qwazse

Those things are important at face value, so it is a little tough to report on why. But, since my family had us doc at a marina with wifi, I've made my coffee and the sun is rising on the first clear day of our tropical vacation, I simply say this: Down to the semi-retired cab driver who took us from the airport to help us provision, then to our slip (and did not charge us for a full hour fare), to the businessman in a fishing charter opposite ours... Everone I talked to is convinced that scouting does something very good for a youth. What could it be? Lots of folks take their kids on adventures. Bears don't care about what uniform a hiker wears. But duty to God and country, helping others at all times and keeping fit to do so ... plus a short list of traits needed to fulfill that duty ... set the bar for a young man to achieve greatness. Vows are like loadstone, they set a needle to align north-south once that needle floats freely. We scouters recognize it, and a lot of other people were scouts or have met scouts recognize it too.

Mostly, the CC recruits adults and they sort things out among themselves. Our current CC, from the half of the troop merger who had younger boys, was more hands on with the schedule (engineer, go figure). Now that we have the PLC clicking better, he's more relaxed. This has been a pretty crappy year for me, so the SM has had to call on other ASMs to step up. They did. We also get adult applications in boys' hands as soon as they turn 18.

Most summer camps near swift water will offer that as part of BSA guard training. Many outfitters know who to call about such things. BTW - the biggest challenge about a specialty like acquatics is keeping up the certifications. It's a lot of time out of your schedule to stay trained. So, if folks would like you to offer something (e.g., pre-camp swim checks so they don't "waste" time in line for it at day 1 of camp) schedule it on your terms, or not at all. On the positive side, it is a tremendous privilege helping that scout who's been stuck at 2nd class for 3+ years master those 100 yards.

Interesting to note: The world crest is not drawn ... Nor is the US flag. Censoring any patriotic theme? Second class rank by color, but fleur-de-lis? Cub Scout diamond on belt. PoR, but no patrol. Either the guy's confused or trying to convey confusion.

It really starts with the CC. He needs to be on the hunt for adults to add to the depth chart. You need to help him. Together, you need to find families/friends with property to camp in. If not. Forget overnights every month. Work on day activities theta get the boys out in the community visiting local officials or doing service projects. Q: where do your scouts who age out go?

“It’s 2018, and a person who identifies as a metronome still can’t join the Boy Scouts. Let that sink in,” That would explain the profoundly arythmic campfire songs.

Well there's your reservoir! All those bagged and tagged biting specimens that everyone tossed aside but forgot to kill!

Mission statements in general are pretty novel contrivances of corporate culture. I remember taking on roles in church leadership and a Wharton grad said we needed one, (because, really, the Good Book wasn't quite cutting it). My brother was working on management theory about the same time, and he pitched the same thing to his church, who had even more ancient roots. I suspect this happened in a number of non-profits, and figure BSA was one of the leads in this, given how it actively sought leaders from it's most active corporate donors.

Cross-posting ... Agree that first-draft names rarely stick. Things will eventually get called what folks want to call them.

Technically, in pioneering, the splices and mats (like the turkshead flattened out) fall under macramé. So we're already there. Hashtag parachord bracelet.

This boils down to one of those "until you've walked a mile in their shoes" situations. In general, I trust boots-on-the-ground scouters to know what it means to do a service to their children. I am concerned, however, that those cubs will be perplexed when they cross over into a troop that makes the lady cobra patrol camp 300' away from the gentleman rat patrol!

One perspective is that BSA started down the road to faithlessness when it started purging adults, girls, and godless from advancement. This attempts to restore that trust of delivering the promise of scouting ... rewarding achievement rather than identity.

Around here the general public refers to them (Packs, Troops, Crews, Posts) as scouts, meanwhile GS/USA were girl scouts. I'm not sure how that came about, either from casual use of language or foreign influence. My Italian exchange student, for one, was quick to correct, "I am a Scout. Not a Girl Scout." Interestingly she also found the distinction between "scout" and "scouter" to be odd. It bothered her when I would refer to when I was a scout. She'd interject, "What do you mean? Once a scout, always a scout!"

You typically only get that acre lot from a generous farmer or landowner. Some community parks/fairgrounds will give that, especially if the boys plan on doing some service. Game lands often have fields that large. Many wilderness recreation areas insist on that kind of spacing - in groups smaller than the average patrol, but that also predicates that your boys are have become disciplined in things like bear bagging, water purification, Leave no Trace, etc ... In the hills of WPa/WV; however, 50 feet can feel like a mile ... easily out of sight and sound. Where allowed, I'll bring my dog, who doubles duty as SPL patrolling each site. Problem is, he hates cyclists (we've learned the hard way), and we have to find places that don't appeal to mountain bikers! So, having him along is a rare treat.

Not bad. One part boy, one part America, two parts scouts. Hopefully girls will realize that means it's for them!

Early 80s bumper sticker,

Ours doesn't but I wish they did. My wide-brim leather hat wore out, and the company that made it, no longer makes that width.😪

Welcome. Thanks for your service to youth! Look forward to hearing your ideas.

Mixed feelings about the exemption. {Insert identity-vs.-achievement rant here.} {Insert, but- yeah, to do it right a reconciliation commission would need go clear back to 1970 or whenever the first tag-along did everything the award required.} The clever move would to remove the age 18 deadline altogether, then tell those young women that ASM while starting a BSA4G unit would fulfill the PoR requirement. But that would cause NESA to lose $$ as the actual # of Eagle awards plummet because last-minute scouts will procrastinate in perpetuity without a "last minute" to scramble them.

Those who do this regularly can explain why, but it's a lot easier to work with a "transfer report." Also post-modern nomads tend to put their faith in database output, but I don't think that's a prime factor. Anyway, have fun first. Patches will follow.

I am holding off bringing this up for a month or so. But here's my pitch: I will share the outline I got from Wendy Shaw's talk from training (and posted for you all a while back). I will then point out that I have not seen 5 girls willing to form a troop nor a female adult willing to be trained, but if you are out there, I have myself and a willing CO. The unknowns are the existing troop committee and PLC who may decide how "linked" they want to be. My house has a doorbell and a phone ... tag me before five teens come and ask to restart the Venturing Crew.

@Bobbys_mommy I wouldn't worry too much about the records. He has sign-offs in his book, right? At this level, it's not too hard to go over the pack calendar and cover the things he had completed there. Then, most things that he completed at home, you could go over with his new den leader. That's the point about dens, boys are able to able to get the individual attention they need. Speaking of individual attention. The downside of a den is it might become pretty clear pretty quick that your boy is an instigator. That's a good thing for a parent to know, but it might be tough on the boy as he now has to unwind some of the conduct that led to this situation. (I'm not saying his conduct wasn't partly or wholly defensive ... just that I've found that boys coming from such situations have a hard time letting their guard down.) An honest den leader will let you in on what if anything is going on. You just have to be prepared to work with it.

LOL. In my neck of the woods, I call that an entitlement mentality. CO gives us space, with that we hold a fundraiser that covers lots of costs (including most weekend camp fees). Pastor and parishioners attend happily. In return, life scouts knock on the CO's door asking if there are projects they can do. Kids who can't afford camp often get helped by anonymous donors. But, we do experience other "down-sides" to this arrangement. The COR does not keep close tabs on us. The current one was an explorer, and experienced a similar CO, so it suits her just fine. I'm sure if she made more effort, we would communicate more and be more efficient.

The most outdoor-oriented GS/USA troops are ones who have leaders in their mid-twenties (who are not moms), or they are leaders who already work closely with BSA and are translating the boys' program to their girls. The problem of "play-it-safe" SMs (both male and female, but mainly the latter) is imploding a lot of BSA units. I have two young relatives who quit their troop because the promise of scouting wasn't being delivered. Last I checked they were playing gaga ball in a pit at a Trail Life gathering. I don't blame boys who move on if 14 girls just "show up". The best-case scenario is one mom or older sister or retiree taking on mentor-ship with your best ASM. (I find senior citizens to be some of the most trainable people on the planet when it comes to this stuff.) The youth start their hiking/camping, inviting a former SPL/TG from among the boys' troop to help with basic training. Any CO who can't deliver that, shouldn't start. Like the Good Book says, "Count the cost."

This is where many of us take for granted that we've each gravitated toward the CO's who give us the latitude we feel we need to deliver the program we think we must. As a scout, I was always puzzled why a troop started up on the same side of our very small town as my own troop. Reflecting on it, I've come to realize that my SM, who was more than happy to have some rough guys as ASM (all good as gold, but not necessarily paragons of the church who sponsored us), was not the kind of guy everyone wanted to be scouting with. Although strict regarding manners and generous towards missionaries, he would be nobody's agent of protestant reformation. Same for the committee. Clearly, the church hosting our troop expected them to leave any preaching to the professionals. I'm sure it caused no small amount of discomfort to parishioners that we would sometimes attend scout Sunday and the Catholic church and share activities with the LDS troop. The Baptist church's troop, I believe, was somewhat different. Camp less. Preach more. Watch which lines you cross. Needless to say, certain types would work well with one CO, but not the other.