Shilue

The EBOR is not for retesting. If the scout has the advancement signed off, then that's it. He's qualified for that advancement. You can not add to or subtract from the requirements, period. I don't care if the scout's little brother signed off on the blue card, if it was accepted at the troop level, then that's it. Once it's done and in the system, there's not a thing that you can do about it.

If there is a question about a scout's ability or level of knowledge, or whether he actually did the merit badge, that belongs at the unit level and the Scoutmaster conference. Why, if there is any question, did the Scoutmaster sign off it? It's the responsibility of the troop to watch for boys/parents abusing the system. Not the BOR. If an Eagle scout candidate cannot tie a square knot, well, that's pretty sad, but that's not sufficient ground for denying him the rank of Eagle.

Eagle Scout is the pinnacle of Scouting advancement. Yes, as scouters who sit on the EBOR, it is our responsibility to ensure that the boy has met the requirements and exemplifies the leadership that sets an Eagle Scout apart from others. But we are not the gatekeepers to some Holy Grail. It is not our job to deny someone the rank of Eagle just because we don't think they earned the Indian Lore merit badge 6 years ago at camp. If he has received the award, then it's a done deal.

Fred8033 said it best :"You don't penalize the scout down the road for something you choose to ignore in the past. You hold to high standards during the whole journey, not just at the finish line."

We don't penalize the scout for OUR mistake. If there's a problem or a question, it should be caught at the time it happens, not years down the road at a EBOR.

Update from the accident at Camp Old Indian last week. All but 1 boy are out of the hospital and doing well. The one still in the hospital is improving. They haven't woken him yet, so he does not know about the amputation yet. Pray for him and his family.

Speaking with a friend of mine who works with one of the EMTs that arrived on the scene last Friday night, he said "My guy who was on the scene of the wreck said that ll of the boys who were able bodied were all doing everything they could to help. Holding oxygen tanks, IV bags, schleping equipment for the Medics, the whole nine. Said he was impressed, that he wasn't sure which able bodied were in the accident, and which werent, because if they didnt have visible active bleeding, they were working."

Those boys showed that they do pick up what we teach them, and they do know how to react in an emergency. Very proud of them!

A young boy with porn is now something we report to the police.

Really sad. This is yet another example of how our society is going downhill.

The scout from Columbia, SC is still in the hospital, and probably will remain there for a while. He is in a burn center with second degree chemical burns from gasoline over 60% of his body, and his left leg has been amputated below the knee. Despite all this, his condition seems to be improving, and his family, church, and the Scouting community have been rallying behind him.

I have no information on the boys from Greenville and Orlando, but keep all of them in your prayers.

It has not been a good week for scouting in SC. Last week, there was also an accident near a summer camp in Society Hill, SC, where a longtime Scouter and current camp staffer was killed. And apparently, a troop from Summerville, SC got into a wreck coming home from camp. Everyone was ok in that incident.

Really glad my son's troop made it home safely.

Last night, a vehicle accident occurred at Camp Old Indian in Greenville, SC, that sent 9 Scoits and 1 staff member to the hospital. Mostf the boys are ok, but a couple a still in the hospital, including one with serious burns and a leg injury.

These scouts came fom Grenville, SC, Columbia, SC, and Orlando, FL.

Please add these young men to your prayers.

http://www.wyff4.com/news/local-news/greenville-news/Officials-Van-accident-sends-10-campers-counselor-to-hospital/-/9654794/15516240/-/62i3l0z/-/index.html

Again, it comes down to trusting the troop leaders.

There was a virus going around camp. Ok. You were told it was going around, you were told some boys got sick, you were told that it was being taken care of. Did you not believe them? I'm not sure what more you would have wanted. If they were taking care of the boys, and they were recovering ok, then I don't see it as anything to worry about. I don't know what camp you're talking about, but the camp that my son is at right now had a stomach virus sweep through a couple of weeks ago. Boys got sick, throwing up and diarrhea, they rested, they were fine in 24 hours.

Now, if your son was one of the ones taken to the hospital for dehydration and you were not informed - then yes, I agree that there was a major communication issue. But if he wasn't one of the ones taken to the hospital, if he got the runs and the heaves, rested up, and was fine the next day...I don't see the issue here.

We had a new parents meeting shortly before our troop went to camp. We discussed the virus that had made the rounds., One mother was worried because her son had never thrown up without her there to hold his head. I rolled my eyes on that one. Obviously, noone wants a boy to get sick on a campout, but things do happen. You have to trust the leadership, or find a troop with leadership that you do trust.

I love my kids dearly. But I don't feel the need to be tethered to them constantly. Neither one has a cell phone, and neither one will get a cell phone until they have a job and can pay for it. Kids do not need cell phones.

Momof2cubs,

Was this camp by chance in NE Georgia?

To be honest, if you don't trust the troop leadership, why are you letting your son be in the troop? As the parent of scouts, we have to trust that the troop leaders will let us know when anything serious happens. My son is a first year scout, having crossed over in February. This is his first year at summer camp - they're at the camp in NE Georgia. I'm not worried at all. I trust the SM and other leaders. They are giving us some updates and pictures from camp on our troop Facebook page, which is nice, but if they weren't, I'd be fine with it. I'm perfectly ok with my son going off for a week with this troop. I see no reason to have to contact my son to check on him throughout the week. Even if I knew there was a stomach bug going around this camp like there was a couple of weeks ago, I'd be ok. Again, I trust the troop. We did have one of our new boys cut himself in woodcarving MB class, seriously enough to have to go to town and get stitched up. The troop leaders notified the parents, and took care of things. All is well.

I personally don't see the need for kids to have cell phones at camp. I don't even see the need for kids to have cell phones, period. I have an almost 13 year old daughter and an 11 year old son. Neither one of them has a cell phone. Neither of them needs one.

That solves that problem for me.

Why do we have to pigeonhole people? Why all the emphasis on rich, poor, black, white, etc? This is Scouting, and those kids are Scouts. Plain and simple. Nothing more. Why be concerned over whether a troop is made up of rich kids, poor kids, black kids, Asian kids, etc? They are kids, and as adult leaders, we should treat and teach them based on that fact alone, not how rich or poor they are.

Yes, some troops and some scouts may be "more advantaged" than others, but so what? worry about your youth and giving them the best possible program that you can. Don't worry about what others do or do not have. The values of scouting are the same no matter what your economic status. That's where we should focus our energy.

As long as a boy is in a good quality unit, I don't care what unit, what economic status, what race, etc. all I care about is that they are getting the program the way it is supposed to be.

Tokala, I live in the Southeast as well - SC. Do what I do. Ask around, find someone who occasionally goes "up North" and have them bring you back a tin or 2. I have a friend who has family in Rochester, NY. When she goes up to visit, she always brings me back some. Another friend has to travel up to Canada occasionally for business, she also brings me back a tin.

Ask around. I'm sure you've got people who are heading that way to smuggle some Canadian Goodness down to you.

Cross them over when they are ready. If they are ready in February, cross them over then. If they aren't ready, wait until they are. There's nothing that says you have to crossover in February. It depends on the boys and what they want to do.

I am all for shopping around. Every troop does things differently. I've seen many cases where a boy goes into the troop associated with their CO, decides that he doesn't like it, and drops out of Scouting. Not realizing that there's a troop down the road that does things more to his liking.

When my son crossed over in February, we did not cross into the troop associated with our pack. I knew how the troop was being run, and I disagreed with their philosophy. They wouldn't allow a boy to start working on merit badges until he was First Class. They wouldn't allow a boy to get his Eagle until he was 16. Those are just some of the ways they ran the troop that I felt were wrong. We visited the troop, and my son wasn't too wild on them either. His best friend was ready to quit because the Scoutmaster scared him. A couple of other boys in our den did not cross over into Scouts, because they didn't like the way the troop was run. I tried to convince them to at least check out the other troops in the area, but they didn't.

So, we went around to the other troops in our district and visited them. I knew which one was the best run troop, and everything I'd seen led me to believe that was the best troop for him to go to. He and his friend visited all of them, then went back to the top 3, and he decided on the one that I felt was his best choice. Interestingly enough, that troop doesn't have a feeder pack, so they are reliant on Cubs that visit, especially from those packs that don't have a troop.

What needs to happen is that Webelos Den Leaders need to explain to the parents about what the Scouting Program is about. How it is supposed to be run. They need to set expectations ahead of time, so parents don't go into a troop thinking it's Webelos III. Then the parents, either alone with their sons or as a den, need to go visit several other troops in the area. Look and see how they are run, and see how welcoming the Boy Scouts are to the visiting Webelos. A first impression can go a long way. The troop my son ended up going to is the only troop where the SPL came up to the boys UNPROMPTED, introduced himself, asked their names, and welcomed them to the meeting. All other troop meetings, it was either adults who came up, or adults who prompted the SPL.

I think troops need to get over the mentality of "The cubs in our pack are automatically coming to our troop", and I think our Packs need to get over the mentality of "Our cubs are going into our troop". Not all troops are the same, just like not all boys are the same. Make the parents and the boys aware that just because 1 troop isn't working out for you, that doesn't mean the the troop down the road won't.

I could care less what troop a boy ends up in. My only concern is that he stay in Scouting in a troop that he enjoys. Whether it's his original troop, or one he transferred to.

I also have to disagree with BadenP. In our council, FOS contributions aren't what's considered for the DAM or SB. What's looked at is the overall contribution to Scouting by the person.

The people who receive those awards in our council receive them because they deserved them, because they work their tails off to staff programs, training, and serve the boys.

I'd never heard of this award before. So I went searching. Here's the requirements:

http://www.boyscouttrail.com/content/award/award-1063.asp

Our pack divided up the meals. The Webelos I's did Saturday breakfast, the Tigers did lunch, the Bears did Saturday supper, and the Wolves did Sunday breakfast.

Saturday breakfast was eggs, bacon, and pancakes, Sat. lunch was sandwiches, Saturday supper was often BBQ, chicken, hamburgers, or various things like that. The boys generally did the cooking, with help from parents. The tigers had it easy, only having to hand out lunch meat, tomatos, lettuce, etc. Saturday breakfast was the more extreme, hence the Webelos doing that. Sunday breakfast was cereal and muffins, not too difficult to do.

The kids enjoyed it because they got to help do the cooking, but with plenty of adult supervision.

Our pack, which my son just crossed out of, did 3 campouts a year, all highly attended. We did 1 in October, 1 in December, and 1 in April.

We're in South Carolina, but our Dec campouts have been known to get a little chilly. Our first Dec campout with our Pack got down to 28 degrees, but we always told parents to NOT use the cheap sleeping bags. Never had any complaints or problems.

I can't imagine a council restricting the number of campouts that Cub Scouts take. That's ridiculous.

Back when I was a scout, we didn't have a push for First Class First Year. But I just pulled out my old Scout Handbook, and I joined the troop in Feb 1980 and was First Class in March 1981. Granted, some requirements have changed, and I haven't really compared rank requirements back them to now, but without a push, I think it's entirely feasible that a scout could be First Class in a year.

I don't believe in pushing the Scouts, though. My son just crossed over a month and a half ago, and I've told him that from now on, his advancement is entirely up to him. I'm there to support him, I will advise him, but I will not push him.

Still, the T-SC-FC requirements are pretty much the basic scout skills, and that's something that should be taught to Scouts from the beginning, and continually reinforced.

We shouldn't, as adult leaders, push the scouts into earning rank. That's not what Scouting is about. It's one of the purposes and methods, yes, but it's not the primary focus. I'm all for letting them progress at their own rate, with encouragement, but not pushing.

Of course, with most of it being the basic scout skills, odds are they are going to earn the ranks before they even realize it.

As a Cub Scout Day Camp Director, my goal has been for the Cub Scouts to earn belt loops and rank requirements as a secondary to having fun. Fun is what it's all about, but if they happen to get some stuff signed off while doing so, that's even better!

As has been said, a lot of units don't have Unit Commissioners because most districts don't have enough to go around. But if you feel that you need a Commisioner, call your District Commissioner, and he will be able to help. As DC for my district, I consider myself the defacto UC for all units that don't have one yet, and I'm available to help them if they need it.

When my son transitioned to Webelos, we got him the tan uniform. Until he earned his Webelos badge, he wore the Bobcat/Tiger/Wolf/Bear diamond using the plastic rank holder. I'm not normally a fan of the plastic patch holders, but it was the best option to allow him to continue to wear his other ranks until he earned Webelos.

In Boy Scouts, advancement is done individually, not as a patrol. Holding back until everyone in the patrol has completed it is too similar to Cub Scouts, which this is not.

Also, a suggestion, if you can afford to keep a supply of badges on hand, give the boys their rank badges at the meeting that they earned them, instead of waiting a week.

We got a hat and a t-shirt, and the option to buy a jacket if you wanted. They also came up with three different CSPs. Red border for participant and yellow border for staff - you got 1 red border one, and could buy a couple more, and if you were not on staff, you had the option to buy 1 just for completeness sake. The silver border one was not for sale, but when you complete your ticket and receive your beads, you were given the silver border one.

I had the participant on my uniform. Doubt I'll put the "completed" version on, though. I'll hang on to it as a keepsake.

1) Organize and conduct a Council-wide Roundtable Commissioner's Meeting to allow all District RT commissioners to share ideas.

2) Attend Commissioner College and obtain my Bachelor of Commissioner's Science

3) Make a presentation at Roundtable on "working with Scouts with Disabilities"

4) Organize, promote, and conduct Den Chief Training in the District.

5) Clean, sort, and organize the Cub Scout Day Camp supplies, and find a better home for them.

Finished my ticket last month, received my beads 2 weeks ago.

As a Unit Commissioner/District Commissioner, I've never performed a Uniform Inspection. I've seen it happen at a Pack I was visiting, done by the Unit leaders. I would NEVER walk in and tell the unit leader that I was there to conduct an inspection. I would only do one if asked to by the leaders. They are in charge of their unit, not the district or the council. That's a common misconception that I've found unit leaders have, that because I'm at the district level, I "out-rank" them. As far as I'm concerned, it's the other way around. I and my staff of commissioners are there to support the unit, not tell them what to do. If any of my unit commissioners were to walk in and tell the unit leader hat they were going to run a uniform inspection, they'd be yanked aside so fast it'd make their head spin. If they are asked to do one, that's fine, but you don't walk in and tell someone what you are going to do to their unit. I don't even assume I get to say anything at a meeting. If I have something I want to talk about, such as Day Camp, I *ask* if I can address the boys.

Having said all that, I think uniform inspections should be done occasionally, because I see some wacky patch placements. I saw a boy this weekend who was wearing a second council strip on his right sleeve. I've seen boys with their bobcat badge on their right pocket flap, or their unit numbers above their council strip. Times like that, the unit leader should do a uniform inspection, take note of the issues, and quietly pull the parent aside and let them know. And it's not just boys, either. I've seen adults with some really bizarre patch placements as well. But a uniform inspection should be done so as to not embarass the boys, and it should be done by the unit leaders, or at their request.

When our pack goes camping, we usually have 200-300 people. We charge $25 per family for the campout, which covers food, site rentals, supplies, etc. any additional costs are overed by the pack. Friday dinner is on your own. Sat breakfast is eggs, bacon, and pancakes. Lunch is sandwiches and chips, sat dinner is anything from hamburgers, BBQ chicken, chili, spaghetti, etc. sun breakfast is cereal and Danishes. Each den is assigned a meal to prepare, and a meal to clean up. Generally, the Web I does sat and sun breakfast prep, wolves as breakfast cleanup, tigers do lunch prep and cleanup, and bears do supper prep.

It's not 5 star, but it's pretty doggone good!

Blancmage - I've been hearing recently that our council, as well as some others in our area, are considering going with a different vendor than Trail's End. Should be interesting.