Spring events 2015, new name!!

We have our new Indian name!! Wakin yo lo gidi  (which means Flying fire wild cats) perfect!!

Monday March 23 Cake auction and potluck at Millikan High School cafeteria 5:30 start
Please bring a side dish or main course to share.
Cake theme is TOYS

Thursday March 26, Cerritos Flag Salute 18125 Bloomfield Ave, Cerritos, 90703  6:45 to 7:15

Wednesday April 22 Rocket Cat meeting hosted by Alyssa 6 to 7pm at the council
  We will rehearse the fire maker desire for grand council fire

As fuel is brought to the fire
so I promise to bring
My strength, my sensitivity
My heart's desire
My joy, my sorrow
To the fire of human kindness
For I will tend
As my fore bearer's have tended since time began
That fire that is called
The love of one for another
The love of all towards God



Grand Council Fire is Sunday May 3,  7pm Please wear your new ceremonial collars, bring a sit upon, flashlight, closed toe shoes

Saturday May 9  Los Cerritos Wetlands restoration and nature walk  10am to noonLos Cerritos Wetlands

Friday May 15  Spring Camp out, Saturday May 16 Pancake breakfast

Wednesday May 20 rocket cat meeting, hosted by Aliyah

Wednesday May 27 rocket cat meeting hosted by Emily

Wednesday June 10 last rocket cat meeting of the year

Collar Workshop

Our ceremonial collar making workshop will be Wednesday March 4 at 6pm at the council.

The cost is $70 per member for the cost of the leather, $35 is due when we order the leather and the balance is due at the workshop. Be prepared to make the deposit at our next meeting (or get together) so we can order the leather ASAP.

A parent or adult must accompany each child at the workshop, the parent will help their child draw and cut out the collar shape.

Typically the workshop is 2 hours in length.

We will have a leather sample to choose from prior to the workshop so you can choose the color you want. There are only a few choices to pick from, earth colors basically.

November 2014

Meetings will be Wednesday Dec 3 (previously we had a meeting on the 10th)  and our Xmas party will be on Wednesday Dec 17th tentatively at Lisa G's house. This year we will have a cookie exchange, each child brings two dozen cookies and then we share them with each other so everyone gets a nice mixed tray to take home.

Belmont shore parade is Saturday December 6, meet on Quincy Ave to line up at 6pm, parade starts at 7pm. Please wear uniform, comfortable shoes, red/white or blue sweatshirt under vest. I will have santa hats for the everyone to wear. You can wear Xmas gloves, necklaces and hold jingly bells to shake while we are walking. I need a few parent volunteers to walk with the kids, anyone interested?

We are planning a caroling event for Saturday December 13 at 2pm in a nursing home in the Bixby Knolls area. I will send out a confirmation email once it is officially set up. There is a fire station near the retirement home we thought we could sing some carols for the firemen and give out cookies. This event will be hosted by Natalie and count as her meeting for the year. Stay tuned for more info on this event. Pencil it in your calendar.

See you on December 3rd, 6pm at the council. Please have your workbook in a 3 ring binder and bring it to the meeting, we will be decorating brand new canvas bags to hold our new workbook and other camp fire items gathered throughout the year.

I am working on the meeting assignments for the kids, these will be handed out early January and start the end of January, beginning of Feb. I am also working on getting some guest speakers to come to a future meeting as well as planning a wetlands event in the Spring.

November/December 2014

Hello Rocket Cats!

Hope everyone had a great time at our pumpkin carving party, we can make this event our new fall tradition to get us into the Halloween spirit!

Next meeting is Wednesday November 5, 6pm at the lodge.  PLEASE BE IN UNIFORM, we are taking our photo for a Kiniya poster. We will continue with our "formal business meeting"at the start and I really need everyone to be on time, 6pm sharp. I am expecting the kids to take their roles seriously (president, vp, secretary etc) and if we are missing a person they cannot read their part or fulfill their assigned job. From now on the first 15 minutes of our meetings will be formal with kids discussing group business, we will rotate officers so it is important each child gets a turn being president. If your child is a historian, they are allowed to take photos at our meetings and events, they can print up and share photos with fellow members. We will continue through the next few years rotating kids through so everyone gets a feel of what each office is like. Thanks for understanding we need to start on time each meeting.

Wasewagan bead fair is Saturday November 15-16. You should receive info in the mail about what to bring, we will meet at 8am at Mcdonalds by the council for a quick breakfast and be on the road by 8:30. So far we have Art, Chris and myself driving up which will be enough drivers for the number of kids going. 

I have collected dues from Aliyah, Alissa, Natalie, Carly, Conner, Lizzie and Nicolas. Still need dues from Nate M, Nate N, Scott and Emily: dues are $75.00 checks made out to Camp Fire. Please bring a check to the next meeting, November 5.

Kiniya is Thursday November 20 at 7pm (arrive by 6:30 at the flagpole at Shiwaka) Our service project was to donate gently used jackets and coats to charity. Please drop of your coats to Lisa G by Wed Nov 5 at the latest (our next meeting). Remember to BE IN UNIFORM at our next meeting so we can take a photo of all the kids in their uniform with all the collected jackets. 

December meetings are Wed Dec 3 at the lodge and Dec 17 is our cookie exchange Christmas party. 

Belmont shore parade is Saturday Dec 6, more info to come

Starting in January, each child will be responsible for one 30 minute lesson plan for a future meeting. I will hand out a packet of meeting ideas next Wednesday, you and your child will choose your first,second and third choice. Once I assign you a meeting, I will give you the full lesson plan you can use to plan your meeting. Remember, we are working on lesson plans throughout the year on five trails (trail to knowing me, community, future, creativity, environment) Each trail represents a colored bead, each lesson plan earns that bead. When looking over the lesson plans, you can modify them somewhat but you need to get the over all idea across. If you have another idea you would rather do (such as have a special guest come and talk to the kids, teach the kids something or take a field trip) please let me know so we can make sure we have a good balance of topics covered during the year. The kids LOVE special guests and field trips, we haven't had as many as I would like. Discuss with your child what skill they have or talents, something that inspires them and see if you can get a lesson plan that fits. We can be creative.

 I will assign each child a lesson plan and meeting date so you will know exactly how much time you have to plan it. In the past I have had kids cook/bake at their house, special guest Game Warden came and did a talk, one child had a party to celebrate her mexican heritage with a pinada at the park, one child shared her family traditions for birthdays which included making a special bread from the country they were from etc etc... The sky's the limit! Remember you can just follow the chosen lesson plan as well, I will give you guidelines. 

Basically the 30 minute meeting will be 15 minutes lesson (teaching something) 15 minutes craft or activity. This can be modified however you need but this is the basic format. The kids run the meeting, you would be surprised how much the kids LOVE to run their own special meeting. This has been very successful in the past.

Thank you ! I look forward to seeing everyone on Wednesday!

Sept/Oct 2014

Hello Rocket Cats!!

Coming up: first meeting is Wednesday Oct 1, 6 to 7pm at the council. This year we are continuing to work on our Indian name(s) and moving through the four trails on the Adventure Level trail.  We earned several beads and two patches at Shiwaka this year, we will purchase those after we collect dues for the year and hand them out soon.

Dues are $75 per child for the year, please bring a check at our first meeting made out to "Camp Fire". This money helps Lisa and I purchase beads, patches, awards and to sign up for group activities like Kiniya an and the Belmont Shore parade. Every event at Camp fire has a group fee attached so we need the funds so we can easily sign our group up.

Saturday October 18 Fall halloween carnival, we will discuss this event at our first meeting on Oct 1. Carnival is from 4 to 7pm.

Monday Oct 20  Neighborhood association Bingo Night at Millikan cafe, 5:30, dinner is provided. (Lisa will bring drinks and dessert)

Wednesday Oct 29 Pumpkin carving meeting at my house (7140 Killdee street, 90808) 6 to 7pm. Bring your pumpkin, carving tools and dress for a mess. Parents can stay and help, siblings are welcome as well.

Bead Fair Weekend at CAMP WASEWAGAN !! November 15-16, Cost is $82 per camper, $77 per adult (I will be going with my husband, Art will be going, depending on how many kids sign up we might need another parent to go) Deposit is due Saturday Sept 20 which guarantees your space but OBLIGATES YOU  for the total payment by Sat Oct 18.
This event is coming up fast so mark your calendar and get your deposit in to Camp fire asap. We need to get a head count so we know how many drivers are needed.

Ok see you guys Oct 1!!

Camp Shiwaka August 11-15 2014 Session 3

Camp Shiwaka: our theme this year is "Dragon Days and Castle Knights"

Some Objectives for Camp Shiwaka this year:
earn "Our amazing earth" fire maker emblem (nature hike, map skills, water conservation, recycling and a group project to be completed by the end of the week)
earn a variety of beads
helping our group with team work, supporting each other and bonding
learning how to sit still, listen and follow directions from leaders, co leaders, day camp aides and other staff members
learning outdoor skills: specifically fire building and wood chopping
learning to follow a recipe, cooking over the campfire, proper food prep techniques
learning new camp songs, feeling confident to sing them in front of others
organizing the camp site, keeping it neat and clean, getting chores done in a timely manner
getting dirty and having fun!

We will be cooking lunches Tuesday, Wednesday and dinner Thursday night. Friday morning we will make breakfast together.
  Tuesday: Mock Tacos, grilled peaches, golden nuggets
  Wednesday: Quesadillas, refried beans, grilled corn, chips and salsa, muddy buddies
  Thursday dinner: Hobo packets, fruit salad, s'mores and banana boats
  Friday: pancake cake with nutella, bacon, fruit

We have a very large group this year (14 kids) so I need everyone to be on time in the morning, picked up promptly and in correct clothes/shoes. No flip flops, sandals or ankle socks allowed in camp.

Monday: 9-9:15am arrive at the flagpole for opening songs. Bring a sack lunch (please don't pack capri sun type drinks with the little straws), bottle of water (if labeled can be used all week), wear sunscreen and hat. BRING A WHITE T-SHIRT we will decorate it with our theme for the week. Everyone must have a ditty bag with plate, cup, bowl and utensils plus a sit upon.
pick up is 3:30p Monday-Wednesday (please be prompt, thank you)

Tuesday and Wednesday 9am-3:30 (we are cooking each day, no lunch needed)

Thursday: 2:30 arrival, please bring a sleeping bag, pillow, pj's, jacket, bug spray (the mosquitos can be bad in the evening time), toothbrush and toothpaste, change of clothes for the morning and your POLO SHIRT/VEST/CF UNIFORM (we will have a ceremonial fire that night).  I need one or two parent volunteers to spend the night with us Thursday night and help with breakfast in the morning. Let me know if you are interested.

Friday: I need several parent volunteers to come early Friday morning to help with breakfast, packing up and breaking down camp. Let me know if you are available to come by 8am, Camp is dismissed between 9:30 and 10am. All parents should plan on arriving to pick up their child by 9:30 at the latest. We will be hustling and bustling cleaning up, breaking down camp and packing up.

Remember, Monday I will give each parent a shopping list for items we need during the week. It will list the item, quantity and when we need it. I will have two large ice chests, one for food and one for ice plus two water containers for drinks. The kids get really hungry during the day so we will have a snack each morning as well as our lunch. The kids will be exhausted after camp so make sure they get enough rest for the next day. It looks like the weather will be in the mid 80's next week so we will drink lots of water and take breaks as needed.

See you Monday August 11th!!

2014 April-June

Monday is the cake auction, please let Lisa know if you are coming (March 24, 5:30pm, Millikan high school, potluck bring a main or side dish please, no desserts needed)

April meetings: 9th and 30th at the council 6 to 7pm. we will be getting ready for Grand Council Fire, the kids will be learning a short speech they will do at the ceremony and this year they host the Camp Fire Law song, singing in front of everyone and teaching the hand signs.

Saturday May 3rd Peter and Mary Muth Interpretive Center nature walk. We will meet at the Upper Back Bay in the Interpretive Center parking lot at 10am. We can do a self guided tour of the center, they have a short movie we can watch and then take a walk together around the back bay. It is very hot and dry there, unless we have some june gloom, so wear comfortable clothes and shoes, hat, sunscreen and water.  I plan on being there about an hour 1/2 but we can stay as long as everyone would like.

Sunday May 4th  Grand Council Fire at the council, more details to come. This is a formal camp fire event which means the kids must be in uniform, dark blue pants, white polo and vest. jackets are ok, shoot for red, white or blue if possible. The kids will be out in front of everyone leading a song and reciting a short speech so pay close attention to how they look please. Remember parents pick kids up at the lodge after the ceremony, the kids will be excused first.

Wednesday May 7th is our parent meeting to go over registration, Spring Camp Out, summer events and answer any questions you might have. Please no kids at the parent meeting.

Friday May 16 to 17 is the Spring Camp out and pancake breakfast. We will discuss this at the parent meeting.

Wednesday June 11th is our last get together this year, we are signed up to attend the Ropes Course/Challenge at Camp Shiwaka, starting at 3:30 it is a 4 hour event. There might be a fee for each child, some of the fee will be paid from our candy sale earnings, I will let you know before the event. This is a very special, very cool course and is designed to help groups learn trust and to handle challenging situations. Fear of heights is addressed and the staff is highly trained to work with groups of kids. Local fire fighters have used our course, it is that good so i hope everyone can attend.

Camp Shiwaka is August 11 through 15, Lisa and I will be running camp this year, we will discuss this more at the parent meeting.