Re: Eagle Wanna be comes home!
settummanque, or blackeagle (blkeagle@DYNASTY.NET)
Sun, 30 Nov 1997 18:59:58 -0600
So, the Eagle candidate wants to come back, eh Linda??
>Well, the little darling wants to come back. After questiong his
>intentions at a Scoutmaster conference, I found out he is returning with
>the sole intention of earning his badge. (I suspect mommy and daddy >are,
as in the past, tightning the screws.) He will then, immediately quit >and
continue to pursue his outside interests. He does expect that the >Troop
will provide him a beautiful Eagle Ceremony to impress the >relatives.
The question is, however, does the TROOP want this kid back??? It's not
just the Scoutmasters' call as whether or not the kid will be "accepted
back", but also the Troop's call, and more specifically, the Senior Patrol
Leader as the leader of the Troop.
If this happened in one of my Troops, I would encourage a meeting between
the Senior Patrol Leader, this Scout, and myself with myself only there to
keep them from hacking off each other's fingers or toes if it came to that.
They should be able to discuss why should this kid come back to the Troop
and under what expectations ("You can come back and work toward Eagle....we
can't keep you from doing it. But you gotta know that I don't think that
I'll be able to get together a bunch of Scouts for your Court of Honor".)
But also remember that if the youth of the Troop says "okay", you should try
to work with his parents and him (even if it kills you, Linda) because of a
matter of consistancy. There's going to be some kid looking at the way
you've handled this situation, and if you don't provide him with a suitable
ceremony or assistance with the Court of Honor, you will perhaps lose that
other kid as well....
>Personally, I have a problem with this plan. My other Scouts are livid.
>They want nothing to do with participating in an Eagle Ceremony for
>someone who obviously has no interest in the Troop, let alone doing a
>fundraiser to cover the costs.
This needs to be explained to this Scout by the Senior Patrol Leader.
Coming from you or me sounds like we're really angry at this kid (and we
might well be); coming from the *leader of th Troop* can make the situation
better, Linda.
Personally, after having the experience I had with this Scout, I would be
encouraging him during the Scoutmaster's Conference to find *another Troop*
in the community or perhaps to complete his Eagle as an Explorer or as a
Varsity Scout in a neighboring unit. The SM Conference is a great idea,
Linda, and one that I would recommend to any Scout that have left your Troop
and wants to return.
But I would leave it up to your youth...after all, it is *them*, not just
*you* that he will be interacting with on a weekly basis.
That's my two-point-five....
Settummanque!
(c) 1997 Mike Walton ("no such thing as strong coffee,...") (502) 827-9201
(settummanque, the blackeagle) http://dynasty.net/users/blkeagle
241 Fairview Dr., Henderson, KY 42420-4339 blkeagle@dynasty.net
kyblkeagle@aol.com or waltonm@hq.21taacom.army.mil
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