Join Troop 443

Eligibility Requirements

Joining Boy Scouts is a very easy process. There are 2 prerequisites, either of which has to be fulfilled to join any troop:

You must be at least 11 years old, OR
You must have earned the Cub Scout Arrow of Light Award

A Successful Scouting Experience

Although Scouting is entirely voluntary and therefore the Scout always has the choice to drop out any time, you will find that if you enjoy the outdoors, enjoy meeting other like minded boys from your local community, and enjoy learning things that are not taught in a regular classroom like tying a rope in a hundred different ways or surviving in the wilderness with nothing but a compass and a bottle, then you will have a very successful experience in Scouting.

Rank Advancements, Merit Badges and the Eagle Award

The following information is taken from the BSA website. Scouts can find detailed information on Rank Advancements here.

Boy Scouting provides a series of surmountable obstacles and steps in overcoming them through the advancement method. The Boy Scout plans his advancement and progresses at his own pace as he meets each challenge. The Boy Scout is rewarded for each achievement, which helps him gain self-confidence. The steps in the advancement system help a Boy Scout grow in self-reliance and in the ability to help others.

Merit Badges

Information about Merit Badges from the BSA site:

You can learn about sports, crafts, science, trades, business, and future careers as you earn merit badges. There are more than 135 merit badges, and any Boy Scout or Varsity Scout, or any qualified Venturer or Sea Scout may earn any of these at any time.

Pick a Subject. Talk to your unit leader about your interests. Read the requirements of the merit badges you think might interest you, and pick one to earn. Your leader will give you the name of a person from a list of counselors. These individuals have special knowledge in their merit badge subjects and are interested in helping you.

Scout Buddy System. You must have another person with you at each meeting with the merit badge counselor. This person can be another Scout, your parents or guardian, a brother or sister, a relative, or a friend.

Call the Merit Badge Counselor. Get a signed Application for Merit Badge, No. 34124 or No. 34130, from your unit leader. Get in touch with the merit badge counselor and explain that you want to earn the badge. The counselor may ask to meet you to explain what is expected and to start helping you meet the requirements. You should also discuss work you have already started or possibly completed.

At the first meeting, you and your merit badge counselor will review and may start working on the requirements. In some cases, you may share the work you have already started or completed.

Unless otherwise specified, work on a requirement can be started at any time. Ask your counselor to help you learn the things you need to know or do. You should read the merit badge pamphlet on the subject. Many troops, schools, and public libraries have them.

Show Your Stuff. When you are ready, call the counselor again to make an appointment. When you go, take along the things you have made to meet the requirements. If they are too big to move, take pictures or have an adult tell in writing what you have done. The counselor will test you on each requirement to make sure you know your stuff and have done or can do the things required.

Get the Badge. When the counselor is satisfied you have met each requirement, he or she will sign your application. Give the signed application to your unit leader so your merit badge emblem can be secured for you.

The current Boy Scout Requirements book is available from your local Scouting merchandise distributor. It may also be ordered online at ScoutStuff.org.

Merit badge requirements are revised as needed to reflect updated information and technology. Click here to view new and recently revised merit badges.

Requirements. You are expected to meet the requirements as they are stated—no more and no less. You must do exactly what is stated in the requirements. If it says “show or demonstrate,” that is what you must do. Just telling about it isn’t enough. The same thing holds true for such words as “make,” “list,” “in the field,” and “collect,” “identify,” and “label.”

The requirements listed below are the current and official requirements of the Boy Scouts of America. Occasionally, the requirements will not match those in the printed Boy Scout Handbook, the annual Boy Scout Requirements book, or some merit badge pamphlets because of the timing of their printing schedules.

If a new edition of a merit badge pamphlet is introduced with updated requirements after the Boy Scout Requirements book has been released, a Scout who is starting the badge may choose to follow either set of requirements until the end of the year. At the start of the new year, Scouts who are beginning must use only the new requirements.

If a Scout has already started working on a merit badge when a new edition of the pamphlet is introduced, he may continue to use the same pamphlet and fulfill the requirements therein to earn the badge. He need not start over again with the new pamphlet and revised requirements.

There is no time limit for starting and completing a merit badge, but all work must be completed by the time a Scout turns 18.

The Eagle Rank

The Eagle Rank is the highest rank that can be attained in Boy Scouts. It represents many years of dedicated effort , and the successful completion of a long process which started when the young man became a Boy Scout. It is a demonstration of how people, working together, can truly help mold a young man with a solid sense of leadership, citizenship, and responsibility.

Eagle Rank Requirements

Be active in your troop for a period of at least 6 months after you have achieved the rank of Life Scout.
Demonstrate that you live by the principles of the Scout Oath and Scout Law in your daily life. List on your Eagle Scout Rank Application the names of individuals who knows you personally and would be willing to provide a recommendation on your behalf, including parents/guardians, religious, education and employer references.
Earn a total of 21 merit badges (10 more than you already have), including the following: