AnniePoo

I'd been told when I took Outdoor Leader Training for Webelos Leaders last year that it was required in order to take a Webelos den on an overnight camping trip. Then, this weekend, I was told that it was only highly recommended (i.e. Webelos leaders "should" take the training), but that BALOO was required. Is this correct, and Webelos den overnight camping falls under the description of "pack overnight camping"?

About half of the people at this weekend's training session had been told that OLSWL (i.e "OWL") training was required.

I've taken both, so I wasn't in violation when I took our Webelos camping all summer. However, since I'll be taking over our district Cub training position shortly, I need to know the actual wording in the regs. Can someone give me the real scoop on this?

Also, I'd appreciate links to good websites for trainers.

Thanks!!

Annie

I don't think it's a joke - a couple of district execs in our council evidently got e-mails from National about this on Friday. I had read (here) about the trial runs with Lion dens, but sounds like this may be something different. The e-mails hinted that the WannaBees wouldn't have a full program, but would involve kindergarden boys being invited to certain pack events just to give them a taste of Cub scouts. The DE I talked to was a bit frustrated that the e-mail didn't give more info. I'll e-mail our district's DE and see if I can find out more.

I was at a training session yesterday and heard that National is starting a program for kindergardeners called the WannaBees. Does anyone here have information about this program?

Thanks,

Annie

I think that farting can be funny. I helped at a camporee last weekend and heard some great farting-related stories (and laughed at them, too).

My husband can sew better than me. He grew up in a large farm family, and all of the kids learned to sew quite well. It has been very useful.

My fellow Webelo den leader and I are going to start teaching our den how to sew, starting with the brag vests for the Tigers. We're determined that they learn many sewing techniques, not necessarily to sew their own clothes, but more to do fabric repairs.

My husband can sew better than me. He grew up in a large farm family, and all of the kids learned to sew quite well. It has been very useful.

My fellow Webelo den leader and I are going to start teaching our den how to sew, starting with the brag vests for the Tigers. We're determined that they learn many sewing techniques, not necessarily to sew their own clothes, but more to do fabric repairs.

A local shop does our pack T-shirts every year. We pick a different bright color each year but use the same front & back designs. We sell them at cost to the kids, sibs, and parents, which is about $8-10 each. Although we usually stick to traditional T-shirts, hoodies, and sweatshirts, the store can order any type of shirt out of their catalog.

To me, it's not about the beads and not about the ticket. It's what I've learned along the way.

Annie

I used to be an Owl.

Have a great time! We had our pack family campout the first weekend in October, with numerous first-time campers. It went very smoothly, but I forgot to bring the ashes from WoodBadge last spring.

Annie (I used to be an Owl).

Our council does not require tour permits for camporees within the council boundaries.

Our pack pays for them.

Hi John-in-KC,

Salts in foods, including regular old sodium chloride as well as curing salts used for meats, are preservatives. This means that they keep microorganisms from growing and causing problems. These microorganisms include bacteria, yeast, and mold that can spoil food as well as bacteria that can make you really sick.

So, it's really important that when you are making any type of preserved food that include salt, such as pickles, jerky, etc., you follow the recipe. Cutting down the amount of salt, especially if you only use 10% of the normal amount, can lead to major problems with foodborne illness. This is particularly true of foods not stored at proper refrigeration temp or frozen.

In other words, it's not a good idea for you to be eating jerky on the trail if it's made with only 10% of the normal salts & curing agents. A nasty case of "two-bucket" disease that at home would be unpleasant would be potentially life-threatening on the trail. You may get lucky 99% of the time but that 1% could be pretty nasty.

(For canned foods such as pickles, if you cut way back on the salt level you could end up with botulism).

Take care,

Food Safety Annie

In fact, I just filled out a tour permit for our pack family campout for this weekend (Saturday-Sunday). Also, when travelling to campouts or other out-of-town activities, we prepare maps to the locations, verify who is travelling with whom, and have participants notify leaders if they know if they are coming late. We do not check up on everyone to verify they got home UNLESS a scout is travelling with another family and does not have their parent(s) with them.

OK, I'm only a newbie here, and I've heard varying reports from different sources whether tour permits should be required for various types of day trips. However, my understanding is that tour permits are ABSOLUTELY required for all pack or den overnight trips, even if families all drive themselves to the locations.

Get a bunch of paint color cards from the store in greens & browns. Give them to the kids and have them look for things in those colors on the hike.

We didn't have a lot of down time on the second weekend, but it certainly was manageable. Overall, a fun experience. Go in with a positive attitude and an open mind, and you will do fine.

I used to be an Owl....(This message has been edited by AnniePoo)

We just got a dining fly for our cub scout pack. I can't remember the brand, but it's one of those white tent things that's actually meant to be used as a semi-portable shelter over a car. We got the industrial quality version, 12' x 26', and it was around $170 on sale at Menards. It's pretty sturdy, particularly if you stake down the corners.

"In my way of thinking, that makes you not an entirely unbiased reviewer, and it's something that should have been disclosed in your original post, in my opinion."

I agree. You shouldn't be surprised by the fact that forum members would question your opinion about SPOT when you were not up-front about the fact that you sell them.

I'm actually a 4th year Cub Scout leader, but here's my opinion anyway...

"We are TIRED"--This is absolutely the reason why our Cub Scout pack slows down significantly over the summer. You need to avoid parent & leader burnout. Our Cub pack holds no pack meetings or den meetings over the summer. We only have two committee meetings from May-August - one mid-summer to set the budget and schedule for the next year, and one in August to plan for the first pack meeting. We have day camp in the summer, and have optional participation in a few parades, etc, but most of the pack takes it easy for the summer, including the leaders. I take our Webelos camping once a month during the summer, but that's more fun than anything else.

In short, as committee chair, I'd rather let most of the den leaders have an easy summer with few scout responsibilities knowing that they will come back in the fall with more energy and enthusiasm.

If you are interested in going, sign up now. Although I was an experienced camper, I knew nothing about Boy Scouts and things like shaking hands with my left hand. HOWEVER, you will certainly have experienced scout leaders in your patrol at WB, and if you don't hesitate to ask questions, they will guide you along the way. It's a learning experience in many ways. Although some WB things are easier if you've been a scouter for many years, you'll be fine if you are a newbie with an open mind. It's a lot of fun.

Water is pretty close, including small & medium lakes and lots of fun smallish windy rivers.

As a Cub Scout leader with no Boy Scout experience, I wasn't prepared to recite all of the Boy Scout stuff. I also wasn't familiar with the patrol method. However, it wasn't a problem and I had a great time. Although I'm learning a lot about myself as I work my ticket, one of the best things to come out of my course was the contacts I've made with other WB participants. My fellow OWLs have already been a great source of information for me.

Overall, a good experience, even with 8 inches of rain and nearby tornadoes the second weekend.

When I win the lottery, I'll go shopping for a dozen NovaCraft canoes in Royalex Lite for the local Troop. We got a new 16' prospector this spring, and I'm pleased with it.

Thanks for all of the information everyone. This forum is a great source of information!

Ooohhh - I love the sticker-on-the shirt idea! We'll have to use that next year.

We bring "cool stuff" to the school open houses as well. The most important is a mini-pinewood derby that the kids can matchbox cars down. It catches the kids' attention, and they bring mom & dad over to the table. Then they all look at the neat pictures from camp where the kids are climbing the climbing wall, doing archery, and swimming, and we get to talk to them at the same time.

Flyers include information about the first pack meeting, and we make sure to point out to parents when and where it is held.

You need to talk to the kids, not just the parents, and should be enthusiastic and funny.

Also, we bring our old full-size pinewood derby track and a bunch of donated PW derby cars to our school district's family fun night each as well. Kids run cars down the track for 2 hours straight, and we get loud and crazy cheering for different cars to win. It's great - cars fall off the track, wheels fall off, and we don't care because the kids are having a great time. While this is going on, we have a second leader standing around, and the parents start looking at our pictures and flyers, and it goes from there.

You need to get infuse energy and laughter into the recruiting, and not just hand out flyers.