rjscout

Leif, The Den Leaders probably have a better feel for who the parents are and which ones might seem more receptive to helping out. I am new in my role, so I haven't had to do much recruiting, but I am starting to look for next year. Most of our leadership is from the Bears down to Tigers (parents), so we have a good base. Talk it over with your current leaders to see who they think will be receptive to the idea of expanding their commitment. Best of Luck to all Packs and Troops with their leadership needs.

Here is a better link for infoscouter's recommendation: http://old.scouting.org/commissioners/resources/13-500.pdf His link was just for the photo of the cover. This link will get the PDF file. Infoscouter, thanks for the INFO!

One great benefit that you have already found is right here. Last volunteered to help the Pack with a few things (camping and Pinewood Derby). Then the whirlwind started (Outdoor Activity Chair to ACM) and I am just a few months away from being the Cubmaster. Asking questions and reading this forum and has definitely helped me to feel prepared for my roles. Jump in to where you are comfortable. You can always take on more responsibility as you feel ready.

ManyHats, Congratulations on a successful race. This was my first year, as well. After seeing some problems last year, I volunteered to help. Somehow I was put in charge, as well as becoming ACM. The race can be a lot of work (mostly in setup WAY before race day). It is great the hear people talk about how well the race went. Now to top it next year, or at least be just as successful.

OneHour, I saw some spark in that last post. It sounds like you still have that spirit to continue. I am only at the Pack level with CM on the horizon, but I hope that I have your passion when my son crosses over (hopefully) and becomes a Boy Scout. I am having fun being back into scouting. It was all sparked by seeing scouters like you at a combined OLS/BALOO training. I was just there for BALOO, but after seeing the other scouters, I wanted to be there for the WHOLE weekend. My enthusiasm grows as I read posts from scouters like you. Good luck in your quest. Rob

I got my shirt in late October 2007 and it is "Made in USA". This does give us a chance to think about what is happening. I don't have any answers. It would be nice to get some sort of answer from National about the rational on the change. I would pay a premium for "Made in USA".

Kudu, Thanks for the explanation. I have little COLD weather experience, so I want to learn as much as I can before my Wolf gets to that point. After our local Klondike had single digit camping, my wife has already said that our son won't be allowed to do anything like that. I want to learn as much as possible before then. I have already learned quite a bit from reading this forum. Rob

I always thought the 'Trained' patch was worn to let the parents know that their sons are being led by trained leaders.

Ryetye, I agree with you on not giving achievements that aren't earned. I may be in the same boat for stopping awards from being handed out. I want the boys to do well, but I don't want to ignore overlooked requirements. I hope that you can get things worked out to be able to stay in a Pack where you have a vested interest. I can't believe that some people allow their ego get in the way of doing things for the boys. On the stopped awards in our Pack, we are actually starting to be more proactive in getting the boys to achieve the extra awards, beyond the basic Rank Advancements.

BuffaloSR793, That is close to what I have been thinking about. Thanks for adding on to my thoughts. I'm looking forward to a GREAT graduation ceremony in May. Thanks, Rob

I hate to hear this. If the Cubmaster is in agreement with you doing the ceremony, and your wife is the CC, I don't know where the Tiger DL is getting the gumption to taking control of the ceremony or anything else. The CC and Cubmaster should be able to direct what is going to happen. Maybe the direction set by that will encourage the TDL to go with the flow or go away. Best of luck!

OK, I give up. What is 'Way of the Webelos'? I did a search and didn't find it. Always looking for something to spice up our ceremonies. We had an Old West B&G planned for this past Friday, but we had a snow day at school and we use the school Auditeria (hybrid auditorium and cafeteria). Now we have to merge our B&G with our Arrow of Light in mid-March. We have some games planned by our Webelos II scouts with a Western theme. The only one I have heard about, so far, is Cemetery golf in the Boot Hill Cemetery. I also borrowed the Lasso Pencil Holder for a craft station fo

I like the idea of the coin. I was trying to think of some symbol of leadership, since they will be the top scouts in our Pack. I was thinking of an Arrowhead slide or necklace to show the point for the quest for the Arrow of Light. For Tiger to Wolf, I was thinking of carving a wolf paw and using it to stamp some clay to create a slide or necklace (is there a better term than necklace that would make it sound more rugged?). Any other ideas out there? Still a lot of time until May.

I am inexperienced in camping in the cold. I do remember freezing my rear off the one winter camping I did in boy scouts MANY years ago. I was wondering about putting the 'damp' clothes at the bottom of the sleeping bag. Wouldn't this transfer the dampness into the sleeping bag? Does this moisture get wicked to outside the bag? Of course your body will expel some moisture within the bag. I was always told that your clothes for the next day should be in you bag to warm up, but I wasn't sure if that should be moist clothes from the previous day. Still trying to learn as much as possible b

I think the Turks Head knot looks pretty cool as a slide, but I would think that you might get some flack from Wood Badge Scouters. For Indian Nations, we made an arrowhead slide with a decent looking Arrowhead, with a string and some beads hanging. We glued it to a 1/2" (ID) PVC pipe, which was held on to the neckerchief with a twisted rubber band. For pinewood Derby, we glued a Hot Wheels car to the pvc pipe. I can't claim these as original ideas. I read about them on various sites when I started reading more about Cub Scouts.

I like that idea of having an experience leader run the Tiger Den(s) for a few months. I get feedback that some of the Tiger Den Leaders are a little overwhelmed, at first. I'll have to check on that for our Pack. I think we had a Spring Recruit last year, but I was just a Tiger Dad at that point, so I was not familiar with what was happening. I hear that we did get two new Tigers who went to Day Camp. We didn't have a lot of summer activities last year. I am now the ACM and will be the CM next year. We are already looking to have summer activities on top of Pack participation in th

We try to get each scout to have a goal of $200. Some far exceed that goal, while others sell just a few items. It averages out. We are hoping to increase that next year with tables outside of the grocery stores. We haven't set our goals for next year, though.

I am trying to plan ahead to our May Pack gathering as we graduation our remaining ranks (Tiger to Wolf, Wolf to Bear, Bear to Webelos 1, and Webelos 1 to Webelos 2). I have read a ceremony about Bear scouts getting a broken arrow, where their parent gets the point and the new Webelos scout gets the flight feathers. I was thinking that for the Wolf to Bear, we could give the scouts a necklace with bear claws. Has anybody had any ceremony similar to these for Tiger to Wolf and Webelos 1 to 2? Is Webelos 1 to 2 a transition that would have a ceremony? When I was a Webelos, it was only for a

Thanks for everyone's feedback. I was hoping to get some positive posts. Nobody in our Pack has done this before, but we are looking for something that would generate some money for a new Pinewood Derby Track. Our old one is pretty bad. We have borrowed a nice aluminum track for last year and this year. Our CC wasn't sure if this would fly with Council, so I wanted to get some opinions. I'll let her know that we should proceed. We have several leaders who are enthused to do this, for the clearing our garages and to generate some funds. Thanks again, rjscout

With the quote from BSA's Unit Money-Earning Application - "The product must not detract from the ideals and principles of the BSA." Would a Garage/Yard/Rummage sale be considered a good Unit Fundraiser within the eyes of the BSA? Have any units had issues trying to get such a sale approved? I have seen a few links that show such a sale as a good source of funds. Are there different requirements between Troops and Packs? If Council will not approve of such a fundraiser, would it be legitimate for a CO, such as a school PTO, to hold the sale and give the funds to the Pack?

That sounds pretty cool. My wolf son has been a fan for several years. We had at least three PWD cars decorated with Star Wars themes. The boys will LOVE it.

Thanks for all the responses. I was asked to be the Outdoor Activity Chair and then the ACM for the Pack. They are grooming me for the CM position next year. I have been the defacto ADL since September, but was never asked to officially take that position. The DL is an Eagle, so he has the den under control. He is thinking of getting a uniform, but hasn't done it, yet. Each scout in our den has a parent (or two) who is a leader within the pack at some level. Rob

Great flag retirement ceremony. I was thinking of trying to include a flag retirement in our spring campout, but some of the leaders weren't sure the younger scouts would be able to keep attentive. **I recommend a small pile of wood saturated with lamp oil** I am not sure that the lamp oil is allowed. The Guide to Safe Scouting says: The use of liquid fuels for starting any type of fire is prohibited. Rob

I am a new ACM for the Pack, but I also help with my son's Wolf Den to have two deep leadership. The Den Leader does not wear a uniform. Should I wear my ACM uniform to the Den meeting, or would this be upstaging the non-uniform Den Leader. If I were to visit a Den as the ACM (which I plan to do in the near future to all of the Dens), I would wear my uniform. What are your thoughts? Rob

Some great input. Thanks for the info. I guess I should start attending some of the PTO meetings with my wife. I am new to the Pack leadership, but jumped up to ACM in November and will be CM for next year. I want to maximize our relationship with the CO (PTO). Thanks again! Rob