Who Is Pack 131?

Pack 131 is a family Cub Scout Pack from DeKalb, meaning we welcome both boys and girls and gear our events toward the whole family. We welcome boys and girls from anywhere in the DeKalb area and have Scouts from St. Mary's, Lincoln, Littlejohn, Founders, homeschool, and more. We have even had Scouts from Cortland , Malta, and even Genoa. Our leadership team is made up of volunteers (none of us are paid) who have kids in the Pack. There are lots of volunteer opportunities, some big and some small, that will help Pack 131 continue to run smoothly. You can find out more on the Volunteers page.

When Do We Meet?

Our Meetings are usually held at 6:30pm on the 1st and 3rd Monday of every month at the DeKalb First United Methodist Church of DeKalb. Occasionally they are held on another day or time or at another location but there will be sufficient notice. Each Den may also have additional meetings once or twice a month on whatever day best fits the parents' schedules.

What Do We Do?

What don't we do! In addition to our Pack and Den meetings, we generally have at least two fun pack activities every month. These include sporting events, camp outs, community service, pinewood derby races, hiking, fishing, field trips, outdoor adventures, and much more!

What Does It Cost?

We do not have monthly dues, but there are annual dues of $270 (as of 2024-2025). This includes $85 for Scouting America dues, Three Fires Council Program Fee of $85, and Pack 131 dues of $100 to register for a year of Scouting. This covers your registration with Scouting America, TFC Program Fee, insurance, and all the patches and awards Scouts will earn throughout the year, as well as a pinewood derby car, raingutter regatta boat or space derby rocket, and more!

Scouting America also charges a New Scout Registration Fee of $25 for any new Scouts. If you are currently a Scout or were ever registered as a Scout in the past, you will not have to pay this one-time registration fee.

We also offer reduced Pack Dues if you participate in our Popcorn Fundraiser. If you sell popcorn you can have some or all of your Pack Dues covered, or even your SA and TFC Dues paid! Learn more here.

Please pay your dues at the time of joining (by September 30 for returning Scouts) so that we can cover our Recharter costs and program expenses. Thanks!

NOTE: Scouting America Dues are per year. SA and Three Fires Council dues will be collected every 12 months on your registration anniversary. Pack 131 collects dues every fall or when your Scout joins. We do offer pro-rated Pack dues of just $25 for the summer if you join after our Rank Advancements in May and would just like to participate in our summer activities.

Financial Aid: Three Fires Council does offer financial aid to cover some or all of SA and TFC dues. This financial aid does not cover Pack 131 dues, however if you require financial assistance please see a Pack 131 leader privately and we will see how we can make Scouts work for you. We have some connections in the community to organizations that can help families with financial challenges join Scouts.

There are also some other costs, like uniforms, events, etc. You can learn more about those in the What do we need to purchase? section below.

How Do I Join?

The best way to join is come visit us at an activity or Pack Night and see what we're all about. There are fun leadership opportunities for adults, too! Or click the link below to sign up right now.

More Detail

Also, be sure to check out the Pack Resources page for important links, files, registration forms, uniform information, and more.

What does the $270 per year cover?

The $270 (as of 2024-2025) covers $85 for the Scouting America dues, $85 Program Fee and insurance from Three Fires Council, and $100 to the Pack. With that $100 we provide a ton of stuff for your child:

• Council & District Events - Three Fires Council offers many activities for free as part of your Program Fee that is included with dues (in the past these events had additional fees). This includes events like Council Campouts, Scouting Weekends, Klondike Derby, and more! We recommend that you take advantage of these events whenever possible. They're wonderful experiences for the whole family and they're already paid for!

• Adventure and Rank Awards - The Pack provides all the Belt Loops, Pins, and Patches that each Scout earns throughout the year. This includes the required Adventures, one elective Adventure, and the Rank badge.

• Pinewood Derby Car - Each Scout will receive a Pinewood Derby kit about two months before the race. Additional cars may be purchased for siblings, outlaw races, etc.

• Raingutter Regatta Boat or Space Derby Rocket - Each Scout will receive a boat or rocket kit for the event that we pan to hold each year. Additional kits may be purchased for siblings or anyone else who wants one.

• Additional Patches and Awards - The Pack also provides additional awards throughout the year, including hiking patches, hiking staffs, trophies for the derbies, additional elective adventure rewards, event patches, and more.

• Pack Event Costs - The Pack generally covers some food, entertainment, and supplies for events like the Blue & Gold banquet, derbies, picnic, campout, etc. Some of these events may have a small fee or potluck aspect to them in addition to what the Pack provides.

• Activity Supplies - Den Meetings and Pack Nights often have activities, games, crafts, and more that have supplies the Scouts use (and often take home).

• Leadership Expenses - Each leader has a leadership guidebook that helps them plan meetings. There are also some training events that the pack will offer full or partial reimbursement for (all leaders are required to complete training by the BSA). These training events help our pack's volunteer leaders become the best leaders for our Scouts. The pack also covers the volunteer leaders' BSA registration fees.

The $100 covers only some of these expenses. The Pack pays about an additional $135 per Scout per year. We earn this additional amount through fundraising events, like the annual Popcorn Sales. Without the funds from popcorn sales (and any other fundraisers we run), some items may need to be canceled or have higher fees. We ask that each Scout try to sell at least $540 worth of popcorn (if we have more Scouts in the Pack this number goes down since some costs are split among all the Scouts). To learn more about Popcorn Sales, visit our Popcorn Sale page.

What do we need to purchase?

In addition to SA, Council, and Pack Dues, there are some other expenses. Most are optional, although recommended.

• Uniforms - It is highly recommended that all Scouts have a Class A uniform, although this isn't actually required to be a Scout. However, a Class A uniform is required to participate in certain events. A complete Class A uniform consists of a Shirt, Neckerchief & Slide, Belt & Bucke, Hat, Pants, and Socks. Pack 131 recommends a Shirt, Neckerchief, and Belt. Many Scouts also purchase a Hat. Pants and Socks are rarely purchased. You can purchase a uniform from any Scout Shop (there are two in the Three Fires Council), online at ScoutStuff.org, or occasionally in a resale shop. You may also be able to purchase, borrow, or receive a uniform from a family that no longer has a Cub Scout.

  • Short Sleeve Class A Shirt: About $30

  • Neckerchief: About $15

  • Neckerchief Slide: About $7 (we recommend the leather slide since it doesn't get lost as easily)

  • Belt & Buckle: About $15

  • Uniform Patches - Basic uniforms only come with the American Flag patch sewn on, but you can pay a bit extra to have additional patches pre-sewn. Also required is:

    • The World Scout Crest

    • Council Shoulder Patch

    • Pack Numbers

    • Den Number

Patches total about $15. You can get Pack and Den number patches as well as others from Pack 131 (we have 131 patches so you don't need to buy separate 1, 3, and 1 patches).

• Scout Handbook - Each rank has a handbook. These are optional, but highly recommended. Den Leaders have copies of the handbooks that they'll use to complete Adventures with their dens. We track all completed requirements online through Scoutbook, but the books provide everything you'll need for your Scouts to complete Adventures independently (and some requirements may need to be done individually each year). If you would like to purchase a handbook for your Scout that they can keep, you are welcome to. We usually have several handbooks available for sale.

• Pack 131 T-Shirts - Pack 131 T-Shirts are not required, but it is nice to have a more casual shirt for some events, like hikes, camping, picnics, and other outings. We have shirts available for both youth and adults for $15 each.

• Event Fees - We often do events as a Pack that have various fees associated with them. We do plenty of free events, and none of the paid events are required, but there are some great opportunities that do have registration fees. Some highlights each year include Sycamore Speedway, NIU Sporting Events, Webelos Resident Camp, and more! Some other events we've done in the past include Medieval Times, Bartlett Nature Center Electronics Overnighter, and Egyptian Theatre performances.

Pack & Den Meetings

We hold meetings at 6:30pm every 1st and 3rd Monday of the month at the First United Methodist Church of DeKalb.

Our Pack Nights are generally on the 3rd Monday of every month, August through May. Very rarely we have a Pack Night at a different location and/or time (e.g. we got a tour of the new Police Station before it opened a few years ago), but we will let everyone know well in advance if that happens. Pack Nights generally last about an hour, and go faster if Scouts are well behaved.

The 1st Monday is a Den Adventure Night where we get together for a Pack Flag Ceremony and Announcements and then break into separate Dens to work on Adventures.  Some of our Dens may work on Adventures together. 

Additional Den Meetings may be scheduled on various nights based on the availability of the Den Leader and the other families in each Den. Please contact your Den leader if you don't know what day and time your Scout's Den meetings are. We also have monthly hikes that are usually on the third Sunday, but sometimes that shifts.

Parents are welcome to attend all meetings. It is highly recommended that they attend Pack Nights since that's when we will be giving out details about events coming up and collecting registrations and payments for certain things. Den meetings are usually fine to drop off kids (check with your Den Leader first), although it's great if a parent or two stays, especially for dens that only have one leader (because of the 2 Deep leadership requirement of SA). Lion and Tiger parents must attend all events.

Scouts are expected to behave at all meetings. Pack Nights are very busy, so please reinforce good behavior with them so that we can get through everything quickly. Most of the Dens are at full capacity, which is great, but it also means that leaders will have their hands full teaching and working with the Scouts, so good behavior is essential to make sure that everything can be covered in the meetings quickly.

Behavior & Expectations

Pack 131 is an inclusive organization that is welcoming to everyone. We have people from many different educational, cultural, religious, and ethnic backgrounds and we appreciate and respect all. That said, we do have a few rules that our members must follow in order to make everyone feel safe and welcome at all times.

• Youth Protection - All leaders are required to take Youth Protection Training through Scouting America's training programs. All adults are encouraged to also take it, even if you aren't a registered leader. All Scouts are required to complete a booklet with their parents at the front of their handbooks each year. This talks about youth safety policies, warning signs, and what to do in the event of a bad situation. In addition to many common sense rules, SA has a few firm policies that must be followed by everyone in the Pack. Please keep these in mind when working with the Scouts.

  • 2 Deep Leadership - All Pack events must have at least two registered adult leaders present at all times. This should include at least one registered leader age 21 or older and one other registered adult age 18 or older. Whenever possible we recommend parents attend and participate in our events.

  • Female Leaders – In accordance with SA safety guidelines, at any events that include female Cub Scouts a registered female adult leader must be present.

  • Never Alone - Adults are never to be alone, one on one, with a child that is not their own. Always make sure that there is another Scout or adult with you at all times. This includes at all events, and when driving to and from events. If you do have to take a child aside to talk to privately make sure it is still within sight of others.

  • Camping - When camping, no adult may sleep in a tent with a child other than their own, even if your child is in the tent with you. It is OK for Scouts to sleep in a tent together without an adult (although it is recommended that the Scouts be Bears or older), however, there must not be more than a two year age difference, even for related Scouts. Adults may not share a tent with anyone other than a family member.

• No Bullying - Scouting does not tolerate any kind of behavior that can be construed as bullying. There is no hazing allowed, name calling is not appropriate (especially of a derogatory nature), and physical violence is not tolerated. This includes physical disciplining of Scouts.

• Respect - All Scouts and adults should be respectful at all times. This means respecting the people around us as well as the locations we are at. We always strive to leave a place cleaner than it was when we arrived. It also means being polite to others and behaving during meetings. When someone else is speaking Scouts and adults should be quiet (adults, please don't have side conversations during the meetings) and remain seated. Everyone should pay attention to the Cub Scout Sign and be quite immediately when they see it raised. Doing so will help keep our meetings quick and efficient.

• Positive Role Models - One of the core goals of Scouting is to raise strong, moral young people. This means that all adults should be positive role models for our Scouts and older Scouts should be positive role models for our younger Scouts. Following the rules set out, being respectful, and generally following the 12 words in the Scout Law is a great way for both adults and kids to be positive role models for those around them. For adults we do have a few additional rules:

  • No Smoking - Smoking within sight of Scouts is not allowed. If you do smoke, please do so away from any Scouts. You may need to leave a camp or location that we are at in order to smoke. This includes vaping and e-cigs.

  • No Alcohol - Alcohol is not allowed at any Cub Scout events. This includes social events like our Pack Picnic and Family Campout, council or district events like Cub-O-Ree, and all Pack and Den meetings. Occasionally we attend events where alcohol is served (like sporting events, Medieval Times, etc.) and it is recommended that parents abstain from drinking alcohol at these events.

  • No Marijuana or Recreational Drug Use - Marijuana and other recreational drugs, both legal and illegal, are not appropriate for any Cub Scout events. Please do not attend any events with the intent to use any controlled substances or under the influence of any controlled substances.

  • No Profanity - Please use child appropriate language around the Scouts. Crude, crass, or vulgar language will not be tolerated.

  • No .... - Please use common sense. Don't bring anything illegal, immoral, or otherwise inappropriate to any Scouting events. This includes things like firearms, fireworks, weapons, drugs, pornography, etc.

• Etc. - Scouting America has a long list of rules that spell out what is and isn't appropriate in a Scouting environment, however for the most part common sense will be fine. If you have a question if something is allowed, please ask. But if you keep in mind the Scout Law you should be fine.