Lodge 489

Mark said that they would have the older styles in stock for awhile longer so you shouldn't have any problem getting them. Plus, I know several "patch traders" that plan on buying up quite a bit of his remaining inventory and then have them available on Ebay for sale - so they should be around for the near future.

Has anyone had any experience with the new Webelos Advancement Coordinators that are being implemented into each District's staffing? This is a brand new position that National created back in July and is mandating for each District due to the poor transition of Webelos Scouts over to Boy Scouts.

Based upon the latest numbers from National less that 33% of all Webelos Scouts ever join a Boy Scout Troop. They are hoping that this new staff position will help increase that number since they will be working directly with every Webelos 2 Scout in their District. This program and the Arrow of Light direct to Tenderfoot program should be a big help.

So, if anyone has already started working with their Webelos Advancement Coordinator, especially in regards to creating a Transition Plan for each of their Webelos 2 Scouts, I would appreciate some feedback. Thanks

I recently met with the Director of PRAY and he said that the design change came because of feedback from Scouts about what they would like to wear. The panel of Scouts chose the new design and based upon our church's recent program we found the same response.

When our Scouts were given the choice of either the new emblems or the older ones, they unanimously chose the new design. Even Scouts that had already started out their series with the old style emblems wanted the newer ones for their latest award. This is from a group of about 25 Scouts we put through in August.

When I was at PTC a few weeks ago we had a presentation about the Kindergarten Cub Scout program. It is called K-Cubs, and based upon the success of the Council that has been testing it for several years, it seems that National will allow it to expand out of beta-test for next year (2010). They never referred to it as Lions and since Lions was a previous Cub Scout rank I doubt if they would bring it back, especially since Lions was about the equivalent of today's Webelos 1 rank.

Everyone that heard about the K-Cubs program was supportive of it. It will be a voluntary program just like Tiger Cubs currently is, so if a Pack doesn't want to implement the K-Cubs program they won't have to. As I hear more about it I will update this thread.

I'm heading back to Philmont this summer for a course at the Training Center. It's been 36 years since I was last there as a Scout so I'm sure it's changed a lot. Plus, I'm guessing that PTC isn't part of Base Camp so it's probably located down the road or on another part of the ranch. I've reviewed the PTC website and equipment list so I'm up to speed with those but I still have a few questions.

My wife and son will be attending also and I was told by my DE that there would be things for the both of them to do while I was in class. If any of you have experience with the spouse and kids programs I would like to get some feedback regarding them.

It says on the website that Scouts and Scouters need to wear their uniforms but how about my son? Should he wear his Class A while he's involved in group activities, or out playing with other kids his age during the day? He only has one Class A and I really don't want to wash it every night if I don't have to.

Also, I was told that there is one day (Wednesday?) that is a free day to spend with the family. Can Scouters and their families visit the Scout (trek) side of the ranch. I would like to get my new hiking boots branded like I did with my old ones when I was there as a Scout. Or perhaps you can get that done at the Training Center if you're attending classes?

Next, sleeping arrangements - I understand that we will have a wall tent with both cots and mattresses. Questions - are these army size cots or are they the larger twin size camp cots? Also, we have Cabela mattresses that we use on camp cots in Alaska and I was wondering if we can use these instead of their mattresses? They also said that they would put another cot in our tent for our son to sleep on. How much does that cut down on the space availability inside? Also, would a mattress fit onto his cot or does it come with one. Is it the same size cot as the ones that are already in the tent?

It mentions on their website to bring a mat for the tent floor - any recommendations as to size? Is there anything that you would bring that's not on the list? Also, how far is the parking lot where our vehicle will be from where the tents are? The same with the laundry, bathrooms, etc. I told my wife that there would be shower facilities available but she wants to know how long the line/wait is to use them. Is it best to go early in the morning or late at night? Some of the camps we've gone to limit the times you can use them, or have no hot water after the first person uses it. If that's the case then she'll be in there at 4 AM just to make sure. When we go camping our boy wouldn't mind going all week without a shower if we'd let him. Momma just doesn't understand that - say's it must be a "guy thing".

Any other suggestions or feedback would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

True but... if I understand correctly when you are a Venture Scout aren't you still cosidered a youth until 21? I know that in OA you are.

I may be wrong about that but if I recall correctly a Venture Scout can still wear their rank badge until they're 21. Maybe it's changed from what I remember. Thanks for the feedback.

How would time spent serving in the Order of the Arrow between the ages of 18 and 21 be counted? I know that they are still considered youth during that time period but would those three years add on to their BS service with a green back or count as adult time with a blue back?

SWScouter posted the following and I have a quick question based upon it. Can an adult who became an Ordeal Member as a youth still become a Brotherhood Member?

Personally, I wouldn't worry about it. I have no way to know whether someone has paid their OA lodge dues or not unless they actually tell me. I'm certainly not going to ask a lodge officer to check. If he hasn't sealed his membership by going through the Brotherhood ceremony, you might encourage him to do that (and to take a couple of youth along to do so too). That way he will at least need to pay his dues for one year

SWScouter