Troop 448 ~ Austin, Texas

A Scout is Reverent

2012-02-05T20:18:00.000-08:00

Troop 448 and other Scouts demonstrated that a Scout is Reverent. The Troop celebrated Sunday morning Mass at St. Catherine of Siena. Four members of the troop presented the gifts during Mass. Fr. Pat congratulated the Scouts of Troop 448 for all their service work in the community. Fr. Pat also thanked the adult leaders for all their help with the Scouting program.

At the end of Mass, Fr. Pat told the parish that he found it hard to make the curch anouncements becuse he was distracted by the hundreds of merit badges that the Scouts were wearing.

The Scouts had the pleasure of listening to a seminarian who is studying to become a priest. The seminarian told the congregation that he earned his Eagle Scout award and has fond memories of his time as a Scout.

Troop 448 Robotics Field Trip

2012-02-03T16:12:00.000-08:00

Troop 448 Robotics Field Trip

On Sunday, November 6, 2011 Troop 448 traveled to St. David's North Austin Medical Center. The Robotics Club traveled there for a field trip on robotic surgery. St. David's is a medical center that has da Vinci Robotic Surgery This is a robotic surgery that involves humans controlling a four armed robot to do surgery that is easier done with a robot than done with human work. At St. David's, we dressed in protective gear so we would not infect the hospital. Then we were taken to the surgery room where the robot was. They showed us the robot. The robot has 4 arms and cameras. It has many different attachments to do different types of surgery. There are many cameras to get different angles. We were also shown the controls to the robot. You can control the robot with your hands and the camera with your feet. We were all given a chance to control the robot with a game of Operation. It was much easier than playing with your hands. Everyone had fun at our Troop 448 Robotics Field Trip. Below are pictures (not taken by the troop) of the da Vinci robot.

Brian McDonald is an Eagle Scout

2011-12-15T19:17:00.000-08:00

Mr. Bales congratulates Brian on his Eagle Scout.

Congrats to Brian on attaining the rank of Eagle Scout. His Board of Review was held on last night and earned Scouting's highest rank. Great Job!

MORE PICS HERE

Grayson Berdofe ~ Eagle Scout Court of Honor

2011-10-09T05:49:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Grayson Berdofe. On August 24, 2011, Grayson earned his Eagle Award. During his court of honor, that award was presented to Grayson.

Troop 448 salutes Grayson. We are proud of your hard work and dedication to scouting and Troop 448.

Summer Camp at Bear Creek

2011-07-29T16:35:00.000-07:00

This year, Troop 448 decided to go to Bear Creek Scout Reservation near Kerrville, Texas. As the SPL for this camp, I would say this camp was a success. All of the scouts had a great time and accomplished something at camp. We had people that participated in the Ranger program, the COPE program, and people who earned awards in their Merit Badge areas. I can only think of one thing that we can improve on, and that is wearing boots so we don’t hurt ourselves on uneven trails. I would like to thank all of the ASPLs and patrol leaders for being a great help at organizing people. I would also like to thank the adults who helped keep our troop in one piece and for organizing our camp. And thanks to everyone else for giving me a great experience as an SPL. I hope next year’s camp will be just as great as this year’s.

District Adventure Weekend 2011

2011-07-29T16:34:00.000-07:00

DAW was a great time for many people, whether they were backpackers or base campers. At base camp, Saturday morning’s schedule consisted of the patrol games, which were 30 minute stations like Leave No Trace Fire Building and Signaling. In the afternoon, there was a lot of free time and a game for troops to compete in. Also, the backpackers came back in the afternoon. At night, there was a campfire where many skits were performed for the audience to enjoy. During the campfire, the Order of the Arrow tapout ceremony was conducted. It was an amazing experience to watch and participate in. Congratulations on all who were tapped out.

April 2011 Court of Honor

2011-07-29T16:33:00.001-07:00

This Court of Honor was a great time for everyone. A lot of people earned rank, merit badge, and participation awards for going to certain campouts. There were a lot of new scouts who received their Scout Rank award. Dylan did a great job as MC. Good job, scouts!

April 2011 Court of Honor

2011-07-29T16:33:00.000-07:00

Camping/Backpacking 101, 2011

2011-07-29T16:30:00.000-07:00

This year, we had countless crossovers attend Camping 101 at El Rancho Cima. We also had many of the older scouts attend Backpacking 101.

Camping 101 was a great experience for the Dynamite, Thunderbird, and Nacho patrols. They learned many great skills such as how to safely start, maintain, and put out a fire; how to properly use various tools like the pocket knife and an axe; and how to tie different useful knots. These skills covered the requirements for the Totin’ chip, the Fireman’s chit, and some requirements for Tenderfoot and First Class.

Backpacking 101 was a great experience for all the scouts that attended. We covered around 2 or 3 miles in trails. One of the things we learned was how to adapt to the situation you have after we took a wrong turn. We hiked up to One Tree Hill after a long hike around camp that included a long, steep stairway. After we spent around 30 minutes at One Tree Hill, we hiked back to the main campsite.

After the backpackers got back to camp, they and the younger scouts attended a small campfire ceremony with many hilarious skits. All of the campers had a great time whether they were hiking or learning.

Thomas Crain, Historian

Varsity Team 448: San Marcos River Kayaking Trip, May 2011

2011-05-22T15:20:00.000-07:00

This was a busy weekend for our troop with several different activities going on. For Varsity Team 448 we went on a kayaking trip down the San Marcos River between Fentress and Luling--a distance of about 20 miles.

We started our trip at the Fentress Bridge and went downstream for one hour arriving at the Leisure Resort Campground where we spent the night.

This was another trip to practice our kayaking skills in preparation for our trip to Northern Tier this summer.

A scout named Travis from Luling that is also going with us to Northern Tier came along and his parents had hamburgers and hotdogs waiting for us when we arrived---and we enjoyed our visit with them. Two weeks earlier they gave us a tour of Luling and the Zedler Mill and also treated all of our team members to a delicious BBQ lunch after that day's trip.

On Friday evening a big thunderstorm arrived with rain after we had gone to bed---but we were happy to finally have some rain to help with the area's drought conditions.

On Saturday, Mr. Wilder cooked eggs and pork chops for breakfast---and then we set-off down the river for our eight hour trip.

The first few hours were pleasant---although the kayaks bottomed out in some locations where the water was low.

The wildlife was beautiful including the turtles and fish, and the entire way down we seemed to be following a blue heron as it fished for its food.

Later-on there were more obstacles and debris in the river with many fallen trees in the way. Each kayak wiped out (tipped over) about three times, but the water felt good, and added to the fun. On one of the rapids I was coming around a corner, and didn't see a tree until it was too late. My kayak went into the tree sideways tipping me over---and I lost my glasses. Then my paddle started floating down the river. Fortunately some guys training for the Texas Water Safari retrieved the paddle for me---and I was back in business.

When we got to our stopping place for lunch our sandwiches were wet from the kayak tipping over but still tasted great since we were starving.

Finally around 4:30 PM we reached Luling, near the dam---and we were totally exhausted. It was a great day, the river was pristine and beautiful and we were very impressed with how well the river is being taken care of.

So we're looking forward to our next kayak adventure and also to our Northern Tier trip coming up later in the summer!

Backpacking Trip

2010-12-05T13:11:00.000-08:00

The troop recently went on a one night backpacking trip at Enchanted Rock State Park, a great area around a large dome of pink granite. We hiked in on Saturday morning, had a quick lunch, and started our trek to the top of the dome. When we got to the top, everyone had a fun time exploring the cave that was near the peak, admiring the view, and chasing after objects that were blown away in the strong wind. We hiked back to camp, and cooked diner in our special lightweight stoves and went to bed. In the morning, we all woke up late, packed up, and left.

Varsity Team 448: Lost Maples Hiking Trip, November 2010

2010-11-22T08:55:00.000-08:00

This weekend (Nov 19th-21st) the troop had three different hikes going on.

For Varsity Team 448 we went to Lost Maples State Natural Area:

We left Austin on Friday night and arrived around 11:00 PM at Lost Maples.

On the trip down several deer ran in front of our car--and also what appeared to be a giant 400 pound wild boar. We were fortunate not to hit anything because I have been on other trips where folks damaged the front of their vehicles on deer in that same area.

After arriving, we hiked-in the one mile to the nearest camping spot under a nearly full-moon that illuminated the late night nocturnal landscape as a lonely owl called in the distance. The silence reminded me of a long-ago Longfellow poem.

The next morning we hiked back to the ranger station--and then set-out on East Trail and hiked the loop around the mountain and back down to the pond again. We stopped to enjoy the multiple scenic outlooks after enduring the grueling hike up the mountain.

After a short nap--we set out on the West Trail going up the mountain again and eventually arriving at Campground #H. The first couple of hours the boys were cranky---but by about 1:30 in the afternoon were getting into the swing of things and trying their best to outpace us.

For supper we had dehydrated camping food (chili-mac) that we heated on the stove--and then an assortment of other ready-to-eat provisions. It's surprising how good a low-life granola bar looks when you've been hiking and you'll eat almost anything.

Because it was dark and everybody was exhausted we went to bed around 7:00 PM as a cold wind began to blow.

The next morning the boys woke us up at around 5:40 AM. A giant cloud had descended on the mountain top bringing a wet winter like mist that reminded me of a Harry Potter scene. Droplets of water were blowing from the trees and the flashlights and headlamps created a silver-lined halo in the distance. As we descended down the mountain top even the best pair of hiking boots found the rocks to be quite slippery in the pre-dawn fog and several times we almost lost our footing.

As we reached the West Trail sunrise was beckoning and we continued down the trail across the frequent small stream crossings eventually reaching the parking lot area.

On the way home we stopped at a restaurant in Kerrville frequented by deer hunters in camos because we figured they might be used to customers like us that hadn't had a shower recently.

Overall a great weekend which I will always remember and I thank the scouting organization and all the folks in the troop that taught us the skills we got to try out on this trek!

Cyberbully presentation

2010-09-27T16:15:00.000-07:00

Christopher Frasquieri’s Eagle COH

2010-07-19T08:56:00.000-07:00

Christopher Frasquieri had his Eagle Court of Honor on Saturday at the Texas Capitol. Chris received his Eagle Scout rank at the end of a large ceremony. Guests had barbeque before, and cake after.

BTSR Summer Camp 2010

2010-07-08T05:32:00.000-07:00

This Year's summer camp took place at Buffalo Trails Scout Ranch in the Davis Mountains. Over 70 people from our troop attended the campout, along with many kids from other troops, which amounted to over 300 people in base camp, not counting mountain man and calvacade. Everyone had a great time, even though we got rain every day for hours at a time. On thursday we visited the McDonald Observatory and learned things about space there, but with the rain, we couldn't see the telescopes.

Everyone had a lot of fun at BTSR

Climbing Campout at Lost Pines

2010-05-24T19:33:00.000-07:00

What a great campout! There was lots to do with climbing, kayaking, pioneering, advancement and plain good fun. I hope to see more posts from the scouts about this campout.

Here are my photos and a video:

DAW Games

2010-05-04T15:51:00.000-07:00

Here is a short video about Troop 448's participation in the Troop Games at DAW 2010:

District Adventure Weekend

2010-04-27T16:54:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was the District Adventure Weekend, a day when scouts from all over the Thunderbird District teach each other various skills. Scouts participated in activities such as learning how to make a bear bag or a cat hole, or learning how to make a leave no trace fire. The event was held for the first time at Griffith League Scout Ranch, which is a leave no trace area. In the evening, we had an Order of the Arrow tap-out ceremony.

At the ceremony, 5 scouts and 2 leaders were

"tapped out," or were accepted into the O. A.

We all had a lot of fun at this year's District Adventure Weekend, and are looking foreward to the next one.

Phoenix Patrol's First Campout

2010-04-11T14:35:00.000-07:00

This year, we had 9 new crossovers attend Camping 101 at El Rancho Cima as the Phoenix patrol.

On Friday, the scouts learned how things worked, like how we setup troop gear before our personal stuff. They also learned 2 other things-
-Setting tents up in the dark is tricky, and
-They should get used to setting up in the dark!

On Saturday, they woke up and had breakfast. Everyone pitched in for a quick and easy clean up. After that, a few of them participated in a flag ceremony. They then proceeded to the three stations, where they earned their Totin’ Chip and Fireman’s Chit. They also learned some very important knots. In between the second and third stations, we had an easy lunch of sandwiches, preceded by a food safety talk. After the stations, we relaxed, played some games, and worked on the Tenderfoot fitness requirement. The scouts also earned their scout ranks! We ate a dinner of hot dogs and chili. We also had a campfire made up of hilarious, almost made up on the spot skits, which were followed by smores.

On Sunday, we packed up, ate, met the older scouts, and did thorns and roses.
Then, we left.

A short summary:
The scouts had fun, earned some awards, and had a great experience at their first Boy Scout campout

-Thomas Crain
Phoenix patrol leader

taco sale

2010-04-11T11:07:00.000-07:00

Today we had the taco sale fundraiser.we ended up selling 350 breakfast tacos and raised $525. we had a great time and lots of scouts came, it was a big success

Camping 101 2010

2010-04-02T09:09:00.000-07:00

This year, camping 101 was held at El Rancho Cima, near Wimberly. We welcomed the new Phoniex patrol into the troop, and new scouts earned their Totin' Chip, Fireman's Chit, and also learned some knot-tying skills. Most of the older scouts went backpacking on Saturday through Sunday, and the whole troop had a lot of fun.

Also, a new scout hung his older brother's

pants on the flagpole at camp. Since the

scout who's pants were hung was out

backpacking,they stayed up until sunday,

at the "de-panting" ceremony.

Pike’s Peak: Summer Camp 2009

2010-03-21T17:06:00.000-07:00

Many of the scouts and adults who went to the 2009 summer campout in Colorado went up on a cog train to Pike’s Peak. Since one group of scouts was running late, and missed the first trip, the scouts traveled there in two main groups. The first was met with rougher weather than the second, with temperatures below zero degrees with wind chill. In both groups it was cold, cloudy, and very windy. The view of the mountains from the top was spectacular, though. Everyone I talked to loved it, and I've heard no complaints from anyone who went.

November 2009 Shooting Campout

2009-11-17T17:20:00.000-08:00

The shooting campout was a lot of fun. We got to shoot .22s and bow and arrows. We also had some kids from troop 446, and troop 6, and people from San Juan Diego Catholic high school venture crew came. Thank you to our instructors for giving their time so we could have a safe and fun campout. by Kyle Bowen

11/17/2009

Pedernales Falls Campout, September 2009

2009-09-30T19:36:00.000-07:00

(Posted by Jacob Wilder of Wolf Patrol)

Troop 448’s September Campout was to Pedernales Falls State Park. This was scheduled to be a leadership campout, but it got changed to an advancement campout. Many advancement requirements were met for first and second class scouts.

The campout included a five mile hike; a one mile nature walk; and a special ceremony. Jacob and Nolan led a ceremony to meet one of their communications merit badge requirements. Jacob met another of his communications merit badge requirements by creating a video of the weekend. Please check out the video Jacob has made of the work accomplished during the Pedernales Falls Campout:

Blog Post By Jacob Wilder

Video Produced By Jacob Wilder

(Troop 448, Wolf Patrol)

Joshua Serrano's Eagle Project: Day 1

2009-08-20T07:06:00.000-07:00

It was an early morning wake-up-call Saturday morning to attend Joshua Serrano’s Eagle Project at around 8:00 a.m. Many of the new and old scouts participated such as Zach Serrano, Joshua Gordon, and Ken Nelson; Eagle Scouts in Troop 448. The morning started out slow; setting groups up, getting tools together, and eating the fresh donuts and orange juice the Serrano’s had prepared. We had to dig an 8 inch hole stretching about 20-30 feet on the side of Saint Catherine’s of Sienna, right across from the playground. Most scouts were scattered on the sides, slicing away with the pick axes, scooping the dirt with the shovels, moving the dirt to the side of the playground and next to the sidewalk and spreading it; while the other extra scouts decided to pick up all the loose tree limbs on the other side of the parking lot.

About an hour or so later, we had already removed all the grass inside the perimeter. It was pretty easy hitting away with my pick axe, but once we got through the soft, fertile soil, we hit hard, heavy-duty rocks. It was a tough job for everyone, even the adults! Joshua had some of the older scouts dig 2 feet post holes, so that the iron poles for the fence could stand up properly. Cracking the hard rocky dirt with the breaker bars and removing the dirt with the dost hole diggers seemed everlasting. Scouts still kept slicing away at the rocky soil, and removing it with the wheel barrows and shovels inside the boundary to Joshua’s liking. You really don’t know how fine air conditioning feels until you’re sweating like crazy! Everybody went inside the church for lunch, which was pizza provided by the Serrano’s, fresh lemonade and Sunny D. It was incredibly refreshing to wash off all the sweat in the bathroom and eat smoking hot pizza in the cold church kitchen. The scouts sat together eating pizza, talking about movies, shows, and enjoying the funny jokes. It was a good 30 minutes that was definitely needed after that whole ordeal, but the ordeal was not over yet…

We left the kitchen and started back to work, in 100 degree Austin weather, which is actually normal these days. We moved the easy-ups to cover the area that we worked in and kept digging out the pit until it was 8 inches. The adults now worked on a different segment of the project, which was getting a frame up for the concrete pouring. The frame was about 8” high, built by the crafty adults, especially Mr. Tovar and Mr. Elizondo. Before the concrete could take place the adults focused on the frame that needed to be built, while the scouts sat by the water exhausted from all the work.

Eventually, the frame work was complete. It was now 4:00. Even though we were supposed to leave at 3:00, we decided to keep going and complete everything that Joshua needed us to complete. Everyone was devoted to the project and wanted to get as much done as possible, so we kept on going. Since the frame was complete, all we had to do was pour the concrete into the frame and then we were done, right? Well as they say, “It’s easier said than done,” and that is the truth!!! We turned on the concrete mixer, which only Mr. Faulkner knew how to use, and mixed bags of concrete and water inside it. Also, we had the older scouts lift bags of concrete, put them in the bins and mixed them with our shovels. We lifted the bins with concrete in them and poured it into the frame work. It was a tedious process and we did not want to spill any of the concrete. Carlos Tovar and I took our trowels and did the finishing touches on the concrete. The day finished at around 5:30. It was a day spent well, helping another scout with his eagle project.

Posted by: Chris Frasquieri (Senior Patrol Leader)

Personal Fitness Day

2009-07-26T21:19:00.000-07:00

Today, several scouts from Troop 448 attended the Personal Fitness merit badge class. We learned several things from this class, including that personal fitness is not just physical, it's mental and spiritual too. The scouts participated in several different fitness tests such as push-ups, sit-ups and a one mile walk/run.

Thank you Mr. McDonald for teaching us this fun merit badge.

(Written by: John Michael Reyes, Troop Historian.)

Troop Historian Photos from Summer Camp

2009-07-13T21:01:00.000-07:00

Nice write-up Mr. Mohondro. I really don't have much else to add about summer camp. Here is a slideshow with the pictures that my dad and I took at camp.

We had a great week. I can't wait until next summer camp

(Written by John Michael Reyes - Troop Historian)

Colorado - There and Back a Troops Tale

2009-07-13T15:13:00.000-07:00

June 20th, early morning departure. Several families already departed for parts known and unknown to meet again in Colorado on Jun 21st. The trailer left at 6:20 AM with the rest of Troop 448 departing from St. Catherine's of Siena at 7:30 AM. The goal was to stay the evening at Cannon AFB in Clovis, New Mexico. The troop arrived at Clovis and stayed the night departing early Sunday morning for camp. A majority of Troop 448 arrived at Camp Chris Dobbins Sunday afternoon and checked in. With medical inspections, swim tests and forms filled out completed, it was off to our campsite for setup. Our campsite was Deadwood and it would be our home for 7 days. Camp Chris Dobbins is located in Elbert, Colorado which is about 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs. While Ausitn was fighting a heat wave (still continuing) with temperatures hovering around 104, our camp was suffering with highs in the low 80s and lows around the mid 40s. A daily rain shower (even hail one day) lasting about an hour. Very lovely camp, but rather long hikes between various venues including the adult shower facilities. The lake was used for canoeing, row boats, and small sailboats merit badge classes. In the early mornings it was also used for those individuals that were brave enough to take the plunge into 60 something water to achieve the "Polar Penguin" award presented at camp. This required the plunge for three days (mornings). We had quite a few participants, which all achieved the award. Camp Chris Dobbins had one of the best horseback facilities we had seen. Besides the merit badges classes, they arranged several trail rides and even an evening dinner ride. In my book, the furthest and harest venue to get to would be the shooting sports. Once you started on this trek, it appeared to be in another state or at least in another camp. Beautiful hike - just lengthy. During the week we had boys and even adults participating in mountain biking, 5 K runs, mountain boarding and short to moderate hikes. While at the pool Troop 448 was able to sign up four of the adult leaders to participate and graduate from BSA Lifeguard. Congratulations Tiffany, Bryson, Gino and Mark, difficult course and you should all be very proud of yourselves and I even got to watch their struggle - notice I did not participate. Besides the merit badges for swimming and lifeguard at the pool we had boys and adults take on scuba and the mile swim.

Friday was a camp free day. The morning at the camp was dedicated to merit badge makeup, camp cleanup and swim events. The afternoon saw the majority of the troop taking a field trip to the cog train station to ride to the top of Pike's Peak (14110 feet). Some of the other troop members headed to other sites such as the Garden of the Gods, the Olympic Training Facility, and the Air Force Academy. Lots of nice sites to view while in Colorado.

Upon checkout from Camp Chris Dobbins on Saturday, the Troop started their trip back to Austin with another stop at Cannon AFB and arrived home Sunday afternoon, June 28th. It was a very successful summer camp. We came out with several advancements to Tenderfoot, BSA Lifeguards, and 103 merit badge completions and numerous other merit badge partials, which the boys will be able to complete within the year. Already planning next years trip - all need to get involved so your experience is a great as mine.

Flying Eagle Vet Medicine Merit Badge Day

2009-02-14T20:32:00.000-08:00

The Scouts in the Flying Eagle Patrol took the day to work on their Veterinary Medicine merit badge. We worked with Dr. Van Treese and learned a lot about being a veterinarian. We were able to tour the clinic.

Some of us decided that we definitely did not want to become vets.

Thanks to Dr. Van Treese for taking the time to teach us about his job.

Here are some pictures.

(Written by John Michael Reyes - Troop 448 Historian)

Valentine's Day Bake Sale

2009-02-08T19:29:00.000-08:00

Today, our troop participated in a bake sale to build up our troop funds. Again, many of our newest scouts came to support the troop. Almost all of our baked goods were sold, and those that were not were donated to a fire station. Thanks to all scouts and families who donated baked goods to support the troop. A special thanks to Mrs. Gonzalez for setting up this fundraiser for the troop.

The photos from this event can be seen here.

(Written by John Michael ~ Troop 448 Historian)

Report to State Parade

2009-02-08T19:19:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday our troop attended the Capital Area Council's 60th annual Report to State Parade. Many of our troop's boys, including some of the newest additions to our troop, came to celebrate scouting as it enters its 99th year. 9 of our troop's future and current scouts performed during the parade as part of our troop's band. We had a great time as we marched and played down Congress Avenue. The band had the privilege of performing under the direction of Austin Chief of Police Acevedo before the parade started.

Many thanks to Mr. Faulkner for allowing us to use his truck to drive the band down Congress Ave. Thanks also to Mrs. Wilder and Mr. Read for their support of the parade band as we practiced for this event.

We are already looking forward to next year.

Check out these exciting photos.

(Written by John Michael ~ Troop 448 Historian)

Welcome to Clay G. from Pack 82

2009-02-07T13:09:00.000-08:00

Wow, what a great setting for a Cross Over ceremony. Troop 448 members attended Pack 82's cross over at the Texas Disposal System's Exotic Game Ranch. On the drive into the game ranch, we were treated to a great display of exotic animals. Once inside the building, we saw a lot of game mounts from all over the world.

Troop 448 gained one scout from Pack 82. Clay followed his brother's footsteps into our troop. We look forward to having him in our troop. He will fit right in with the other scouts in the troop.

Check out all the great pictures from this event.

(Written by Michael Reyes)

T448 Attends the Thunderbird District Banquet

2009-02-01T18:46:00.000-08:00

On January 31, several T448 Scout families attended the Thunderbird District Banquet. The highlight of the banquet was the honoring of our Eagle Scouts, Josh G. and Zach Z. Both participated in the opening and closing flag ceremonies.

Also honored were the 2008 Arrow of Light recipients from the troop who attended the banquet. Those honored were Grayson B., Kyle B., Raphe J., Matt M., John Michael R., and Levi S.

Troop 448 earned the following awards at the banquet:

"Go the Distance Award" for attending all 4 Thunderbird District Events in 2008.

"Go for the Brass Ring Award" for advancing at least one Scout to Eagle Scout.

"National Camping Award" for 30 nights of camping.

We qualified for the "Training Award" for sending adult leaders to training. However, we did not receive the award due to an administrative error.

Way to go Troop 448!

Take a look at the photos from the banquet here.

(Written by Michael Reyes)

Pack 395 Cross Over

2009-01-28T19:54:00.000-08:00

Welcome to our new Troop 448 members from Pack 395. We attended the Pack 395 crossover and received six new scouts into Troop 448.

This was a very nice ceremony by the Order of the Arrow members. During their ceremony, the Pack 395 Webelos crossed the bridge into Troop 448.

The troop would like to welcome these scouts to the Troop:

Mikey B., Michael G., J.B. H., Arthur P., Angel R. and John W.

You guys are in for a great ride. Enjoy it.

The Cross Over photos can be seen here.

(Written by Michael Reyes)

Winter Camp LPSR 2008

2009-01-06T18:36:00.000-08:00

Dec 26 – 30 Lost Pines Scout Reservation Winter Camp
Seven boys and three adults from Troop 448 attended LPSR Winter Camp the day after Christmas till the following Tuesday, December 30th. They joined Troop 505, 555 and 101 as a combined Troop and stayed as a separate patrol The boys elected Brian McDonald as the Patrol Leader and Matthew Mohondro as his assistant. The patrol was the Flying Penguins and they had a great patrol flag. Our host troop was Troop 505 and Mr. John Weathers acted as the Scoutmaster for this trip. There was a total of 24 boys and six to seven adults in attendance during much of the camp. The boys from our troop attending winter camp were: Grayson Berdofe, Curtis Falkner, Pablo Manceaux, Brian McDonald, Matthew Mohondro, Levi Svrcek, and Matthew Vanhoorsbeek. The adults were Mr. Manceaux, Mr. McDonald, and Mr. Mohondro.
We set up our camp in the Gaskin site at Lost Pines Scout Reservation and participated in a service project for the camp by cutting down the non-native shrubs in the campsite. After an hour of that we made some camp devices using lashings and toured the camp. It was a pleasant day and the night was warm and humid temperatures in the mid 60s. Camp really started on Saturday morning where the boys had two classes in the morning and two in the afternoon and for some another held at 7:30 PM till 9. It threatened rain most of the weekend ending is some very minor showers, but the North wind did finally arrive Sunday giving us some mighty fine temps. Sunday night it dropped to 24.6 at night – Polar Bears did not even stay around. Our water for hot chocolate took a little longer to boil since it was frozen. Monday over night it dropped to 30.1 a little warmer but still cold. We had several guest visit Monday night for our campfire and OA induction. On Tuesday we packed up and headed home and a feeling of both relief and satisfaction. All the boys accomplished a whole lot and many were able to finish their badges while the others are very close to being done. A successful camp and one all should think about for next year.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-16T18:14:00.000-08:00

To end the year off with a bang, our troop had its annual Christms party. The party started with a flag ceremony performed by our color guard. Next, we had a small buffet- pizza and sandwiches topped off with a lot of desserts. After our brief meal, Mr. Gonzalez organized a mini-golf contest for the right to play our troop Deal-or-No Deal game. Unfortunately, we did not have enough time to play Deal-or-No Deal.

Our final event of the night was the white elephant gift exchange. Some people got some good gifts, while others, not so much. The gifts given this year were unique, to say the least. We had people leave with things such as pineapples and Barbie dolls. In the end everyone had a good time.

Here are the pictures.

(Written by: John Michael R., T448 Historian)

Gone Fishin'

2008-12-14T17:40:00.000-08:00

Our troop recently traveled to Blanco State Park for a fishing trip. At first, not much was caught. That was until I landed the first trout of the day. After that, everybody came to the site where I caught the fish.

It was a fishing frenzy. Fish after fish, cast after cast, we caught em' all, big and small. Towards the end of the day, a few of our fellow fisherman became superstitious about me because I caught the most fish. By that time I had caught 6 trout while many of the other scouts were catching up. In the end, many of the scouts had enough fish to feed their families for the night. Congratulations to our troop fishermen for their catches of the day.

Here are the photos.

(Written by: John Michael R., T448 historian)

Gordon/Serrano Eagle Court of Honor

2008-12-07T20:00:00.000-08:00

Josh Gordon, Matt Gordon, and Zach Serrano celebrated their Eagle rank at their Court of Honor. The Texas Capitol served as the setting for this great event. The whole troop, along with family members and other Scouting VIP's enjoyed the afternoon.

All three Eagle Scouts are commended for achieving this great success. Their hard work paid off.

Congratulations to these three Eagle Scouts. You guys serve as an inspiration to the rest of the troop.

Great Job!

Want to see more photos? Click here.

(Written by Michael Reyes)

Turkey Trot

2008-11-28T17:21:00.000-08:00

This Thanksgiving, several scouts from troop 448 volunteered to help with the Turkey Trot 10k run. The scouts helped keep the runners on the right course. Thank you to all of the scouts that woke up early on Thanksgiving to help with the run.

Here are the pictures.

( written by John Michael R., T448 Historian)

Knights of Columbus Breakfast ~ 11-23-08

2008-11-23T17:18:00.000-08:00

This morning, our troop woke up early to make breakfast for the Knights of Columbus. We all met at the church at 7:00 AM to start setting up the hall and making breakfast. We set up tables and decorated them with a Thanksgiving theme. The dining hall looked nice.

The adults and the boys prepared breakfast consisting of eggs, hash browns, biscuits, bacon, sausage, fruit, and waffles. The food was served buffet style by the Boy Scouts. Before breakfast, our Chaplain’s Aid, Grayson B. said grace and the Troop had a flag ceremony. The flag ceremony was conducted by, Jonathan G., Nathan H., Josh S. and Carlos T.

After the Knights had breakfast, the troop took over and ate the rest. When it was all done, we all helped clean up the dining hall and kitchen. We had a good time doing this service for the Knights of Columbus.

Thanks to all the adults and boys who helped with this project.

Click here to look at the pictures from this event.

(Written by John Michael R., Troop Historian)

Lost Pines Campout ~ 11-14 to 11-16, 2008

2008-11-23T17:03:00.000-08:00

Ready. Aim. Fire!

Rifle Shooting and Orienteering, now that is what we call fun. We spent this past weekend camping at the Lost Pines Scout camp. This campout was "aimed" at rifle shooting and orienteering. After arriving at camp on Friday night, we all got rest to get ready for the big day. Half of the group went rifle shooting and the other half went orienteering. After lunch, the groups switched.

We all had a great time shooting and orienteering. All the boys qualified for the Junior USA Shooting Team during their time on the range. Several boys completed the shooting requirement for the rifle shooting merit badge, shooting three rounds on the target that could be covered by a quarter. During the rifle shooting portion, Mr. Svrcek gave us a demonstration of muzzleloading shooting.

We all had a great time shooting. By the way, Levi S. had the highest score during the shooting team qualification. Way to go, Levi!

After the day of shooting and orienteering, those who stayed for the Saturday night campout earned their Polar Bear award. Many of these Scouters earned both the Chili Pepper (over 100 degrees) and Polar Bear (under 32 degrees) awards in 2008.

It was cold, but fun.

Here are more pictures.

(Written by John Michael R.)

Webelos Woods ~ October 24-26, 2008

2008-10-27T18:49:00.000-07:00

What fun we had!

Calling all Webelos. Our troop participated in Webelos Woods this weekend. During this recruitment weekend, we showed all visiting Webelos our activity board, our chuck boxes, and gave them a treat of cinnamon rolls. We had a lot of visitors to our campsite.

We also had the Chicken Team win third place in the Dutch oven cooking contest. We baked a prickly pear fruit cobbler. We all got thorns in our fingers, but it was worth it. Like always, we had a great weekend.

Click here if you want to see more photos.

(Written by John Michael R., Troop Historian)

Court of Honor ~ 10-19-08

2008-10-19T19:30:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to all Troop 448 Scouts. We had a great Court of Honor and the Scouts were recognized for all their hard work during the past six months. There were a lot of rank awards earned. We were also awared a ton of merit badges. After a great award ceremony, we had great food and enjoyed an awesome slideshow.

We hope everyone had fun. Click here for the pictures.

(Written by John Michael R., Troop Historian)

Having fun at El Rancho Cima ~ 09-19 to 09-21, 2008

2008-09-21T20:04:00.000-07:00

The Troop 448 boys had a blast at camp. We left for the campout on Friday night and had fun setting up camp in the dark. After breakfast on Saturday, we went on a long hike. After a few confusing turns, we made it back to camp in time for lunch. After lunch, Mr. Serrano conducted our leadership training. Who ever knew that we would have so much fun with the training. Before we came home on Sunday, we did a conservation project for the camp.

All the boys (and adults) had fun at this campout.

Here are the pictures.

(written by John Michael R., Troop Historian)