Uncategorized | Scouts BSA Troop 1344 || Burke, VA 22015

We are a medium size, military family friendly boy troop with more than 25 scouts, 7 uniformed adult leaders, and a full committee in Burke, VA. Most of our leaders and families are active or former military and federal government service, and we have great group of active parents who are critical to the success of our troop.

We draw from our experiences as leaders serving our nation to help instill these same values in our boys here in beautiful Northern Virginia.

We continue to operate a successful program despite this challenging COVID-19 environment. We have safely maintained a schedule of weekly meetings and monthly outdoor activities. We have increased our High Adventure programs focus. Our crew superbly executed the Philmont high adventure expedition in July 2021 and we are sending three crews to Sea Base expeditions in April and July 2022. We earned the summer camp 2021 “Honor Troop” distinction at Camp Rodney.

Please see more about our “Great Things to Know About Us” slideshow, outreach flyer, and our most recent Scoutmaster’s message on program update and goals at the links below:

Mission & Philosophy

Posted on December 19, 2021 by admin

Our Boy Scout Troop 1344 from Burke, Virginia, was chartered in the Patriot District of the National Capital Area Council on Veteran’s Day, November 11, 2005, and is sponsored by the American Legion Post 176 in Springfield, Virginia.

We normally meet Monday nights 7 PM at Cherry Run Elementary School. We also conduct our planning meetings via Zoom video teleconference.

VALUES. We foster citizenship, leadership, personal fitness, and spirituality in an outdoor leadership laboratory that lets these young men grow and support each other in a safe, fun environment. In our program, we focus on enabling and empowering “scout led” decisions in a decision-rich, safe environment – both during our meetings and in particular during our outdoor camping activities.

ACTIVITIES. We maintain an active schedule of live and virtual activities that center around weekly meetings and monthly camping activities that rotate between a mix of popular and fun activities selected by the Scouts. This includes hiking, backpacking, canoeing, horseback riding, summer camp, high adventure expeditions, and travel to visit interesting venues (military bases and units, Civil War battlefields, battleship overnights, etc.).

ADVANCEMENT. We view advancement as a journey for the Scouts where advancement is a method, not an end. Our activities are designed to provide the Scouts a series of surmountable obstacles and steps to overcome, led by Scouts (with adult mentorship). Scouts learn by doing and earn achievements that recognize accomplishments. This method helps grow self-confidence, self-reliance, and a spirit of helping others. Advancement is not a competition. Instead, it is a joint effort involving leaders, family, and other Scouts to help Scout advance at each individual’s own pace.

EAGLE SCOUT. As Scouts develop and mature, we empower and encourage our young men to pursue the path towards the Eagle Scout rank, the highest achievement attainable in Scouting. We believe that this process is potentially life altering. Our great Troop has a proven program that will get every Scout, who wants it and puts in the work, across the Eagle Scout finish line. This approach delivers up to a 10% Eagle rank a year (1-3 Scouts). We are very proud of the five scouts who made Eagle Scout from the fall of 2021 through the fall of 2022.

HIGH ADVENTURE. High adventure is the next level of traditional Scout summer camp that are one-of-a-kind experiences that make memories which stick with you for life. It ramps up the basic Scouting program to focus on adventure. The different types of high adventure expeditions vary from days of trekking, backpacking, or canoeing in the wilderness. Scouts have fun, tackle challenges, and learn new skills. We envision a 3-year expedition cycle of experiences very year: