Mr ed

there are several thins that I would like to address:

First, I am a long time lurker and a new poster, I just wish it was under different circumstances. But what is, is.

Second, i would like to thank all of you for your advice and condolences. This, combined with the amount of Scouts and Scouters who attended his memorial were a great comfort to myself and his family.

Third, Mark was a leader when I first joined scouting many years ago. He watched me grow through the ranks of Scouting. He was one of my mentors when I became scoutmaster. Furthermore he was a close personal friend of mine. So I would like to thank all Scouters for what they do. The events of this week have proven, beyond any doubt, That we as Adult Leaders have a profound impact on the lives of many people.

Finally, the point of my previous question. When we returned home Saturday morning and the youth informed, our CO pastor was there and helped us through. There were lots of tears and it was perhaps the hardest task I ever had as scoutmaster. I wanted the youth to have their parents there, that is why I cancelled the outing. IMHO it was the only logical choice.

At the wake, the family asked if the scouts would be willing to stand as an honor guard. This was well received by the youth and their families. It helped make them feel they were part of the services. No scout was forced to stand, they were just informed that if they wanted to, they could.

By speaking with the youth at the wake, I realized this weeks meeting was going to be just as painful. I plan to keep the meeting close to normal. the structure will be the same, but the time normally used for skill instruction and event planning will be used for this. I plan on leading a discussion, I have written down my thoughts and feelings so that I can express all I thinking and feeling. then I plan on opening the floor. At our fires at camp we use a talking stick, I will use this same method to run this discussion. I have asked the Pastor of our CO to be with us, and another pastor who is a Scouter and a familiar friend of our unit.

I will let you know how this works out.

Mr. ed

Troop 684

Chicago

A scout leader passed away on a this weekends outing. Most of the scouts were in bed and did not witness the events, however some were aware that something was happening. They were not informed until we returned home Saturday morning. We have our next meeting Thursday. Can anyone direct me to some resources, to help our unit through this event?