Last Night up on Cripple Creek

[Dave951]

It was a dark and stormy night.........


Well Friday nights are usually for a large campfire ceremony involving the entire camp but there were some very powerful storms going through our part of NC so they cancelled the big shindig. Not to be deterred, we had our own get together in the Trading Post at Cripple Creek, the Mountain Man program area with just the Mountain Man campers.


And some pix and with some explanations-

I've been waiting for days for this one. This Scout leader managed to wing Col Mustard (a mustard pack) with a musket in volley fire and had his own special war whoop and a dance worthy of Mick Jagger. In our little world of instructors, this cannot go without "special recognition".

Which of course warranted a very special award and induction into the Ancient and Noble Order of the Blind Squirrel.

And our newest inductee to the ANBS is awarded the rank of "Hero" in the ongoing struggle against Col Mustard and his minions, Maj Mayonaise and Capt Ketchup. Not being familiar with the secretive ANBS, our new "Hero" had to ask about his standing amongst the Nobles in the ANBS, to which we responded, "just a cut above Janitor"

And of course we had awards for the youth who we felt best shows a combination of marksmanship, good attitude, and friendship in a session. Our young Scout was a pleasure to work with. Our "Hero" is holding the medal for the other Scout who had to catch an early flight home to FL. Pictured L to R- Myself, Mike, Andy Perez, and Ricky DiMarco (Mountain Man Program Director). Ricky is wearing the Hogwarts shirt as it was gift from the Scouts who told him it was a movie about a tremendous battle for a castle in England. Ricky lives in a bit of a bubble and has no idea who Harry Potter is. None of us has told him yet. If he does know, he deserves an Oscar for playing along.

This was a really fun bunch to work with. Andy Perez is the Scoutmaster of this troop from Miami. He and some of his older Scouts were responsible for further range improvements at Cripple Creek. I really hope to see these guys again in the future.

 

[Dave951]

I'd like to add a further couple comments.

Yeah, what we did was silly but we laughed for a couple hours together over sasparilla while the rains poured and the thunder echoed in the valley. I've had a couple recent incidences that have convinced me that time spent with kids is never wasted, the key is to stay positive. Silly stuff like this will not be forgotten when the kids become adults. They will have memories and stories about that night. The adult who received the "award" is a professional, licensed structural engineer. This "award" is going on the wall of his office with his other Scouting memorabilia. He has professional contacts with a number of large scale developers (skyscaper types) and architects, all of whom will be in his office at some time. I'd bet somebody is going to ask about it. I know he'll have a ball telling about it and how much fun the kids had with us in camp. Good stories and publicity don't hurt but more important is the positive experience we gave a group of young men not only while shooting at the range but cracking jokes in the Trading Post.

 

[Gator]

I'd like to add a further couple comments.

Yeah, what we did was silly but we laughed for a couple hours together over sasparilla while the rains poured and the thunder echoed in the valley. I've had a couple recent incidences that have convinced me that time spent with kids is never wasted, the key is to stay positive. Silly stuff like this will not be forgotten when the kids become adults. They will have memories and stories about that night. The adult who received the "award" is a professional, licensed structural engineer. This "award" is going on the wall of his office with his other Scouting memorabilia. He has professional contacts with a number of large scale developers (skyscaper types) and architects, all of whom will be in his office at some time. I'd bet somebody is going to ask about it. I know he'll have a ball telling about it and how much fun the kids had with us in camp. Good stories and publicity don't hurt but more important is the positive experience we gave a group of young men not only while shooting at the range but cracking jokes in the Trading Post.

Not silly at all. Keep doing what you're doing.

.