FAQs

Attend our annual round-up at Camp Creek Elementary School, held each August shortly after school begins, or contact a member of the leadership team for details. You’ll need to fill out a registration form and be assigned to a den.

See Leadership and Volunteering.

Sign up, visit the Scout store to get a uniform and handbook, and get ready to have fun! Your den leader should be in touch with you soon after you sign up to let you know when and where your den will meet. If not, don’t hesitate to reach out to your den leader (see our contact page).

Pack 564 has what’s known as a “belt up” uniform policy, meaning the official pants are not required.

You will need to get the official uniform shirt, neckerchief, slide, belt, belt buckle, socks and the necessary patches (you’ll either need to sew these on yourself or pay someone else to do it. This work can be done at the Scout Store for a modest fee). The official scout pants, cap and other items are optional. You’ll also want to pick up a handbook for your son’s rank. Later, you may need additional equipment and supplies for some outings, such as camping trips.

Financial assistance is available for uniform purchases and other scouting-related needs. Please contact the committee chair or cubmaster for information about this confidential program.

The Northeast Georgia Council operates the Scout Store, which stocks all the uniforms, handbooks, accessories and other gear your son will need for his adventure in scouting. It will be one of your first stops after signing up. The store is located at 203 Swanson Drive, Lawrenceville, Ga, 30043. The telephone number is 770-962-2105, and the store is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday. You can also order many items online at www.scoutstuff.org.

Scouting has a language all its own, and at first, some of the terms may be confusing. We’ve put a glossary in your parent handbook. Beascout.org also has a great glossary to get you started.

That’s okay, there’s a lot to learn here. Contact your den leader or another member of the leadership team for any other questions. We’re here to help!

Cub Scouting is for boys in first through fifth grades. First-graders begin as Tigers, move up to Wolf in second grade and Bear in third grade. Webelos, which stands for “We’ll be Loyal Scouts” (soon to be called Arrow of Light) is for fourth and fifth-graders. Tigers, Wolves and Bears engage in increasingly challenging but always fun achievements guided by their den leader and parent volunteers before tackling the more independent challenges of the Arrow of Light program, which is designed to prepare them for the transition to a Boy Scout troop. Although your son will be called a Tiger, Bear or Wolf, etc. he will actually receive the badge of his rank near the end of the school year, after completing the achievements required of that particular rank. Regardless of when they join, all boys must complete Bobcat achievements before moving on to working on their rank badges. Most new Tigers will complete these requirements in their first den meeting or two. You can learn more about ranks and advancement at the BSA advancement website.

Just as they sound, required adventures are part of the core program that all scouts are required to “do their best” to complete. The elective adventures are optional activities that dens, families or individual scouts may choose to tackle on their own once they are finished with the core requirements.

Yes, but for the better!  Advancement is being simplified and improved, with an even greater emphasis on adventure, activity and fun. To find out more, visit the BSA’s program changes web page.

Scouting provides many opportunities for recognition. Scouts can earn the Outdoor Ethics Awareness  and Action awards, the Outdoor Activity Award, the Summertime Activity Pin, the BSA Family Award, religious emblems and more. Check out the BSA’s web page on these awards for more information.

Parents should be signed up for an account with TroopTrack, our pack management software, shortly after joining. Look for an email to set up your account. This service will allow you to track your scout’s progress and get updates on upcoming events. Ask your den leader, the webmaster or cubmaster for more information. You should also work closely with your scout’s den leader to ensure your son is on track.

No! All awards are provided by the pack, and paid for with dues and money raised in pack fundraising activities.

Pack 564 meets from 7 to 8 p.m. typically on the second Tuesday of each month. Please consult the pack calendar for exact dates. The pack meets in the Family Life Center at Mountain Park United Methodist Church, accessible on the lower entrance to the church property. Mountain Park United Methodist Church is located at 1405 Rockbridge Rd SW, Stone Mountain, GA 30087.

Dens within the pack meet twice or three times a month. Each den sets its own meeting times, dates and locations.

There are two official pack trips each year: Fall Family Campout and Spring Trip. These trips typically cost extra (although you can reduce your cost by selling lots of popcorn!) and can include the scout’s entire family.

Our 2014 campout was held at Stone Mountain Park, where we will camp again in 2015. The year before we went to Scoutland at Lake Lanier.

Our 2016 Spring Trip will take us for an overnight stay on the U.S.S. Yorktown in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. In 2015, the pack traveled  to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala. The 2014 trip was to North Carolina and the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad.

The pack meets once a month, and dens meet two or three a month from August or September through May. The pack has one event per month during the summer months, including the raingutter regatta in June, a packwide event in July the the Back to the Pack Pool Party in August. The Pack 564 Hiking Club also meets once a month year-round to sample trails around Atlanta and north Georgia.

Pack 564 has four main celebrations each year:

• Our “Back to the Pack Pool Party” for returning scouts and their families
• The holiday party for the entire pack at the December pack meeting.
• Our Blue & Gold Banquet to celebrate the birthday of scouting. It is typically held in February or March
• A year-end party at the May pack meeting, often featuring ice cream!

One way is participating in “Harvest for the Hungry,” a food drive conducted each November in coordination with Boy Scout Troop 549 and the Lilburn Cooperative Ministry. Each November, the pack distributes empty grocery bags on one Saturday and collects the filled bags the next. The groceries are donated to the Lilburn Cooperative Ministry, which feeds the hungry and impoverished in our community.

We typically also conduct a cleanup or beautification project each year. Dens often also participate in their own service projects.

Pack 564 funds its activities through the annual Boy Scouts of America Popcorn Sale, which runs from August to November. The funds raised go to support the national organization, district and the pack. More details will be posted to the website.