Re: HELP !!
David Wilson (Djh.Wilson@EE.QUB.AC.UK)
Wed, 31 Jan 1996 13:57:02 GMT
Kevin,
Perhaps I can give you the (limited) benefit of my (even more limited)
wisdom...
When I agreed to take over as the SL in my Troop, there were a number of
things which I didn't like about the way in which it had been run up to
then; nothing quite as serious as the problems that you have mentioned,
but still things which could have been put into the "But we've always
done it this way" category. However, I reasoned that if I was going to
put the effort into leading the Troop, then it would have to run in a way
which I would be happy with- hopefully, the way Scout Troops are meant to
run. Otherwise, I would find it a lot harder to motivate myself to stay
involved.
So much for the practical reasons for changing the way the Troop has been
run. On a more, how can I put it, _doctrinal_ point, I don't believe that
you should change the standards and methods of Scouting just to keep a few
Scout s in the Troop. There's more to Scouting than playing basketball,
and there's certainly no place in Scouting for bad behaviour and rudeness.
Run the Troop the way you want it run, the way it should be run; if people
object to the changes, point out to them that the Troop was not being run
properly before- I'm sure you'll be able to find enough literature to back
your arguments up. I daresay you'll find that many of the boys who have
said that they will leave if the Troop changes will actually quite enjoy
_proper_ Scouting. And if they do leave... well, sometimes these things
happen. I would certainly rather lose bad Scouts than have them spoil the
next generation with their un-Scout like ways. It's not good for the Troop
long-term, nor is it any good to the reputation of Scouts worldwide.
Just my thoughts... feel free to shoot me down at will...
All the best,
David Wilson. <djh.wilson@ee.qub.ac.uk>
(SL, 1st Saintfield Scout Troop, Co. Down, N. Ireland)
Terry Howerton Sakima Group, Inc. SCOUTER Magazine Kansas City |
