scoutldr

Girl Scouts of Broward County Inc 4701 NW 33rd Ave Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309-6807 Phone: (954) 739-7660

Den dues of $100 payable up front does seem out of line, and I know a lot of parents that would object to that. Does your Pack also charge dues in addition to the registration fee? What do the den dues cover? How is the money accounted for? We still have more questions than we have answers. In my experience, typical den dues, if any, is rarely more than $1 a week, payable weekly. In a den of 8 boys, that should be more than enough to cover any routine den expenses. Of course, if there's a field trip that requires an admission fee, that would be extra, but those should be rare.

It's not "discrimination". It's a reality. Scouting costs money. When the Pack advancement chairman goes to the Scout Shop to get badges and arrow points, there has to be money to pay for them, or Council won't let them out the door. As a training chairman, if I want to copy handouts for a training class, my Council charges me 9 cents a copy. The money has to come from somewhere. I either "eat it" or pass on the cost to the students. Your Pack faces the same choices. Ideally, Scouts are encouraged to "earn their way" ... getting Mom and Dad to fork over the dues is not the first choice, either. Every kid can do "something" to earn money. Wash a car, mow a lawn, rake leaves, sell popcorn to add to his "Scout Bucks" account (which he can then use to pay his dues). But the answer "you can't have a Wolf badge because your mom did not stroke us a check" is not the right answer either. Have a good Pack fundraiser...then no one will have to pay "dues".

You missed the joke, Unc. You said 30'...30 FEET!!!! Even I'M not that big!!!

I get it. They can be married, as long as they don't "act" married around other youth. Kinda like other discussions we have had here. At least National is consistent. Sheesh.

I saw your response too late to edit. But that's how I found them...off the internet using a Google search. The entire District committee is listed, with their phone numbers. They are already in the public domain.

OK, I'll make a couple of assumptions here...you are in East Tennessee, probably in the Knoxville area? That would put you in the Great Smokey Mountain Council, maybe in the Toqua District? Your District Training Chair is Don Lee, ph 986-2775 Cub Training Chair is John Buck, ph 693-2618 They also had a 2004-2005 calendar posted in pdf format, but I couldn't get it to work. I would suggest calling one of these gentlemen. If you are not in their district, they will know who the Training Chair is for your district. They can probably also give you the dates of the next training...it doesn't have to be in your district...anyone can go to any training anywhere. scoutldr UT, '77 Go Vols!

Consider that if we were talking about a Troop rather than a Crew, and the two married (to each other) 18year olds were registered as ASMs, this question would not even come up. Where is the common sense in any of this? What lesson are we teaching? That rules are rules, even if they are devoid of any logic? That's why this country was founded in the first place! (faint sounds of God Bless America in the background...) The right answer should be (National, are you listening???), if they have entered into the Holy Bond of Matrimony, they are adults, both in the eyes of God and the Laws of man. End of story. The other side of the coin is that maybe married couples should not be accepted as youth members of a Crew. That privilege is reserved for those who have not yet entered into legal "adulthood".

Consider that if we were talking about a Troop rather than a Crew, and the two married (to each other) 18year olds were registered as ASMs, this question would not even come up. Where is the common sense in any of this? What lesson are we teaching? That rules are rules, even if they are devoid of any logic? That's why this country was founded in the first place! (faint sounds of God Bless America in the background...) The r

The one we use is Camp Hidden Valley, Keystone Area Council. If you want to do a Mapquest, the camp is physically located in Loysville, PA.

Ahhh...stalking and Silent Signals. More lost scoutcraft.

"It's not easy being green." - Kermit the frog Racism has no place in scouting. We must not tolerate it, regardless of the color of the perpetrator. I would explain that to the parents and ask for their help in squelching it.

Without going into details...we can save that for the safeguarded threads. Unfortunately, scouts of the younger variety may consider any weekend that deprives them of their X-box and junk food as "hazing". Too many parents are quick to agree. I didn't really understand the symbolism of the various elements of the Ordeal until many years later. Sometimes I think we are too quick to encourage OA membership to those who are still too emotionally immature to understand it.

I was in a similar situation. I just filled out a new Lodge membership form and sent it in to Council with a check. They asked for date of Ordeal, Brotherhood, Vigil, on the form, but no proof was required. I believe there is a rule that you may only belong to the Lodge (and wear the flap thereof) which serves the Council of your primary BSA registration. The flap is only for current Lodge members in good standing.

Well, we can argue this until the cows come home. You said yourself his paid registration doesn't end until December. What's September got to do with it? He is a member of the Pack unless his membership has been revoked for cause, and I believe only Council can do that. I believe if they appeal to Council, you'll lose, so you should probably discuss this with your SE before you do anything. You are denying this boy this boy because they have stated their "intention" not to renew their registration and because the boy is a handful and you are frustrated. If you want this trip to be a "plum" that only the best behaved and committed scouts can attend, then it's ok to have Pack rules for behavior, attendance, parental support, etc. But you can't make them up now and apply them retroactively. If he met the established criteria (if any) at the time you accepted his money, you have no dilemma.

I'm confused...if the boy is a PITA , and the parents have announced he is not "returning" in Sept (since Scouting is a year-round program, not sure what that means), why in the world would you have taken their money and allowed him to sign up for this trip?

Agree with boleta. The time to be wrestling with this was before they paid the non-refundable deposit. Too late now. They're registered members. They've paid. They go. I would, however, mention frequently, what a shame it will be when he can't go next year.(This message has been edited by scoutldr)

Wherever you go...there you are.

I was beginning to get a complex...glad to be back on line. Although I did get reacquainted with those other people in my house.

Bob is correct. We in the Safety profession teach that there is no such thing as an "accident". There are only "unsafe acts" and "unsafe conditions" which pose risk of a "mishap". We do the best we can to mitigate that risk by training, awareness and rules. But there is only so much we can do when someone still insists on making a poor choice.

Not to my knowledge. Which organization presents this award?

I agree...the requirements for the project are in the Eagle Scout Leadership Project Workbook. You may neither add nor subtract from the requirements. Those judging the Project (SM, Troop Committee, District Advancement Committee) should keep in mind that the quality of a project is a function of the qulity of the Leadership demonstrated, not a function of the quality of the product or of the money spent on it.

We recently received a new DE, also. It was traumatic for some, a relief for others. To each his/her own. The guy seems nice enough, and willing to listen to us "graybeards". He is my age (50ish), single, and although an Eagle Scout, has had no other Scouter experience. I think he understands that he needs us and as long as we maintain a good working relationship, we can help him make his goals, which are our goals as well. So far, so good. My advice, give the guy a chance...and don't ask, don't tell.

We have one of the Coleman units. Just a little disappointing. It is terribly slow. Once the coffee is made, you have to turn off the heat. The filter basket kept overflowing with paper filters, so we use either the filter pouch coffee, or a permanent wire mesh filter. It was a novelty at first, but we found that the large blue speckel-ware pot with some coffee pouches thrown in works just as well and is usually quicker.

I agree it's very strange that a child could vanish without a trace. SOmeone in one of the other threads suggested foul play. But if the simplest rules are followed, we can avoid similar situations. Buddy system, hug-a-tree, whistles, ... any one of those would have ensured a happier outcome.