RMV

Here is a link to pick up one of my favorite collections of Scout Songs. They are sung by a male chorus from a Troop. The tape I have is, "Hail all ye olde time campers." http://www.tuscazoar.org/prod05.htm The one I think would be great for your show is the one that was used in the movie "Follow Me Boys." There is a great rendition on this tape. RMV

I am not LDS, but have worked with many LDS folks in the past. Here are what I have seen as the main differences for programming. They do not have Tigers or two year Webelos programs. The Boy Scout program really doesn't start till the young man is 12, the first year of Boy Scouting, they are a part of the Blazer group, which is registered in the Troop, but actually doesn't fully participate with the Troop. The younger Scouts are considered a part of the Primary group for the church and when they turn 12, he joins the Priesthood. So they have matched the Scouting programs up to th

Not being a Field Director anymore, I would imagine that they would spend more of their time at naps. When I started Scoutreach units, I always asked myself, what can I do to make this as close to a traditional unit as possible. Sometimes it was close, other times it wasn't. The chartering organization was often the deciding factor in how close we got it. One year I sent a group of Boys to Boy Scout Camp. Because of zero tolerance with knives, none of these Scouts could participate in Woodcarving. They couldn't do shooting sports either. But they still had a great time with great r

Hi There, It has been awhile since I have made a post to this forum, my new job has been keeping me very busy. I have been involved with lots of Scoutreach units in projects. Some I am proud of, others didn't work out the way I had hoped. In one project I started the program with a day camp for the whole housing project. The first day, we had 12 kids, on the last we had over 200. Transportation costs would have prevented me from bringing the kids to a traditional day camp location. Also, I would have only touched the 12 that came that first day, and even they may not have had pa

I've seen fos goals set in lots of different ways. I think your input on the goal is critical. This year we had the largest increase in FOS goal that I have ever seen. (About 20%) It was done after a group of volunteers, including several district chairmen, had reviewed the budget and saw no other way to maintain services at current levels. Without the buy in from everyone, these goals would have only been a pie in the sky thing. We are running more than 20% ahead of last year, even in an economy that is pretty depressed. Big corporate gifts are down, small grass roots gifts ar

Hey Tim, Most of the time it will be at meals, but also at flag ceremonies, and at the opening and closing campfires. I would show up in uniform as well, then let the instructors set the times you will be needing it after that. There can be other times, but those are the main ones. Doesn't matter shorts or long. Although, most camp staff I have been around wear shorts no matter how cold it gets. It also doesn't matter how old the uniform is. Once a uniform, always a uniform. If your friend is truly not going to need it aferwards, he might be able to borrow one. If buy

Hi Tim, I have been on staff for National Camp School, and you are in for a great experience. Camp School is beyond just learning about your specific job at camp. Much of the school will be devoted to showing scouting aims and methods. Because the uniform is one of those methods, there will be times when it will be needed. COPE is part of the program of the Boy Scouts of America, so the uniform for Boy Scouting or Venturing would be appropriate. Your friend should find a uniform and bring it to the school. As for two uniforms, you may be able to get away with one, but eith

I don't think the council has to be notified unless the removal is for youth protection issues. If the leader is a registered unit leader then the council would need to be notified to remove the leader from the list of leaders registered in that particular unit. The leader would then be able to join another unit, with proper approval of that unit. Most of the time the council is asked to get into the middle of such a dispute, but not always. Being asked and doing so are two different stories. The chain of command is that the COR, then the IH is the final authority witin the unit.

National does make uniforms to order. They are pretty expensive, and by the time you get them, your future Cub will probably be born. (Big assumption on my part.) Haven't heard of maternity uniforms. I would suggest going to a class "P" uniform and wearing what works, even if it isn't from national supply. Good Luck! RMV

The actual national policy on SSN has just changed. Starting April 1, all adult applications must have a SSN on them. Scoutnet will actually check to make sure the number is correct. The number is being used to do a nationwide criminal background check. Our council has been doing a three state background check for years, but this system is much more thorough. If you have something that is likely to come up on a background check, make sure you disclose it. I know in our council, we have a lot of leeway when someone comes back with a criminal background but has disclosed it, if somethin

Hey there, I don't fit any of the positions that you asked for, but hopefully can help out. The real question here is, is the committee in agreement? Then it doesn't matter who delivered the messaage. It is not an everyday thing to remove a family. That said, it is within a committees power to do such a thing. I think most troop committees try hard to not penalize youth when adults can't get along, so this decision must have a lot more to it. If you think that the SM did this on his own, call the committee chairman and ask. If the SM did this on his own, then you may find that

I would start an endowment to give good camp staff members college scholarships.

Eamonn, I used some examples that might have been why a DE would consider something busy work. I don't mean to imply that your district has those problems. They were examples of things that DE's have told me were busy work that I had given them. It sounds like you are running a great show. The whole point of my post is that it isn't you that is the problem. It is probably not the Field Director. It is the DE. If they feel they are getting too much busy work, they then need to work that out with their Field Director or that persons supervisor. I stand by the statement that ins

I'm not angry. And sometimes my DE's think the work I give them is busy work. Many of them have called me much worse than a nitwit. (Although I didn't see that reference.) They don't like keeping track of things, like how many schools have join nights scheduled. Who is covering each school? Are the flyers delivered? Is there a budget for the camporee? Which donors have been contacted to date? Which ones have been thanked? Our program is complicated and a lot of things need to be kept track of. There are many personalities that are within the ranks of professional Scouting, it i

This gets to the heart of a quality program. There are so many things we can do, having the courage to tell people that their special interest isn't going to continue is a tough job. I would love to have you in my Council as well! Some logic to help you: We are here to assist unit program, not to replace it. So many programs are spreading volunteer support too thin. We must decide what is important to us and make those programs of the highest quality possible. RMV

Part of the fun of Jamboree is camping with Scouts from other troops in your council. They talk about their troops and often both troops are better for it. I don't see jamboree as a "Troop" activity. It is a highlight experience for the few not the many. Looking for a simular experience for your troop? Try Philmont or one of the other high adventure bases. There is one way a Scout can go to Jamboree without the council contingent, the Order of the Arrow has a service crew. Not sure of the price, but it is a lot of work in the service of others! RMV

I would try putting a little patrol method into getting the food. The boys plan a menu for the weekend at a troop meeting. Have the SM approve the menu, that way they don't eat twinkies and snickers all weekend. They then schedule a patrol meeting at the store to buy the food. Have one of the parents show up to make sure they get everything they need. By the way, this is a great way for a parent that can't be a leader to help out. Have each Scout bring some money, maybe $10 each. Each one gives the patrol leader their money. The boys will be the shoppers, get the food, and will sta

I would bet that this leader is not against female leadership, only female leadership at camp. This is something I have run into from time to time. My wife was business manager at camp the first summer that I was camp director. As a DE she never ran into any trouble with this, at camp she did. After that first summer, she never wanted to return. As a camp director(3 summers as director, 11 total summers on camp staff) I found most of the women I hired to be great staff. At the same time, because there are very few of them, they find themselves getting a lot of attention. Some th

I wish all Scouter's could get along...even when they disagree. RMV

A few thoughts on FOS. I keep reeding articles in my local paper about non profits that are in trouble financially. Most are organizations that have depended on corporate giving, especially placing a heavy reliance upon large gifts. Why do this? Because it is easier than finding lots of small givers that believe in their mission within the community. In tough times, it is often the biggest gifts that are cut back. Would it be morally right for a large corporation that just laid off 100 employees to continue with large donations to non profits? Not sure I would feel too goo

I too wouldn't want to be the ASE, it's lonely in the middle as well. But I guess that is why they pay you the big bucks. (Fortunately we aren't paid in Scout Bucks!) I think that I would meet with this leader one on one. Make sure that his side of the story is told. He may well agree that the story told was what he believes, if so I would be very direct in asking how such comments fit within the Scout Oath and Law. For lack of a better description, a verbal spanking would be in order. Can't do this if others are present. He may wish that he hadn't said such things and may we

I find myself on vacation this week and using a borrowed computer that is very slow. Will respond some more when I get home, but thought I would say something about venturing. Perhaps the greatest thing someone can do to get venturing rolling is treating it in the same manner that we treat Cub and Boy Scouts. Do we have outdoor programs, training, activities on the schedule for these groups? Then we need to get some things on the schedule for venture crews. We then can't give up when the first camp fails. I work with about 25 church youth groups that are using venturing in a very

I didn't see the video's during the teleconference, too busy schmoozin with the prospects I guess. Heard that it was pretty good. I would bet that the lack of female representation was not intentional. We had more than organizations at our location, one of two for the council. More than turned in commitments. Kind of scary that we might actually have that many new units soon. Have to get the district structures ready to make sure that they stay healthy. RMV

Not sure I can say things better than the last two posts. I have always thought of myself as a missionary for Scouting. Changing lives, one boy at a time. I would imagine that all Scouters feel such. I have yet to have an eight year old tell me he is joining Scouting to get his character developed, yet my fervent hope is that we will open his mind to a new world of making choices for the rest of his life. They join because it is fun. Sometimes we forget that being a part of Scouting is supposed to be fun for adults as well. When professionals and volunteers find a common cau

Wonderful news! Amazing what a bunch of Scouts can do when they decide to do something. RMV