MarkS

anarchist said, "This included giving a life rank to a scout who had not participated in any outdoor program for a full year." I was willing to make the exception for a situation that is beyond the control of first year scout working Tenderfoot or Second Class in order to get him through that first year and keep him in the program. I'm not willing to do that for a second year scout who starting to advance to ranks of leadership such as First Class and above. John-in-KC asked, What about Character Development, Personal Growth, Obedience, Citizenship and Leadership Development? Th

Please, let's stop implying that the purpose of the BOR was not understood. I thought I made it clear that it is well understood. However, dicsussing the pros and cons of, applauding (not existant so far) and criticizing (plenty of) the decision to make an exception for one particular boy in order to keep him active in the program is fair game. This was not a decision made in ignorance or without debate. The fact that some boy's would think it wasn't fair was the main reason I was the hesitant to agree on making an exception. As this thread indicates, I certainly don't think this is somet

Wow, those were some brutal responses and in looking at my original post it is obvious that left out some important details. Sorry about that. First, let's be clear that the SM at the time (he's now our CC but the SM and SAs, myself included, still go to him for advice) perfectly understands the advancement requirements and how the process works. He is an Eagle Scout and 30 year scouter having held the SM and CC positions at several troops, Wood Badger including staff, Silver Beaver award recipient, a Vigil member of the O/A, and has been district training chair, district fundraising chai

I've spun this off from the BOR rant thread because I have a potentail BOR controversy brewing... There's a boy getting close to making First Class. First Class is the rank our unit has chosen as a prerequisite for PLs in regular patrols. The boy doesn't camp because his mother is overprotective and won't allow him to go camping unless his dad goes too. Unfortunately, his dad is not really interested in camping. The boy never met the overnight camping requirements for Tenderfoot or Second Class. Our Scoutmaster was of the opinion, it was more important to allow the boy to advance and k

Its Me asked, "So what are they to ask? Life questions or scouting details?" Both. When I sit in on a BOR, I think my objectives are pretty much by-the-book. I ask if he's having fun and why, make sure the boys understands and applies scouting ideals in his daily life, make sure he's completed the requirements for his rank advancement (not a retest--some of this might have been answered by the fun question but I usually ask what requirements he liked and didn't like doing and why), ask how he thinks his leadership is doing and to provide examples (trying to find out if the youth lead

What national policy says taht Webelos are not allowed to participate against other Webelos at a Boy Scout camporee? Maybe my district has run amok but that is how we include Webelos in camporees. Games and activities are specifically arranged for Webelos dens to participate in.

I think it is poor etiquette to correct someone's spelling. ;-) If you can figure it out, why bother? Grammar is more important than spelling in a forum. Its especially important to get across what you really mean because it could be a long time before you check for your responses and by then several people may have responded to what you said instead of what you meant. It's really hard to salvage a thread with a serious grammar error on page 1. People will continue to respond to that post even if it is corrected on page 2. Which brings us to another good forum practice. Be

How to Win Friends & Influence People, Dale Carnegie. Buy a copy.

scoutldr said, "I am amazed at the number of scouts who pass their Ordeal and are never seen again." We call that sash and dash in our lodge. John-in-KC, "Authentic costume research..." There are some in our lodge that would give you a hard time for saying "custume." ;-)(This message has been edited by MarkS)

I believe the Scout Executive must approve any adult nominated by the units in a council and that he can also waive the long-term camp camping requirement if the adult is unable to attend due to reasons of job security or health (must still have 15 days and nights of camping but can all be short-term/weekend camping).(This message has been edited by MarkS)

I'm wondering why someone on this forum would ask why someone would want to provide leadership for their son's old unit? Why do we make 1000s of posts on this forum?

Keeping score is not a prerequisite for a great camporee. In my district the O/A chapter organizes and executes our camporees. Not a single unit. I don't recall ever seeing a "troop" win a top score at one of our camporees. The boys supervising each game station present an award to the "patrol" that performed best at their station. For example, the patrol that had the fastest time at the one-handed knot tying station would win a scrap piece of rope with a square knot in it. The team that had the most bullseyes at the sling shot station got to take home the left over bag of lima bean

Ed and scoutldr have nailed it. Have her register as a committee member or assistant cubmaster. However, you might consider asking her to take your council's BALOO training. A pack is required to have at least one leader with this training present at its overnighters. More is better. Just a thought in case you think you might need to justify her participation in your pack's outdoor activities.

emb021 said, "I bet they can't. Sorry, but too often the people working the scout shop are very ignorant about the insignia and where they are worn." My comment was based on my experiences with the staff at the scout shops in my council. They are knowledgeable on uniform insignia and if they're not sure on something, they have access to the uniform inspection sheets that show where insignia are worn.

Can a camporee also be a resident overnight camping program operating under BSA National Camping School-trained leadership and managed by the council or not? What a tangled web the BSA has weaved with their G2SS. It says Webelos can participate in a resident overnight camping program operating under BSA National Camping School-trained leadership and managed by the council, it encourages Webelos den-troop activities, and it says Webelos can only visit camporees. It seems to me that a "camporee" put together by a district or council where there are separate activities for the Boy Scout Patr

Some folks have said it depends on the boy. Some folks have said it depends on the position. I say it depends on both. Some boys can be the SPL their troop, Den Chief for their feeder pack, Second Vice Chief of their Lodge, Ceremonial Team Chair for their chapter, Campmaster for the next District Camporee, president of their High School NHS, captain of the Football team, treasurer of the FCA, and a member of the chess and drama clubs (but enough about my son ;-) Some boys would struggle if they were elected to the position of troop fire poker. Perusing my copy of the SM handbook

That's great and please do let us know if you think it works better.

Maybe crossram is differentiating Cub Scouts from Webelos because National encourages Webelos den-troop campouts. I'm not aware of a one night rule. I'd like to know where that is being cited from as well. I suppose "pack overnighter" can be taken literally as one night. Stosh,... that's how our council does it. Works great, doesn't it? The way our unit handles the Webelos meals is they eat with the adults so the patrols can still do their thing. We usually have something the Webelos can make like foil packs.(This message has been edited by MarkS)

Sorry to be a critic but looking at that message from the perspective of a parent that might not have attended the meeting and did not hear the announcement, I don't see the boys leading with the adults providing guidance in that message. It sounds like the Scoutmaster has decided how best to run the unit and has decided to reorganize to implement his vision. Maybe "we" includes the SPL and PLC but it's not obvious to me.

Margaret said, "I foolishly thought I could get a simple answer to a simple question. I won't be so foolish again." Sorry that happened. All Internet forums suffer from "too many chefs" syndrome" from time to time. At risk of adding too much salt to the recipe, there's a way to wear a temporary patch under the right pocket but I'm not sure if it's "officially" meant to be used for a position patch. I've mostly seen it used for activity patches like a camporee or training event patcth. I bet the scout shop where you buy your uniforms can help. Personally though, I'm with Ed... us

It's been mentioned that camporees are sponsored by the council, by districts, planned and run by an adult council or district committee, run by an O/A chapter. Other threads have mentioned a troop rotation. Some camporees appear to dumb down the boy scout program to include Webelos. Some camporees give Webelos a taste of boy scouting and provide units an opportunity to promote troop/pack relationships withtout dumbing down anything. More than one way to conduct a camporee I suppose. Certainly not a one answer fits all stituation.(This message has been edited by MarkS)

I thought the ultimate question was, "What is the answer to life the universe and everything?"

I guess I'll be the first to quote the G2SS regarding Webelos camping, "A Webelos Scout may participate in overnight den camping when supervised by an adult. In most cases, the Webelos Scout will be under the supervision of his parent or guardian. It is essential that each Webelos Scout be under the supervision of a parent-approved adult. Joint Webelos den-troop campouts including the parents of the Webelos Scouts are encouraged to strengthen ties between the pack and troop. Den leaders, pack leaders, and parents are expected to accompany the boys on approved trips." Talk about a bunch of

At the camporee we attended and unveiled our new homemade patrol flies, as far as I saw, we were the only unit where the patrols had their own flies. Our two patrols weren't 300 feet apart though. Is being 300 feet apart as important as having the patrols function separate from one another? All I know is that having separate resources sure made a difference.

Seems to me that a program can suffer because of the size of the unit--either too large or too small. Wouldn't be kind of tough to have a safe rappelling outing with 50 or 60 boys running amok?