KISMIF_Works

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. Just to be specific, I was talking about our Pack's kick-off at our September pack meeting. I think that popcorn is a good fundraiser here, where our pack gets 30% of the sales. It has typically been our only fundraiser. Our sales have grown each of the past two years, and we are just looking for ideas to continue that trend this year. The Trail's End prizes are decent (not fantastic, IMO), but I'm not sure how motivating they are for the boys when they can't see/touch them (unfortunately our district doesn't like to loan out any prizes for the k

Sorry if this has already been discussed, but I did a quick search of topic titles and didn't find anything. What are some things you have done in the past for your popcorn kick-off that have really worked to excite and motivate the boys to participate? This includes pack meeting ideas as well as prizes to reward top sales. We usually do the "pie a Leader" thing as a reward to the top sellers, and the boys really enjoy it. However, I would like to generate more "buzz" at the kick-off pack meeting...

LisaNJ: The CubTrax spreadsheets really help out with this! Last year as a Wolf leader I managed everyone's advancement in my own spreadsheet, which was a lot of work. Before the Bears got started I read about the CubTrax stuff somewhere on this forum, and decided to give it a try. It is really starting to pay off now as we approach our B&G because I'm able to generate a one-page summary detailing for each boy what is complete and what is still to be done. Seeing a summary sheet showing that the boy currently has only 2/4 of the progress beads because he is missing parent

Just like raisinemright, I opted for den dues this year of $1 per scout per meeting. I also considered the "bring-your-own-supplies" alternative but decided against it because I wanted each boy to have the same supplies and because it is usually cheaper to buy for a group than for each boy to buy everything he needs on his own. You are already volunteering plenty of time, so let the parents help out with the supplies!

Novice_Cubmaster, Thanks for the advice. That is definitely my plan. I have been reviewing my Scout Leader Book with regards to the recommended pack committee structure and how to best select/recruit new helpers. We definitely have some holes in our committee. I looked back through some older Pack newsletters and to the best of my knowledge we currently have no CC! At our upcoming pack leader meeting I am going to propose we make a plan to address these needs. I am going to present my proposal as if I'm just thinking towards next year, laying out the openings as I see them and t

ryetye - I feel for you, as I'm going through some drama right now in my own pack. It's unfortunate when people forget that the purpose of Scouting is to have FUN and that it is for the boys! Is the effort behind trying to have you and your wife removed somehow tied to your stand on the badge not being awarded? What is the Tiger DL's husband's role in the pack, and why does she feel he should lead the B&G ceremony you mentioned? I definitely encourage you to stay on as Bear DL at least until the school year is over, if possible. Your Bear scouts need you, and continuing to

Once again, thanks for the thoughtful replies and opinions. Your replies prompted me to look into what exactly is the recommended committee structure. I was surprised to see the holes that we have in our structure. I have spent so much time this past year focusing on my duties as a new DL that I hadn't given any thought to pack administration. My honest opinion of our CM is that he cares about scouting and cares about his position. I'm going to continue to back him. We are having our B&G this weekend so once the dust settles from that I am going to start pushing us to think t

Its Me - that seems to be the consensus from the others in our committee, but what is your reasoning for it? I see some disadvantages to ousting him: 1. We lose an adult volunteer who is willing/able to help the pack. We don't have a large number of them today. 2. The bad feelings this would create for him and his son, who won't be crossing over to BS for a few years. 3. Who will replace him? Obviously it could be me but then who will replace me as DL for the Bears next year? 4. Does it address the real problem in the pack? Maybe his replacement won't do any better

Thanks for the replies and advice. I will address your questions to the best of my knowledge. Regarding training, I'm not sure if he attended CM training this year or not. I know he was talking about going but I attended a different session than the one he was talking about (I went to DL training this year). So looking back I can't recall if he ended up going or not. Our DLs are trained except for the Tiger DL, who may be but probably isn't. As a newcomer last year I wasn't really privy to the selection process (or possible lack thereof) for the new CM. I do get the feeling, how

OK, to be clear - I am not the CM! :-) I am looking for advice from all of you regarding how to prevent a split among the leaders and the CM... First a quick bit of background: last year my oldest son joined Cub Scouts as a Tiger cub. Our pack is around 40 boys in size, and our committee consists of the CM, DLs, a treasurer and a secretary. This year I am my son's Wolf DL and am enjoying it. I have a younger son who won't be a Tiger for another couple years, so I feel like I am going to be in this for a while. Last year the pack's CM (who was very well-liked) resigned and a new CM w