PackCC99

So then the question is, should I include the "types" of leadership for troops in a flyer to the Webelos parents? I feel that by doing so I am then promoting "Adult Tun Troops" as acceptable and normal... and I'm not so sure I want to do that.

Here is that whole section from what I pulled off the internet which was called: Guide for Selecting A Boy Scout Troop. I liked the piece otherwise but this section sent up a red flag for me:

Troop Leadership:

Troops can be run by the Scouts, by the Adult leaders or some combination thereof.

-Troops that are run by Scouts develop strong leadership skills but can be somewhat chaotic at times while the boys are learning these skills.

-Adult run Troops are more structured and predictable but offer less opportunity for Scouts to learn by leading.

-Areas where the leadership ownership must be determined within a Troop may include running the weekly meetings, establishing the annual calendar, organizing outings, and conducting the rank advancement classes

I'm working on some handouts for Webelos parents on how to pick a boy scout troop. Some of what I've pulled off the internet as far as evaluating troops says under Troop Leadership: "Troops can be run by the scouts, by the adult leaders or some combination thereof." Is that true?? I didn't think there was a choice there.... I always though boy scout troops were supposed to be boy lead.

Thanks.... that's been driving me crazy for awhile. I guess I just need an explaination for everything!

I understand what you are supposed to do... but what does it mean? Why the number 2 and where did that come from???

Can someone tell me what the "two" means during the flag ceremony?

Fuzzy - I don't know much about any other council or district other than ours... but our council offices are located almost 2 hours from us. Our DE lives near us but I feel pretty confident in saying that neither our council or district has done much in the way of FOS fundraising from anyone other than the scout families themselves. And the DE is telling me that we can go ahead with this idea... so if it was infringing on his fundraising I would have expected him to object.

I'm not saying I agree with the idea of corporate sponsorships. But it seems like in our economy it has unfortunately become a necessity to look to something other than popcorn to sustain the pack.

Look at the Public Broadcasting Station (PBS) as an example. Do your remember when PBS sponsors were individual families and foundations... and a corporate sponsor might be quickly mentioned? Well if you watch PBS now you will see that they now have what really could only be considered actual corporate commercials (including Chuckie Cheese & McDonalds). It seems to go against what they had intended be... so why have things changed? Well my guess is that indvidual sponsorship was down.... people's money is being pulled in many more directions, and they have to compete with many more commercial stations through cable & satellite.... so basically they had to change their ideals in order to survive.

I have very mixed feeling about it to be honest... that's why I posted here to see what was going on with other groups.

We still sell popcorn and we promote it as our most important fundraiser. Just seems like we need something more to supplement the program. I agree that the scouts should pay their way. We're just reluctant to ask them to do yet another fundraiser during the year... which if it's something like subs or candy bars... is probably only going to raise $200 anyway.

The families in our school district are totally and completely inundated with fundraisers from the PTO and sports organizations. I believe our boys do their best with popcorn sales... but their efforts are just not enough to support the pack the way they once did.

Any thoughts? ... because truly I'm open to advice & ideas here. We ARE trying to do the right thing and I am approaching this all very cautiously because I do not want to dive into something that compromises scout ideals.

Our council does not collect donations in our area.... so that's not an issue. But I'm being told that as long as we have the sponsorship checks made out to our charter organization, who will then need to write the check back to us, that we can do this.

We were thinking about getting some corporate sponsorships for our Pinewood Derby. Our district exec said it was fine... but I also want to be careful to not make our event into one big advertisement.

Are sponsorships something that may be frowned on at all by national or council?

Do you think there is a good balance that can be reached where the local businesses are supporting scouting without it becoming too commercialized?