mtm25653

"a gaggle of Yellow Blouses divided us into Patrol-sized groups (they were careful not to call them Patrols). They then handed out colored construction paper, school paste, and those little toy scissors with the rounded ends." Since someone complained/commented that no women had responded, I'll give it a try. I wore a yellow blouse for my first 2 years, when I was Tiger Group Coach (before there were Tiger Den Leaders). But as I've moved on to other positions (Pack Committee Chair, Webelos Den Leader, Troop Committee, Cub Roundtable Commissioner, District Training Team, and now agai

"What kind of message does it send the the cubs if you only camp in fair weather?" It sends the message is that these are cub scouts, not boy scouts. They and their parents are just learning about camping and outdoor skills. We don't expect cub families to have the full range of camping equipment, and many parents have no experience camping. I encourange experienced cub scout campers (family who regularly camp, Webelos who have been in the pack and camped for 3 or 4 years) to camp when it's colder or wet, but it is always ok to just come for the day. Most boy scouts I know (and

"What kind of message does it send the the cubs if you only camp in fair weather?" It sends the message is that these are cub scouts, not boy scouts. They and their parents are just learning about camping and outdoor skills. We don't expect cub families to have the full range of camping equipment, and many parents have no experience camping. I encourange experienced cub scout campers (family who regularly camp, Webelos who have been in the pack and camped for 3 or 4 years) to camp when it's colder or wet, but it is always ok to just come for the day. Most boy scouts I know (and

Our troop would use this as an opportunity for growth. We have a 17 yo Life scout who had similar beliefs for the last few years. The SM took the opportunity to talk with him at SM conferences about his beliefs. The SM also looks at scouting to some extent as a ministry, letting boys see good role models of religious belief (FYI, our troop has Protestant, Catholic, Jewish and Moslems boys and leaders.) Over time, something clicked - I haven't talk with him myself, but he is now working on his Eagle project, something the SM would not have allowed if he still did not have a belief in God.

Pack has a booth at the local university football stadium - stadium management provides food, etc., we provide manpower. Nets $600-900 per football game 6-7 games a year(better when the team is better). The Pack shares a game with 2 troops (and may share a game with the new pack nearby). We've had the booth for 10 yrs - difficult to get one (we had an in, committee chair was wife of manager at stadium). Another troop sells drinks walking through the stands. Troop has done a ham sale last 2 years for Christmas - barbecue hams and boston butts overnight - presell tickets. Net ~$750 a year.

We had a cold (nighttime temps in mid 30s) cub campout this weekend in NC. Our brand new Pack has about 30 boys, 14 who transferred over from a nearby Pack. We chose to camp at a nearby state park (5 minutes from my house), instead of going to the district event 90 minutes away so that families had the easy option of coming for the day or going home to get stuff they forgot/realized they needed. We sent out an email on Thursday warning of the cold weather, and including a list of tips, like dress in layers, bring hats and gloves/mittens, and don't sleep in the clothes you've worn all day. W

It's not early if you give the AOL when the boy earns it. I'm always frustrated when a den leader says they want all their boys to get their rank (most frequently AOL, but sometimes other ranks) at the same time - the boy deserves to receive recognition when HE achieves the rank, regardless of what the other boys do. Likewise, holding off giving the AOL until the crossover ceremony - if you give the boy the rank when he earns it, he actually gets to wear it on his cub scout uniform. My oldest was the only Web II - got his AOL at crossover, the month he earned it. My second got hi

'Boy scouts cannot afford to launch a massive PR campaign" But local units can notify their local papers about every positive thing they do - scouting for food, special trips, Eagle projects and awards, adult awards, parades. Ask your local paper to come out to day camp or a camporee to take pictures. Volunteer to lead the flag ceremony to open the county fair, or at a town council meeting, or other civic event, or serve as ushers at the interfaith Thanksgiving service. Do positive things to get noticed in your local community - that's the best PR there is.

I'm committee chair of a brand new pack of 28 boys (14 transfers from a nearby pack). I'm also a former Cub RT commissioner and district trainer. We are camping this weekend, and including 2 parent sessions - 1 hour for new Tiger/Wolf/Bear parents, with an overview of cub scouting, including the terminology - what is a den, pack, Tiger, Wolf, Bear, Webelos, also what is a district and council; quick intro to advancement (Bobcat first, then year rank, then arrow points/electives); who's who in the Pack; overview of calendar (PWD in Jan, B&G in Feb, etc.), then I'll take questions.

If he is in 6th grade, it's too late - just like a 2nd grader can't earn his Tiger, or a 3rd grader can't earn his Wolf, or a 4th grader can't earn his Bear. If he was still in 5th grade, just older than his classmates, he could get it (I had a special needs boy who was 12 in 4th grade when he started cub scouts - he earned his Webelos and AOL and is on track to get his Eagle, though he will likely need some medical exemptions/extension.)

Don't forget your Council Office/Scout Store as a resource - there is money available to provide uniforms to boys that can't afford them; just ask. The packs/troops in my area usually just pitch in to buy a uniform if it's needed, but we just started a new Pack (and there are a lot of startup costs - pack flag, American flag, PWD track), so when 2 boys asked for help getting uniforms, we asked council, and they provided $75 gift cards to the scout store to give to the families.

If the priest and church want to take a more active role in the Pack by making it part of the church's religious program, that's great - tell him that you look forward to the church encouraging all the boys in the parish to join the Pack. Does the priest know the pack has non-Catholic boys now and in the past? Ask him specifically if those boys need to leave the pack, and if he says yes, you'll need to talk with your DE about starting a new Pack for those boys. (Ask the largest local Methodist Church is they would charter a pack - scouting is generally part of the Methodist men's minist

In our Pack, the Pack camps 3-4 times a year (1-2 at district camporees), and Webelos will go on a campout with 1 or 2 troops, either both years, or fall of 5th grade.

Our new Pack is doing a 1 night campout in 2 weeks - here is the rough schedule: by 10 am Sat - set-up camp 10-11 - organized games for Tigers/Wolves/Bears (parents will have an orientation to Cub Scouting, and Webelos and parents will have an introduction to Boy Scouting) 11-12 - Hug-A-Tree presentation (boys get whistles and garbage bags, and learn how not to get lost, and what to do if they do get lost) followed by a scavenger hunt. 12-1 Lunch by families (boys supervised by parents) 1-2:30 - Fishing Derby (when not fishing, boys supervised by parents) 2:30-3:30 - Pumpkin carvin

"The gloom is nearly every boy over 15 is dropping out. " Why? Have they all reached Eagle and don't know what comes next? Are they involved in activities at school that conflict with Scouts, like mandatory [affects your grade] marching band activities that keep them from camping in the Fall or a heavy academic (AP/IB) schedule? Or, do they stop advancing, get tired of the same boring activities, and then drop out? Very different scenarios. If they are bored, look at your program - is there something challenging for the older boys? When was the last time you went to Philm

Our schools do still allow us to hand out flyers, but we do a lot of other things as well. Our district did ALL of these this year - not certain of total recruitment, but an existing Pack and a brand new Pack in overlapping area in a rural county got ~25 boys combined, existing pack had been about 60 boys. We are in a District and Council that has an annual increase in scouting membership. - Articles/pictures, particularly about service projects and big events, in the local papers as often as possible, to keep scouting visible in the community year round - Recruiting posters in grocery sto

Boy-led program does not mean that only boys present the program at every meeting. Our PLC plans program topics and trips for every month. Some programs the boys run (new scout stuff first month after crossover, shakedowns for backpacking, prep for events at camporees, program for campout with Webelos), but often the PLC asks an adult to put on the program. Some regular ideas in our troop: -Town attorney talks about Law - visit to the jail (the boys love this), and mock trial in the county courtroom (takes 3 meetings)- every 2-3 years -Glass blowing demo (boys actually get to blow g

One of my oldest son's first campouts - freezing weather in NC, and the pond was frozen solid enough to walk on (I've never before or since seen that here in NC in 22 years). A group of boys were standing on the ice. My son had a stick, and pounded it on the ground (ice). Then he turned and repeated, again and again, till he had turned in a circle. The ice broke, and he fell into the water (a couple feet deep). The others hauled him out. After he changed clothes, he dried his shoes by the fire. When he got home, he had to explain why his first pair of Nike's, the expensive ones, were

I'm an experienced Cub Leader (Tiger Coach, CM, CC, WDL - my youngest of 3 boy scout sons is 15) who is now Committee Chair for a brand new pack started by my church. We are blessed to have a lot of leaders like me, who are willing to give a year to start up a Pack even though our boys are high school or college age. We are all excited about leading a new generation of boys, and about creating brand new traditions. I wanted to tell you about our first Pack event. A few weeks ago, I read an article on some Scout site (don't remember where it was), called "Stop Having Pack Meetings". The

I would suggest talking to the boy about why he wants to rejoin, and asking him about the behavior in the past - what is different about him now. If he wants to join, and is trying to put his past behind him, I say give him a chance, with some groundrules - if you do x, you can't be a part of the troop. This is the kind of boy who may need scouting the most. Our troop took in a boy kicked out of another troop for bullying when he was about 13 or 14. Our leaders talked with him about what was acceptable, and monitored him fairly closely. He grew up a lot, earned his Life and was w

Our troops/packs (I'm involved with 2 each) just gather used uniforms, and when someone needs one, they take it - no money involved. Most of the uniforms are small, so if the troop gets a surplus of small uniforms, they'll see if the Pack has some small Webelos. If a bounch of boys join at the same time, usually the family most in need (finances, several scouts) gets first choice of what's available. Right now, after giving out a shirt to one new boy and pants to the other last week, the Troop's stash is basically very small pants and hemmed shorts (cut down from long pants). We'll make a

"For those of us in northern climes, a September or October crossover means a new scout is thrust immediately into cold- and foul-weather camping with no preparation." We are in the South (NC), but my second son's 1st BS campout was in March, with snow. The Leaders are prepared (had extra sleeping bags, hats, etc.) for any boys (not just the youngest) who don't bring adequate clothing. Also, it's not unusual for our Webelos to camp with the troop in December or March, maybe when it's not as cold as some places in the north, but they get some cold weather experience (and most places don'

"For those of us in northern climes, a September or October crossover means a new scout is thrust immediately into cold- and foul-weather camping with no preparation." We are in the South (NC), but my second son's 1st BS campout was in March, with snow. The Leaders are prepared (had extra sleeping bags, hats, etc.) for any boys (not just the youngest) who don't bring adequate clothing. Also, it's not unusual for our Webelos to camp with the troop in December or March, maybe when it's not as cold as some places in the north, but they get some cold weather experience (and most places don'

My youngest (of 3 scouts) got his AOL in August (just after starting 5th grade, at 10 1/2) and crossed over to Boy Scouts in Sept. It worked for us, but it was HIS choice. He was motivated to work on his Webelos stuff, and then to quickly advance in the troop, so that he could go on a troop trip to Canada the summer after 5th grade. Fact - you can't cross the boy into the troop with his brother (he's not old enough) Suggestion - encourage him to advance quickly, and let him move up to the troop after getting his AOL. He may make it at the earliest possible time (when he's 10 1/2) and