Mike F

SPL_T15, Don't worry about starting big and don't worry about getting everybody to go. 2 adults and 2-3 guys are all you need. Get out there, have some fun, get some publicity, share the excitement, and start making plans for the next outing. Spread the word in the troop. Share pictures and stories. More guys will want to go next time. Tell some buddies about it at school. You'll be surprised how many guys want to get in on the action. Good luck and have fun! -mike

God bless you, Eamonn, brother. Please know in your heart that your Scout Group isn't dead. It lives on through the hundreds of its former members, like you, who now touch - and change - thousands of lives. Like ripples in a pond moving outward from their beginning. -mike

I kept my head down when this initially came up, but I'll fess up now. Many years ago, my DE knew I was looking for a meaningful Eagle project and asked me if I would be willing to start a new troop in a part of town that didn't have one. I naively agreed. Wow what a lot of work! I wont go into the details, but even today I dont know how I managed to do it. One of my best memories of the day my Eagle was presented was a 2-troop formation with all the guys and adults there to celebrate with me. One could say that this benefited Scouting, but in my mind the whole purpose of the project

OGE, If you find something that works, would you report back to let us know? This is a GREAT idea!! Thanks! -mike

We're like most -- we have troop tents, but guys can bring their own and about half do. We have less damage to personal tents - at least one of the boys in there has a strong sense of ownership. I'm curious about an under-current about limiting tents to no more than 2 scouts - even if they're made for more (up to 4). Is this to limit after-hours horseplay by limiting critical mass? My home troop in the '70s used big old Army surplus tents that held an entire patrol - usually even on cots. (No floor.) They had a long center pole (8-10'?) and 12 ropes that pulled the tent out into a co

JimmieD, Your backpack hip straps must ride different than mine - I can't fasten anything to my belt without paying a painful price. As for the hydration systems (aka "water bags"), a very experienced packpacking SM told me a while back it was his observation that boys were more likely to stay properly hydrated if they were using the dang things because they were "cool." There's probably something to that, but I prefer to just do a packs-on stop for a couple of minutes to let guys have a breather, take a drink, and quiz everybody about condition of feet. The guys are also used to me t

Thanks, Dave! I'm actually on USAF Reserve duty right now. Nothing to get too excited about - just my annual 2-week active duty tour at Wright-Patterson AFB in Ohio. I don't really have time for (another) part-time job, but am proud to still serve in my small way. I wonder how many of our "Forum Fighters" are also vets? Speak up, gang! -mike

Eamonn, Good timing! The quote is accurate, but the question (from a former Achbishop) was really one about using hard power (military), versus soft power (trust and values). A report of the entire exchange can be found here: http://www.snopes.com/politics/quotes/powell.asp (Take a look - it's worth reading.) -mike

Gidget, I just made it to Senior Forum Member at 125 posts. Whoo-hoo! -mike

Nevermind -- I like OGE's answer that popped in while I was writing better. -mike(This message has been edited by Mike F)

Greetings, Hotdesk! I usually group District/Council activities into one of two categories: Must-dos and optional. Major events, like Camporees, are Must-do. Merit Badge days might fit into the optional category. Another consideration might be letting the 6 scouts go to the MB day while the rest of the troop goes on the bike trip. I dont like to split the troop, but might be a good compromise since some of the scouts had already signed up. Have to consider whether missing the 6 MB guys would put the rest of the troop in a bind are any of them critical leaders? I know I know

I received the following in a personal note from Bob White because he thought it might be too long for the forum. His insights, experience and recommendations for how to approach it are very good. Note that the general approach applies to a host of other patrol activities as they build teamwork and confidence. With his permission, I'm posting -- no apology for length. -mike ---- Note from Bob White ------ The Troops I have worked with have always used Patrol activities. Here are the things I have required (no this was not a PLC decision. The adult leaders are responsible for saf

Probably too late for Hops, but I have needed a pair of pliers (like on multi-tool) for backpack repairs - bending some of those pesky clips back into shape. The smaller version works fine. And only need one per crew.

Please - PLEASE - If you want to argue, please stay away this thread. Let's keep this one for folks to get ideas on places for patrols to camp and the things they considered when granting the approval. We want to hear about real places that real SMs have approved - not theoretical discussions. We also don't need to hear about places they can't go - that list is too long and all of us can think up plenty of those. Questions: 1. Where have you allowed patrols to camp without adult supervision? (Please describe.) 2. What were your biggest considerations in approving this locatio

Bob White, Thanks - after 3 pages of arguing, we finally have our first direct answer to the original question. All, Please feel free to continue the discussion on this thread. For those that don't think it's a good idea or want to dwell on BSA camp policies, please stay here. Some might consider giving their local camp or Council a call to get more fuel for the fire. Who knows - some council may let a patrol camp on its own - I know of one in Texas that allowed patrol to hike alone to an outpost location and spend the night, then complimented them on their performance the next mor

Bob - most excellent! That ought to put this bad rumor to rest - thanks! I bought all the copies on our local Scout Shop shelves, but only had enough to cover the new PLs. More copies (including one for me) on order. On a side note, if National was to decide to make a change that was contrary to current handbooks, but they wanted it implemented immediately - how would that word get out to us? -mike

Thanks, Bob. That's what I figured, but some others had made references to the others and I wanted to clarify. For those that use private land, would you please describe your specific situation? I'm especially interested in proximity to help and the ways your guys might summon assistance. For example, you might tell me about a patrol campsite on a farm in wooded area near creek with a farm house about 1.5 miles away and the guys have a cell phone to use for check-ins/emergencies. Real examples from you will help us paint a clearer picture for adults who say it can't be done.

The purpose of this thread is to get some ideas from troops that have Patrols who go camping without adults. If you want to debate whether this is smart, conditions to approve such an event, etc., please check out the other threads on this topic. Specific question: Where do your patrols go on their solo campouts? (BSA property only, state parks, national forest, BLM land, private farm/ranch land??) Thanks in advance! -mike

A discussion about scout-only patrol camping came up in our last SM Staff tagup. (I never seen it done, but I'd love to get our guys to that point!) One of the SMAs insists that the rules have changed and we're not allowed to let patrols camp without adults under any circumstances. He backed this up with these quotes from the Guide to Safe Scouting (GSS). (http://www.scouting.org/pubs/gss/gss01.html#c) "Two-deep leadership: Two registered adult leaders, or one registered adult and a parent of a participating Scout, one of whom must be at least 21 years of age or older, are req

I tend to agree - that's why I didn't include donation links that were on email from well-intentioned friend. My prayers are with the Scouts and Scouters in Connecticut, but my dollars go direct to BSA. -mike

I got an email from outfit called Conservative Alert that included the following: "Now the Boy Scouts are under attack in Connecticut, and I'm asking for your immediate help to fight back. Boy Scouts of America has asked our legal arm, the "Individual Rights Foundation", to come to their defense and stop the state of Connecticut's attempt to discriminate against them." They are asking for donations to support a court battle. I don't recall having heard about this before and the solicitation smells a little fishy. Does anybody know anything about this?

OGE, I think you've hit on something here. For the record, Scout and SM did discuss and agree on a recovery plan - he wasn't just sent away with instructions to do better next time. They discussed some options and agreed to think about it for a few days, then to get back together to finalize a plan with details. If the parents had stayed calm and the CC had backed the SM, this would have already taken place and Scout would be on his way to rank without a lot of negative attention. Instead, everybody is lathered up and spewing counter-productive words. No adult (or Scout) in the

Barry, You make an interesting distinction that we'll probably make use of before all is said and done. In SM Handbook, pg 120, under Step 3 - A Scout is Reviewed, it starts off by saying "After a Scout has completed all of the requirements for any rank from Tenderfoot to Life, his progress is reviewed in two stages: - Scoutmaster conference - Board of review" In this case, the SM determined that the Scout had not completed all of the requirements for Star, therefore the SM Conf they had was one of progress review, not the final one for rank, and he didn't sign the SM Conf bloc

Ed, I think I've already answered these, but Yes - the Scout was trained at Troop JLT which included some one-on-one time to discuss requirements of his particular job. No - he did not ever seek feedback or assistance. No - the SM did not review how he was doing. (No excuses, but new SM was in process of taking over very large troop with a huge number of other very hot concerns to work - this one slipped through the crack.) Bob White, Come on. SM is not saying it was the Scout's responsibility to do the job solo. He's saying the job wasn't done. Scout did NOT say "he had no s

Thanks for your input, so far. Good discussion and insights. A few points of clarification: 1. The POR block had not already been signed off. It's fairly common in our troop for the SM to include a discussion of scout's experiences in POR as part of SM Conf. (Same for Scout spirit.) Scout is always given a form as part of JLT with blocks to fill out showing some examples of things he does to meet the various requirements of his POR. This Scout didn't bring form to SM Conf. SM took a reasonable approach and decided to talk him though it instead. 2. The requirement does say "..