Stosh

If one were to do a little research on the topic, I do believe historically under the "A Scout is Thrifty" it explicitly states the boy is to earn his own way, especially in scouting. If the boy cannot get his spud-butt off the couch long enough to earn a little leaf-raking, snow-shoveling money, he isn't showing sufficient Scout Spirit in his everyday life. My NBP is seriously considering the full uniform to set themselves apart from the rest of the troop. I said it was ok, but only if they earned the money themselves and they ALL did it. I also said that they could do private fund rai

If this girl who is under the shadow of her over-achieving younger brother wishes to break away from his influence, why doesn't she get involved in Girl Scouts. As far as I know, it's a safe bet he can't follow her there. Stosh

We assigned the PL from last year's NBP to be the APL of this year's NBP. The reason? Because after the first year, even as PL, he's still a TF. The very first thing he told the new cross-over Webelos was to pay attention, don't skip activities, and "don't do what I did". I could have lectured for 2 hours and couldn't do any better than this kid did in 2 minutes. Stosh

POR is not a guarantee of the honor patrol in my troop. The Quartermaster, the Scribe, a Den Chief and Instructor are not part of the honor patrol. It doesn't mean they won't eventually get invited into the patrol, but at the present time, they are not. That doesn't mean than next year that these position may pass then to an honor patrol member. Honor patrol is just that, it is not a staff patrol. Technically the SPL position may indeed pass on to a non-honors patrol member as well. If that happens, the honor patrol will elect it's own PL and the SPL will function as a non-patrol SPL

"I remind them each week, but I don't like to sound like a broken record. But I don't want to see a kid not advance just because he doesn't think of Scouting except 90 minutes a week!" It doesn't look good for you as a leader not to have boys advance. Bummer! Until the boy wants to advance and become a scout more than you want him to, he'll never be a scout! If this boy cannot think of scouting except for 90 minutes a week, then he surely can't pass the "Show Scout Spirit" requirement where he is expected to live the scout oath and laws in his everyday life. YOU cannot make hi

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you, but this is how we set up our honors patrol. It has a maximum of 8 members. They are brought into the patrol by invite only. They must be at least Star in rank, age is not relevant. The SPL is the PL of the honors patrol and the ASPL is the APL of the honors patrol. Every other member of the patrol must carry at least one qualifying POR. They must excel in their POR. If they are a Den Chief they must work on the Den Chief Award, etc. They must lead by example. If they quit the patrol or are asked to leave the patrol, th

28 scouts 6 ASM 1 SM 3 patrols 2 - 8 member patrols 1 - 9 member patrol 1 - 3 member patrol (Honors Patrol) SPL - ASPL - TG SM and 2 ASM are woodbadge trained others are working on training now. I am ASM in charge of Advancement and I am advisor for honors patrol and NBP. I am also doing the organizing for summer camp this year. Another ASM does rechartering/popcorn sales etc. (paperwork junk) 2 others are new and in training last two ASM do special events and merit badge scheduling.

My favorite line is "Bummer." A boy cuts himself. I ask, "Where's your first aid kit?" Doesn't have it, Bummer! A boy needs to take notes, has no paper and pencil. Bummer! A boy forgets his mess kit on a campout. Bummer! The boy learns one of two things. A) be better prepared next time or B) whine to someone else. I drop learning exercises on the boys on a routine basis. Last camp out, a boy "broke" an ankle and needed a splint and transport back to camp. Needless to say the boys never ask me if they should bring certain items with them on an event/hike/outing

I took Cub Scout Training over 10 years ago. I took Webelos Training plus the Outdoor part over 10 year ago. I took Wood Badge Training over 10 years ago. I took Boy Scout Fundamentals over 10 years ago. I took Venturing training 9 years ago. I have achieved PhD level of University of Scouting about 7-8 years ago. And after all that, no one has ever wondered whether I have kept up any re-certification along the way. I've never heard of it in our council. Once you are trained, you are trained. One interesting side-note - I have learned more about scouting from the boys

I have done the Cubbing stuff, the Webelos stuff, the Scouting stuff, the Venturing stuff, and there is very little difference. I was just pointing out to someone this very evening how my NBP member quoted me out of his new Boy Scout Handbook that he had already passed the Scout rank requirements because he had the AOL. I haven't had anyone call me out like that since someone read a drill manual for the Venturing crew that I have. Boys are all alike and function the same way. All one has to do is provide opportunities, and sit back and enjoy. I am the ASM responsible for the honor's p

A lot of the schism is a result of little or no communications between Cubs and Scouts. What little there is often times is counter-productive. At round-tables they break into two different groups and except for specialty gatherings i.e. spring camporees where they are to cross over to the new troops, they have very little contact. We have designed it to have a schism and it's working very well. The only way that things will change is to do something different. Anything different will draw a different conclusion, but the way we've always done it just isn't working. Try someth

I find this discussion very interesting in light of recent observations I have made. First of all I'm a Crew Advisor, but decided to assist the Boy Scouts with their spring camporee. While all the adults sat around scratching their heads trying to come up with something for the boys to do at the camporee, the OA contingent of boys came in and made an announcement that they were organizing their Indian Ceremonial group on making clothing. If anyone in our troops wanted to help out with this project they were invited. Ok. Then about a half hour later they came back selling buttons for a loc

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think one can start a crew with only dual-registered members. Secondly, if anyone tries this, I'd be pleasantly surprised if it worked. If one cannot keep older Boy Scouts interested, what makes one think it will work if all you do is change the name of the organization from Boy Scouts to Venturing? Unless you are doing High Adventure, there is nothing that couldn't be done in Boy Scouts that is being done in Venturing. And if the only thing you want to be able to do is fire handguns, then there is something seriously wrong with the reasons for

I met with my new boy patrol this evening and uniforming was discussed. Basically the conclusion drawn by the patrol is: 1) Whatever is decided would be a group decision and the expense would be borne by each boy and not their parents. 2) All decisions must be unanimous. ALL the boys will be at the same level. 3) Anything is possible. One of the other patrols overheard our discussion and after the meeting asked if those principles applied to any other patrol or if they were just for the new boys. All of a sudden we have a whole new flurry of activity for patrol uniforms.

We have the policy that if you wish other scouts to attend and support your eagle project, you had better set a good example by showing up at the meetings and helping the younger boys with their advancement. When the older scouts don't get the necessary eagle project help, too bad. Too often the hypocracy of their "leadership" is obvious to all. Those eagle scouts who have remained active in the troop do not have any help from their friends in the troop. Those that don't have a tough time garnering a labor force from strangers.

I'll chime in on the small troop concept. Our SPL, ASPL, and another Star ranked scout make up the honors patrol. They basically function as a patrol of JASM's. They are the go-to people that keep things running. The NSP has 6 new members with assigned PL/APL from older boys. The ASM of the honors patrol and NSP is the same person. There are three other patrols, one of older scouts which hangs together working on Eagle projects and two other patrols which have lost sufficient numbers to eventually merge. That was recommended by one of the patrol leaders when we took the PL f

Maybe you're right, but I also have a patrol in the troop I work with that dropped $50 each for hats, $5 for walking staves, and $20 for custom made neckerchiefs for a cool $75. No one complained and the boys show up with more esprit-de-corps than the rest and we have other boys clammoring to pay the $75 and join the patrol. Again, it's not the money, it's the attitude/priority/value that is being instilled. Maybe my patrol is an exception too. We'll see, I'm going to work on the new boy patrol next. They might all look really cool in campaign hats. We'll have to find out what they

11 Webelos "crossed-over" at their Blue-Gold banquet. 6 joined our troop and the other 5 were done with scouting. When I asked what was going on, it would seem the Webelos den leader wasn't encouraging the boys to go on. All 11 were Arrow of Light. That pack needs a new Webelos leader.

I started scouts at age 11 and that was just about the time I began shoveling walks, raking yards and digging gardens. I held a part-time job until I went off to college. Well, I was one of the few boys who had a full uniform, could pay for my own trips and camps, and didn't take any food off my family's table. It's call A SCOUT IS TRIFTY. The purchase of one iPod would cover a lot of expenses when it comes to BSA. Cell phone? Well, that would cover the rest. This whole discussion is not a discussion of expenses, it's a discussion of priorities. I have Venturers who will spend

My venturing crew's uniforms run into the hundreds of dollars. The shoes alone are a minmum of $65 and max out around $150. Coat? $65, pants, $50, leather gear $115, shirt $25, hat $40, weapon, $475, canteen $35, etc. Not everyone is into reenacting, but nothing out there is cheap. A scout is Thrifty. He earns his own way. Whether it be a uniform shirt and patches or a full reenactor's uniform, the boy is expected to get off the sofa, away from in front of the TV/Computer, and raise the money. I have a patrol hat that each boy has to come up with $50 to have. It's not an opti

We do it all wrong. The new boys coming in are grouped into units of 6 and are assigned a patrol leader and assistant patrol leader from qualified older boys. This guarantees them 2 advocates along with Troop Guide so that they can become oriented to the new troop while still retaining their identity coming in with their friends from Webelos. If the Webelos den had a "patrol" name instead of a den numeral, that is also retained. The den flag, if there was one, is also modified to reflect their transition into Boy Scouts. It is expected that each patrol do the program for the eveni

Does discrediting the messenger negate the message? I really don't worry too much about who says it, but what is said kinda stands out for me. I do think the BSA like many other traditional values in America have come under attack, been forced to change or have fallen by the wayside. If John Doe said scouts were "under attack" by today's society, would it be taken seriously?

On the other end of the spectrum, our crew politely declines acceptance of any ribbons and if the event insists that they receive them, they go in the fire before we leave. While it defeats the whole purpose of issuing ribbons, it does keep one's life from becoming cluttered.

In our council if you don't have you're charter in 2 weeks before your charter expires, you're late. As far as the process goes. Here's how it worked for me this year. I get a phone call from DE wondering if I'm going to be at R/T to pick up my packet? (I'm registered in 2 different districts with two different units). Nope, Well, then can I stop at the scout office and pick it up? Ok. Phone call to DE asking for code to online register. Call back with number. Go online, make the changes, etc, get check from treasurer of the group, get signatures and get back a week "late", a wee

A son climbs a tree. His mother say, "Be careful!" His father says, "How high can you go?" How that for a totally politically incorrect response? A daughter climbs a tree. Her mother says, "Get down now!" Her father says nothing, he knows better than to mess with that one. The world around us is changing and scouting is changing too.