SeattlePioneer

So? The Pack Trainer shouldn't fill out the paper work, and explain why. I'd let it go at that.

Both GSUSA and Catholic Bishops have liberties and are entitled to use them. If people aren't happy with a program they are entitled to take action to try to change it or to quit and find alternatives. The main objection of the right has been the left's attempts to use government power to coerce BSA. That's a lot different than private individuals and groups acting to form and influence voluntary associations.

One of the hazards of asking for volunteers is that you get people volunteering to do things they aren't good at doing. And choosing activities to do requires some judgement in structuring a program. Having a tossed salad of activities may not work well. The strategy recommended by BSA is to identify the BEST person to do a job and to ask that person. If they refuse, go on to the next best person. You DO want to have the best people as Scout leaders, don't you? That's not to pooh pooh you method though. There is an art to getting people to help with the program, and if it works for your unit, I'm glad to hear it.

Every Cub Pack has a Chartered Organization Representative and Institutional Head, either of whom can terminate a person as a leader. Do you know who these people are? If not, you should be able to call the District Executive and find out. If I were COR and convinced of the facts related here, I'd fire the Cubmaster and prohibit him from setting foot on the property where the pack meets. If he did, I'd call the cops. What should happen is for those assaulted by the guy to file complaints with the police. Worry about getting a new Cubmaster after this bad apple is gone. At that point you need to have a serious pack committee meeting and start appointing new leaders. What kind of organization charters the Pack?

Hello Akecheta, It sounds like you've improved on my ideas. Can you describe the situation you were in in more detail and how you organized it? Was this an elementary school open house or some other activity? So far, stomp bottle rockets are the most powerful means of attracting the interest of boys and families I have found. It's a cheap activity to stage and a great Cub Scout family activity since parents can be expected to help their boy assemble his rocket. I have six rocket launchers I use, segregating boys by den level to avoid age conflicts. But there are lots of ways this could be done, and I'd like to learn from your experience.

I suspect that the main motivation is to insure that units have registered their Scouts. Secondarily, districts and councils want good advancement statistics and this is a way to encourage on line advancement.

Inviting boys and families to an exciting activity is an excellent strategy --- your hot dog roast should be a good draw. But I'd combine that with an activity the boys and families willo find exciting. Making "stomp bottle rockets" that will be launched at part of your hot dog roast would be a really powerful draw. They are made from a sheet of paper and launched by stomping on a 2 liter soda pop bottle --- the air fires the rockets. You could have some examples of the stomp bottle rockets to show boys, and ask them id they think their rocket would go the HIGHEST and the FARTHEST! You also need someone with the soul of a carnival barker to go out among the crowd passing by and direct them into your table. Waiting for people to approach you is a weak strategy.

Good replies so far. Getting an Advancement Chair would be a good thing for a leader who can't manage to get awards. If that doesn't happen, I'd make the awards as part of den meetings. Sounds like just the wrong person to be Cubmaster. What other likely prospect are available to be Cubmaster? Frankly, it sounds like you have a weak Committee Chair who should be identifying and correcting all these problems. If the Committee Chair can't do their job, that person needs to be replaced. What other likely prospects are there to be Committee Chair?

> You are certainly welcome to your opinion, but I think you are quite wrong. Indeed, it sounds like Girl Scout has abandoned Scouting as a camping program, and AHG which is seeking to replicate a Scouting program. And of course there are lots of people who consider BSA to be a religious propaganda group, but we soldier on despite such biased criticism.

Anyone ever hear of a Girl Scout Troop doing a fifty miler backpack trip?

I wouldn't carry much of a CHANGE of clothes other than an extra set of socks and shorts. Wash the socks and shorts as needed and dry them the next day. Add or remove clothing as needed for the weather conditions. Being skilled in recognizing when it's time to add or remove clothing is one of the important hiking/backpacking skills, in my opinion.

My pack makes new den flags at our June Campout for the new den year. A parent has taken charge of this activity for several years. Swatches of cloth in the various den colors (Orange=Tiger Cubs, Yellow=Wolves) are available, along with Cub Scout Yardsigns, patches and other material that can be used by Cub Scouts to decorate their flag. I cut limbs from trees for poles and crosspieces and the Cub Scouts use a staple gun to staple the flag to a crosspiece. We have our Pack meeting and cross over to the new dens at the June Campout, so the boys join their new den with their new flag. If den flags are used properly by den leaders, boys use them and take pride in them. At district Cub Scout events, our flags stand out and it makes it easy for boys to find their dens even in a crowd of Cub Scouts. I do think it's a good idea to have a den number that follows boys through the program from year to year. The flags change but the number stays with the boys and the den. I neglected that, and it's a weakness.

I'm clearly taking an activist tack as a Unit Commissioner in this situation. Reasonable people such as some of those posting are objecting. My own doubts about that are expressed in the title of the thread. You'll notice that I took the advice given earlier in the thread and got the COR involved, along with the Cubmaster on whom most of the burden of running the pack has fallen. The District Executive was waiting around for us to get out so he could lock up after the Roundtable. He wasn't there when we started the meeting and I didn't plan or expect him to be there. The situation we have is that the current Committee Chair has never been effective. The Cubmaster shouldered the burdens of the Committee Chair, but he is leaving as Cubmaster in August. With the prospect of no Committee Chair and no Cubmaster, I decided that it was important to start shaking the tree for new, effective leadership. The COR and CM are now on board with a strategy to do that, and we'll see how it works out. If it doesn't, we'll be looking for alternative strategies within a week or two. Was I TOO BOLD? Still an interesting question. The saga continues.

I'm wondering if this might perk up interest in being Den Chief for a Tiger Cub Den.

> Heh, heh! Now that DOES sound like a good idea!

May be just around the corner: > http://blog.seattlepi.com/mommyfiles/2012/05/10/does-time-magazine%E2%80%99s-breastfeeding-cover-go-too-far/(This message has been edited by seattlepioneer)

No one.

I just ironed on my Silver Beaver Knot yesterday, in time for my Cub Scout Roundtable. That gives me a total of four. I've applied for my Cubmaster's knot which would give me five. I have no idea where a sixth might come from. My latest job is to be appointed treasurer for a pack. I have experience as a treasurer for a non profit, but I have some ideas on how a BSA unit Treasurer should operate, and I will be trying out those ideas.

As a unit Commissioner who is observing one of my units failing because of lack of effective leadership, I sent out an e-mail to the Pack Committee Chair suggesting that a Pack Commitee Meeting be scheduled to check on the progress made at the previous meeting. Copy to the Scoutmaster. No response. The Pack Chartered Organization Rep and Cubmaster both attended my Cub Scout Roundtable last night, and I was able to meet with them both after the meeting. At the previous Committee Meeting, the Cubmaster chaired the meeting (the Commitee Chair doesn't have the skills for that) and recruited several volunteers to fill leadership positions. Last night the Cubmaster told me that most of those people had backed out or were leaving the pack. I promoted my pet idea of appointing a strong and capable Committee Chair to replace the current Commitee Chair, who wants to quit anyway. The Cubmaster initially resisted that, preferring to concentrate on other issues first, an approach that hasn't been working. After we talked things out for a while, he agreed that getting an effective new Committee Chair was something that needed to be done, and he agreed to ask the very impressive business executive type who was going to be Assistant Cubmaster to be Committee Chair instead. Anyway, we have a new strategy to try out. The Cubmaster is going to let the COR and I know if we have a new Committee Chair, and if not there is another good candidate who can be approached. Our District Executive was listening in on the last part of this conversation without making any comment. After the meeting was over, I suggested that this was probably the most important thing a Commissioner in the district would do this month. But then again, was I TOO BOLD?

No doubt some DEs are exhausted after a full day of firing District Chairs, attending unit meetings they aren't invited to to make FOS pitches and so on.

Opinions may differ here, I'll be interested in other comments. I have no problem with letting Scouts fail from time to time, but they need training in skills and practice in using them. A cooking class that includes making and baking pancakes, with practice for each Scout in the skill before depending on it for breakfast is a good Scouting practice. Having the Scoutmaster explain the rules for advancement and introducing Scouts who can sign off requirements would be a good plan. As a part of that training, have each Scout ask one of those Scouts to verify a skill and sign off the requirement, so they will get some practice at it. Have a Scout demonstrate how to ask the Scoutmaster for a Scoutmaster conference, and have the new Scouts observe a model Scoutmaster conference. The techniques modeled in this Scout Troop resemble throwing a boy in a lake to teach them to swim. The basic idea that a boy needs to get wet to learn how to swim is correct, but the principle of teaching and practice in learning the skill is missing. I'm guessing this is a New Scout Patrol rather than an existing patrol of new and older Scouts. A traditional patrol would have older boys who new Scouts could ask for advice, and they would have an incentive to teach new Scouts unless they had a taste for burned pancakes. If it is a New Scout Patrol, where is the Troop Guide? And it needn't be adults doing all the teaching... I'll be especially interested in what a certain curly horned African antelope may have to say on this subject....(This message has been edited by seattlepioneer)

From another discussion board: The Secret Service scandal was discovered when a disagreement on how much a prostitute wanted for her services came to light. She wanted $800.00. The Secret Service Agent offered $30.00. How ironic is it that the only person in Washington trying to cut spending gets fired?

Some EXCELLENT ideas here! > I think this is a bad idea primarily because it will put the idea into the heads of your Scouts. Part II: What kind of recommendations and restrictions do you expect to find on the use of duct/duck tape in the Guide to Safe Scouting any day now?

One of my personal goals as a district officer is to relieve the DE from doing as many things as I can. My preferred goal would be to have volunteers doing EVERYTHING. We're a loooong way from that, though. We have a hard working DE, and very likely he works too much. He's a young guy of 23 or so, and I figure he ought to be out there finding a cute young girl to make Tiger Cubs with.

allangr1024 referred to the Duct Tape Merit Badge: > Can anyone suggest requirements for that one? I'm thinking Red Green would be a good Merit Badge Counsellor.