RememberSchiff

Gawd I hope this news report is wrong about these turnips being in Scouting.

"A group of Boy Scout leaders is potentially facing felony charges for destroying a rock formation millions of years old in Emery County. The trio of men was adventuring in Goblin Valley State Park when they decided to film themselves knocking over one of the formations, known as "goblins."

They said later it appeared to them that it was ready to fall and might hurt someone."

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/57012279-78/rock-goblin-valley-formation.html.csp

So much for Leave No Trace

I'm saddened when I think about uniforms. I feel that the boys have really lost something key to scouting. The uniform method has no chance.

The BSA really screwed this up somehow, a long time ago.....

St. Louis started SFF 28 years ago and I am told purposely scheduled it during deer season and shut our properties down those two weekends. Annoys quite a few dads. Anyone ever hear of a scout getting shot on BSA property in season ?

We collect in Feb or March depending on weather. The collection is harder with snow, but need is greater. Some years, our PLC planned it during Scout Week which worked well.

When does your unit participate in Scouting for Food?

For us,

Fall weekend backpacking trips tend to be shorter, fun, intro/training activities - proper gear, water management, cooking, hiking, map reading,..Spring weekend backpacking trips tend to be longer and more challenging (terrain, mud season, bugs) as preparation for summer treks.

My $0.02

You do not have to worry about the government shutting down. The President and the Congressmen are still going to get their salary!

In our Pack right now the CC excuse is "to protect CM health", the CM has MS. The CM has been CM since early July., but been in leader positions for 4 years. For the past month the CC has pushed the CM aside during Pack meetings and taken over, held leader meetings without the CM knowing, and Now is forcing the CM to step down and has called a meeting of all parents and the DE to be present when this is done.

The "when I got Eagle" thing just doesn't apply here. I finished in 2001, and the kinds of hoops the scouts are expected to jump through now are nowhere near what I had to do. Even with the newly streamlined paperwork, it's a new world out there. The SM simply isn't the point man in all cases in most troops I've encountered along the trail.

If your District has no active Eagle Review Board in place with names and contact information clearly stated on the Council website, the troop committee will serve as the sole review board by following the guidelines stated in the Eagle Workbook and Eagle Application. It is important that there be a consistent core of reviewers who interface with the Eagle Candidate.

We have Districts about without Eagle Review Boards or even a District Advancement Chairman. These districts tend to use ad hoc review boards, e.g. "Tell you what, just bring your workbook to Round Table and we will round up some folk." Just awful.

My $0.01

If reading the pamphlet included the information you need to complete the process, you would have a point, Base. But how much of the real, actual approval is left up to the local districts and councils to implement. Hell, the process here has changed two or three times SINCE the new workbook came out.

 

We have long had a couple ASMs and myself who work with the Scouts on their Eagle projects. Before the new workbook came our, ours was a council that had a two page checklist of required touch points proposal were required to contain -- one of which was a copy of the completed checklist cross referenced with the page numbers where each item could be found. One of my ASMs is a black belt Six-Sigma instructor and he thought the process was insane.

 

Now that the proposal process has been streamlined, we don't have to focus so much on paperwork and BS. One of my ASMs is a draftsman and helps the boys with the plans for their projects (typically earning Drafting MB along the way). For a number of reasons (mostly tradition) our guys tend to do projects which include some sort of construction, so there is a fair bit of ejamacation the scouts need. -- when in your Scout career are you taught to build a picnic table or lay brick for a fire ring?

If there are adults in our troop that can be MB Counselors, we have "Field Days", where the scouts come and work on finishing, or redoing a lot of the requirements. We also use campouts to provide an opportunity to finish up these loose ends - it helps make a good campout sometimes. As a scoutmaster, I may not have final authority over the MB process, but I can help facilitate it personally, or provide the opportunity. Reaching out to the community: professionals, colleges, and other organizations to help may require extra effort, but the relationships it develops really makes a difference in making scouting a greater experience. Also, having the scouts associating with other individuals increases their view of the world. It increases ambition, interpersonal skills, and knowledge.

 

Specific examples include: Outdoor Program at the local university for Climbing, Survival Skills, and Cycling. ROTC program for orienteering. Professional Surveyor for Surveying. Engineers for Pulp and Paper. Chemistry Grad Students for Chemistry. Many organizations are always looking for service hours also.

 

Some may say that this is the responsibility of the scouts, but we are there to facilitate the program for their sakes. And to conclude, the scouts will start using and even developing relationships with other people in the community.

Yeah the merit badge system is broken but we scout on and deliver the promise of Scouting - teaching scouts to become men step by step.

If there are adults in our troop that can be MB Counselors, we have "Field Days", where the scouts come and work on finishing, or redoing a lot of the requirements. We also use campouts to provide an opportunity to finish up these loose ends - it helps make a good campout sometimes. As a scoutmaster, I may not have final authority over the MB process, but I can help facilitate it personally, or provide the opportunity. Reaching out to the community: professionals, colleges, and other organizations to help may require extra effort, but the relationships it develops really makes a difference in making scouting a greater experience. Also, having the scouts associating with other individuals increases their view of the world. It increases ambition, interpersonal skills, and knowledge.

 

Specific examples include: Outdoor Program at the local university for Climbing, Survival Skills, and Cycling. ROTC program for orienteering. Professional Surveyor for Surveying. Engineers for Pulp and Paper. Chemistry Grad Students for Chemistry. Many organizations are always looking for service hours also.

 

Some may say that this is the responsibility of the scouts, but we are there to facilitate the program for their sakes. And to conclude, the scouts will start using and even developing relationships with other people in the community.

From http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/BoyScouts/GuideforMeritBadgeCounselors/MBCounselorGuide.aspx

"A Scout first expresses an interest in a particular merit badge by letting his unit leader know. To get him started, the leader gives him a signed Application for Merit Badge (blue card) along with the name and contact information for a district/council approved merit badge counselor. The Scout then contacts the merit badge counselor and makes an appointment. The merit badge counselor sets a date and time to meet with the Scout and his buddy, and may suggest the Scout bring the merit badge pamphlet along with the blue card."

P.S. Many "can be MB Counselors" but one needs to "really be (registered) MB Counselor" to sign the blue card.

Two-ply TP

These merit badge days are the byproduct of the instant gratification world we live in....go spend all day somewhere, you better have something to show for it at the end...partial? not good enough.

That would be one solution though, nobody gets signed off at the fair or camp, have everyone come back with a partial and have them meet with a counselor when you get back to sign off complete.

Well brettw777 time to get involved and make sure scouts are not short changed. First start small as the model MBC. Set expectations, in writing, up front with scouts and their PARENTS.

My name is Bret Maverick, you have asked me to be your MBC for nnnn and here is what we will be doing and what I expect from you. Define your availability. Set class size. Summarize classes and state there will be 3,4,6 meetings to meet the merit badge requirements. You will not accept partials from summer camp, merit badge universities as you need to be sure the scout has actually done the work. Make it clear this is your class not the SM or Council, don't like it, then seek another MBC.

Scouts

1. Read the merit badge pamphlet

2. Arrive on time, in uniform with merit badge pamphlet

3. No prior work accepted, clock starts at first class.

4. This is a hands-on brain-on lab, not a sit on yer butt tune-out class.

5. parents can attend, but not interfere

6. Give me your best work because that is what I am giving you.

...

Fail to do the above and I will provide a partial merit badge card as a parting gift.

Succeed and you EARN Merit Badge nnnn

Welcome to Merit Badge nnnn.

The hardest part is dealing with parents whose expectations have been lowered by Council merit badge camps, District merit badge colleges, and yes Cub Scouts. To them, paying $ and attending guarantees a merit badge. Expect parents and scouts to find and promote these quick and easy paths. This is where you need a SM with a pair to say NO. Hey another volunteer opportunity. Don't get discouraged if your class is just your son and his buddy.

Step 2: Ask like minded adults to help you with your merit badge classes and hopefully plant a seed that they become merit badge counselors too.

My $0.02,

Hacker scouts bow to continued BSA legal pressure and decide to change their name.

http://hacker-scouts.org/blog/hacker-scouts-and-bsa-decision

Hacker scouts bow to continued BSA legal pressure and decide to change their name.

http://hacker-scouts.org/blog/hacker-scouts-and-bsa-decision

I did not have an eagle coach or mentor or buddy when I did mine......I had a half a dozen paged ditto packet I followed.....When I had a question I went to the scoutmaster....

 

 

While this isn't PC or the soft warm and fuzzy they want the BSA to be...........Do away with them......or have a hand full of experts per district to answer the question....

 

 

We don't need someone chasing an Eagle along making sure he is making progress.

I must have missed the memo(s) on this, but last January some minor changes occurred with the Eagle Project workbook. One note there is an "Eagle Coach" which is a role as opposed to the Eagle Advisor which is a position? The Eagle Coach role, depending on what one reads or hears, starts AFTER the project proposal has been approved or BEFORE. The Eagle candidate is NOT required to have an Eagle Advisor or have anyone serve in the role as Eagle Coach if he so desires (old school is still possible )

So some polling questions

I see this software supports "sticky" topics in forums. Is this handled by any moderator?

For example, Kudu posted this topic The Patrol Method of William Hillcourt containing much useful reference information. Seems to be "sticky" topic candidate.

Definitely would make a great scout song. A couple variations come to mind, e.g., What Does the Fox Say, the Scout Knows...

A side note, this would make for a good question or two at a Board of Review - "Tell us your experience in contacting a merit badge counselor for ..."

Odd situation, talk to your Pack Committee and Charter Organization and ask questions. Appearances can be deceiving.

A cubmaster cannot "move' his or her Pack. The Charter Organization (church, VFW, etc) owns the Pack and provides the meeting location (which can be moved, but 80 miles? unlikely). A Charter Organization may drop a Pack and another Charter Organization (80 miles away?) but within that scout Council could then recharter that Pack. Any awards would follow along with the Pack.

A cubmaster can move to another scout council and with other adults and another Charter Organization form a new Pack. If the old Pack number is not in use in that Council, then it could be issued to the newly chartered Pack. So there could be as many Pack 154's as there are Councils (~300) in US. A new Pack would not have any awards, Gold or otherwise. The Cubmaster could earn a square knot for starting a new Pack. I suspect the Facebook page is owned by the Cubmaster and not any Pack.

My $0.02

?? I think we agree that checking temperature is important. I did not mention a particular method. I have not used a thermometer except at home with oven and microwave. If that makes me paranoid, okay.

Yes but I was thinking with less talk and more show

1. Explain the importance of washing your hands including how often. Show how to properly wash your hands in the kitchen and in the field. List the diseases that may spread from improper washing and their symptoms. How should bathroom trips, runny noses, and sneezing be managed (No snot in the pot!)

2. Show how to properly clean and store pots, pans, utensils, water containers. If you use cast iron cookware, show how to clean and season it.

3. Explain common injuries such as burns and knife cuts and show how to treat those injuries.

4. How do you keep food safe and determine if it is not? (Add a lot of detail here on checking temperature, bulging containers, freshness dates, cleaning vegetables, cross contamination, etc.) What illnesses can occur from the improper storage, cooking, and serving of food. How do you recognize and treat?

 

My $0.02