scoutldr

Camping in open fields only.

Any Scouting function is open to any parent who wants to observe.

Correct. According to Mike Walton's website, it (and the 75th award) are worn above the wearer's left pocket, above the service stars and below the world crest.

The 50th Anniversary Achievement Award was worn ABOVE the right pocket, as I recall (or was it left?), abck in 1960. If you earned it, wear it!

Taking someone from Montana or Michigan or Alaska and plopping them down into Central Virginia is a thermal shock. Our Humidity here is legendary, and those of us that have lived here all our lives are used to it. We've had it since May. It takes about a week of exposure to get acclimated to the heat, and during that time, activity should be slowly ramped up. Even the military ceases all unnecessary physical activity under the black flag conditions we have been having for two weeks, and they have trained for it. Unfortunately, the Jambo participants are so excited, they want to hit the ground running and quickly got dehydrated. The gallons of caffeinated sodas being sold at the trading posts probably aren't helping much. Most kids won't touch water if they have a choice. If you did an epidemiological survey of those heat casualties, I'll bet there is a geographical pattern...the boys from Florida, Louisiana and Texas probably don't think it's any big deal. It's a matter of acclimatization more than a matter of water.

"Boy Scouts are taught not to put their tents under trees or under power lines. I don't know what happened in that case," Shields said. I assume that will be in the next BS Handbook and G2SS..."No tents under trees"...

Our camp chaplain is a Catholic priest and OA Vigil member.

The SCOUTS have spent $20 million on base improvements???? That can't be right.

Unfortunately, at our camp, any adult who is not camp staff is referred to as a "Scoutmaster". I don't know how to get around that, and it sounds like the other adult was too easily offended. You did the honorable thing by apologizing. Sounds like the homesick scout was handled just right. Next year he will probably have a blast. When he receives all those MB at the next COH, he will be beaming with pride and accomplishment and will have forgotten all about being homesick. "Other adults" need to be told prior to the outing that the SM (or ASM) is in charge, and all questions should be handled by him or the SPL. Scouts soon learn that with 3 or 4 adults they can always "shop" for the answer they want.

They can be worn if they are in a District, Council or Regional position representing the Venturing program. Example: summer camp staff are registered as a Venture Crew, therefore they may wear the green shirt with silver loops. Red white and blue loops are not official and should not be worn with the uniform.(This message has been edited by scoutldr)

A.P. Hill is not out of the question. We just can't spend taxpayers' dollars to support a private club.

I am located about 2 1/2 hours away from AP Hill...tomorrow (Weds, Jul 27) is supposed to be the hottest so far (100+), then the heat should break. Forecast for the weekend is mid-upper 80's with lower humidity, which is more "normal". Tell your sons to drink plenty of WATER...even if they are not "thirsty". They should not go anywhere without a bottle of water in their hand. Avoid caffeine and sugared drinks and stay in the shade whenever possible. The "flag" system has been alluded to...this is a military system based on the WBGT index, which is a combination of wet bulb, dry bulb and globe temperatures. We have been under "black flag" conditions every afternoon for the past week, which means to curtail all physical training and unnecessary activities. As I write this, it is 99 degrees outside, with a heat index of 116. I just got back from summer camp and it was brutal. About the time we got acclimated to the heat, it was time to come home and I've been freezing in the A/C ever since.

BOWLING GREEN, Va. (AP) -- Three sons of Boy Scout leaders killed in an electrical accident at the National Scout Jamboree have returned home to Alaska, officials said Tuesday. "Our hearts go out to the families of these dedicated Scout leaders who gave so much to their sons, their troops and their communities," Boy Scout spokesman Gregg Shields told reporters, his voice choked with emotion. The accident happened Monday when the scout leaders were setting up a dining tent; four were killed. Officials said the gathering, which attracts tens of thousands of Scouts, would go on as planned. Shields said the accident was still under investigation and he could not provide additional details. Asked if a power line touched a tent pole, he said: "That's what we're investigating." Advertisement The victims were identified as Michael J. Shibe, 49, Mike Lacroix, 42, and Ronald H. Bitzer, 58, all of Anchorage, Alaska; and Scott Edward Powell, 57, of Perrysville, Ohio. Shibe had two sons at the Jamboree and Lacroix had one. A memorial service was planned at Wednesday's opening ceremony. Three other adults were injured. One was listed Tuesday in critical condition at VCU Medical Center in Richmond, one was in stable condition and another was discharged. Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski issued a statement offering his condolences to the victims' family members and troop members. AP VIDEO Four Troop Leaders Die at Boy Scout Jamboree Audio Felberbaum reports some Scouts were near where the accident happened. "These individuals were killed while serving Alaska's young people - and I admire and thank them for that service," he said. Increased safety measures were put in place because of the accident and temperatures expected to top 100 degrees, Shields said. The jamboree is being held on 3,000 acres of the Army's 76,000-acre Fort A.P. Hill about an hour south of Washington. Army officials are assisting with the investigation. The youths with the Alaska troops - 80 Scouts ages 13 to 15 - were moved to an Army barracks where a chaplain and grief counselors were available. The jamboree runs through Aug. 3, with President Bush scheduled to speak Wednesday evening. The event, held every four years, attracts more than 40,000 Boy Scouts, leaders and volunteers from around the world. Bitzer was a retired administrative judge and assistant scoutmaster of Troop 129 of Anchorage, according to troop scoutmaster Ken Schoolcraft. "Scouting was what he loved. He spent many, many, many hours working with Scouting," Schoolcraft said. "It was a way for him to help others." The deaths came a day after a Boy Scout volunteer from North Carolina died at a hospital of an apparent heart attack. The Boy Scouts of America have held the event every four years since 1937. The next gathering is set for 2010, five years from now, to coincide with the group's 100th anniversary. But it may not be held at Fort A.P. Hill, which has hosted the Jamboree since 1981. A federal judge recently ruled that the Pentagon can no longer financially support the event. If the ruling stands, the Boy Scouts would have to find another location for their next gathering. A lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois contends that the Defense Department's sponsorship violates the First Amendment because the Scouts require members to swear an oath of duty to God. In exchange for getting use of the Army training base, the Scouts have spent about $20 million on base improvements that include road paving and plumbing upgrades. The Army says it uses the Jamboree as an opportunity to train personnel in crowd control, communications and other logistical skills. --- Associated Press writer Jeannette J. Lee in Anchorage, Alaska, contributed to this report.

From another discussion board: "Our State Safety Manager contacted Delaware's Fire Marshall and there is one step more to this initiative. They suggest that you place a decimal point in front of the letters so that this entry is the first to show in the phone number list."

I wash mine in one of those mesh bags like ladies use to wash nylons in. Keeps it from getting tangled up in the washer.

Welcome to the forum, SM Mike! Thanks for doing what you do for the inner city kids. They are the ones who need us most of all.

When I was involved in training, the course budget always included an "insurance fee" and a "council administrative fee". The latter was allegedly to cover the cost of photocopying, and office staff labor, etc, which I never used. I never did understand the insurance fee (which was like 50 cents per participant), since courses were always involving registered scouters and a neutral location such as a school or church, which I assume have their own insurance coverage should we accidentally set the place on fire from our heated discussions ;-). It must not have been very important, because they are now offering free training for new leaders within 30 days of registration. I agree the SE is always looking for a way to make a buck from every activity. The money has to come from somewhere, but quit milking the volunteers. We are giving enough. Perhaps the youth and their families who benefit from the program should be asked to pay more toward the fair cost, which in our council is estimated to be around $156/youth/year. A $7 registration fee that doesn't even stay local is way inadequate.

Reminds me of a Dilbert cartoon...the pointy haired boss says "Profits are down, so I laid off half the sales staff."

Source: Washington Post.com Paramedics will turn to a victim's cell phone for clues to that person's identity. You can make their job much easier with a simple idea that they are trying to get everyone to adopt: ICE. ICE stands for In Case of Emergency. If you add an entry in the contacts list in your cell phone under ICE, with the name and phone no. of the person that the emergency services should call on your behalf, you can save them a lot of time and have your loved ones contacted quickly. It only takes a few moments of your time to do. Paramedics know what ICE means and they look for it immediately. ICE your cell phone NOW!

I usually use the middle range...with lots of steam. Be careful that the tip of the iron doesn't snag the red threads of the arrow, though. They will start to unravel with time and use.

I have ironed mine many times. Hasn't melted yet. Darn thing does keep getting smaller, though.

I was reading along in amazement before I realized this thread is almost a year old! Mallway has not posted since last October. Is there an update as to how this melodrama played out?

For those councils in states where English is a dying language, what is the policy on membership for illegal aliens? Does anyone care? Or is an illegal youth on the rolls just as good as a legal one if it gets the SE a pay raise? A Scout is Trustworthy. If they see nothing wrong with breaking the laws to get here, why would they place any importance on the Scout Law? Hmmmmm?

On the other hand, why do COuncils keep forming new Districts? We recently went through a 3 for 1 split...we now need three of everything, including professional and commissioner staff, where before we had one. The excuse given was "national guidelines", however, 3 years later, we still have maybe one third of the district positions filled. There are no more units or youth that I can see...just more infrastructure.

We use the word "hump" at camp, too. It's in a song called "Alice the Camel".