In a typical month, your Cub Scout will have 2-3 meetings: 1 Pack Meeting and 1-2 Den Meetings
Pack Meeting: Pack Meetings take place on the 1st Tuesday of each month (except when moved for a special event like Pinewood Derby). Pack Meetings are where all the dens meet as a single group to build friendships, participate in games and activities and honor achievements. Regular pack meetings are held at Mieklejohn Elementary School from 6:15-7:15, and special events are held at various locations in the Arvada area. Our annual Crossover Ceremony (aka graduation ceremony) takes place in May at the Red Barn Picnic Area in Golden Gate Canyon State Park.
Den Meeting: Dens are the grade-specific small groups within the pack. At each den meeting, your scout will work on the rank achievements planned by the Den Leader. Den meetings take place on one of the other Tuesdays of the month and sometimes there is also a den outing on a weekend. Den outings might include hikes, family picnics, service projects or a field trip to a community location to work on an achievement. Den meetings can be held at AUMC or other community locations.
Adult Leaders: If you are interested in volunteering as an adult leader in the pack you will need to take one or more online trainings (1-2 hours) and will want to attend the monthly PALs (Parents and Adult Leaders) meeting if your area of focus is on the agenda. PALs meetings are currently held from 6:30-8:30 on the 3rd Thursday of the month. If you volunteer for an ongoing position, like Den Leader or Treasurer, you should plan to attend all PALs meetings in order to be involved in the planning of pack activities. If you volunteer for a single committee, like Pinewood Derby, then you only need to attend the meetings where your event is being discussed.
Any parent is always welcome to attend the PALs meeting regardless of volunteer status!
If you can’t make it to a den meeting you are free to work on the skills/achievements the den completed on your own. A Scout only needs an "Akela" to approve the completion of requirements. In Cub Scouts, "Akela" is anyone who acts as a leader to a Scout... Cubmaster, Den Leader, parent, teacher, coach, etc.
We follow the school year calendar. Our Cub Scout year starts with our August meeting (for returning Scouts) and our September meeting (for new Scouts). Crossover occurs in May and all Scouts will move into the next rank at that time. During the summer months we offer at least one pack activity per month, plus a Family Camping weekend. There are no regularly scheduled pack or den meetings during the summer.
Yes, Pack 203 participates in the Scouting America annual popcorn sales fundraiser. The money raised from popcorn sales supports both our pack as well as the Alpine District and Denver Area Council. Without funds from popcorn sales we would not be able to offer a variety pack/den events and the District/Council supported camps and other activities would be much more expensive.
We assess an annual pack registration fee at the beginning of the year to cover the costs of running our program for the year (meeting supplies, field trips, guest speakers, handbooks, camping trips, pack events, etc.) and any funds earned by each Scout will be used to cover that fee. It is entirely possible to cover the full annual registration fee through popcorn sales! There is no monthly fee and your Scout will be able to attend all activities free of charge.
If your family chooses to not sell popcorn, or your Scout does not sell enough to cover their annual registration fee, then you will be asked to pay the remainder..
The only other fundraiser our pack regularly participates in is the Camp Card program in the spring. This fundraiser earns money that is credited directly to your Scout to offset camping fees or registration dues!
We have a Dues Policy Page that covers this topic.