MidwestMom

Are the parents taking their small children on walks, going bike-riding with their school age children, shooting hoops and throwing footballs with their teenagers, ...

Are the parents making exercise and good nutrition a priority in their own lives? Are they serving vegetables (other than potatoes) each night at dinner? Do they make the point that if one is going to eat empty calories (sugar, excess fat, excess starch, etc.), one needs to do a LOT of exercise to prevent weight gain.

I do agree that the design of most suburbs (no sidewalks, no parks, no swimming pools, no tennis courts, no playgrounds, no safe way for a kid to go anyplace outside his neighborhood without a car, etc.) has not been conducive to activity in children. Fortunately I am seeing more new developments that include parks, recreational facilities, and sidewalks around here.

Events such as Hurricane Katrina bring out the best in some and the worst in others. Yes, some people (including those in government) were unprepared. Some react with impatience, ingratitude, anger, theft, and violence. But as Scouters, I think we should not let such attitudes bring out the worst in us rather than choosing to follow the Scout Oath and Law. We're supposed to "help other people at all times" not just if all other people deserve help. We need to be kind to those who are suffering, but thrifty by choosing to send our contributions to well-run relief organizations; and we need to pray for the first responders and relief workers as well as the victims of this disaster.

I am reminded of the poem "Anyway" http://halife.com/halife/anyway.html.

There are plans for a couple of different rope-making devices in the Pioneering Merit Badge pamphlet.

Rudy - demonstrates leading by example by someone who is not officially in a leadership position

I haven't seen the movie on the Shackleton expedition, but after reading the book Endurance, I was impressed that Shackleton managed to keep his men alive in the Antarctic under unbelievably difficult conditions.

Skirts are available at Scoutstuff.org too.

You can order women's shorts, slacks, and culottes online at https://scoutnet.scouting.org/BSASupply/default.aspx

I am sorry. I just reread the original post and realized that they want to camp an hour north of Indy. Since they wanted to be an hour and a half away from Marengo Cave, I assumed that they would want to be about an hour south of Indy, since it takes 2.5 - 3 hours to get to Marengo Cave from Indianapolis.

Assume you are coming down I-69, you might want to consider camping at Mounds State Park in Anderson, about 45 minutes from Indy.

BSA Camp Belzer is just off I-465 on the east side of Indy - I don't know whether it would be available for troop overnight use, though. It is mainly used as a Cub Day Camp. BSA Camp Red Wing is in the Muncie area, (about an hour+ NE of Indy) but I don't know anything else about it.

If you would rather drive farther on Friday and be an hour or less from Marengo Cave in the morning, you might consider Clark State Forest. It is on the way on I-65. Wyandotte Woods SRA is very close to Marengo Cave, and Wyandotte Caves SRA is even closer.

And it is not true that there is nothing north of Indy except corn...you can also see fields of wheat or soybeans. And there are some unique tourist attractions north of Indy, e.g. a park in Kokomo has a stupendous sycamore stump in a small building which also houses an equally stupendous stuffed steer.

There is camping at Marengo Caves: http://www.marengocave.com/groups/lodging.php

You might consider Brown County State Park or Spring Mill State Park. State Parks in IN charge admission and increased their camp fees a few years ago; hunting is not permitted. Yellowwood State Forest or Morgan-Monroe State Forest (as mentioned above) are some other choices south of Indy; camping may be less expensive and more primitive than at State Parks. Deam Wilderness in Hoosier National Forest is another possibility for backcountry camping. There are a couple of Scout camps (Ransburg and another one) south of Lake Monroe.

FYI, Bluesprings Cavern in S. IN has a program in which groups can sleep IN the cave: http://www.bluespringcaverns.com/Overnight.html

I once talked to a Scouter who had four daughters, no sons. He said that he wanted to enrich the pool of potential sons-in-law....

If your troop already has more than enough ASMs, I would agree with those who suggested he join the troop committee, be a merit badge counselor, or contact the council to find a troop where he could be an ASM

FScouter,

We have studied the job descriptions in the Scoutmaster's JLT Kit and we aren't trying to reinvent the wheel, only make suggestions about how the general descriptions in the JLT Kit can be applied. As you know, all Scouts in POR are expected to set good examples, wear the uniform correctly, and live by the Scout Oath & Law. And the JLT Kit has very good overall job descriptions for each POR. But the job description have gaps that each troop or Scout holding the POR can decide how to fill.

From the JLT Kit: The Historian gathers pictures and facts about past activities of the troop and keeps them in scrapbooks, wall displays or information files, takes care of troop trophies and keepsakes, and keeps information about troop alumni. The Librarian establishes and maintains a troop library, including keeping records on literature owned by the troop, adding new or replacement items needed, having literature available for borrowing at troop meetings, keeping a system for checking literature in and out, and following up on late returns.

What these descriptions leave open are things such as

Which troop activities should be photographed?

Who provides the camera?

What facts should be gathered about past activities?

Why do we keep a history of the troop anyway?

Who is the audience for the troop history?

How does one care for a trophy or a keepsake?

And,

What information should be kept in the troop library, or, in other words, what information does the troop need that could be kept in the troop library.

When should an item in the library be replaced?

How should the information be organized?

etc.

These are positions of responsibility, which is not the same necessarily the same thing as positions of leadership. Our troop is in the process of developing clear job descriptions that set out the responsibilities these Scouts are to perform. For example:

The librarian maintains and organizes information needed for the troop's future outings, advancement, etc. If the troop has a library of books, merit badge pamphlets, magazines, tapes, videos, etc., the librarian's job should be to keep the library organized and available to the troop. He should have a record of what literature the troop has, who has it, and when it should be returned. If it is not returned, he should follow up and ask that it be returned. He should also check each year to see whether new merit badge pamphlets need to be purchased. If there are not funds for purchasing the pamphlets, as stated above, he could lead a project for raising those funds. He could also keep a file of information about activities (past, current year, future), places to camp, trails to hike, maps, courts of honor, etc. He also needs to take the initiative to recommend replacement or repair of library materials and the acquisition of new materials.

The historian maintains, preserves, and organizes information about the troop's past. The historian should take photos of each troop outing and write up a few paragraphs about where the troop went, which members participated, who did what, what went right, what went wrong, etc. These photos and writeups should go into a troop scrapbook that could be shown to visitors, new Scouts, etc. as well as used for planning activities in the future. Photos of Courts of Honor could be preserved as well. He could also record when the troop earns an award, take proper care of the award, keep copies of news clippings featuring the troop or troop members in the scrap book etc. He could keep a record of troop "alumni" and where they are now and what they are doing. These former leaders and Scouts could be contacted to fill in gaps in the history of the troop if necessary. When the troop scrapbook is close to full, he should request the purchase of a new one. He should also maintain an archive of written information produced by the troop including old troop log books, newsletters, etc.

In this electronic age, part of the work done by the librarian and historian could be done using databases, photo-editing software, etc. They could work with the Scribe in keeping the Troop web site current. Both the librarian and the historian should be prepared to deliver information to the PLC to use in planning activities, courts of honor, etc.

The one that comes to mind for me is "On Eagle's Wings" by Michael Joncas.

http://my.homewithgod.com/heavenlymidis/songbook/eaglewings.html

I thought of one more possibility. What if Garrett climbed a tree, fell and became stuck in the branches? I would guess that the searchers have been looking down more than up, but I would have thought the search dogs would have found him in this case, though.

This story has touched me deeply; my 12 year old son also just earned his Wilderness Survival badge at summer camp. It seems to me that a Scout who had just taken such training would have used it. At the very least, I would think he would have stayed put and signaled during the day before seeking some sort of emergency shelter at night. I don't know how soon the search startd, but since he left his father at 8 a.m., if he stayed put and called for help after becoming lost, he would have been found. But he has not been found, leading me to think that he might not have had the opportunity to use his training because something happened to him soon after leaving his father. Since his body has not been found (even though he was wearing red clothing), his body is either very well-concealed or no longer in the area. Most of the possible reasons have already been proposed in this thread: 1) Abduction by a human or predator (but a kidnapper is not likely to go to the wilderness to snatch a child and a predator would have left signs behind) 2) accidental drowning in a lake, pond or swamp and 3) being injured or killed in a fall to a location that has not been accessible to searchers or visible from the air, such as a foliage covered cliff ledge or cave entrance. Is there quicksand in the area? Any sinkholes? Any caves? I doubt that I can think of any possibility the professional searchers have not already considered, but it is challenging to try. My heart goes out to Garrett's family and Troop.

Columbus Outdoor Pursuits and the Girl Scouts - Seal of Ohio are having a course in October. See this web site for details:

http://www.outdoor-pursuits.org/index.htm

Occasionally the Hoosier Canoe Club gives a wilderness first aid course in Indianapolis. Unfortunately I think that they are having this year's course this weekend, and I do not know how soon they will have another one.

http://www.hoosiercanoeclub.org/about.htm

This is more of a challenge for those already trained than a training program, but, even so, you might be interested in this event: http://www.medwar.org/crossroads2004/overview.html

Ransburg is south of Bloomington, IN.

I do not have any experience with this company so I cannot vouch for them, but they do give their courses in many parts of the U.S. and, for a price, will present a course for a sponsoring organization.

http://www.wildmed.com/main.html

Do you mean this sort of event?

http://hoac-bsa.org/MeritBadgePgm.cfm

I would check the web sites of the councils in the area.

Camp Maumee is southwest of Lake Monroe. Ransburg Scout Reservtaion http://www.ransburgbsa.org/ actually has several miles of shoreline on Lake Monroe.

I have a Scout son who is enjoying learning to play bugle calls.....on his trombone. I know that for the bugling merit badge, he would have to play them on a bugle, trumpet or cornet, but could he be his Troop's Bugler and play them on a trombone?

I don't think anything hibernates in the summer, particularly Scouts. Some creatures estivate, however.

Why not the old summer standards, hiking, biking, nature study, archery, swimming, canoeing, kayaking, ....

I think he should at least be considered for a national, or at least a council, certificate (or possibly medal) of merit or even the heroism award. He was not just performing a duty or meeting an obligation. He was no more obligated to help the choking person than any other bus passenger. He did put into practice Scouting skills and ideals. If the bus was moving, he put himself at some (perhaps slight) risk by getting up out of his seat.

There is a precedent: Roberto Mercado of Stow, Ohio receivd a heroism award for saving his mother's life via the Heimlich maneuver. He was only 9 year old Cub Scout at the time.

Born in April over half a century ago in Evansville, IN.

Happy Birthday, Hops_Scout! My impression of Southern Illinois is that it would be a great place to live. I think the area around Shawnee National Forest is beautiful. Saint Louis is a great city to visit, too. My parents went there for their honeymoon.

Perhaps instead of #2 "All snakes are poisonous." it could be "All wild mushrooms are poisonous."