Outdoor Programs. Boy Scouting is designed to take place outdoors. It is in the outdoor setting that Scouts share responsibilities and learn to live with one another. It is here that the skills and activities practiced at troop meetings come alive with purpose. Being close to nature helps Boy Scouts gain an appreciation for God's handiwork and humankind's place in it. The outdoors is the laboratory for Boy Scouts to learn ecology and practice conservation of nature's resources.

Advancement. Boy Scouting provides a series of surmountable obstacles and steps in overcoming them through the advancement method. The Boy Scout plans his advancement and progresses at his own pace as he meets each challenge. The Boy Scout is rewarded for each achievement, which helps him gain self-confidence. The steps in the advancement system help a Boy Scout grow in self-reliance and in the ability to help others. Personal Growth. As Boy Scouts plan their activities and progress toward their goals, they experience personal growth.

The Good Turn concept is a major part of the personal growth method of Boy Scouting. Boys grow as they participate in community service projects and do Good Turns for others. Probably no device is so successful in developing a basis for personal growth as the daily Good Turn. The religious emblems program also is a large part of the personal growth method. Frequent personal conferences with his Scoutmaster help each Boy Scout to determine his growth toward Scouting's aims.

Leadership Development. The Boy Scout program encourages boys to learn and practice leadership skills. Every Boy Scout has the opportunity to participate in both shared and total leadership situations. Understanding the concepts of leadership helps a boy accept the leadership role of others and guides him toward the citizenship aim of Scouting.

Weekly Troop Meetings: Meeting activities planned by the Scouts themselves include learning and practicing Scouting skills, planning trips and special activities, working on merit badges or other projects of interest to the Scouts, games, and fun. The Troop is divided into a number of patrols of 4 to 8 boys. Sometimes a patrol will hold its own meetings and plan additional outings. If enough Webelos Scouts join the Troop at one time, they will form a New Scout patrol, with an experienced older Scout as Troop Guide, to work on basic Scouting skills and advancement. Otherwise, the Patrol Leaders work with the New Scouts to teach them the skills they will need

Monthly Outings: Troop 567 has a year-round outings program, with an overnight outing every month planned by the Scouts themselves. In addition, the Troop or any of the patrols may plan day hikes or other activities during the year. See the Activities page for a taste of the program planned by the Patrol Leaders' Council and the patrols. Because of our active camping program, we offer Scouts the opportunity to participate in seasonal sports without their feeling left out of the Scouting program. The Troop outings program is designed to provide the Scouts with fun, new skills, and advancement. In addition to meeting requirements for advancing in rank, outings provide opportunities for earning merit badges, including Camping, Cycling, Hiking, Cooking, Backpacking, Pioneering, Orienteering, Wilderness Survival, and many others. Photos from some recent outings are available in the Photo Album.

Summer Camp is the ideal place for new Scouts to begin working on advancement and merit badges, and it is a good place for more experienced Scouts to earn some of the merit badges required for Eagle. It is also, of course, a great place to have fun. Troop 567 attends summer camp for a week every summer, usually at S-F Scout Ranch in Knob Lick Missouri. It is the second largest scout camp in the United States (Philmont is the first), and therefore is the largest council-sponsored scout camp in the United States. In 2005, Troop 567 is attending summer camp at the Blue Ridge Scout Reservation in Virginia.