In March 2020, it seemed like the world came to a halt with the onset of a new global pandemic, and everyone was trying to figure out how to proceed with the new quarantine and social distancing guidelines. Scouting also had to to adapt and change. It did not stop us. We are still scouting!

We did it all through Zoom meetings, virtual campouts and socially distanced outdoor events.

On the weekend of April 24-25, The Heart of New England Council hosted a nationwide Camp Quarantine Virtual Camporee. Our cub scouts were able to complete requirements for their rank adventures right from home via Zoom, and they were able to see what other scouts from across the country were doing.

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There were so many events to choose from such as virtual hikes, scavenger hunts, cub scout yoga, yo-yo, cooking with cubs, egg drop, learning about germs, aquatic safety, learning about mammals, cub scout standup comedy, and cub scout jeopardy. Each day there was a morning virtual Flag Ceremony, lunch and dinner virtual grace, and evening virtual campfire program.

Our pack hosted our monthly pack meetings, and biweekly den meetings via Zoom. Families worked on their various adventure requirements at home and discussed/shared all they had learned during the Zoom den meetings.

Every Memorial Day, Pack 107 has always been invited to march in the Grafton Memorial Day Parade. Due to COVID-19, all parades were cancelled. The parade and ceremony are to honor the US military men and women who have given up their lives while fighting for our freedoms. This year the Boys Scouts of America asked scouts to do a socially distanced ceremony by playing Taps at 3PM on Memorial Day as part of “A Scout Salute to Fallen Heroes”.

Pack 107 hosts a year round scouting program and hosts events even in the summer months, which has earned the pack the Summer Time Pack Award for many years running. Pack 107 held socially distanced hikes in July and August which is a way for scouts to earn hiking miles for the Pack Hiking Program. The mileage that a scout hikes during their time scouting with Pack 107 earns them points towards prizes. The first level is a hiking stick at 20 miles, and more prizes for each 10 miles thereafter. The August hike also including a geocaching activity. Geocaching is an outdoor treasure hunting activity that uses your phone or GPS device. The scouts set out on a trail with their family and search for these registered geocaches or treasures.

On August 14, 2020, Pack 107 hosted a VIrtual Egg Drop Competition via Zoom. It was a fun way for the cub scouts to reconnect, and to use their STEM knowledge and creativity, to construct a contraption for a raw egg to survive an egg drop. We had 13 scouts participate and here are the results:

Intact eggs: 10 eggs- Chris, Cory & Casey, Jasmine, Lilly, Silas, Nico, Jackson, Gabriel and Liam

Cracked but not broken: 2 eggs- Aaron & Josh

Broken : 2 eggs- Sam & Lucas

10 out of 14 eggs survived!!

As we start the scouting and school year, we will continue to have outdoor program activities that are planned in small groups with masks and social distancing, along with a remote portion via Zoom.

To find out more about Cub Scouts Pack 107, check is out on https://www.facebook.com/Graftonpack107

or contact us at graftonpack107@gmail.com

This past Saturday, 2/29/2020, the cub scout families of Grafton Pack 107 celebrated Leap Day by going snow tubing at Ski Ward, in Shrewsbury, MA. The weather was perfect with a mix of sun and mild overcast skies, and temperatures near the freezing/melting mark. The conditions on the slopes were perfect with a 36 inch snow pack!

The cub scouts put their knowledge of winter weather safety to practice with Mr. Rob Lane, AOL den leader, giving a quick review of the 3 Ws of winter weather preparedness: wicking, warm, and wind protection. He spoke about the need for keeping on top of hydration, and making sure to keep inner layers dry. The cub scouts also listened to the safety rules and instructions presentation given by the Ski Ward staff.

The snow tubing event was a two hour event, and we were provided with a toasty warm cabana to use for check in, rest breaks, and recharge with hot cocoa.

The two hours went by quickly, and very few people took breaks, as they tried to make any many runs on the slopes as possible, and just have fun!!

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A big thank you goes out to Mr. Larry Drew, our assistant den leader of the Bears den , for suggesting and organizing this fun filled event our pack!

A special thank you also goes out to Mr. Chris Nichols, for sharing his time and talent with the pack, by taking and sharing these incredible photos at this event.

If you are interested in finding out more about scouting with Pack 107, please feel free to reach out and contact us.

On Friday 2/21/2020, Pack 107 experienced a fun filled night immersed in all things related to marine biology and marine life. There were 2 other cub scout packs at the event, one from Rhode Island, and another from Connecticut.

The cub scouts and their families were split into smaller groups and spent the evening rotating through 4 different learning stations.

At the Beluga Whale class, the cub scouts learned about the Beluga whale’s special adaptation of echolocation, the Beluga’s anatomy, habitat, and their preditors.

At the Invertebrates class, the cub scouts learned about the sea creatures which have different exoskeletons. They had the opportunity to touch and feel a live sea urchin, spider crab, sea star, green crabs, and horseshoe crab to name a few. They also had the opportunity to explore different exoskeletons and shells.

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At the penguin class, the cub scouts learned characteristics about the penguins that make them part of the bird family. They learned that penguins are only found in continents south of the equator. Some penguins live in warmer climates, while others live in the cold Antarctic.

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The most memorable and exciting part of the overnight experience was the class that talked about mollusks, and why a squid is considered a mollusk. Mollusks are invertebrates that have a soft body and a hard exoskeleton. The cub scouts were grouped in buddy pairs and they got to be marine biologists performing squid dissections. They learned the inner and out anatomy of the squid, which has a hard cartilage beak and a clear sliver of cartilage called the cuttle that is found inside the body of the squid. This is why a squid is classified as a mollusk.

After the learning sessions, the group returned to the main aquarium building to prepare their sleeping space near all the aquarium displays. Lights out at 11pm.

The next morning, wake up call was at 6:30 am when we had to pack up, and go for a morning tour of the outdoor exhibits, which included the Beluga whales, the seals, sea lions and African penguins.

After the outdoor tour, we were treated to a hot breakfast buffet of eggs, bacon, sausage,potatoes, pastries, juice, coffee and tea.

After breakfast, we had a final clean up, and group photo moment. We all visited the Mystic Aquarium gift shop and waited for the opening to the public at 9am to visit all the exhibits.

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There was so much to see and a lot of the cun scouts and their families returned to the indoor and outdoor exhibits to watch the animal feedings and to go to the touch tanks to touch sharks and stingrays. They also caught the sea lion live show, and visited the dinosaur and frog exhibits before heading home.

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A big thank you goes out to Mr. John Bubriski, den leader of the Wolves and our pack IT chairperson, for making this event happen, for all the behind the scenes organization and communications in the last few months. This event was a huge success, and special memories were made for years to come.

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If this is something you would like to do in the future and want to find out more about scouting with Pack 107, please feel to reach out to us for more information.

Last night, the Pack Patrol and Hawk Patrol celebrated Valentine’s Day by completing the final step in their Engineering elective adventure. The Scouts were to research designs to build a bridge out of popsicle sticks to withstand as much weight as it could. After doing their research and building their bridges at home, we all got together to have a little friendly competition to see who’s bridge could hold the most weight.

The Scouts did a fantastic job on their bridges and everyone was impressed with what they could hold.

Congratulations go out to Nick, who built the only bridge we were unable to break last night. It withstood a total of 305 pounds without cracking or wavering. Way to go!

… stay tuned to see how we finally break the strongest AOL bridge…

The Pinewood Derby is one of the most anticipated events in the scouting year for Pack 107. Today the Pinewood Derby finally arrived and was held at St. James Parish in South Grafton. The cubscouts and their families get to exercise their creativity and imagination in creating an unpowered and unmanned race car from a block of pine wood. At the derby, they get to have fun testing out their cars’ performance, while showcasing their creative designs, engineering skills, sportsmanship and camaraderie. This year’s derby does not disappoint. The scope and range of the car designs are outstanding.

Before the Pinewood Derby got started, the Bear Den organized an entertaining and fun carnival for all the cubscouts to enjoy. The Bears did a great job creating clever and innovative games as part of their ” Grin and Bear It” adventure. The games were enjoyed by all, and the cubscsouts were entertained until Derby time, as well as during lunch break. The cub scouts couldn’t wait to resume the carnival games. Great job Bears on a successful carnival!

The derby opened with the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by Reverend Dr. Barbara Therese, from the Congregational Church of Grafton, giving a beautiful and inspiring invocation prayer. We thank you, Rev. Barbara Therese for coming to support the pack.

Awards for speed were awarded to the Pack’s top 3 winners. Congratulations to 1st place winner, Gabriel F, 2nd place winner, Ailsa G., and 3rd place winner, Nick S. A special award called ” Draggin’ In” Safe Driver award, for the slowest speed, was awarded to Kaleb L. Congratulations winners!

Winners of special design categories were awarded next. These winners were chosen based on scores given by special impartial guest judges from our local community.

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These 12 cub scouts will represent Pack 107 at the Milltown District Pinewood Derby on March 28 2020. They represent the winners of the top 2 fastest cars in each of the cub scout ranks.

The adult and sibling race followed and the excitement continued to fill the room. Congratulations to the winners of the top 3 fastest cars.

A big thank you goes out to Mr. Chris Tedford, cubmaster of Pack 106, for spending the day with us to help us run the Pinewood Derby, and to Pack 106 for lending us the derby track.

Last and most importantly, a special thank you goes out to Mr. Chris Nichols, who volunteered to take on the huge task of chairing and organizing this event. Thank you also, for a wonderful job and spark you added in being Master of Ceremony for this event. Mr. Nichols, we appreciate all the behind the scenes organization that made this memorable event such a great success!