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Because it didn’t involve a lot of camping and vulnerable situations that camping brings with it (showers, swimming, changing, sleeping, homesickness). These vulnerable / risky situations happen each month, month after month.

That would be a best case scenario if it is limited to the BSA relationship with COs. In a worst case, zombie world scenario, we could see hundreds of local small COs wiped out or affected by this. For example, the Methodist Church. I work with is a state based council. A host of smaller churches by me are barely functional, but they do have some property and assets. If the UMC had to respond to the cases in our state as a council, it would likely result in the closure and sale of dozens of small churches, their parsonages, some local camp properties, community buildings, etc. If Chapter 11 is

Some version of the ineligible volunteers files have been in existence since 1919. They were referenced in the 1930s. BSA long knew it was a particular target for pedophiles. 4-H is also a 100 plus year old legacy youth organization and no such files exist there.

My experience is that my rapist raped 11- 13 other young boys. The Boy Scouts knew about it (several letters from Troop Master to local council talking about it. Yes he was forced out out of that troop tried again in a different state and was denied the ability to volunteer (and he got his $2 application fee back) and that local council was told to tell him politely that his services were not needed. Wonder where he went next to get his rocks off? I wonder how many more young boys did he victimize? If he was caught later was BSA culpable because they didn't turn him into law enforcement.

When I first learned about the Ineligible Volunteer Files in the 1990s, I was given to understand that the cases of perversion were ones that Scouting couldn't prove (i.e., didn't go to trial) but that the local councils wanted to track to keep the alleged predator away from the boys. Cases that could be proven were supposedly referred to law enforcement. I understand that some people, wanting to avoid negative publicity, may have used the files as an alternative to pursuing prosecution. That was clearly wrong but it still hurts my head that something that was created as a tool for prev

$72 for youth. Yeah yeah, great value etc, but it is getting pricey Over the last year, we have seen the Scouting community come together, even while being physically apart, to bring solutions, relief and comfort to those in need. Scouting continues to be a vital partner for communities across the country. The value of Scouting is undeniable for those within the program and the greater public, and the Boy Scouts of America is committed to continuing to offer this unmatched opportunity to young people and families nationwide. It is important that we all reach out to Scouting f

After over 4 years of working in the field, today was my last day as a Professional Scouter. It's been an incredible ride, but it's time for me to move on and start the next chapter in my life. Thank you to everyone on this forum over the past years who helped me grow as a Pro. If you ever have any questions about Professional side of Scouting, or "the Dark Side", please don't hesitate to reach out. Volunteers are some of the kindest, most selfless people you will ever meet in this world. It was truly an honor to serve them, and I will miss working with them dearly.

While in Maine, I have been using https://www.mainetrailfinder.com It is free, as in free - no registration, no fees, simple-get-you-started, accurate directions/parking and fees (if any). Map quality is limited, i,e, topography, so you will likely need another map source. Current weather is linked but not necessarily trail conditions. It has a "earn a badge section" for those so motivated. Below is the Virtuous Volunteer patch, alas poor Pacman, ...a fellow of infinite jest... Other sites that I have used New England Trail (NET, mostly CT and MA) information. Note

The IVFs were created in a time when Scouting could effectively deny a volunteer application without causing a stir while openly stating they suspected someone of sexual abuse or homosexuality could have wrecked lives -- many of them innocent. I'm a single male (never found Ms. Right and put too much time into work and Scouting) who simply wanted to give back to a program that I got a lot out of as a youth -- I'm willing to bet someone somewhere "wondered" about me at times and that could have been a career wrecker. The context of Scouting is precisely what made it attractive to predator

I hear you, but maybe something else to consider. The files are evidence of a deeper, and I think insidious, motivation. The IVF existed for a long time before BSA was forced to produce them. And, as they admitted, represented nowhere near the number of IVs that would have been in the files had they not "purged" records. The existence of the IVF, the failure to proactively disclose them (and the incidents in real time) with the full knowledge of the historic pattern of abuse built the case for their own liability. In the moment, it may have seemed like a reasonable thing to do, but if y

I just signed up a scout to join my troop last week and I paid his registration fee out of my pocket ($37.50) and bought him a manual. I just do not want money to be an issue for a scout to join the program and they will have a chance in Sept/Oct to sell popcorn to fund their own program the next year. Many organizations give introductory deals to get membership numbers up and the BSA should also. At some point, scouters like myself will have to give up bailing out national for their bad decisions to keep our troops/packs alive.

We freeze ours and they seem to last pretty well. While GSUSA states girls sell their cookies, my past experience is that parents sell A LOT of cookies in the office. I can't tell you how many flyers I see from parents. With many working at home, I'm sure those office sales dropped way off. My daughter sold hers online but didn't go door to door so sales were down. I like what our BSA council did for popcorn. They created door hangers to allow Cub Scouts to go door to door without interfacing with adults and thus, avoiding the Covid risk. Then people could call/contact the sco

I rely heavily on CalTopo.com. The ability to customize maps or aerial photos, coupled with a layer of existing trails, makes it a go-to when I need to generate a .pdf for our troop. Not sure if it’s shareable, but here’s a link to one that I train our scouts on https://caltopo.com/m/D202. I’ve added markers for insertion points, geocaches, campsites, and distance radii.

My guess is that Kosnoff is bluffing a bit… I have a hard time imagining lawsuits against a PTA for bake sale proceeds. That said, I could see this turning into the asbestos lawsuits going forward that seem to be unending over the last decade. As laws change or COs are found to have insurance coverage or decent assets they will be sued.

Well, if somebody is sending a scouter angry texts, that could explain shorter-than-average terms.

In terms of promotion, charter certificates were often framed and placed on an institution's wall. It was (and for many organizations, continues to be) an honor to host a scout unit. Many people found out about scouting because they saw scouts doing good works in their building. Where I grew up, the scout's meeting times were in the church bulletin. Chartering a scout unit was (and continues to be) one way of showing you are doing good in your community. When it comes to actually pursuing CO's, it seems that there will be no one-size-fits-all. A CO could be a group of parents who coalesce

Sounds like the unit is starting with a good CC. That is a step forward many units don't have. I've been in your shoes; a new unit with new adults. There are two important contributors to a new unit starting in the right direction; vision and humility. I was assigned to working with struggling units and the one contributor that just about all these units had in common is lack of vision. The adults didn't know where they were going, so they didn't know what part to take in the team. Instead, they all tried to just fill in where the program appeared to need help, It was chaos. There i

Ha! When I was getting my brotherhood honor, I was the only Scouter wearing blue loops at the entire two-day event (which was council wide). And thus my nickname to a great many OA members, to this day, is "Blue Loops." 💙 I wear silver loops on my epaulets now since I am on the district committee, but I still miss my blue loops. If you ask me, Blue Loops have the most fun. 😄

The official name was the Ineligible Volunteer Files (IVF). A person could be added to the IVF for a variety of reasons, https://documents.latimes.com/boy-scouts-paper-trail-of-abuse-documents/ There were six categories Perversion Morals Financial Leadership Theft Criminal Clearly for purposes of the sexual abuse lawsuit(s) going back into the 1990s, some of these were more relevant than others. The "Perversion" files, while the biggest subset, were not the ONLY subset, however people mislabel ALL the IVF files as the "perversion" files.

And at is what many COs, and probably a few councils too, believed when they paid the charter fee. That is what I was told as a DE, and what I told prospective COs. In fact it was a "selling" point. Heck I was told that as early as 1993.

I just wish that the people at the national BSA level would be truthful, direct, and transparent to every volunteer that attended a Scout meeting. I don't mean pages and pages of documents, just plain fact and truth. If the money is needed to help cover insurance, let us know! If the new training requirements are based on new insurance issues, let us know! At this point even loyal and dedicated volunteers are walking away, this could be prevented if we just knew what was going on!

So, membership including complete units are disappearing. Participation in national events is dropping off, local camps are closing and being sold, and the National High Adventure Properties have been mortgaged. So in order to raise funds let's charge whatever members that are left a higher membership fee. Then, let's recruit new members and charge them a new member fee and tell them that they still have to pay for everything they do. In addition, let's build a super sized white elephant in West Virginia with all kinds of cool stuff that the majority of the members will never get to use,

One last point about this. Most of the audience at NAM are BSA professionals and council level volunteers (Council Board members). I would not expect a message of "We are dead, go back to your councils and prepare to be destroyed in court" but I was honestly a tad taken aback by the sheer "We are done! Hurrah!" messaging. We come back to the problem when NAM told Local Councils that no matter what, none of the bankruptcy will blow back onto LCs. Either BSA National knew that was a fiction and proceeded to lie BSA National knew there was going to be SOME, LITTLE blowback and de

It was and is the biggest open secret in BSA: most COs wouldn't know what is going on inside the units if you asked. I once figured that, based on my experience with one unit, that the COR couldn't pick the Cubmaster out of a lineup. All the COR knew is once a year the committee chair showed up with some papers for him to sign and, every so often, left some papers in his box (adult applications) for signatures. That was it. And this is a VERY common occurrence.