qwazse

Sounds like your DE has learned that most crew start-ups need a lot of immediate attention. Not everyone gets that.

That's thoroughly bogus. My CC was always a dress shirt and tie person. Didn't even own a uniform. Now that I think of it, not a single MC did. We boys never questioned the notion that a boy should wear anything but a scout uniform when acting as a scout. That said, it is nice at roundtable to know positions by the uniforms.

14c. I haven't found anything serviceable for under $50. You can go to most discount shoe stores and find something close to that price. It may last a season. I'm a big fan of Timberland.

MBC's can and should take into account different boys circumstances. There is plenty of ways to knock off a given requirement. The troop-method does undermine the ability for each boy to come up with his own style. And as we see here, put's the OP on the spot if he does things a little differently for one boy vs. the others. But, even when it's not about MB's, boys can sometimes expect an SM to deliver them the lowest common denominator. ("You're making me do X while Johnny only had to do Y." or "Why do I have to do X? Nobody else does!") It's usually in the interest of the troop if t

My crew presidents had the foresight to not waste a meeting on by-laws. I did explain them once, and then on several occasions where they were a little confused about procedural issues I would reply with some snark, "Pity someone didn't write down how we should operate in our special case ..." But overall, they did fine without them.

This is one of those things that if it bugs the boys, we'd try to come to a consensus. If not, we'll go off and fry bigger fish. I haven't bought a new uni yet, so I'm sticking with red for my ASM uni. When that one explodes I'll probably just wear venturing shirts and everyone will have to live with a different shade of green. In general, your unit uniform should match the style of your unit. Your district uniform is a different animal! District/council shoulder loops are silver. Not sure how well that applies to unit commissioners. But, in my opinion, if you get assigned to

That's why our troop doesn't hold elections until summer camp. This gives plenty of opportunity for crossovers to take the measure of a candidate. (Also, that "weeds out" crossovers who never come to camp.) For venturers, if they were to be candidates, I would like to see some evidence that they have met the approval of younger kids whom they were serving while racking up those camping nights (e.g., girl scouts cadettes, jr. high youth group, jr. sailing club members, etc ...).

Looks like you have some time management decisions in your future. In our unit (ASM/crew advisors talking) ... CC can uniform however he/she sees fit. Do the work, earn our respect. Period. A CC that gussies up but creates unnecessary drama, earns our disrespect. CC is definitely welcome on any of our outings that he/she can make. Now in your case, with a boy crossing over, you might have to put up with a little coaching to keep your distance. But, we expect our CC to get to know our older boys by name and position and greet them when he/she's around for meetings. Then get to know any

Can anyone lay out the history of the Troop Guide and Instructor positions? I don't recall them being available when I was a scout.

Well then, don't tell them that I thought their by-law was ridiculous! And, if any of baggss's youth are reading this page, I'm sorry if I sounded judgmental! But,do review your by-laws every year or so. Younger youth tend to be overly strict about public displays of affection, and older youth can be overly permissive. The challenge is to find that balance where everyone can respect one another.

Thanks for the details. All of the press releases made things a little fuzzy, and I'm sorry I brought up the religion issue because clearly it has allowed tangents that may not apply to scouts affected by this issue.

And, I assume those daughters aren't Venturers! I don't think it's a problem if you are a registered MC in one of the troops you are assigned to UC, Obviously the leaders of that troop may have a different opinion.

Still not getting your point. If the scouts see the JASM patch, and the boy is a stand-up guy, won't it lend credence to THAT patch? If the boy turns out to be a slacker, doesn't that mar either patch to a degree? Obviously, I'm showing my bias. What I think this troop needs now is one PL and APL, and the older boy as their troop guide/recruiter/instructor. If their numbers double anytime soon, they can decide which of those three boys are best for SPL and who among them and these other boys should be PLs.

E92, you are thinking like a DE. STOP IT!!!! You can be more direct than you are being as UC. Take a moment with the troop's key three and say, "Most years, I dole out advice from the cheap seats, but this year I'm gonna offer you all an evaluation from a parent's and kid's perspective. This is a rare year when I'm able to do that since I'm close to so many of the cross-overs. You can take it or leave it, but here it is ..." Tell them what you know. Tell them you think that they should dig deep and make some changes, but if they don't you'll support them as best you can. If they th

I think your on the right track with your registration scheme. But the main reason a UC usually has a son in the troop he's registered in (as an MC or ASM), and that makes for a whole lot of conflicting interests if that's the troop he's assigned to commish. I think most commissioners I've met do the two-shirt thing.

An unenviable mess. But, if the CO is aware of and satisfied with the situation, you're kinda stuck.

Rat, although I agree that SPL is challenging if you have to run herd over three or more PLs, this isn't even a two patrol troop. Who cares what patch is on the boy's sleeve?

It's not stretching the requirements to request that - because of your extreme claustrophobia - counseling sessions be held as far away from within four walls as possible. The boy could earn Disability Awareness in the process of getting Camping.

A former Vietnamese scout told me that their 1st class journey was an all-night solo "camp out" on a stump in the jungle. Unknown to the scout, they arranged for the dad to keep an eye on things just a few feet away (close enough to intimidate big cats, but far enough to be completely unnoticed until morning.)

Back in my day, JASMs did guide the troop. Since the boy is all about faith-based stuff, maybe he can be the troop chaplain's aid. He could do a presentations for boys and parents about religious awards. Whatever, put him to work and encourage him to chip away at his next palm.

Don't forget road trips. I've seen scouts from Michigan on the Minister Creek Trail in PA. But for more ideas you might want to put your youth in touch with these guys: http://www.michiganscouting.org/WaterAndWoods/News/WWnewVOA2014. When I started as an advisor my VOA put my youth on to some great activities and opportunities.

RS, I would suggest you allocate your gear to be tended to by individual scouts, that way your QM report to the CO would read something like: Piece of Gear, Quantity, Last known Condition, Stewardship (scout's name) That way they could go chase down every patrol box from every patrol leader and every spoon from every first year if they so choose. It's not a bad strategy ... every scout that's able contributing to the troops storage space. You'll likely loose stuff. But you could possibly start a tradition of troop graduates signing off on gear they've returned in good condition

Welcome and enjoy advising that crew. Thanks for your service to our youth!

There probably is a middle ground. Make a plan listing what advancement related tasks you'd like to do when. A few of them might involve driving to visit a MB counselor or going to a project site. You may need a buddy or an adult with you. Ask your folks if they can be that buddy and ride with you on your learners permit to do scouting. Earn their trust. Demonstrate your skill. In a few months, they may relent. If they don't you'll have accumulate some precious hours with your folks that you will cherish years down the road.

Arrange to be with his SM four miles into the middle of nowhere. Scout and patrol have to hike there to present his gear and cook lunch for you. Tell him to bring his blue card and you can complete your interview their. Really, you could do anything. He can always choose a different MBC.