fgoodwin

Last fall or spring, my council added a professional responsible for retention. Not exactly the same thing as recruitment, but an important membership issue, nonetheless. Still too early to tell if there have been any positive results.

Of course LDS uses the DRP. Boys and adults joining LDS units sign exactly the same registration forms as every other boy & adult. The forms are identical, and that is where applicants are required to affirm the DRP.

I conducted Health & Safety for a local troop last nite; I had eleven attendees and it went well, overall. Given the relative lack of demand for H&S over the last couple of years, I expressed my pleasant surprise to the group that: (1) I had been invited to do the training at all; and (2) that so many came out for it. When I asked what was motivating the sudden demand (I have a request from a second troop to do H&S next Monday), I was told the checklist provided by Philmont for upcoming treks requires that adult leaders be H&S trained. Now I am a believer that training is almost always a good thing, more training is usually better than less training, and that any training (if properly applied) need not go wasted. But I must admit, having never been to Philmont (other than PTC), its not clear to me why Philmont is requiring this. H&S says almost nothing about hikes and hi-adventure activities (hikes are mentioned in the video). I can see the relevance of the "Risk Zone" (transportation) module, in terms of planning road trips to and from Philmont. Is that the sole reason Philmont requires H&S training? Is this a new requirement? because our council obviously sends troops to Philmont every summer, but like I said, this is the first time in several years I've seen any demand for it. YiS, Fred Goodwin Keystone District Training Chairman Alamo Area Council

GB (and others): you're all focusing on the expulsion by teh Troop Committee but overlooking the reinstatement by the pastor and church. Once they realized they made a mistake (and we all agree the TC acted improperly), they tried to correct it. So, the adults on the TC could stand to be better trained in membership policy, but let's not lose sight of the fact that the CO didn't kick out the boys -- it was the TC. In fact, the CO over-rode the TC decision and invited the boys back. This is an example of incompetence by some adults on the TC, this is not an example of religious discrimination by BSA (as a national organization) nor the Methodist Church.

Are you suggesting that BSA remove "God" from the Scout Oath, and "reverent" from the Scout Law? I would not support that.

campcrafter, there are many "secular" sponsors of Scouting. PTAs, PTOs, Lions Clubs, VFW posts, Rotary Clubs, etc. For a list, see: http://www.scouting.org/factsheets/02-507.html

Back to the Boy Scouts http://news.yahoo.com/s/ucjk/20060510/cm_ucjk/backtotheboyscouts http://tinyurl.com/zzp4p By James J. Kilpatrick Tue May 9, 9:42 PM ET In the pending Supreme Court case of Scalise v. Boy Scouts of America, the essential facts are clear: John Scalise wanted his 9-year-old son, Ben, to become a Cub Scout. The Cubs didn't want Ben. That was the situation in September 1997. Now the father and son, having lost in the lower courts of Michigan, have asked the Supreme Court to hear their appeal. It is unlikely that the high court will agree to return to this thicket, but the case presents interesting questions of private access to public places. To get a hearing, the petitioners must persuade at least four justices to reconsider the court's 5-4 decision six years ago in the case of young James Dale. That case turned upon a Scout's pledge to keep himself physically strong, mentally awake and "morally straight." After years in which he quietly attained Eagle Scout ranking, Dale abruptly emerged as a homosexual activist and public advocate of gay rights. What might have been a small embarrassment to the Scouts in New Jersey became a national story. After the Scouts expelled him, Dale sued under the state's public accommodations law: He had been the victim of discrimination "on account of sex." He won in the New Jersey courts, but lost on appeal. Writing for the high court's majority, Chief Justice William Rehnquist ruled that New Jersey's law violates the Scouts' First Amendment right of expressive association: "The Boy Scouts of America is a private, not-for-profit organization engaged in instilling its system of values in young people. The Scouts assert that homosexual conduct is inconsistent with the values it seeks to instill." Rehnquist drew upon the Supreme Court's 1984 opinion in a case involving membership in quasi-public organizations. Forcing a group to accept members "it does not desire" may impair its ability to express only those views it intends to express. The forced inclusion of an unwanted person, such as James Dale, infringes upon the group's "freedom of expressive association." Justice John Paul Stevens, joined by his usual colleagues, filed a Dissent Interminable in the Dale case. Justice David Souter, joined by Justices Ginsburg and Breyer, filed a separate Dissent Impenetrable. Souter said: "It is entirely possible for an individual to become so identified with a position as to epitomize it publicly. When the position is at odds with the group's advocated position, applying an anti-discrimination statute to require the group's acceptance of the individual in a position of group leadership could so modify or muddle or frustrate the group's advocacy as to violate the expressive associational right." Whatever. Against that background, the Scalises, father and son, turned up at the Fancher Elementary School in Mount Pleasant, Mich., and signed on for the Cub Scout program. Then John read the Scout Oath and asked to be exempted: The oath, he explained, was repugnant to his beliefs as a secular humanist. The Scouts refused, revoked his membership and expelled the youngster. This was in January 1998. In October 2000, the Scalises sued the Boy Scouts, not for membership, but rather for injunctive relief and damages. The gravamen of their charge is that the Scouts and the Mount Pleasant schools are promoting "a religiously oriented and discriminatory fraternity upon school premises as a school-related, extra-curricular educational program in violation of their constitutional and statutory civil rights guarantees against any establishment of religion, and equal protection of the laws prohibiting religious discrimination in the public schools." That gummy complaint failed to move the Michigan courts. Last January the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled without a dissenting vote that Mount Pleasant had acted impartially and secularly in granting permission to the Scouts to meet on school premises. Dozens of other community groups are accommodated in the same way. The state of Michigan had not deprived father and son of anything to which the law entitles them. Moreover, said the court, Scout meetings are not school "programs" from which Ben was unlawfully excluded. They are private meetings of members "who have a First Amendment right to disassociate from nonreligious persons." If the plaintiffs' feelings are hurt by their exclusion, "that is an onus that must be suffered in a democratic society." Since the Dale case was decided six years ago, Rehnquist has died and Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has retired. If the reconstituted high court wants to reconsider the recurring issue of private rights on public facilities, it had better find a better case than this one. (Letters to Mr. Kilpatrick should be sent in care of this newspaper, or by e-mail to kilpatjj@aol.com.)

Here is an example of what can go horribly wrong when a religious emblems program is run within a unit: Wiccan Scout Kicked Out of Troop http://www.scouter.com/forums/viewThread.asp?threadID=131793 Hindsight being 20/20, the troop in the article did many things wrong, perhaps beginning with a well-intended idea to run the God & Country within the troop, given that they had boys of many different faiths.

Wiccans and pagans may also earn a religious emblem: HART AND CRESCENT AWARD http://www.cog.org/projects/hartcres.html I don't know if the medal can be worn on the BSA uniform, but I post it for everyone's information.

Hanlon's Razor: "Never attribute to malice that which can be explained by incompetence" (or stupidity) Thanx for starting this thread. We need to be reminded that our actions as adults can have immediate and long-term effects on the youth in our charge. Religion, faith and spirituality are so personal and innate that one must tread very lightly when addressing them in a unit environment. Training and sensitivity to diversity are so very important in this area that my heart just goes out to these poor kids and their family; their situation was bungled so badly by the ham-handed actions of the Troop Committee that I'm at a total loss to understand it.

I wanted to post the full article in case it gets archived off the website in the future (as many do). There are many things wrong with this case: (1) This is a perfect example of why religious emblems should be conducted by the family at home or church, NOT in the unit. (2) "God and Country" is a Protestant program -- why were there any Catholic and Wiccan Scouts in attendance to begin with? (3) Yes, the troop did an abysmal job of dealing with this. There was no reason to kick the boys out. The course instructor should have informed everyone that God & Country is a Protestant program, but that any family was welcome to follow it as long as their minister or clergyperson was OK with it and willing to sign off on the book once the requirements were completed by the boy. (4) Given how little I know of Wicca, I wonder how far the boys would've gone in the "God & Church" anyway before their family or "minister" decided the program wasn't appropriate for them? All around, this is a very sad example of how religious emblems should be handled by a unit. This is exactly why I urge unit leaders to proceed with very great caution if they choose to do this as a unit activity.

Scout's admission of being Wiccan leads to turmoil http://www.thetowntalk.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006605090308 http://tinyurl.com/klgp8 Article published May 9, 2006 By Melanie Crownover Special to The Town Talk ANACOCO -- The camp is going well so far. Boy Scouts have gathered from around the area in khaki button-ups and red scarves, eager to earn their God and Country badge. The leader in a room of about 20 Scouts decides to break the ice by showing how religiously diverse the gathering is. By a showing of hands, he asks who belongs to the Baptist Church, the Catholic Church, the Methodist Church, continuing on until two boys are left who have not raised their hands. One of the brothers is called out to tell the group what church he attends. He replies, "I'm Wiccan." Little did 12-year-old Cody Brown realize how much that answer would affect his life. During the past six weeks, Cody and his 15-year-old brother, Justin, have waited with their parents to see how the controversy sparked by Cody's answer would play out. Within 48 hours of Cody's confession, the troop committee of Holly Grove United Methodist Church in Anacoco was meeting to discuss the implications. The church sponsors the boys' chapter, Troop 71. Pastor Doug Lewellyn was out of town at the time of the meeting. "The number one scout law is to do your duty to God and your country," Troop 71 Scout Master Gene Doherty said. "They met to discuss whether or not the boys could live up to that because of their religion." The conclusion was that they could not. Doherty called Army Cpt. Todd Buchheim, the boys' father and a former Eagle Scout stationed at Fort Polk, to inform him that the boys no longer were welcome in the troop. The Buchheims said Doherty told them that if Cody had lied about his faith, the boys could have remained with no problem. "I was trying to give them a head's up so that they wouldn't come to the next meeting and not be prepared for what was going on," Doherty said. "They've been so supportive of our troop, and they're good people." Two days later, Doherty said, the committee held another meeting with the church's pastor and decided to contact the district United Methodist Church committee and the National Council of the Boy Scouts before anything official was done. Doherty, however, had already acted upon the original orders and kicked the boys out of the troop. "The boys had been in that troop for over a year, and it wasn't exactly a secret," said Aileen Buchheim, the boys' mother. The boys became a part of the troop when the family lived in Anacoco, but wanted to continue on after they moved to Fort Polk in August 2005. "No child should have to be told in 2006 that they can't take part in a group because of their religion," Aileen Buchheim said. The district church committee in Lake Charles agreed and overturned Holly Grove's decision to oust the boys from the troop on religious grounds. "Our church's motto is to open our hearts, minds and doors to everyone because we all have to come to an understanding of God on our own -- these boys should be no different," District Superintendent Doug Ezell said. "We are just a sponsor for the troop, so if the Boy Scouts do not have a problem with them being there, we don't." According to the Boy Scouts, it's up to the sponsors to make that choice. "Boy Scouts own the program but does not control the unit," said Legare Clement, executive director of the Boy Scouts for southwestern Louisiana. "We partner with community organizations and churches as sponsors to present the program, which is actually a youth outreach for them. "They approve leaders by our standards, but they have a right to choose members," Clement said. Although there are no troops or packs sponsored by Wiccan circles, the national office informed Clement that any boy who believes there is a God -- not just the Christian God -- can live up to the creed. "They said that we believe in more than one God, but that depends on the branch of Wicca, just like any other religion," Aileen Buchheim said. "We believe in one goddess and god with different names and aspects depending on the time of the year." Not everyone embraced the church's decision, including some parents of troop members who, officials said, feared that their children would be preached to by the two boys. The irony is that the original troop was founded on parallel circumstances. Doherty said Troop 71 began as a half-Baptist/half-Pentecostal troop led by a Jewish man. Although the children had no problems with one another, the parents wanted the troop separated because of religious beliefs, Doherty said. When Doherty needed a charter for his Cub Scout troop, the troop leader transferred the charter and ferried his children to Anacoco from Pitkin for years to avoid the split. "I've seen what difference of belief can do to a troop even if we aren't here to do doctrine," Doherty said. "It's not right or fair, but it's there. The world just isn't ready for diversity when it comes to their kids. People fear what they don't understand." After almost a month of noncommittal answers on the boys' status, Aileen Buchheim said she received an apologetic call from Lewellyn to invite the boys to the next meeting, which occurred April 25. Lewellyn attended the scout meeting to talk to the parents and Scouts about why they all were welcome and how doctrine was not a Boy Scout topic. Numbers were sparse, and two mothers allegedly came back to pick their boys up 10 minutes after Capt. Buchheim brought in his sons. "This (the controversy) has weakened the group," Doherty said. "I will probably lose some parent support and some good boys over this no matter how it turns out." This past week, he officially lost two. Cody and Justin decided not to remain with Troop 71 after the ordeal. "This was devastating," Aileen Buchheim said. "My husband puts on a uniform to fight for ours and other nations' rights every day, and yet this happens in our own backyard. We just wanted to make sure it was straightened out so no one has to go through this again." In the meantime, Aileen Buchheim has filed paperwork to charter a local chapter of Spiral Scouts, a Wiccan-based scouting organization that accepts members of any background, belief or gender between the ages of 3 and 18. About 15 children are already on the sign-up list if the charter is approved, she said.

queenj02: does your Council have any LDS (Mormon) Cub Packs? If so, you might remind your Scout Shop that LDS begins their Cub program in 2nd grade; i.e., they don't use the Tiger program. This means that LDS boys who wear the blue shirts into 4th grade will still have space for the blue diamond Webelos rank badge, and if I recall correctly, the tan oval Webelos badge cannot be worn on the blue shirt. So the decision of the Scout Shop to stop carrying the blue Webelos rank badge could force a boy to move to the tan shirt, in contravention of the principle that the decision is up to the family. This could also be a problem for non-LDS boys who did not earn a Tiger rank (for example, any boy who joins Cubs in 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th grades), and thus have room for the blue diamond Webelos rank badge. Bottom line: as far as I know, there is no effort by National to phase out the blue diamond Webelos rank badge, but of course, I don't claim to have the last word on that. And with all due resperct to the fine folks who work in the Scout Shops, they aren't always in a position to be the "last word", either. Off my soap-box now!

campcrafter, I think your question contains its own answer -- no where does BSA promote "belief in the bible-god". That's why BSA can support religious awards to Hindus, Buddhists and Unitarians, among others.DECLARATION OF RELIGIOUS PRINCIPLE The Boy Scouts of America maintains that no member can grow into the best kind of citizen without recognizing an obligation to God and, therefore, recognizes the religious element in training of the member, but it is absolutely nonsectarian in its attitude toward that religious training. Its policy is that the home and organization or group with which the member is connected shall give definite attention to religious life. Only persons willing to subscribe to this Declaration of Religious Prinicple and to the Bylaws of the Boy Scouts of America shall be entitled to certificates of membership.

queenj02, welcome to the Forums. (1) It is the family's decision what color shirt their son wears -- the CM (and everyone else, for that matter) has zero say in the matter. It is spelled out the Webelos HB. You might remind your CM of that. (2) Do you have an official source for the rumor that the Webelos diamond patch is being phased out? I've heard nothing official about this, but lots of rumors over the last five years, which have all turned out to be wrong so far.

What a timely question -- I too had my Ordeal this weekend, and like calmsi1ence, I had no idea what the Admonition was after it was whispered in my ear. To compound the problem, I had to leave the Ordeal Sunday morning to be at church where my daughter was being honored with other graduating seniors. So I don't have the HB yet, either. But I'm being patient -- I'll learn everything I need to know in good time.

I find conflicting (or at best, "inconsistent") guidance on the National BSA website regarding when Webelos dens may camp with a Boy Scout Troop. Under "Cub Scout Highlights: Outdoor Program Highlights":Joint Webelos den-troop campouts are encouraged for dens of fifth-grade Webelos Scouts with their parents to strengthen ties between the pack and troop. These joint campouts should not be at Boy Scout-based events such as camporees. Webelos dens are encouraged to have several overnighters a year. http://www.scouting.org/cubscouts/resources/13-513/01.htmlIs this a limitation to fifth grade Webelos dens, meaning fourth grade Webelos dens should NOT camp with a troop? Under the G2SS, III "Camping":Joint Webelos den-troop campouts including the parents of the Webelos Scouts are encouraged to strengthen ties between the pack and troop. Den leaders, pack leaders, and parents are expected to accompany the boys on approved trips. http://www.scouting.org/pubs/gss/gss03.html#aThere is no such limitation. BUT, see Cub Scout Outdoor Program Guidelines, 2006:Webelos dens are encouraged to partcipate in joint den-troop campouts, particularly in the fifth-grade year. These campouts should be conducted with an individual troop for the purpose of strengthening ties between the pack and the troop. BSA health and safety, age-appropriate guidelines for Cub Scout activities, and Youth Protection guidelines apply. When camping with a troop, Cub Scout guidelines still apply for all Cub Scout members. http://www.scouting.org/cubscouts/resources/13-361/index.html"Particularly" in the fifth grade year, but w/o limiting joint campouts to fifth-graders. So, which is it? Whenever I teach WLOT / OLS-WL or the Webelso position-specific course, I always make it a point to remind WDLs to take their dens camping with a troop, even if the boys are in a 4th grade Webelos den, in addition to camping as a den w/o a troop. Now I'm not so sure I'm teaching the right thing. Fred Goodwin Keystone District Training Chairman

"The Nuclear Boy Scout" on DVD (UK) Eagle & Eagle Production makes this DVD available: http://www.eagletv.co.uk/home/nuclear.htm I don't know if a DVD made in the UK will play in US DVD players -- does anyone know?

Local Scouting Suffers in Constitutional Fight http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/article.asp?article=65156 Boy Scouts can no longer use school "backpack mail" to reach students. By Ken Millstone/The Almanac May 3, 2006 The 20 or so Boy Scouts and prospective Scouts who met for a barbecue and open house in the field behind Seven Locks Baptist Church April 30 spent the afternoon building fires and climbing on a monkey bridge the Scouts had built. They probably didnt spend much time pondering the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution. But a more than two-year Constitutional law dispute in Montgomery County was one of the main reasons they were there. Across the county, we arent reaching the kids. Enrolled membership were losing more than 10 percent per year, said Geoffery Wolfe, Scoutmaster for Troop 1434 in Potomac, which hosted the event. Scouts is heading down and an important reason is because were not letting the kids know where the activities are. Wolfe has had to ramp up outreach activities like the April 30 open house after Montgomery County Public Schools stopped allowing the Boy Scouts to send home informational fliers with its students. IN JULY, 2004, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond ruled that Montgomery County Public Schools could not prevent a religious after-school club an arm of the Child Evangelism Fellowship from distributing fliers to students through the backpack mail system, in which students bring home school announcements and other information. MCPS had argued that having students carry home the fliers would constitute government endorsement of a religious activity, violating the Establishment Clause. Following the ruling, MCPS changed its backpack mail policy, making non-profit youth sports leagues the only extracurricular groups allowed to send home fliers with the school and government announcements. The Scouts can still display information at school events, with prior approval from MCPS. The revised policy, adopted on July 29, 2004, has kept the Child Evangelism Fellowship out and the U.S. District Court in Greenbelt upheld the policy change, but the religious group has appealed the new policy ruling to the 4th Circuit. WHAT STARTED as a legal dispute has become an administrative boon for MCPS. The school systems June 2004 Accountability News and Notes newsletter stated that following a record 488 public comments on the policy change, Many schools report that implementation of the policy has been straightforward and the push back minimal, with few notable exceptions. The schools were being inundated with requests to send fliers home and the School Board wanted to relieve the schools of that huge burden, said Brian Edwards, an MCPS spokesman. Thats little comfort to groups like the Boy Scouts. Boy Scouts relies heavily on the ability to distribute flyers and recruitment information to students to take home to their parents. Very often, flyers distributed at schools are the only way that interested families become aware of our programs, wrote Matthew J. Budz, assistant director of Field Services for the Boy Scouts National Capital Area Council in an Aug. 2, 2004 letter to schools Superintendent Jerry Weast. Being denied the ability to reach those students and parents will result in thousands of youth being deprived of the opportunity to participate in Scouting. THE BOY SCOUTS may be losing ground to other activities. Boy Scouting begins in sixth grade and many Boy Scouts are traditionally graduates of Cub Scouting, which ranges through fifth. But many Cub Scouts are deciding not to make the jump to the next level, Wolfe said. Norwood School parent Gil Lovett said his son Lee, a fifth-grader, will likely be one such child. When you get to this point its time consuming and you kind of have to pick and choose what you want to do and [Lee is] into a lot of different sports which he really enjoys, Lovett said while Lee participated in the open house at Seven Locks Baptist. Once you hit fifth grade, sixth grade, seventh grade you get to that age where youve got to start selecting. I have a theory that youth sports is a big competitor and that youth sports is starting at an earlier and earlier age, said Hunter Prillaman, a Scout Leader for Troop 1434, pointing out several children at the open house that were wearing MSI soccer uniforms. As Prillaman spoke about working harder to reach prospective Scouts, a parent complimented him on the troops Web site. Thats one way, Prillaman said. Maybe we should get on My Space. [sidebar] Religious Group? The Greater Capital Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America has had trouble recruiting new Scouts following a court ruling involving a religious group that wanted to distribute fliers through Montgomery County Public Schools. As a result of the ruling, MCPS changed its policy and keeps out all non-sports extracurricular groups. The Greater Capital Area Council has protested the change on the basis of First and Fourteenth Amendment rights among other Constitutional arguments. But the Boy Scouts a national non-profit organization has itself been at the center of high-profile debates about the religious inclusion and civil rights. Boy Scouts of America states on its legal issues Web site that it is a "nonsectarian association of persons who believe in God." It excludes atheists and agnostics but has members of virtually every major faith in the United States. The Scout Oath includes a vow of "duty to God." In numerous federal cases, such as Welsh v. Boy Scouts of America in the United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, courts have upheld the Boy Scouts' right to such exclusions in the face of civil rights law challenges. "The Boy Scouts have tested in the courts their ability to define their own moral principles and their ability to exclude those who do not adhere to them," said Geoffrey Wolfe, Scoutmaster of Troop 1434 in Potomac. But Wolfe said that his troop is completely non-discriminatory and that all parts of Scouting related to religion are administered by Scouts' parents. At least locally, religion isn't a focus anyway, he said. "The kinds of things the boys sign up for trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean reverent are unarguable," Wolfe said. "They just arent arguable."

BA: thanx for pointing that out. Its available at this URL temporarily: http://www.scoutingmagazine.org/issues/current/d-lett.html Here's what it says, in case readers see this after the next issue comes out: Saluting in uniform In addition to the official Class A Scout uniform, the BSA also has a Class B uniformofficial Scout pants or shorts with a troop or camp T-shirt. My question regards protocol during flag ceremonies: Should a Scout use the Scout salute while in a Class B uniform or place his right hand over his heart? Christopher Dillon Assistant Scoutmaster, Troop 24 Bloomsburg, Pa. First, when referring to uniforms, Class A and Class B are military terms that are not used in the BSA. The correct Scouting terms for the two versions of the uniform are "official uniform" and "activity uniform." Although less formal, the activity uniform is still considered an official uniform, and therefore it is appropriate for boys to use the Scout salute while wearing it during a flag ceremony. I think they meant to say "field" and "activity" uniforms.

Free Internet Filter & Parental Controlled TUKI Scout Browser Launched http://consumer-publications.press-world.com/v/68607/free-internet-filter-parental-controlled-tuki-scout-browser-launched.html http://tinyurl.com/kndsm 05/03/2006 Escondido, CA May 2, 2006 Children's Educational Network (CEN) announced today the launch of a free Internet filter and parental control software (a kid safe browser) designed to protect and educate children on the Internet. The new TUKI Scout Browser (http://www.scoutbrowser.com) created by CEN is a kid safe browser designed to educate and protect children from pornography, hate, violence, online predators and other Internet perils. Steven Stone, Chief Operations Officer for CEN, a parent and Eagle Scout said; When we found that boyslife.com was a pornographic web site, we decided we should build a browser designed just for Scouts to make sure that kids could safely navigate to the magazine's web site without the worry of stumbling across porn. The new TUKI Scout Browser is built on CEN's proprietary technology; however, it is not authorized nor associated with Boy Scouts of America or Girl Scouts of America. We tried to capture the essence of the Scouting experience said Greg Writer, CEO & founder of CEN. The graphical interface, our educational talking character and the pre-approved child appropriate web sites were all selected and programmed with the Scouting experience in mind. In an effort to further protect children, CEN has programmed the default home page of the TUKI Scout Browser to www.BoysLife.org and has launched a marketing campaign in Boys' Life Magazine, the official magazine of the Boy Scouts, where they are offering a free download for the new kid safe browser. The TUKI Scout Browser will provide a safe haven for children surfing the Internet, be positive, instructive and deliver daily educational content to children and their parents in an effort to teach proper Internet safety rules and netiquette. said Greg Writer. We are extremely excited to offer a great tool free to all Scouts and their families. The new TUKI Scout Browser will utilize technology that allows children to surf only safe, parent-approved, child-appropriate websites. Unlike a traditional Internet filter or parental controls, the TUKI Scout Browser works on an 'include list' which allows children to only surf web sites from a database of pre-approved, pre-screened, child appropriate websites which is, the safest and most reliable method according to industry experts, said Greg Writer. A great kid safe browser with easy to use parental controls. Free download of the TUKI Scout Browser can be found at www.ScoutBrowser.com DISCLAMER The TUKI Scout Browser is not authorized by, or associated in any manner with, the Boy Scouts of America or the Girl Scouts USA. The views and positions expressed on www.scoutbrowser.com do not necessarily reflect the policies or positions of the Boy Scouts of America or the Girl Scouts USA and the TUKI Scout Browser does not claim in any way to speak for or on behalf of the Boy Scouts of America or the Girl Scouts USA. # # # company: Children's Educational Network contact person: Gregory D. Writer Jr. e-mail: greg@kidsafe.com phone: 760-233-2863 site: http://www.childrenseducationalnetwork.com

I can't point to a specific reference, but I believe the Webelos requirements state that a religious emblem earned as a Cub Scout (i.e., before becoming a Webelos) cannot count towards the Webelos rank. Not to be confused with earning the knot -- the knot is awarded only once. If the religious medal is earned multiple times (e.g., as a Cub, Webelos, Boy Scout and Venturer), the boy is awarded separate "devices" to wear on the one knot.

Personal Adds: Nostalgic about the lasts were experiencing http://www.news-record.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060502/NEWSREC0104/60501007 http://tinyurl.com/ho7m4 As parents, so often we focus on firsts first word, first step, first day of school, first soccer game. But this year, as my younger son finishes elementary school, I find myself surprisingly nostalgic about the lasts we're experiencing as a family. The end of elementary school. The end of Cub Scouts. The end of innocence as he plunges into the world of middle school, where forgetting to turn in a paper brings a zero rather than a scolding. He seems too young. Back when I was a kid, we had one more year wrapped in the security of elementary school before we went to junior high for seventh and eighth grades. I'm sure middle school builds character, but as a parent, I wish I could fast forward my kids through these awkward years. Mastering lockers, switching classes, homework that's harder to help with and kids facing their own insecurities and peer pressure who are just plain mean, lashing out at anyone they deem weaker. It seems like only yesterday that Brodie was a wide-eyed 3-year-old, watching his brother's elementary school basketball games, asking when he could play, too. A year later, he was tagging along to Cub Scouts, attending camp outs, den and pack meetings, nearly keeping up with the big boys each step of the way. Soon he was in school and Cub Scouts, too. Elementary school wasn't a piece of cake. He'll still tell you that his favorite part is recess. Math came naturally. Reading was a struggle. A few years ago, he told me he wanted a job when he grows up that doesn't require reading or writing. Oh, he's always loved books as long as someone else was reading. It wasn't until this year, in fifth grade, that he ever picked up a book to read (and I mean read, not just look at the pictures) without being told. I almost cried. At Pilot Elementary, he's been blessed with awesome, caring teachers. One, Polly Westfall, "looped" with the class teaching the same group both second and third grade. Her ability to nurture his strengths and help us tackle his attention deficit challenges made a potentially difficult period much easier to bear. I will miss running into her and other teachers in the hallway, always smiling, asking how Brodie is doing. The school itself was built the same year Brodie was born. In the field behind the school, Brodie rode his bike without training wheels for the first time. As our minivan lines up amid the others these final months, fond memories wash over me: school plays; the musical where he focused more on the girl's pig tails in front of him than the director; climbing higher than the other kids on the playground; basketball games; parent-teacher conferences; skate nights; a kiss on the cheek as I drop him off. Now, we kiss elementary school goodbye. I wish I could protect him from the inevitable pain he will endure on the road to adulthood, but I eagerly watch as a strong, sensitive young man begins to emerge. A young man with a lifetime of firsts still ahead of him. When she's not juggling the activities of two pre-teen boys, a husband, two dogs and herself, Cindy Loman juggles team building, leadership and diversity training at the News & Record.

Indeed, many of the games in "God & Me" assume a group setting (its hard to play a game when there's just one kid doing it!). Hence my ambivalence. Still, I think the preferred approach would be for the CO (i.e., the church) to host the group sessions, not the den. But I think that overlooks the reality that most of the time, you won't have all boys being of the same faith (or even a majority), unless the boys all attend the sponsoring CO.

CNYScouter wrote:I can't see doing old training if something new is coming along and is something I haven't done.Never assume. Always teach the syllabus you have until you see a living, breathing replacement in your hands. Its thinking like that that caused many Councils to cancel WLOT courses five years ago, because the new course was "right around the corner". Of course, the new syllabus didn't come out until last fall -- who knows how many Webelos den leaders missed out on a possible knot (at best) or took their dens out camping with no camping skills (at worst) because Councils assumed the new course was imminent? Never assume.