Scout families,

The next time you are in the driveway between St. Vincent Martyr Church and the rectory, please look carefully at the church's basement windows. You will see two beautiful stained glass windows dedicated to scouting and emphasizing a scout's Duty to God, a very important part of the scout oath.

Scout Sunday falls on Sunday, February 9 this year, and all Cub Scouts are invited to celebrate it together at the 9am Mass at St. Vincent's.  Cub Scouts will sit with their families during Mass, and there will be a special recognition at the end of Mass. Each scout will receive a blessing and a cool patch. Boys who are currently working toward a religious emblem will be recognized.

Parents, please let me know if any of your boys are currently working toward a religious emblem, or if they would like to do so.  Religious emblems are available for many religions, and the attached flyer shows all the options and has a photo of each medal. Catholic scouts in grades 1 and 2 can work toward the Light of Christ medal, and Catholic scouts in grades 3 - 5 can work toward the Parvuli Dei medal. Boys do not work on this with their dens, but rather within their own families; and once all the requirements have been met, they meet with their den leader, and then with their pastor, to discuss what they have learned.  It is a wonderful program, and many St. Vincent's scouts have earned these medals over the years.  It typically takes about 10 hours to complete all the requirements for either of these Catholic emblems, and all the activities are fun, family-oriented, and meaningful. The same holds true for other religions' emblems as well.

Light of Christ and Parvuli Dei workbooks are available at the scout shop in Cedar Knolls for about $5, and I will also have a limited number of booklets available for purchase after the Scout Sunday Mass.  If you would like to reserve one, please email me at kathydailey@optonline.net.

Yours in scouting,

Kathy Dailey

P.S. Don't forget to check the Pack 7 website for the complete calendar of upcoming pack events!