awesome1_in_cc

Twice a year, In January and June. January is right after Winter Camp and one month before the area cross-overs which gives the new scouts a steady SPL / Troop Guide presence for the first 5 months. June is right after Summer Camp and is 6 months from January.

We have elections every 6 months but we also have an unoffical "procedure" in place for the Scouts to remove their elected leaders. We stress heavily to all elected leaders that the people who elected you to office can also remove you using the "procedure" we have outlined. In my mind, it is important that the elected Scouts learn that they are the "voice" for and responsible for those who elected them. A lesson lost on most of our political leaders but I won''t go there. So far we have never had any Scout ask to start the removal process which has been in place for a year or so. Just my 2 cents!!

Eamonn, Great post!! I too have seen these "super" dens during my time as CM and CC. IMHO, the only thing that made them as strong as they were was the fact that they did things together even outside of the regular scheduled meetings and their parents were HEAVILY involved with the Den and Pack. I allows told my Leaders that we had to sell the program and perform just as much for the parents as we did for the scouts. I have never meet a Cub Scout who could drive himself to the meetings so we had to keep the parents happy also. Just my 2 cents!!

funscout, Every camp-out we have all the Adult leaders purchase and cook one meal so no money changes hands at all. We also rotate the meal every month so everyone gets to cook different meals. This works well for us.

I guess I have a different take on this issue then most. During my time as Cubmaster & CC for a "mega" pack I not only encouraged prizes for top sellers (in each age group)but tried to find new angles to get the kids and parents motivated to sell. I hate to say it but we live in a world where most people have the mind set of "what''s in it for ME" and don''t grasp the concept we are all in this together. First, every boy who sold anything recieved a free pinewood derby car wrapped in nice Christmas wrapping paper etc at our December Pack Meeting. And if you didn''t sell then you had to go down to Scout office and purchase one for three bucks. Then Trophies were given to 1st. 2nd & 3rd for each age group and an additinal 1st thru 3rd. trophy was awarded to the top sellers for the pack. The reality as I see it is, it takes money to run our units in a quality way and where is it going to come from? At the pack level our advancement ran $400 a month and we never ever charged parents dues or anything else. Every Scout in the Pack got the same benefits even though some of them never sold a single thing. Actually those who never sold were typically the ones earning every award know to Cub Scouting and never contributed a dime to the Pack. Is it fair for them to ride on the backs of other Scouts? These Scouts and parents by far did not "do their Best"!!! Now that i''m a Scoutmaster, I have worked with my TC to put in place a program where the Scouts will get 20% of what they sell in their Scout accounts to pay for scouting related items as approved by the TC. Across the board I am trying to make my Scouts more accountable for themselves. You can blast me if you want, but it is just MHO on the subject.

My advise is to find a mentor (an experienced leader) to help get the den going with their secondary mission being that of pin pointing & recruiting the leader for the den. Trust me this person will emerge as things go along and the parents gain knowledge of the program and how it works. I have been to so many rounds-ups where we stand-up, deliver the Scouting promise and sign up tons of kids. Then we give the leader speech and all the parents have glassed over eyes. You would think that I had asked them to take over flying a 747 or something. Don''t get me wrong, sometimes a parent will jump right into it with no further thought and do an exceptional job but that is very rare. See if you can find any experienced former or current leaders to act as den mentors for a short period in order to get the new scouts going and start delivering the "promise" we make on round-up night. Just my thoughts!! (This message has been edited by awesome1_in_cc)

Our communication system is as follows: The yearly calendar which was done by the PLC during the summer and given to all parents of the troop. Troop Website E-mail Quarterly Parents meetings (this is in lieu of that months committee meeting) Phone calls In addition, we have "standardize" on several elements of the program. This includes departure & arrival times for weekend camp-outs, cost for weekend camp-outs, etc. The standardization seems to have helped out a lot as the Scouts and parents know that they need to bring thieir "food money" to the meeting the week before we leave and turn over to their "grub master" other wise they will be responsible for purchasing their own food for the weekend. Right or wrong, that''s how we roll!!!

WOW!!! This brings back memories. Sorry for arriving late to the party but I just found the thread. I say we vote the CM off the island! J/K standerson, the only advice I can give you is to keep your head regarding this, bear down and finish what you started with your scouts and remember who you started this journey for in the first place. As an Eagle Scout you know that the right thing to do is not allows the easy thing to do. I know from experience that you want to tell this guy off in a big way, start a unit civil war and burn down the town on the way out, but in the end none of these things will make you feel any better and your scout''s certainly won''t win. From someone who was in a very similar situtation, I promise the holes you bite into your to lit will heal over time and your Scouts will learn from you what true leadership is all about. Good Luck and please remember to have fun leading your scouts!!!

The following is reprint of a message I received yesterday afternoon announcing the passing of a truly great man and Scouter. Joe represents everything that is great about Scouting and gave heart and soul to program he loved. Joe is a true legend (and rightfully so) in our area and was honored last October with his own day. http://www.stxbsa.org/site/c.8eIELTOwGnF/b.2116485/k.A85F/Joe_Galbraith_Day.htm I for one will miss him tremendously but will never forget him!!! Our dear friend and 82 year veteran Scouter, Joe Galbraith passed away this morning at 94 years of age. You may not know that Joe began his service as a Professional Scouter in 1935 and retired 42 years later in 1978. The next day he was hired as a consultant and he continued in that role until 2002. He has worked for the BSA under every Chief Scout Executive from James E. West to Roy L. Williams. His 45th National Training School was visited by Baden Powell during a visit to the USA. He is an Eagle Scout joining Scouting at 12 years of age in 1925. He a Vigil Honor member of the Order of the Arrow and he is an Antelope in Wood Badge. He is the official song leader in his West Rotary Club, Rotary District 5930. He is also well known for his song leading in the old South Central Region and the enthusiasm he brings to every gathering. God Bless America... and God Bless Joe Galbraith! We are all richer having known this good man!

Oldsm, Thanks for your post. My week at camp with my scouts was very close to yours as I chronicled on our Troop Website (along with pictures) on the daily log. If interested, check it out at www.bsatroop255.8m.com.

Beavah, solid advice as allows!! You are correct that this is a "historical" behavior that has hung over the troop for a long time. They have a history of changing things last minute, canceling events, doing the same things over and over, etc... While I am not opposed as SM to doing the same things over and over I have been trying to lead them (the PLC) in the direction of trying new things that they want to do and expanding their program to make it more fun for everyone. It's me - As stated above, I have no problem if they want to camp there every month. It sure will get old very quickly for the Scouts but its their choice to make. My question is not so much about where they go but rather should I hold them to "their" choices. They (PLC) put this calendar together, not me. Do we hold them responsible for their commitments or do we let them slide because they changed their minds even though money has been spent, arrangements made, etc.? Dan - Actually you asked the million dollar question that makes this question somewhat "null and void". After speaking with my SPL this morning, he has clarified several points for me. First - They have not requested a change of location as the PLC has not yet meet to discuss this issue. Second- The reason he brought up changing the location was because after doing some research on the location we going to he found out that they are currently having flooding problems and he was trying to convey to me that he wanted to have the other location as a back-up plan in case the primary did not work out. I guess the real issue here is more of a communications failure on my part. That said, I fully support and applaud the SPL for his foresight on this. SPL - 1 SM - 0 (if we were keeping score) Note to self (listen more, talk less and stay out the way) Thanks to everyone on the forum, you all do a great service for Scouting. (This message has been edited by awesome1_in_cc)

Here is my question Do I take the hard line stance and make our PLC stick to their plans or should I be flexible and let them take the easy way? Now as Paul Harvey would say, time for the rest of the story Our unit elections were in early July and so we basically have a new PLC in place as the only remaining member is our SPL who is serving in his second term. Since the elections we have had a troop JLT session, a yearly planning conference where they put together a great yearly calendar of events for the troop. They really did a fabulous job on this and I am really proud of them. The calendar has been presented to the Troop committee by the SPL and approved and has already been distributed to the Troop members and their families, posted on our Website, etc. The question comes from the fact that my SPL has asked me to change location of the troop camp-out in a couple of weeks to a different location which is basically the standard place for the Troop to camp over the years. I know since I joined the troop less then a year ago we have been there 6 times and no where else. This place is great so dont get me wrong but it is also the closest and easiest option. I feel like the decision is being made based on the fact that it comfortable for them and they tend to lean towards the easy way. Let me know what you think is the best course of action I should take if any.

The biggest problem I see is that a lot of us former scouts (not just Eagle Scouts)who are now giving back and serving as adult leaders are trying to "re-create" the experiences from our youth in our curent troops. We sometimes need to be gently reminded to put away our scrapbooks, pull out the scout handbook and that is O.K for the scouts to fail because that is how they learn to be effective leaders and quality young men. I'm not saying this is easy for a leader to do as I have to be reminded all the time by my better have to step back and let the program work. But then again, what does she know? I'm an Eagle Scout and she's not!!

As a new Scoutmaster, I have been working with the Troop Committee Chairman to improve our Troops communication, finances, etc. even though these fall out of my realm of responsibility as Scoutmaster. The readers digest versions of these changes are as follows: We still have monthly Committee meetings lead by the CC and the financial reports are given out to the committee members. We have added a quarterly Parents meeting led by me (also attended by the CC) where we also distribute high level financial reports, advancement reports for each Scout, updated calendars based on changes from the PLC to the annual calendar, etc. (The intent of this meeting to COMMUNICATE with the parents on our Troops activities / needs, etc. It also allows us to get feedback from our customers aka the parents and Scouts. Our finances are broken down as follows: Each scout pays a $50 fee every February. This covers their re-charter, Boys life, insurance with only a small portion staying with the troop. We have two fundraisers a year, a pancake breakfast in the spring and popcorn in the fall. The Scouts get credit in their account for 20% of their individual total sales for each of these fundraisers. It is clearly spelled out in our Parents guide that this money stays with Troop and can only be used for scouting related expenses as approved by the Troop Committee. We even have a special debit form that has to be filled and signed by the Scout prior to use of these funds. Activity fees are paid on an event by event basis for those who attend. Result1 - I am really concerned with a CC who does not want help from other willing volunteers in their troop. Now I have no ideal what is going on with the money but as a parent I would be really concerned also. While what is going on may not be criminal (if the CC has signing rights then you will have a hard time proving theft of Troop money since he/she has full access to the account) but it sure sounds unethical. Good luck!!

While being crazy is not a requirement for being a Scout Leader, it sures does help!! J/K. I think the advice you have been given so far is excellent. If you enjoy it and your family supports your decission to stay on, then do. My Dad has been a Cubmaster for almost 30 years now and he still looks forward to each and every pack meeting. It was kind of cool for the three years I servered as Cubmaster for my son's pack to call and exchange notes with Dad, Cubmaster to Cubmaster. While my Dad still loves it, my family and I made the decission to move on (with a full & complete transition to the new Cubmaster) when my son crossed over in February. It wasn't that I didn't enjoy it but I rather the fact that I had been asked to take over as Scoutmaster of troop and I really wanted to devote my full energy to that effort. I still miss being a Cubmastert somedays from a selfish point of view but my replacement has brought a lot of new ideals and energy to the job and is doing great!! Both programs are can be equally rewarding if you are it doing for the right reasons. Have fun and enjoy your "one hour a week".

I'm pretty slow and don't even know what "Schism" means but it sounds bad. I am a recently retired CM and am now a "rookie" SM for a troop that was on life support a year ago. As a Webelos Den leader I started to try to prepare the scouts for what was to come. We used the denner system, adopted a "patrol name" and I even had them build their own "patrol boxes" as part of their Craftsman pin. As second year WB's they pitched their own tents, cooked and cleaned-up after themselves. Among many of my WB parents I was the "crazy man" who made little Johnny clean-up after himself until they attended the Troop overnighter and the light came on. But with all that said the best job at easying the transition was on the Troops side. The CC of the troop and Youth leaders put together a program called "Scouts teaching Scouts" to aide in the transition process and its has turned out to be a great recruiting tool. Long Story short - The program is designed for the youth leaders to teach 4 Webelos Activity pins. During the indoor part of the program they teach 2 pins at scheduled Troop meetings. During the Outdoor portion of the program they teach 2 more during Troop Webelos camp-outs. BTW- This program is open to Webelos I and II's!!! I can't tell you how this will work out long term but during its first year we doubled the size of our troop in two weeks recently. It seemed I was attending "cross-overs" every night but I'm not complaining. Now we have the same challange as everyone else, we have to fullful "the Promise" while competing against bordum, sports, girls, etc...

Great Topic!! As a youth, Id have to say that my most memorable (and embarrassing) moment was taking an unexpected swim in the lake during a tap out ceremony after my breach cloth caught fire!! Luckily no one was hurt, except maybe my pride. As an experienced Scouter aka old guy, I d have to say that so far it was watching my 7 Webelos be presented their AOL awards and crossing over to the Troop a couple of weeks ago. The pack did a photo tribute for them which had photos of them from Tiger thru Webelos II, which brought a tear to my eye.

I just love reading these post as there are lots of great people who have been there / done that. Last week we had our cross-over and all 7 of my former Webelos II scouts are going to the troop together. While that is not surprising, it is surprising that after we (as a den) visted several troops over the last 18 months they have chosen a small "work in progress" troop over the "super" troop that our pack kids normally join. Now for a little background on the story - I am the former Cubmaster of a "mega pack", a job which is like running a small town at times as some of you know. While I certainly enjoyed the job, I missed the "boat" entirely when it came to the affect that the position was having on my son's scouting experience. When you are the leader of a "mega" pack you spend a lot of time solving one issue after another from your unit leaders and pack parents and my son was trying to squeeze in time with me when ever he could. When it came time to choose a Troop, I assumed that my son's choice would be the "super" troop that is well organized, well funded and has a great SM. As an Eagle scout, I was gearing up for this and was really excited about my son's future. At the start of my son's Webelos I year my wife and informed our son that the Troop choice was his and we would support his decision no matter what. Well when the time came (after lots of troop visits) he informed me that he did not want to join "super" troop as the kids from there were mean to him and "he did not want to chase me around anymore". While I am not the "sharpest" knife in the drawer, it did not take me long after that to realize that this was his "Scouting" experience and not mine. I had been trying to duplicate my experience for him and thats just not possible. The unexpected results of my son's decision was that "he" led the rest of the his den to the troop along with many other kids from other packs that he knows. Over the weekend, the troop almost doubled in size after picking up close to 20 kids from three different packs. As of 2 weeks ago, I assumed the role as SM for the troop and am working on getting all the training I can get. Plan #1 My plan for the future is simple, let the boys led "their" troop have some fun. Plan #2(See plan #1)

I also servered as Cubmaster from a "mega" pack of over 100 kids for several years. When I stepped down as CM in May, the Pack gave me the best gift that I have ever recieved. They had collected for, purchased and presented me with an Eagle Scout class ring that I had never had the financial resources to purchase for myself. I'm not ashamed to admit that it brought tears to my eyes when I opened it. Their gift has been a daily reminder for me of two of the best periods in my life, earning my Eagle Scout award & serving as CM. A lot of truly wonderful gift ideals have been mentioned in this thread and they all have one thing in common. They come from the heart!! Awesome1