SeattlePioneer

> Presumably all those people who were born by Cesarean Section aren't natural born citizens, either?

Personally I favor elections for SPL every six months. Politicans have used the method of "rewarding your friends" as a means of handing out offices forever, and there can be good reasons for doing so. Just hope the SPL doesn't plan to "punish his enemies" too!

I like "marching bands" of Cub Scouts. Have every boy bring a noisemaker of some kind. I like bringing a pot and something to bang on it ---- I give children watching the parade the opportunity to bang on the pot, which they usually enjoy.

Also, I strongly recommend that monthly checking account statements be sent to someone OTHER than the treasurer. To the committee chair if you have one who is wide awake or the Cubmaster. You want someone reviewing the checking account statement to look for anything out of place. That's the most fundamental double check on a treasurer that's available, in my view.

A year ago when we appointed a new treasurer, the bank wanted minutes of the meeting approving the new person as treasurer. So I wrote up the minutes and signed them as Cubmaster. No problem. My CC has now been serving in that office eight months. She sent out an e-mail asking people to volunteer for various pack positions, including treasurer. It's generally a bad practice to ask for volunteers to fill positions. You want to identify the best person for a particular job and ask them to serve. This is especially important for a treasurer. Sigh.

Ummm. I don't use school open houses to sign up Scouts. 'Way too many distractions. I use open houses to invite boys and families to come to our sign up night. In particular, this fall I'm inviting boys and families to come to our simplified Raingutter Regatta to make model boats and RACE them against all their nbuddies to see who has the FASTEST boat! I have some examples of painted and decorated sailboats, and a couple of raingutters so boys and parents will get the idea. Have a flyer to hand out to families with the date, time and location of the sign up night. You need to aggressively solicit the interest of boys and families at open houses. If you are a wall flower, 99% of people will pass you by. When I'm there, I solicit about 90% of families passing by to come to our recruiting event. I missed out on a career as a carnival barker....

> So a lot of the gay rights advocates are bigots to boot?

I took Wood Badge in 1985. With 25 years perspective... Mostly Wood Badge gave me a deeper sense of "working my ticket" over a life time. There's some evidence that idea has been effective, since I'm Cubmaster/Unit Commissioner/Cub Scout Roundtable Commissioner/District Membership Chair and such. Over the decades I've honed and improved my leadership skills, but that's mainly the effect of experience with various jobs and responsibilities, not leadership skills taught by Wood Badge. Frankly, I've never considered taking the new Wood Badge course. Taking it would require me to quit doing some other Scouting task to make time, which would be counter productive to Scouting in my view. So frankly, I wouldn't pressure an experienced Scouter to take Wood Badge unless he wants to do it. He's already working his ticket, and presumably has been doing so for many years already. He's already learned the most important thing Wood Badge has to teach in my view. (This message has been edited by seattlepioneer)

While I don't defend the methods described, we are only getting half the story. Is this a unit that routinely fails to turn in membership applications until rechartering? Why has it been necessary to make repeated calls? The council is entitled to collect the dues money and the District Executive's job depends on getting that job done.

As a practical matter, who has influence over decisions to appoint leading council level volunteers?

Hello Merlyn, Well, for openers, it's OK for a husband and wife to sleep together on an outing, but I imagine some eyebrows would be raised if SEVERAL husbands and wives who proclaimed themselves to be in a long term relationship shared the same tent.

Should the same tolerance be applied to polygamous "life partnerships"? What's the difference?

Heh, heh! I like chaoman's idea!

Hmmm. I hadn't considered the employment angle. My aim was to reimburse families for the cash they spent to join the Cub Scout program---- $5/month BSA membership and pack expenses (Sept-Dec) + $10 for a Cub Scout den book. That's $30, which could be a barrier to families in our low to moderate income area. Last year we charged $20 for membership and pack dues in December and left it up to families to get a den handbook. A good many never did. Any suggestions on how to accomplish the same purpose in a different way? I suppose we could award den handbooks to boys when they sold a total of $240 of popcorn, but of course some people do buy their own books, and we need to keep things simple. Last year our 2011 BSA dues + pack dues was $5/month = $60, which was paid if a family sold $200 or more in popcorn. Most did. A few paid $60 and sold nominal amounts of popcorn. This year I'm figuring the same $60 BSA & Pack dues. Pay cash or sell $200 in popcorn. The question --- what then? Offering payments to Scout accounts seems like a good way to motivate parents to help their Cub Scout sell popcorn. I'm figuring paying 25% of SALES beyond the initial $200 to Scout accounts. The pack would collect the remaining 10% of sales, for a total commission of 35%.

I agree with Qwazse--- The JTE can provide a useful guide to unit leadership to avoid shortchanging parts of the problem the BSA considers to be useful and important. By and large, I think they are correct. It's also practical leadership training for adults that may be new to planning and running a program. Adults who get used to using formal goal setting methods are probably going to be more able to take on bigger and more complicated leadership program as Scouters, employees and in other parts of life.

We are refining the plan for sharing popcorn commissions with families this fall. Looks like families selling $200 will get their pack membership for 2012 paid. New families joining the pack this fall will pay $30 pack dues for 2011 and get a den handbook as part of that price. If they sell $300 in popcorn, they get the 2012 dues paid and the $30 reimbursed in cash. Other than that, families will get 25% of popcorn sales credited to their Scout account to pay for pretty much any Scouting costs or fees. Webelos transferring to a Scout Troop will get any credits transferred for summer camp or other Scout expenses. That's what we have so far, anyway. We are aiming to give families the option of paying cash for Scouting expenses or selling popcorn to cover those expenses, whatever they prefer.

What kind of BSA recognition award should this man receive?

We do our best. After that it's in God's hands.

Congratulations on a terrific program for your Scouts.

Coins?

Personally I wouldn't leave a lot of free time. I'd plan activities for boys to do together as dens. Keeping boys busy is a main key to avoiding problems. If you don't keep boys busy, they will find activities of their own to do, with fighting and arguing two examples of the kind of low quality play boys make for themselves rather commonly.

It's really Jeb Bush's turn in 2012.

Hello Joe Bob, What are the methods your pack uses to sell a LOT of popcorn?

Hello Scoutfish, It might be a tough sell to persuade families to abandon a program they like to join an unproven program that's closer. Still, if I had a successful pack and a neighboring start up was looking for members, I'd invite families in my pack to consider joining the new pack. That might not be the sentiment of a lot of packs though, which tend to be proprietary.

I'll give up on the popcorn sale when people quit buying....