MattR

I'm sorry, but that was hilarious. Though I will be on the lookout for really old first aid kits

I like it. Very much about community.

@BetterWithCheddar, I think that's about the same age my son got fed up with cub scouts. We took 2 years off and came back in time to do webelos and then join a troop. Kids in that midrange of cubs can be so far apart in maturity. Anyway, for us that break really helped. BTW, my son now has his own, so this was a long time ago.

If the only patrol activity is eating then that raises a question. What is going on the rest of the time? Is it fun, challenging or in some way memorable? If so, then do them by patrol. If not, then it certainly explains why few scouts are going. Another challenge is whether or not there are scout leaders. I'm not talking about someone with a position of responsibility patch. I'm talking about the scout everyone wants to hang out with because they create fun. Those people need the patrol leader patch and support from the adults to put on a good program. Here's an idea for you to try

I think better relief is a wet, cotton t-shirt. Or a wet bandana wrapped around your head or neck. We got some fantastic neck wrap things at a volunteer thing. They weren't cotton but they were wonderful. I guess this only works if the humidity is low but that's where I live.

I don't know the answer but if you looked in the guide to safe scouting and can't find anything then they likely don't care. Your other option is call the camp and ask. They're usually quite helpful. Good luck and have fun. It's a good summer to be in the water.

If you're using an off brand web browser, say Firefox for example, try something more mainstream, such as Chrome. I've had all sorts of problems with user interfaces on Firefox by companies that probably only tested their sw on one or two browsers. This is nothing but a hunch.

@qwazse, I beg to differ. I would not make a good cse. I'm not sure how much emphasis UK scouts puts on school work type advancement or King's scout vs fun and adventure, but Grylls certainly belonged to the later. I had never heard of him before your post so I googled him. While some people focus on his being super competitive, sucking up the pain, etc, what he writes seems a lot more balanced. Eg: competition is good but too much will ruin your life. Face it, Grylls used to hollow out a yak and sleep in it to stay warm.

Think of how many scouts knew nobody else. Add to that that the scouts knew who the chief scout was and that's an impressive tenure. I wish him the best, and that the BSA could find such a person

The page is blank. I once camped in a US graveyard in France as a scout. I went to Normandy with my parents but that would have been a great scout trip.

Fewer people read a local paper anymore, where news about scouting used to be. Bad experience/ didn't like the unit is why what percentage left scouts? If they had said no time, not interested, etc then it's an issue of other activities crowding out scouts but a negative experience is a big red flag to me. What's worse is the "people don't know they can be in any unit." I read that as whoever asked the questions is blaming the unit leaders. "Don't like the unit? Find another, problem solved." Yes. My experience was being a den leader is the toughest job because neither the scou

Unfortunately that doesn't encourage them to join scouting. I mean, if so many people know the benefits then why aren't they involved? Thats an important paradox to understand. It's just my hunch but maybe people are just parroting what they've heard and really have no idea what Scouting is about. Most scouts, when asked if they are trustworthy, cheerful, friendly, etc, will say yes because the scout law says "a scout is ..." so they must be. I've come to the conclusion that I'm none of those things. I certainly try but I'll never live up to that standard. It's easy when everything

Beauty and expensive are in the eye of the beholder, so I'll leave that be. Momentum? The membership in 1995 was about 1M scouts (so not cubs or anything else). Right before covid that number had dropped about 25% to 750k. Covid has cut that number another 40%. Time will tell if the BSA withstood or fell to a thousand cuts. I wish the BSA would focus on those first two sentences. I would add that it also helps learn about working with others. Yesterday a scout called me up asking about some volunteering info. Well, he was my first scout that joined when I became SM some 20

This is going sideways fast. I don't want to lock this thread, so please, don't let this website ruin your day. In the meantime ... Doesn't it make anyone else wonder that if we're arguing over advancement that isn't being done and the scouts don't mind and don't care, that this is really just a huge waste of effort? It seems the adults care about the advancement a lot more than the scouts do. Just maybe that means advancement isn't doing what it was intended to do. Aren't all the methods supposed to be ways to motivate the scouts to participate and interact with each other so they l

I hope they make it work. They will be forced to figure out how to do it without merit badges. That could be a good learning experience for other camps. I wonder what kind of program they'd put on for scout units. My old troop has gone to Bear Lake, which also has little to do with the BSA anymore, and the scouts really liked it.