justmomof3boys

Well, I've got one.....last year my son attended Transition Camp. His patrol's "Scoutmaster" for the week was a great kid named Gator. What a great leader and he was really great with the boys. He had to leave camp a day early but left the boys a long letter about how much he enjoyed them and how they were his favorite troop and how he knows they'll become fine young men one day. (He made all of the moms cry)

Anyway, getting back to subject, at camp this summer I asked about Gator and the Camp Comissioner said he was now a firefighter but still was involved with scouts in his time off. Nineteen years old and a firefighter! Hard to do here in Southern California these days. This kid has a great career now. And- the Commissioner said his Eagle Rank helped to get him his job. I believe it - Scouting opens many doors.

Thanks everyone for the ideas! I passed them on to my husband, who is the Scoutmaster. He liked all of them. This is his first year at summer camp so he really didn't know what to expect. (we're a very young Troop) Wish em' luck at camp as most are first timers and are only 11 or 12 and it's their first time away. At the same time, I'm a Cubmaster and am taking our cubs to summer camp. I have to deal with 30 parents plus boys.....so wish ME luck please. Thanks again!

Theresa~ ps- I especailly liked the walkway idea- now throw in a few potted plants and wind chimes and I'd be happy...lol. oops - I was getting mixed up with my mom's weekend away retreat! lol!

We're leaving for camp in a few days and have been told that the troop should be making camp improvements to their own site while there. It's a competition thing. Something "new" should be added each day. Sofar the boys have come up with lashing a flagpole for the troop flag, a line to hang towels, swimsuits, etc., and a tri-pod with a fake cast iron pot. Are there any other ideas out there? We're a new troop of 20 scouts and it's the first summer camp for about 3/4 of them. Some cool and fun ideas will be greatly appreciated.

I will tell my troop and the committee about this tonight. He will surely be in our thoughts and prayers. My heart aches.... please let us know if there is a physical address to where we can send cards and well wishes to.

Hi, we are a new troop of only 14 boys. 2 "almost Life" scouts (age 13)and the rest are Tenderfoot thru Second Class. (age 11-12) This weekend is our Klondike winter campout. We only have 8 of the 14 going. With tonight being the meeting before Klondike, this is how we handled it: The boys going to Klondike met one Saturday afternoon ( right after a troop Christmas tree recycling project and pizza after) and held a special meeting. Most of it was going over their check lists, departure time, any questions that they might have, etc. Tonight at the meeting we will keep to the boy's meeting plans. BUT- they will be bringing their backpack's in for inspection. Since there are only 8 going, they will be called over one at a time so it does not take the focus off the meeting. It should go fairly fast. Meeting stays as planned, the boys want to work on lashings and building camp gadgets, and playing "worse case scenario" game for their interpatrol activity. Most of the boys were in a troop before that talked about the campout coming up only which made for a boring meetings for the ones not going. Many of them dropped out. Our new troop is trying their best not to do this. So far- so good. Wish em' luck this weekend!

Hi I'm a committee member from a newly formed troop. Our troop was formed to help boys who have other activities going one. (we call ourselves a "sports friendly" troop...lol) We try to accomodate sports schedules and school schedules since we have boys who come from different cities with different school schedules. What I'm trying to say is...sports and school activities are also important in these boys lives as is scouting. We've had new boys join who thought since they did sports ans such that they could not possibly do scouting too. We also have boys who are in our troop that can now advance easier (troop and patrol outings) and still hold thier commitment to their teams and schools. Our troop is boy led unlike the much larger troop they came from. They are once again excited about scouting and that's what is important. We even made it known that if there's a boy who wants to be in scouts and has no goal to become an Eagle that is OK. They are learning, experiencing, and staying out of trouble. Of course we're hoping all the boys meet the Eagle rank and continue to be scouts all of their lives. Our boys have planned lots of activities and camping nights and we have plenty of parent support. I have no doubt that this troop will succeed with such an awesome group of fine boys...soon to be young men.

YIS,

jmo3b

Scoutmom,

You sound like me! My oldest son, 13 and almost a Life scout just returned from Catalina Island, Ca. (Camp Emerald Bay)on the 13th. this was his 2nd year at camp and I didn't hear from him once. ( a pro by now) He had a great time and enjoyed the letters and box of goodies I had sent (I mailed them a few days before he left) He survivied and I survived.

My middle son, 11 years old and a New Scout just went to transition camp this past week in our local mountains. it was his very first time away for an extended period of time with NO family. He called once but I wasn't home. My 13 yr old answered, asked if he was having fun and then hung up. (big brother's-ugh!) I figured since I didn't hear from him, he was having fun, keeping busy and NOT hurt or else I would have heard. We went up on Friday for family night. He asked if we were staying and I could tell he was homesick. He loved that we were there. He showed us around, introduced us to staff, etc. We didn't stay...hubby had to work. On the way home, he said he had a great time, couldn't wait to take a shower (he said swimming counted for getting him clean), and when I asked if he was ready to do it again he hesitated and then said "probably". I guess I should have waited a while to ask him. He also loved getting letters, silly postcards, and goodies. His grandparents even wrote and sent "extra cash".

Anyway, what I learned most about my sons is that even though brothers argue and pick, they really miss each other. With my sons' camps almost overlapping, they didn't see each other for almost 2 weeks. They missed each other I could tell. 2 days later things are back to normal!

I found out they had kept the boys soooo busy with activities, rank requirements, and duties that they really didn't have time to phone home. They were even begging to go to bed they were so tired!

Wishing everyone the best...

T~

Out troop is only a couple of years old (my son has been there a year and another just crossed over). They have just recently implemented the Patrol system. The oldest boys are 14. Our Scoutmasters have grouped the patrol about 3 times in the last month since no one is sure how it should be done. So the boys have no idea where they are supposed to be each week. It's getting frustrating for the boys and parents. Some say keep the boys (or start them off) by ranks, one has said have a star or life scout be in charge of a patrol of Tenderfoots as their patrol leader. Some think the older boy will eventually resent it. The scoutmasters made the rule that a patrol leader has to be at least First Class and an Asst. needs to be at least a Second Class. They even had the whole troop vote on patrol leaders before dividing the patrols. I thought the individual patrols should vote on their OWN patrol leaders. One Scoutmaster who was and Eagle himself would like a complete mixture of ranks in each patrol, but he doesn't like the idea of patrol outings. Isn't it up to the boys? The scoutmasters said each patrol will have to find a dad to become an assistant Scoutmaster to be their adult advisor at meetings and campouts. I'm really confused because i thought the Scoutmasters were supposed to be there for the whole troop and not just one particular patrol. Am I wrong? All this has been frustrating to the boys, parents, and Committee. The meetings lately have been pointless. Any suggestions I can take to our Committee meeting and to our Scoutmasters on this? Thanks in advance!

YIS,

Theresa~

Wow, doesn't this leader realize that they're 8 year old boys, NOT in the military? I agree about contacting higher-ups. I have a wolf den also. I mostly get their attention with the signs ups. (Cub Scout sign held high) Also, I have a little chat that goes something like this "Now, listen..you may not really want to be here. You need to let your parents know if you don't. For those of you not participating, talking, or being disruptive, you are not being fair to the boys who really want to be here, who want to learn and have fun, and want to move up in rank". They usually start looking around at the other boys, (guilt, i assume) and then they're pretty quiet from then on. for some reason it works. and then I'm a happy camper. Good luck to you and your son. Hopefully you can find another den, pack, or volunteer time to be a leader. OR co-leading with other parents is an option.

Hi Robin,

I just sent you an email...I think my pack would love to participate. How fun for you to see where all you get replies from! I also mentioned another idea I'll mention here also. It would be neat to send Pack Newletters to you too so you can see what other packs are doing. I must admit, when I go to pack sites, i've gotten some good ideas for us to use. Best of Luck!

T~

Just to clarify....we are NOT selling Little Ceasars Pizza. This is one of the offers on the discout card. Plus my boys will not be wearing uniforms. We did get our unit profit earning form approved for this. It was not a problem. We have 78 boys in our Pack, we only ordered the minimum number of 250 cards. This means each boy will only have to sell about 4 cards. Most are selling to parents, relatives, and close neighbors. No standing in front of stores etc. We will make $1250 when we sell all 250 cards and we plan on using this $ to pay for all families camping fees for our end of year Grad Camp. Plus food and any special crafts and activities we will have there. A lot of our fundraising is done within the pack. for instance when we held our Raingutter regatta/ swim party, we sold sodas and some snacks. It was a hot day and a drive to the nearest 7-11. Parents thought it was great and the profit went back to the pack. We made about $210 just from our parents. Oh and I got permission from our DE for that too. We weren't soliciting to the public - it was no problem. anyone have any suggestions on holding a pancake breakfast? With 78 families I'm scared there will be total chaos. Help?

Patti,

I just thought of something else. We ran into this problem is why I'm mentioning it. For Sportsmans, try to throw in an activity such as bowling or skating as a day out. The boys will earn their loop and requirement for the individual sport as well. The team sport is pretty easy if you have a group that does community sports like little league and basketball but there are some boys that don't. We recently helped 2 of our boys officially earn a team sport loop during one of our outings with Boys Scouts. We had a picnic after an eagle tour and played a game of softball. We went over rules and safety. Played a full 9 innings and they wanted more. Got all the scouts and family involved. These two boys had never really played the game besides recess at school. They did great, (nailed the balls to center field) but most of all had fun. They're already talking about the next softball game being parents vs. scouts. Anyway, finally got their requirements, they had fun, learned and it was a relief. this waas one badge we took for granted that it would be easy for all to earn. some boys just need a little extra push and help. take care...

T~

You're doing great! Just be prepared for your meetings is a must. I was a Webelos leader for several years and now that I'm Cubmaster, I just assist for our Webleos. Thank goodness the leader is a teacher who has lots of resources. At the end of each meeting we discuss what we'll be doing at the next meeting so we're prepared. If the boys are rowdy, we discuss how it's not fair for the boys who really want to be there, learn, and move up in rank. This usually gets them to settle down, guilt factor it hink...lol Most of the times our boys are great, we make it fun. We've made games to help learn the requirements for Boy Scouts and usualy do it in a competition sort of way. Several badges are hard to get the boys to do right out of the book, so we've typed them up and given them as "homework" to complete as they are able. Scholar being one of them, which is good to cover about the time report cards come out. Our Pack holds our own "Webelos Woods" (we have 3 dens) and we cover Outdoorsman, Forester, and Readyman. We have them do a lot of the requirements beforehand. Scientist is a fun one and this time of year most boys are doing projects in school. We had each boy demonstrate or show a science project or trick. There's so much to do to keep things interesting. Just remember you do not have to follow the monthly themes, it's just a giude. Go with what's best for your climate and area in planning outdoor stuff. Best of luck to you, they boys will do great and so will you!

T~

Hi! I have 2 ideas for you....One is the 2 for 1 community discount cards. It looks like a credit card and on the back there are discounts, for example 2 for 1 Little Ceasars pizza, buy 1 get 1 free burrito form Taco Bell, $7 of an oil change, etc. They sell for $10, we get $5. We did have to order a minimum of 250 cards to start. We got to design our card also. We live in California, but you may be able to find one of these companies in any state. Also what we did at Christmas is sit in front of Toys R US for the two weekends before Christmas and offer gift wrapping. It's donation only. We get all of the wrap, tape, and bows donated. Our troop made $1700 this year. People we so generous. We had one lady come to us twice at $100 each time to wrap a couple baskets of gifts. We took the total numbers of hours worked and divided it into the amount made and this gave the boys an hourly wage. They made about $10.50 per hour. This money goes into their individual accounts. Hope this helps.

One of my Webelos Leaders makes different puzzles for den activities by using puzzlemaker.com I'm recruiting her to make a cool one for our B&G which is 50's themed this year. Hope that helps!