Troop 21

This past week, 13 scouts and 5 parents from Troop 21 camped at Cherry Valley on Catalina Island. Throughout the trip, the scouts participated in their 3 selected Merit Badge classes, learning new skills while having fun. After eating a nutritious and delicious lunch, the scouts had free time to try out many exciting water activities, such as canoeing, kayaking, and stand-up paddleboarding. A long day of swimming and paddling would wear out the scouts, so they could head up to the Trading Post to enjoy delicious candy or buy camp merchandise. Every morning, the scouts had camp inspections. On the first morning, our troop scored a 63—not the best—but on Thursday, the scouts scored a whopping 98. This meant that on Friday, they could aim for a score of 0. On Friday, the scouts made the campsite look as wild as possible by scattering leaves and placing tables on top of each other, resulting in a final score of 19. On Wednesday, the scouts endured a long, strenuous hike of about 8 miles round-trip from Cherry Valley to Emerald Bay, where they enjoyed MREs for lunch. During the trip, scouts could earn beads for taking on certain positions and responsibilities, such as Kybo Warrior or Waiter. The scouts played many card games, such as President, Spit, and Poker. Before every meal, the Camp Commissioners had the scouts participate in a fun game before entering the cafeteria. For some reason, Troop 21 was almost always the second-to-last group allowed in. Every Troop had one or two Scout Friends; we had Dylan and Teresa, who made sure the Scouts followed directions while also ensuring everyone had fun. For the last breakfast, the scouts made an abomination of apples and plastic utensils, but it did not survive the return trip. Overall, the scouts and parents all had a great time. We would like to thank Mrs. Saavedra, Mrs. Kammer, Mr. Torres, Mr. Erricson, and Mrs. Lambright for making this trip possible and taking such good care of us. We would also like to thank all the camp staff for hosting us and making Camp Cherry Valley a very special place. Can’t wait for next year!

Julian Chen
Life Scout
Troop 21

Thank you very much Ms Lambright for sharing your beautiful album:
https://nicolettelambright.passgallery.com/-ccvtroop21scoutslink/gallery

On June 1st, Troop 21 congratulated the achievements of Scouts who were promoted to new ranks. Notably, Collette “Coco” Kiesel and Gus Brando earned the prestigious rank of Eagle.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/9k8fpSgF4J3Zux3f8

This Memorial Day, several Boy Scouts from Troop 21 participated in a Memorial Day event at the Pasadena Senior Center. The Scouts opened the ceremony with a color guard march, led by Aiden Zaidi. Below are some pictures and footage from the event.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/rxdrqNwyMVXLbP1D8

On Saturday May 16th, Troop 21 held their annual car wash fundraiser. We had a good turnout and everyone had a blast. Some highlights included Weston washing his mom’s van and Scouts and their Dads working together as a drying team!

We ended the day tidying up the parking lot.

On April 16th, 2026, 12 Arrow of Light Scouts from Pack 37 bridged over to Troop 21. Rorik Griswold served as the Den Chief for Pack 37. We look forward to welcoming them at our next meeting!

On the weekend of Feb 21st, 3 scouts and 3 adults set off from the Chantry Flat Campground for a backpacking experience along the Upper and Winter Lower Creek Trail. We were very fortunate to get a beautiful weather window after nearly a week of torrential rains. Because of the low fire danger, scouts had the opportunity to light fires in the fire pits and work towards cooking merit badges. Our excursion leader Ted made a good strategic call in taking the higher (Upper) elevation trail on the first day to avoid the countless stream crossings we encountered on the return trip, thus reducing the chances of suffering wet feet on our time at camp! It was a great opportunity to make new friends and share tips on gear and packing techniques amongst each other. Special thanks to our taxi drivers Esther Cha and Casey Chan, and of course the generosity of Ted Zeiss, who hauled a large quantity of water and extra meals in his 70L pack to help support our more junior troop members!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/gSimG2sXtTuLWwkc8

At the Troop meeting on Jan 12, Scouts reviewed the technique of the square lashing by building a ladder with just rope and short poles. Here Luther is demonstrating the strength of this technique!

This past week, our intrepid Scouts braved the cold January nights for a campout and backpacking adventure at the Indian Cove Campground in Joshua Tree National Park. We had an excellent turnout with 13 Troop 21 scouts and 4 Arrow of Light scouts in attendance. Many thanks to Ted Zeiss and Matt Linder for capturing these memories in the photo album link below.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/GyA3mhoWeZ5GfKcU7

Anton Potts became our latest Eagle Scout to represent Troop 21 in the Rose Parade. Anton, who Eagled in 2024, is currently a cadet at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Congratulations, Anton!

We had a great camping trip to Malibu Creek State Park this weekend. Had some first timers, and had a lot of fun, especially, climbing rocks, staying warm, and playing hours of “mafia” around the warm campfire. Thanks very much to Matt Linder and Theda Griswold for sharing some memories in these photo albums

https://photos.app.goo.gl/fy6cX3EQTd9LMbwK6

https://photos.app.goo.gl/DNQsVpyNyjksTUdc8

The Salvation Army in Pasadena provides food boxes and toys to more than 800 needy families throughout the Pasadena area at Christmas. Troop 21 aided in this effort on Saturday December 13th by setting up the “Toy Shop”, allowing needy parents to “shop” for the perfect gifts for their children.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/M42d3dULc8gVYczU6

Our Troop 21 scouts contributed towards a successful volunteering effort at the Salvation Army for Thanksgiving on Nov. 27th. Here is what the Salvation Army group had to say:

Today our community showed up in the most beautiful way. With the help of incredible volunteers, the Pasadena Police Department, and Boy Scouts, we delivered over 650 hot Thanksgiving meals to neighbors who aren’t able to get out—and welcomed many more for a warm, sit-down meal.

In total, almost 1,100 meals were served with love today.

Thank you to every volunteer, partner, and supporter who made this possible.

https://fb.watch/DMfmpQsCeH

More pics here:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/xRdTkPnboaa8D2Y86