scoutldr

Home of Hidden Valley! Welcome. We go to HVSR every other year in January (from Va). It was our SM's camp as a boy, and we take day trips to Gettysburg and Ski Roundtop over the MLK holiday weekend.

NOthing can be done. If the source of contamination can be stopped, nature will clean itself in a few thousand years.

We always use Hidden Valley Scout Reservation (Keystone Area Council), in Landisburg. Old camp, nice cabins, real friendly Ranger and Commissioner - nice people. It's about a 45 minute drive from Gettysburg, if you know the way.

Sounds like the new SM is following his training. Support him. Ten minutes is not going to ruin anyone's day.

"This makes it almost impossable to go to meetings without neglecting my own unit." For this reason, in my Council unit leaders are not eligible to also serve as Commissioners. Units are, however urged to encourage some of their superfluous ASMs to become Commissioners. Some units have more ASMs than they do Scouts.

IMHO, if the scouts cannot leave with the group on Friday night, then how they get there is up to their parents. I would stay out of it.

Camp Chickahominy, near Williamsburg, VA was sold several years ago due to encroaching development. The new camp of the Colonial Virginia Council is Bayport Scout Reservation.

And armed with the knowledge that most, if not all, Troops are NOT cat-free, the reasonable person would choose another alternative.

Not much. As we say on this forum a lot, we can neither add nor subtract from the requirements. Only Council can approve alternate requirements for handicapped or special needs scouts. Don't sell this scout short...it may take him a little longer, but if he eventually learns to tie knots or pass the swimmers test, the rewards will be great for all concerned.

Congratulations! I'm more stunned at the "hour and a half"! Ours used to run 4-5 hours or more...starting at 9 am. Another disadvantage to a huge Pack.

The problem with allergies is that the response is not always predictable nor linear. Today you might get hives and an itchy throat. The next exposure could result in a life-threatening anaphylactic reaction where the throat totally closes and he goes into cardiac arrest. Someone with such allergies should have this thoroughly documented on their medical forms. An Epi-pen is essential...which the Scout keeps on his person and a backup with the SM. BTW, Epi-pens are Rx only and not something you can buy at Walgreens to keep in the troop first aid kit. My wife, a school nurse, recently used one on a student for which it was not prescribed (the parent never found the time to bring one in for their kid). The Dr at the ER called her to say she had saved his life with her quick reaction, but nonetheless, she put her nursing license in jeopardy by doing so. She said she'd rather take her chances with a lawsuit than stand there and watch the kid die. EMS took over 20 minutes to respond, and by the time they got there, the kid was bouncing off the walls...but alive. As Beavah said, this must be scary for parents...but even more scary for the average Scouter who must live in fear that someone will screw up and feed the kid the wrong thing. My son's GF recently had a bad reaction after eating at Chik-fil-a. Seems the chicken is fried in peanut oil. No warnings, no nothing. So the answer is not as simple as saying "no nuts"...all kinds of foods can contain nuts or nut products such as oils, and it won't be clear to a 12 year old which ones are "safe". Have a frank discussion with the parents and make it clear the limits of your control and responsibility. It will be up to them to consult with their Doctor if the Scouting environment is too risky for their son's individual condition.(This message has been edited by scoutldr)

As a young lad, I was invited to my best friend's bar mitzvah. Upon entering the synagogue, there was a box of yarmulkes at the door for visitors. I didn't think twice, and put one on. After the service an older gentleman came up to me and thanked me for respecting their customs. The yarmulke is worn as a reminder that there is always a higher power above us. As it didn't interfere with my Lutheran upbringing, I thought it only right to try to honor my friend by partaking in his religion. I do wish the custom of men wearing hats would come back (not the ubiquitous redneck ball cap). Matt Lauer seems to be pulling it off well. (Hey, I've been sick and had to watch a lot of daytime TV!). My only problem is head size...something above a size 8. Hard to find, even in "one size fits all".

That was 5 years ago, Trev.

Bump for Lisabob...

Ron Paul's only flaw is he believes we should do what the Constitution says. UNfortunately he's unelectable because he won't provide handouts to the teeming masses, like Hillary promises to do. Obama has promised "change"...if that's what we want? I like McCain, but just can't get past his arrogant, rude demeanor. I saw it first hand after one of the debates when he said to the commentators, "Well I have to sit here and talk to you jerks, how do you think I'm doing." Not Presidential at all.

All I can say is...bizarre.

That's what scares me about the future of this country...most voters will cast their vote to whomever promises to grease their palms with the most cash in the form of handouts or entitlements (so far, that's Hillary). They don't give a flip what it does to the country or the economy ... or to our grandchildren's quality of life. Those who made bad decisions taking out (or giving) subprime loans that they can't afford, or who are stupid enough to run up thousands of dollars in credit card debt at double digit interest rates should have to deal with it without the government interfering. It's not MY responsibility to protect you from your own stupidity. Handing me a check for $300 is not going to change a thing in my life.

For a state by state listing of reporting requirements, see: http://www.rainn.org/node/348 I didn't think scout leaders were mandatory reporters in Va, but it says, "any person associated or employed by a private organization responsible for the care, custody or conrol of children". That's pretty clear to me.

I agree...a threat of physical violence, e.g., "I will break every bone in your body", should be taken seriously and immediately reported to the SE as a YP incident. It could have been an innocent "figure of speech", but we don't have the luxury of talking that way any more. Let the SE sort it out. I would immediately withdraw my son from that troop, and inform the COR and SE as to my reasons why.

There's a "long form" of the DRP??? So when we sign the adult app, which one are we agreeing to, the "long" or "short" form??? Pet peeve...asking me to agree to things that I can't see or don't have access to. Didn't we learn never to sign contracts that contained blank spaces or ambiguities?

"But Jack makes a good point, we do have to have rules and we should do our best to obey them. When we knowingly break the rules we are not setting a good example for the youth we serve." OK, I'll bite. I want to do my best to obey the "rules". Just as soon as someone tells me what they are and where to find them. "Rules and Regulations of the BSA"??? Good luck. "Guide to Safe Scouting"? It says "Guide"...not "Rules for Safe Scouting". There is no publication titled, "Rules for Delivering the SCouting Program". So, absent that, maybe Pappy is right....as long as they renew our charter every year, we must be doing OK.

Perhaps your COR should write a letter to the SE explaining it to him. Return receipt requested.

Training WAS delegated to the unit level, with the "Pack Trainer" concept. The original concept has since been watered down to the point that the position is useless. Largely due, I think to the reluctance of Council training committees to "let go" control of "their" training. Sad. We can pontificate all we want as to the value of training, and castigate those who, for whatever reason, do not place a high enough priority on getting themselves trained. Bottom line is, scouters are not getting trained, and Council training committees need to find out what the obstacles and perceptions are. Most of the comments I heard after a training course was that the course did not meet their expectations...that's the syllabus' fault, not mine. Another barrier is cost. All training should be free to the volunteer...period. If they give up their valuable time to go to training, we should meet them halfway and not charge them for the privilege.

Is a potato gun considered a "cannon" or "artillery"?

Before everyone spends it, I assume it will be "taxable income" so you will only see about 60% of that amount. I also would not be surprised to see it phased out above a certain income level, so us "rich" people will never see it. The poor people will have shiny new rims on their Navigators and Escalades. Poor kids still won't have health insurance or decent meals. I am not in favor of it, but if foisted upon me, I will put it into my Roth IRA....or use it to pay for services that will have to be cut in order to fund this fiasco.