Hedgehog

Our Troop has been to Camporees (West Point and others) where there were Girl Scouts and Venturers. NYLT is co-ed due to Venturing. OA allows female adults to be inducted. Cub Scout Pinewood Derby in our Troop always had a "non-scout" division (read younger or female siblings). Rick: Really? I guess I have to be specific. "I also see the co-ed dynamics and understand that there are reasons that co-ed scouting would not work as effectively as a program that focuses on single-gender development between the ages of 11 and 14 due to the cultural, educational and political factors

For me, equality of opportunity has always been a conservative value (with apologies to any Liberals on the forum). I've never been one who has seen demonstrations, protests and battles of words (read name calling and personal attacks) as a solution -- it makes those involved feel better about themselves but does nothing to find solutions. I also don't see life as a zero sum game - just because someone succeeds, someone else doesn't necessarily lose. I don't like the idea of co-ed Scouting at the Scouts BSA level. There is something unique about the program in the way it nurtures 11 to

The issue is one of Troop culture. Culture begins with the leaders. The older Scouts take their cues from the leaders. The younger Scouts take their cue from the older Scouts. Our Troop has a Scout with on the Autism spectrum, a Scout who is Downs Syndrome and a Scout who is in a wheelchair due to spinal cord issues that affect his ability to walk and use one of his arms. The Scout on the Autism spectrum does need more adult interaction than the others. The older Scouts (who are his same age) have been taught how to support him by treating him as an equal. The Scout with Downs Syndr

Remember EDGE method - Explain, Demonstrate, Guide, Enable. The guide and enable parts are what work to keep them interested because they are doing. Have fun with them. I love when I talk to Scouts about knife safety and saying "Thank You" before I let go of the knife. I then say, "let's practice." I hand them the knife and hold on to it until they say "thank you" and then I let go. I then say, "OK, give me the knife back." They do, I take it and tell them "You failed." I continue to do it until they realize that they should hold on to the knife until I say "thank you." Actually,

I would start with having a signed permission slip with language similar to what is on here: https://filestore.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/19-673.pdf. I can't say that the waiver is ironclad, but I see no reason NOT to have it signed by every parent. I suspect that our CO has insurance, but I've never asked. I have contemplated getting an umbrella policy. My recollection is it is around $350 a year for $1 million and $450 a year for $2 million and $600 a year for $5 million. As @Saltface said, make sure that there isn't a gap between where your home and auto policies stop and th

Dog tags. They have a small chain that is supposed to go around a toe or something. Can get them inexpensive on the internet. Have the Troop and Patrol on them. One on the Dutch Oven and one on the lid.

@Cambridgeskip, it's not you, it's me. @David CO 's "three act story" comment was a jab at me and an attempt to discredit what I've said. I've written and deleted three responses and then realized that I don't need to justify my experience, my story or the depth of my faith to him or anyone else on this forum. If what I've posted helped some people to move toward a common ground, than I'm glad. For others, nothing I can write will make any difference because they are focused on winning the argument rather than seeking to understand. As a result, this is my last post in this thread.

Each patrol has a Patrol Box (pots, frying pan, cooking utensils, cast iron griddle, measuring cups, paper towels, wash bins, etc.), stove, lantern, Dutch Oven (and lid lifter / lid stand), propane tank, stand pipe, pop-up garbage can and 5 gallon water jug, large clear plastic bin for food and a cooler. We have around 10 troop tents and a couple of old loaner backpacks. I think there is a sleeping bag that someone donated that we haven't found a home for. I also have a bunch of hiking shoes and scout pants that people have given me to be provided to new Scouts. We encourage Scouts to

I'm not sure. If the girls in my Crew are any indication, I'm guessing the older ones will be out to kick @$$ at the camp games. I do know that the majority of girls in my Crew opposed the BSA opening the Boy Scouts program to girls. I also know that the Crew hasn't liked attending Boy Scout events (both the guys and the girls) but has loved attending Venturing Events. I"ll have to ask the guys in the Troop what they think when they are at camp this summer. I'll also be interested in my son's opinion about how the camp he works at will be different. My sense is that most of the

@The Latin Scot I understand and respect all of what you said in your post. I think that what you said about making everyone feel loved, appreciated and safe is the common ground I was looking for. If people start with an agreement on that idea, the disagreements become less heated and maybe as @Eagledad suggests, the discussion becomes more pragmatic.

@gblotter that isn’t quite what I was trying to convey. My point was more along the lines of despite all the gloom and doom and despair on the forum, you can run programs within National’s guidelines that provide a quality Scouting experience for youth - both male and female. Despite your suggestion, some of my son’s best experiences this past year have been at OA, NYLT, and Council Events and Summer Camp. All of which are run by youth. My solution is for people to focus on what is in their control by building a youth-led, patrol-based fun seeking program. I don’t think Scout un

I didn't intend to be self-righteous or grandstanding. If I came across that way, I apologize. My purpose was to encourage people to look at this a different way. Let me tell you a bit about myself. I'm very conservative - voted Republican every time except once where I voted for a third-party candidate that was more conservative. I'm Catholic and take my Church's teachings on issues like sexuality, abortion and compassion very seriously. If you asked me about transgender kids three years ago, my response would have been to consider those kids abnormal freaks (my words, not any of yo

We are on a patrol hike on a campout. My 13 year old son and his buddy are leading and we just trekked up to a scenic overlook and looped around to a second overlook. My son tells the group that we have to double back to get back. A parent disagrees and points to a trail saying, "its right there." Son take out compass and has buddy go 100 feet down the trail to see if it turns to go in the right direction. It doesn't. My son repeats, "we have to double back." The adult repeats, "it's this one right here." My son looks at me and asks, "what should I do?" I responded, "lead." He said,

Certainly... if you allow me to edit and expand it. Send me a messaged I'll send you an edited version.