Eamonn

"that's being merged into a generic Cub Scout knot, which I think is a mistake." Have to say that I'm in two minds about this. In my neck of the woods most of the Den Leaders are female. They come on board when their son is a Tiger and remain in the program as long as they have a son in Cub Scouting. I had one Mother join us, she had four sons and went on to become the Cubmaster. Boy Scouting in my area is very much a male thing. We never have had a female SM and I can't remember ever seeing a female ASM. Some Cub Scout Mums do go on to serve as Committee members of the Troop that

johnponz I think you are seeing a lot of stuff that just isn't there. I posted: "I'm not in favor of people taking on too much and I'm not for people wearing more than one hat. But if that's the way things are done in your neck of the woods? Then that's the way things are done. The truth is that someone knows what the "Good Book" says. They know why they do things the way that they do and also know that no one is ever going to check and even if they did the penalty is no more than ten lashes with a wet Wood Badge." I don't think that I know Unkiewill. He hasn't posted which

Unkiewill - Welcome. I wish you all the best in what you are about to take on. While I should caution you not to take on too much. That at the end of the day will be your call. However remember that even the most understanding of wives have their limits. I'm not in favor of people taking on too much and I'm not for people wearing more than one hat. But if that's the way things are done in your neck of the woods? Then that's the way things are done. The truth is that someone knows what the "Good Book" says. They know why they do things the way that they do and also know that no one is

As a District Commish. I never asked a unit leader to serve on the Commissioner staff. Not because of any rule or whatever but just because in my book serving the unit is the most important job. At one point in time our Council Commish did try and push the recruiting of unit leaders but it never took off. I think if the truth be told that any real Commissioner service died a long time ago, but no one seems willing to admit it. I also tend to think again if the truth be told that the numbers given as active U/C's are way off. While having someone who represents the grass root Scout

From my observations most times the youth who volunteer to help at events are treated as being special and the adults seem thankful for what they are doing. This changes a bit at summer camp when the staff is paid. Then the expectation seems to higher and at times some of the adults forget that the youth staff are still youths. Ea.

Hi, "Folks in Laurel Highlands Council are welcome to chime in and disagree" While I'm not from Folks in Laurel Highlands Council, but that other Council just down the road, I'm not sure what there is to agree or disagree with? The Council that you serve is big -Very big! Smaller Councils don't have the same large membership as to be able to do things the same way. - For example I'll bet that I could hold a meeting of all the Venturers in our Council in my dining room and still have room for more. Wagion Lodge 6 has a very good reputation and as OA lodges go is second to none. T

As a rule I'm very much an old Book Thumper when it comes to requirements and having them met. I think you need to have an informal chat with the District Training Chair. He or she should be able to point you in the right direction. My own feelings? I don't have the requirements in front of me. In the area where I live a lot if not most of the Den Leaders are female. (Yes I know that I walking on thin ice!). In my book how the do what they manage to do? Is really remarkable. - Finding the time to look after a family and add to all that do everything that is needed to be a Den Leader. -

"the priest of the temple "? I'm thinking that there is something or some meaning in this that I'm missing. While I'm very much for adult training and have to admit that there are times when Scouting with no kids around makes a welcome and pleasant break. I also agree that WB is sometimes made out to be far more than what it is. Many years back I remember landing myself in hot water for allowing a Patrol to build a great looking bridge (Even if I say so myself!) On the training grounds at the real Gilwell. There seemed to be some sort of feeling that these grounds were very muc

The year after a national jamboree we used to have a Council Wide Special Event, open to Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts and Venturers. Haven't had one for a long time as the last one just wasn't very good. I think it ended up just being Troops camping and climbing at Laurel Caverns. Ea.

Take my word for it, I'm not really that competitive. As a Lad I played a lot of sports and had fun. Winning is a lot better than losing. Back when I was a CM there was a Den Leader. A really nice Lady and great Den Leader. She wanted the Pack to not present awards at the Pine-wood Derby and just give everyone a ribbon for participating. We already were giving out these participation ribbons. I argued against this. My argument being that in life there will be winners and there will be losers. It was better that these little fellows learned this when they are young and in a safe envi

Welcome Willamor, When it comes to insurance and liability? I'm about as much use as pockets in your underwear. But... Most Councils have tucked away on their Executive Board someone who works in insurance. Maybe it's worth seeking him out? We are lucky in that we have a guy who is active in the Council who owns and operates a school bus company. We have used his buses with our volunteer drivers to carry Scouts at OA weekends from one site to another. Maybe if you talk with the bus company owner or his insurance carrier they can come up with something. Maybe renting 15 seater min

Fink I'll just move! But where? Ea.

The methods of Scouting are viewed and interpreted differently by every one of us. I'm not sure how much you can really tell from what you have seen in both examples that you have seen? I personally have used the methods as a goal. Something that I try and aim for and work toward. Like most goals, nothing happens over night. The worst thing that any leader can do is to one day stand up and announce that as of today everything is changed. Most of the kids we deal with are not given the opportunity to make decisions or even much input into what goes on in their lives. They are tol

I'm not what might be called "Into" The Titanic. I haven't followed the exploration of the site where it went down and of course I feel for the great loss of life. As a young man I got to know Bill Cook. Bill was a real character. He worked full time for the Scout Association as a Camp Warden in Surrey England. Bill was short, maybe about 5'-4". He had a nose like Bill Clinton and when he spoke he nodded his head. He really liked to talk. In fact at times I tried very hard to avoid him. If I had a key or something that needed to be returned I'd give it to a Scout. Because I knew if

Maybe I'm a slow learner? As a youth I belonged to a Troop that I really believed was using the Patrol Method. We had the Troop broken down into Patrols. Patrols had their own gear /equipment. Patrols camped as Patrols, cooked as Patrols and did just about everything in and as Patrols. The PLC met once a month. The SM laid out what we were going to do and the P/L's relayed the information back to the Scouts in the Patrols. It all worked and worked well. When I became became SM this is what I did. Over time I came to understand that while we had what looked like the Patrol Met

"Of course, I understand what you are looking for" Finding a way, system? Call it what you will that measures Troop success is not easy. For the people who work with the individual Scouts, they see and can experience the things that might seem small or of no consequence. - The great joy a little fellow has when he masters a skill, that warm fuzzy feeling after a night sitting around the embers of a dying camp fire. Others want to see membership. - How many Scouts in the Troop as the yard stick. For others it's the Badge count. As District Chairman and as District Commissioner, I, mos

"If the great Commonwealth of PA wants to balance their budget, all they have to do is start writing tickets for speeding" Please don't give them any ideas. - I travel the pike a lot and don't need any tickets.Heck with the cost of tolls I couldn't afford anything more. While I much prefer my own car, with the cost of gas I've started using a State car and allowing the State to pick up all the costs. Other than moaning and groaning when I fill up, the increase hasn't changed my driving habits that much. I'm thinking that maybe I'll go green and not mow my grass as often. Ea.

Every place I go it seems that after the weather the big topic on everyones mind is the price of gas. Last time I filled up it was 3.99.9. The day after it went down four cents. How big an impact has the price of gas had on the Scouting programs in your area? Ea.

The Sea Scout Ship is chartered by our local Elks. When we first were offered a boat the donor wanted to take the tax advantages of donating to a charity. The Elks said that while they were happy for us to meet at their hall and were willing to support us, they wanted no part in owning any boats. As they are in the center of out small town they really wouldn't have any place to store or keep boats. The Council also said no. It seems that the SE we had at that time had run into problems in another Council with people dumping boats that were just junk. I went about starting a 501 ©. Ev

I was for my sins which are many the Leader of a large Troop of about 96. To be very honest it did get to be too much for me and we did split, which didn't work out very well. It's hard to know what might have happened if we had remained as we were? But when Scouting became another full time job, something had to happen. In a big Troop it is really important that the Patrols and the Patrol method is used. Regular meetings of the PLC and ensuring that everyone is on the same page is essential. I never worried about the "Struggle to find enough adult leaders for trips and meeting sup

I think that I can and do see where National is coming from. I don't claim to know very much about liability. We don't have any , as far as I know of these units in the area where I live. We have in the past had a few spring up, but when the handful of people who were around that started the unit left the unit fell apart. The units that will suffer because of this change might not have as easy a time finding a CO as it seems. While some community organizations are very pro BSA some have individuals at the local level who for whatever reason want no part of the BSA. In my area near

As posted I'm not into guns and firearms. Unfortunately a couple of years back (On Father's Day) I was asleep when the phone rang at 2:00 AM. It was my son. I didn't get to the phone in time so he left a message, saying "Dad I've shot myself, the ambulance is coming." As a rule I don't do anything after I've got up till I've had two cups of coffee. However a message like this one vacated my need for coffee. I was dressed and in my car in less then a minute. He'd bought a Glock with his tax refund and when he'd moved into his own house. I will not have a gun in my house. It seems that

Sorry Basementdweller, I can't but help thinking that your being a little harsh. I agree with the yardsticks that you are using and Lord knows I think at times some people just don't get Advancement and where it fits in. But being able to see how many nights at camp a Lad has does for me show a lot. Kids vote with their feet. If the program was a stinker? I bet they would stay home and not attend the events. Both you and the Turtle need to take a minute and give yourselves a big pat on the back for all your doing for the kids in the areas where you live. Ea.

It's these moments that make what we do all seem worth while. Ea.

Remington shotguns, rifles claim pattern of inadvertent discharges. This was a news story on NBC. I'm not a gun lover, but do worry if we have Scouts who might be harmed. Welcome your thoughts and opinions. Ea.