🎃 Each year, the Scouts of Troop 799G lend a helping hand at the Trinity United Methodist Church pumpkin patch! Does your unit have a great fall tradition?

Hello, Scouter!

October 9th, 2026

News You Can Use

🚨 Please note that the Leadership Center's administrative office will close today, October 9th, at 12:00pm. The Scout Shop will remain open with regular business hours, and the Popcorn & Peanut distribution from 2pm to 5pm will be unaffected. The Scout Shop will open with regular business hours on October 10th.

Fall Fundraiser Food Lion Show & Sell

October 10th (LAST CALL) & 17th

We’ve coordinated two convenient Show & Sell dates: October 10 and October 17 - at Food Lion stores across the Council to help your unit fundraise with Camp Masters popcorn and Whitley's peanuts! Each unit may claim one available slot per date, and the best part: it's no risk! We’ll provide product on consignment (for two Saturdays only), and you can return any unsold items. This is a great chance to try Show & Sell and boost your fall fundraising success. Spots are still available - sign up today!

[Snag Your Spots!]

Volunteer Recognition Hub

Behind every great Scouting experience is a volunteer who helped make it happen. They’re the leaders who give an extra hour when an hour is needed. The mentors who help other volunteers succeed. The people whose service reaches beyond their own unit and creates opportunities for young people across a district, a council, or even farther. The Heart of Virginia Council’s new Volunteer Recognition Hub makes it easier to recognize those extraordinary Scouters and learn about the many awards available to celebrate service, leadership, achievement, and impact. From training awards and the District Award of Merit to specialized service recognitions and some of Scouting’s most distinguished honors, the Hub can help you find the recognition that fits the service.

[Check It Out!]

Cub Scouts

Cub Scout Creepy Hollow

October 17th – 18th and 24th – 25th

The fall forecast is looking frightfully good, and there’s still time to join us for Creepy Hollow at Cub Adventure Camp, packed with BBs, archery, fishing, BMX, pumpkin fun, crafts, games, spooky adventures, and more! Weekend 1 registration closes October 11 at 11:59 PM, and Weekend 2 closes October 16 at 11:59 PM, so don’t let this adventure disappear into the night. We’re also looking for a few grown-up ghouls to join our volunteer crew and help make the magic happen for Cub Scouts and their families.

[The Creatures of Creepy Hollow Are Waiting!]

[Volunteer]

Scouts BSA, Exploring, Venturing, & Sea Scouts

Winter Camp 2027

Scouting Doesn't Hibernate

Don’t sit around this winter being bored – come chill out with your friends at Winter Camp! Scouts are invited out to T. Brady Saunders January 15th–18th, 2027 to get out of the house, have some fun, and earn merit badges. We can’t think of a cooler way to enjoy winter than being at camp.

In-Council Registration is open! Registration for outside Council's opened October 1st, and merit details will be shared on November 6th.

[Be Cool, Go to Winter Camp]

Hampden-Sydney College Merit Badge Day

Saturday, November 7th

Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia is hosting their annual Merit Badge Day on November 7th (rescheduled from June), open to all Scouts BSA Troops in the Heart of Virginia Council. Thanks to the support and involvement of the college administration, faculty, staff and community, we are able to offer a great day and merit badge opportunities taught by qualified instructors. While you are there, we hope you will explore their 1330 acre historic campus.

[Registration Is Open!]

Did You Read the Courier?

Get these five stories and so much more by reading the Courier, our monthly newsletter! Scheduled for the last Friday of the month at noon, the Courier features all the news, special events, and useful information you need to get the most of your Scouting experience. [Read This Month's Courier]

"Take your needle, my child, and work at your pattern; it will come out a rose by and by. Life is like that - one stitch at a time taken patiently and the pattern will come out all right like the embroidery."

- Oliver Wendell Holmes, American physician, poet, and humorist notable for his medical research and teaching, and best known for his poem, "Old Ironsides."

Speaking of stitches, on this day in 1855, American inventor Isaac Singer patented the sewing machine motor, saving many a sore finger after adding patches to sashes.