults camp separately — including from their own children — and are there for safety and advice rather than to run the site.
The phrase we use is safely nearby, but not smotheringly close. It takes some getting used to. It is also the point.
Do I need any training?
To camp with us or drive Scouts, yes: Youth Protection Training, about an hour online, renewed every two years. We ask at least one parent from each family to take it whether or not they plan to camp — it is the clearest explanation you will get of how Scouting keeps young people safe.
Can I just drop my child off?
For a Monday meeting, yes, and most families do. For the troop as a whole, not really — a troop this size only works because parents pitch in somewhere. But that can be an hour at a fundraiser rather than a weekend in a tent.
Cost
What does it cost?
As of September 2026.
- Troop dues: $35 a year
- Registration: $165 a year — $85 to Scouting America and $80 to our council — paid at checkout when you register
- Campouts: $20 to $25 each
- Summer camp: $450 to $525 for the week
There is no joining fee — Scouting America removed it in April 2024.
Summer camp is the largest single cost of the year, and it is the one our Scouts most often pay for themselves — most cover the whole week through troop fundraising.
What if we cannot afford it?
Talk to the Scoutmaster or the Treasurer. Assistance is available, the conversation stays private, and no young person is turned away over money.
Our Scouts also earn a good deal of their own way. The troop runs a pumpkin patch, sells firewood and coffee and staffs concession stands; proceeds are shared between the troop and the Scout’s own account, which then offsets dues, campouts and summer camp. A Scout who works the fundraisers can cover most of their costs.
Do we need to buy camping gear?
Not to start. The troop owns tents and patrol cooking equipment. For the first few campouts a sleeping bag and a duffel bag will do — you do not need a backpack, and you certainly do not need a tent.
Buy gear once your Scout knows what they actually use. Plenty of expensive kit gets bought in the first month and never used again.
What about the uniform?
Nothing at all for a first visit — wear ordinary clothes. Once registered, a Scout needs the tan Class A shirt, a troop Class B t-shirt and a handbook, all from the Scout Shop.
Safety
How do you keep Scouts safe?
- Two-deep leadership. At least two registered adults at every activity, and no adult is ever alone with a Scout who is not their own child.
- Screening and training. Every registered adult is background-checked, and Youth Protection Training is renewed every two years.
- Separate sleeping. Adults tent apart from Scouts. Scouts tent with their patrol.
- Merit badges are never one-to-one. A Scout always meets a counsellor with another Scout or an adult present.
What medical paperwork is needed?
Parts A and B of the Scouting America medical form cover meetings and weekend campouts. Neither needs a doctor — you fill them in yourself. Part C needs a physical from the past twelve months and is only required for summer camp and other events longer than 72 hours.
What about allergies, medication or other needs?
Tell us. Talk to the Scoutmaster before your Scout’s first campout and we will work out how to handle it — dietary needs, medication, and anything else worth knowing. This comes up constantly and is entirely routine.
How the troop works
What happens at a meeting?
Scouts run it. There is an opening, patrol time, skills instruction or advancement work, usually a game, and a closing. Adults are in the room but not at the front.
What is a patrol?
A small group of Scouts — roughly eight to ten — who camp, cook and compete together, led by a Patrol Leader the Scouts elect themselves. New Scouts start in the New Scout Patrol and move into a regular patrol when they reach First Class rank, usually within the first year.
Who decides what the troop does?
The Patrol Leaders’ Council — the Senior Patrol Leader and the Patrol Leaders, all Scouts — plans the calendar and decides where the troop camps. Adults advise and keep it safe. They do not plan it.
What about phones on campouts?
We are not absolutist about it, but a campout is a poor place for a screen and the Scouts largely police this themselves. Phones stay away during activities. Bring one for the drive if you like.
How do we hear what is going on?
GroupMe, mostly — every family joins the Troop 44/45 All group for announcements. The calendar on this site carries the schedule, and you can subscribe to it so troop events appear in your own calendar.
Still have a question?
Ask the Scoutmaster, Daniel Grosh, at any Monday meeting, or send us a message.
