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Thanks everyone. I am working off of second-hand info from the TG, so I don't know the tone or context in which the boy said what he said. But since it's something the TG brought up at the PLC, I figure it's more serious than trying to get a rise out of his peers and not as serious as imminent quitting. I'll pick a couple two-scentence solutions and relay them along.

As a college student and recent grad I can tell my friends and I shook hands and didn’t mind the pat on the shoulder. We know all adults aren’t pedophiles and you usually get a vibe when someone’s doing creepy touches. In all my scouting there was only one person who did that and we let our Sm know. Any kids who don’t want to shake hands or such are just being disrespectful. A scout is courteous so even if you don’t want to shake hands you do so out of courtesy. Would you forgive a scout for being unkind because he didn’t feel like being kind? No so it’s dumb to say it’s okay for them to not s

I admit both my disgust and disappointment with this thread. I was working with two out of state contractors this week who are scout leaders. They both told me their number one issue in running the troop is helicopter parents. The couple of their examples were very reminiscent of this discussion. While we had to deal with a couple of over zealous moms, it wasn’t anywhere near the number one issue. Both these leaders believe bringing in girls will kill the program as we know it. Im so glad my son’s got to experience a boy run program. Barry

It boils down to this ... you need a friend who understands your problem, who is willing to take BALOO with you, and is willing to escort you to a safe place (that could mean driving you home) the minute you start to feel weak knees. Odds are with that buddy by your side, you won't have a problem. But even if you do, you'll be taken care of. You should feel free to turn down anything else until you have more positive experiences ... one step at a time.

I'm sorry, but that just isn't true. Your unit is local, everything else isn't. Camporees are not local. Summer camps are not local. Jamborees are not local. HA bases are not local. This misconception is tantamount to the old no-smoking sections in restaurants. Someone lights up 20' away, everyone in the no-smoking section knew it . Unless some unit decides to be a BSA hermit and only go on non-scouting activities, this trite phase is not correct. Let's at least be honest about it. Only your local unit is local.

Just tell them that cute Spanish, Italian, and French speaking girls prefer to kiss. Some kids also think punctuation, writing, and reading is hopelessly out of date as well. But getting back to the OP, I'm wondering if this issue of touching has an element of trust that isn't being brought up. I have no problem hanging a scout upside down, if I know the scout and know he'd likely enjoy the experience. I'd never just walk into some unit's ceremony and grab a kid that I didn't know and turn him upside down. Yes, a few of them would freak out and I'm not interested in that. It takes time t

Our troop is on the waitlist. I have 16 scouts and 3 adults committed to going. We signed up for the 7 day treks since the 12 treks are just too expensive. But will can only go in June or July since all the school activities start in August. Philmont hardly has any 7 day treks in June and July. If you look at the 2018 openings, there are over 100 slots available for 12 day treks in June and July. 100 slots times 12 members times $900 equals big dollars. You would think they would open up more 7 day slots they seem to be filled all the time. Not sure what we are going to do. Sad to hear ther

Our Stake actually has one ward (not mine of course lol) that has a functioning Venturing unit with 8 or 9 active participants; they have a really dynamite leader who has been in it long enough to get the program off the ground and make it work. They run the whole Venturing program, with all the separate awards and activities and everything. Come January they'll continue as a privately-operated Venturing Crew, while still doing the new program for Priests, but as you can all imagine, their unit is the exception. Some wards in our area can't even get the 11 year-old Scout program right; my moth

My time spent on an OA ceremonies team is some of my favorite memories of Scouting as a youth. I am also an associate chapter advisor. The guys in our chapter have a lot of fun and it's a great experience for them, but when us "old timers" tell stories about what we were doing as ceremonialists back in the day, ..well, you can tell the youth are jealous.

It sounds like the Pack has some bylaws regarding a relationship and shared resources with the Troop that are sponsored by the same organization. I agree, these types of things need to be transparent and fully explained if families are expected to fund these arrangements. *IF* I were to guess, it would likely be something like borrowing and use of Troop gear for the Pack camping events, or something similar (storage unit shared by both.) I've seen that happen, but couldn't understand why simply loaning out gear if not otherwise in use wouldn't be acceptable unless it was damaged or destroyed.

If the pack and the troop belong to the same charter org, there could be a few different issues at play. The troop will usually have their own dues ($34, $46 if you add in Boys' Life). Some troops charge other annual fees to cover awards, ranks, equipment, etc. So the minimum you could be expected to pay a troop would be $34 ($46 if you wanted Boys' Life). Packs would be similar. Their dues to BSA would be $34 ($46) for each Scout. Like troops, packs might have "other" expenses for which they collect "dues". For example: Troop 123 has annuals dues of $100 per Scout. Of that $100

Be careful what you wish for. BSA has been known to cave to peer pressure. All it takes is for one person to complain about WB "beading" ceremonies as cultural appropriation (use of beads, beads being Native American, etc.) and there go all your beads. Think it can't happen? Ask any Scouter who was in an OA ceremony team as a youth. No more "war paint", no more bare chests, no more firing arrows to start the fire, no more "taps" at tap outs. Did BSA have stupid ceremonies that put people in danger? Sure. Using rubbing alcohol on someone's chest and lighting it was a baaaad idea. Hanging a

I, too, have never heard of the advisability of washing anything the size of a sleeping bag in a mechanical device. Bathtub soak, wash, rinse and the carefully dry. The weight of the water absorbed by the down can cause damage to the bag itself. Once the vast amount of water is removed, then one can gently finish off in a dryer with old tennis shoes or tennis balls to restore loft.

I advise soaking in a bath tub with Woolite or similar product. Slosh (not Stosh) up and down gently. Drain in place. Fill tub and slosh. Repeat. Drain in place well before trying to pick up to hang and damp. When damp dry, use the tennis ball in dryer trick. The danger is stressing the stitching when the bag is heavy with water. I have seen a number of down bags tear apart internally from such stress. I advisew against washing any sleeping bag in a dasher washer. I even am worried by front loaders. Some companies say their bags are good to go on "gentle" in any machine,

The tech wash mentioned above does a good job of cleaning the down bag. I did mine in the tub with about five gallons of warm water. I rung out the bag gently and let the excess water out. Then put it in the washer for a spin cycle only. Then in to the dryer with 6 tennis balls. Amazing how fluffy it gets and the smell of the tech wash goes away leaving a clean smelling and brand new bag. Did this on e a year and I still have my bag my dad gave me when I crossed over from Webelos.