encourager

Dear Joni4TA, thanks for your reply. It addressed what my major concern is. I have seen other female adult leaders (non-ASM) take on the same role as you. My troop secretary has the best Scout spirit and so her son is one of the youngest (& most mature) Eagle Scouts we have. It's not that she's bossy, but is there to "lend a hand." She and the CC's wonderful wife are exactly the models I need in order to be productive on the troop level. I understand now that we have the freedom to help without an actual title other than MC. Thank you for your response. I can serve now with humble

All valid points. As a trained leader for my position (which is pre-requisite for Wood Badge) I know well the slogan "Every Boy deserves a trained leader." I am particularly aware of the different opportunities for training for ASMs and so I will follow-up with him regarding this vital need. But please folks, what about me? Can I be part of this "new adventure?" What about the anonymous saying "You never stand so tall as when you stoop to help a child?" It's not like I'm looking at my son's patrol, but I want to help all the younger Scouts. There are deficiencies that I think I can

Hi guys, I've been a little out there but something has come up with my son's patrol that this thread may be addressing. I've been through Wood Badge but I don't have the stamina to be an ASM. However, one of the dads of my 12 year old's patrol of 4 wants to be an ASM. He has told me that he is not that knowledgeable about Scouting but sees a lot of hazardous situations that could be averted with the right leadership. I want to help but I feel that I have no role as a committee member. I feel that I could help him with our son's patrol but I am not sure how to do that? Could you guys giv

Hi Judy, I got notification on my thread about a month ago but couldn't respond so here I am. You can email me directly at encourager@optonline.net. Hope to hear from you--Sylvia

Hi Sparkie, I am all for training as well. It adds to the support you feel when you hear similar stories and can even help the next person. Please enlighten me, I have heard about the greatness of the Woodbadge training but what in the world is Okpik? YIS, Sylvia

Hi guys, I am really surprised that no one has even mentioned the Great Yawgoog Scout Camp in Rhode Island. Every troop in Suffolk County, Long Island either goes or wishes it can. Sylvia

Hi CubmasterFred and all, I have seen a waning of interest for yugioh by my fourth grader but it's not completely dead yet. I had such a hard time with him last year--that I hid all his cards for about 6 months. I really have to say that as a former catechist I got a little worried about Egyptian Gods card and he was using other foreign phrases that honestly I couldn't understand him. But he's doing better now and like I said it isn't as popular as it used to be. Sylvia

Hi Singmee, Welcome to the "campfire". I like this forum. It has answered a lot of my questions and are very welcoming--I am just extending what I received. I have a first-year webelo and am on the Pack's committee. Good luck to you and your bears, Sylvia

Words of wisdom, E. I do have a lot on my plate and take my word for it, everybody sees me as the solution to the DL problem. But I have fortunately learned when to say NO. If I didn't say no, I would not be as happy with scouting as I am. But good news, everyone, ADL called DL and the rest of my den mates, and we all met tonight. DL needs the den to feel better about what's happening on the Adv Chair stuff and as far as I was concerned I was content to say good-bye to my son and pick him up 1.5 hrs later. They didn't really do anything that I would absolutely feel that had to get

Hi Lynda, you are funny--do what the rest of you guys do and take over. I really don't want to do any enabling (I'm good at scouting and psychological jargon) and I will wait past tomorrow. I reasoned that if I get a phone call today or by 5pm tomorrow for a den meeting with DL, I'm off the hook. But if not, it is enough reason to speak to DL, CC, CM and all those wonderful people "In Charge" Tomorrow will come soon enough--- YIS, Sylvia

Hi guys, I woke up about two hours ago with a lot on my mind. Family difficulties, the upcoming holidays (that I love), the end of my semester as I near graduation in May. With so much out of my control, where do I "land" but the current problems with my first year Webelos den. I serve on the committee because honestly I knew when I transferred out of my old pack what I was getting into. I thought people were different but a controller is a controller no matter what pack you belong to. At any rate, my new controller had a nice size den and an ADL already. At the same time, my DL was also

Hi BW, I don't really think that she knew what she was doing, firing me and all. But I know that the Council could not remove me right away from the charter right away. Since they "fired" me in September, and the Charter expires in December, I was not really on their that long. At any rate, it was the emotional impact that got to me. I was trained at the District's Committee Challenge and we uncovered a lot of little problems. I really don't think I did anything wrong but I have healed enough to stay with scouting thru all this. Back to the thread, I had the opportunity to fill up th

Hi guys, I'm glad to have read these posts. They are very informative. But I would like to pose this question: Is it always the rule that every position be rotated in a troop committee after a year. I am questioning because I was asked to leave the position of the committee chair by the COR after only 7 months. She had a bad day and took it out on me. She claimed that she was going to end my service by the year anyway....If the troop is small and not a lot of new parents stepping up for service, there isn't a lot of choices of who should be the adult leaders. Can't the term be extended t

Hi Queenj, First check to see if a non-Denomination Award exists by visiting this link: http://www.scouting.org/awards/religious/awards/ I took out my BSA "Duty to God" brochure (5-879B, 2002 Printing) and I can offer this feedback. Some of the Protestant denominations use similar emblems and perhaps that is as close to non-denomination as you get. The brochure has God and Me & God and Family with the same emblem for the following faiths: AME, Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Salvation Army, United Methodist, Protestant/United Church of Christ/Community Churches. There may b

Hi JD, There's a lot in your post but here goes: 1. I have a full-color flyer that shows the different emblems for all faiths from BSA. I ran across a website http://www.scouting.org/awards/religious/awards/ that has more info for the emblems. Also, the Church publishes its own series for Light of Christ and Parvuli Dei (Which was just updated over the summer to include the Spanish version.) But for the protestant faith, the website for the publisher is: http://www.praypub.org 2. Cub Scouting includes the earning of religious emblems as part of their program. It's in the Ti

Thanks to all of you, Bob, I belong to our diocesan Committee and they came up with the idea of sending letters to all the churches in the area that charter troops. A draft letter is being done, but I like the idea of a bulletin announcement. I'm involved more with the Cubs at this time, but my oldest Scout wants to do the Pope Pius. But for the cubs I can sign the application where it requires the CM or REC (the wonderful world of acronyms) to sign on Light of Christ or Parvuli Dei. I love the spiritual element in Scouting and I would like this to be as permanent a ministry as p

Hi guys, I just got trained as a religious emblem counselor for the Catholic faith. Other than working with the members of my son's troop, how best to approach other troops? Should I limit contacting other troops to those chartered by a Catholic Church? Sylvia

My oldest son has been to: Yawgoog Scout Reservation, Rhode Island Baiting Hollow Scout Camp, Wading River, NY The little one can't wait to go to Yawgoog!!!b

Hi Beggar, It is sad when in a great movement like Scouting we have power hungry people who use good leaders to make a statement about how powerful they think they really are. I have had a few people here and there that have really tried controlling situations for their own benefit. A controller will use gossip and inuendos to show their statute but at the root is usually a person with low self-esteem that wants to feel better about themselves. You will notice that he didn't share with a third party like you are doing, but with the people he wants to impress. Now as to what to do--

Hi HTU, my son is a high-functioning autistic who is doing very well in scouting. Thanks to scouting he has learned leadership skills with younger members and even Cubs. He is currently working in our council's Scout Shop. He's turning 18 next April and since he should be making Star at the next court of honor, I'm apply for alternative merit badges and hopefully he can go on to Eagle. He started in Scouting at 14 and has learned a lot. Sometimes, I think you just have to go with the flow and see what the lad is capable of. Given the many opportunities that Scouting provides, your Scout

Hi Uncle, I was praying this morning at 8:46 for the victims and their families. My memories are ordinary but poignant. My youngest son had just entered first grade. I was speaking to his teacher at school while something told me to watch TV (something I hardly ever do, especially in the morning.) As I discussed my son, the terrible news started coming over the screen. I knelt near the TV, crying that the Lord witness this horror. I called my friend who was pregnant at the time and realized she needed me. Her husband was across the street from the WTC and who knew if she had become a

Hi Venturer, are you from Nassau or Suffolk? Suffolk? Please advise district--I may know you YIS, Sylvia

Hi mamabear, I haven't seen the craft but is it made of beads? I had a fun experience making alligators, snakes and eagle patterns out of those round beads with the long string.

Hi Carol, thanks for the welcome. Anyway, where did you go for a reunion? Scouters are all over the place since one of the local scoutmasters I know went down to Texas in June for a reunion. June was a nice time to come to LI. Sylvia

Thanks Eamonn, it's super-important that we hang in there for the kids. I have had my shares of battles, mostly with controlling scouters who don't want to do anything new. Usually the den, pack or troop begin to die because the boys are bored and the scouters leave--I rather serve as humbly as possible and hang in there as much as I can. YIS, Sylvia