SSScout

Pioneer Possibilities we have used.... Search around for a trick roper, who might also teach the boys some tricks. Park Police in our area have a mounted unit. Do yours? Have them come visit the camp. Do you have a local museum? Check for their outreach, education section. Farmers in the area may have old time equipment to poke around in/on. Check with your local County Extention service. See if the local County Fair folks have any connections with "Old Timers Clubs" One year, we adjusted the theme to Lewis and Clark, and every day we "progressed" some hundreds of miles, and adjusted our activities accordingly. Find the local Antique Car club. Old cars? We have a Model T club that does a take apart and rebuild demonstration that really caught the boys attention. KiSMiF!

It starts with... One boy... Two Stars, and their meaning... Three parts of the Scout Promise... Four points of the Scout Sign and compass, pointing the way... Five Words to remember: "Do a Good Turn Daily" ... Six ... Seven Scout Ranks (S,T,Se,F,St,L,E)... Eight Boys in a Patrol... Nine good knots to know (demonstrate them?) Overhand, Square, Two Half Hitches, Bowline,Clove, Tautline, Sheetbend, Figure-Eight, Sheepshank. Ten Fingers clasped in friendship between brother Scouts... Eleven Ranks from Tiger to Eagle (T,W,B,We,S,T,Se,F,St,L,E) Twelve Points of the Scout Law.

BDPT00: Now you do. PM me for details...

As others have noted, the RSOs must be 18 and over. My understanding is a Shooting Sports Director is for Overnight camps, with a full range of ranges. He/she oversees all the ranges, each overseen (?) by a RSO. Age not withstanding, LMTY, any Cub Scout Archery or BB or Slingshot range needs to have a steady, mature, responsible hand. No nonsense, make rules stick kindaguy. They can have fun, take pride in the bulls, but no one wants to send a Cub home with an arrow in their foot.

If you are asking for ideas about how to build a wood fire (on what to build a wood fire) when there is no official fire ring, here are some ideas: First, make sure from the PTB that open fires OF ANY KIND are allowed. Second, contact your local Boy Scout Troop. They may/can provide Scouts to help, equipment to borrow, ideas to use. The usual idea is to not damage the existing grass and to protect against fire spreading, so Third, make sure you have the means to put the fire out, BEFORE you light it (buckets of water, shovels, etc.) A BIG steel trash can lid on bricks can work. An old cookie sheet is good, fire kept small, insulated with dirt or bricks. The biggest you can find aluminum turkey roasting pan can work, if the fire is kept small enough and you insulate the bottom from the grass below with sand/clean dirt/rocks. No, not cardboard wrapped in foil. Have fun. Safely.(This message has been edited by SSScout)

Sctdad: If you make it yourself, no one will fault you for wearing a 4 turn woggle. However, please note that the WB beads are hung on a seperate "shoelace" around one's neck, and not from the woggle. The way the shoelace is draped/twisted around the neckerchief might make it look like the beads are attached to the woggle, but they are not. Leastwise, I've never seen that done. Could be some local affectation, I suppose. Here's how you demonstrate your prowess: Take sufficient leather thong and soak it in water a couple hours. Turks head knot it around the Council Camp flag pole, firm it up, and let it dry. The leather will shrink up and get snug. Very decorative and Scoutlike, I think. Wooden mast ssailors would do this to reinforce the mast.

We really do need a subject line/subthread/section on "religion, Chaplain issues". As previously said, it is ONLY when the CO requires a particular religious belief to belong to their Scout unit that this should be an issue. The Scout Promise reminds the Scout of his "duty to God " and other important things. It is not and was not intended to be an "oath" except in the "promise" sense of the word. As BP reminds us, "What sect or denomination a boy belongs to depends, as a rule, on his parents' wishes. It is they who decide. It is our business to respect their wishes and to second their efforts to inculcate reverence, whatever form of religion the boy professes." So, going back to the original subject here, assuming that it is not a mere misunderstanding between the family and the Scout unit leadership, if the family judges that they cannot find common ground between their faith and Scouting's religious component, then they must make the decision to not be a Scout family and we wish them well.

In some ways it is a good thing to have regularly scheduled BoR. Folks know what to expect and can plan accordingly. OTOH, it is not the best thing to ONLY do it every 90 days for all the reasons promulgated previously. Our Troop preschedules out CoHs every three months. They are nice ceremonies and everyone looks forward to them. The BoRs are held as needed, a "pick up" game, if you will. The SM tells the CC that Johnny Scout has passed the rank requirements and SM conference, and the CC asks around for Cmembers who will be present either now or next week, say. The Scout then attends the BoR with the Cmembers (and usually the CCh). A new rank is advanced. The badges are awarded at the next CoH, with due pomp and circumstance and punch and cookies. It is not considered a time critical thing, usually.

Very nice story. Put that in my "use it sometime" file. Makes me think how far we've come... Packard (what today? Prius? Fusion? Porsche?). YP (drive the boy home? alone with him?). Boy politely asking about the car. Man not responding with fear(?) that the boy might be meaning harm to the car. Charity all around... Could a modern family train up the boy in the way he is to go so well today? Judging from some of the posts on this site, not a few would have problems with that. Then again, I would expect there are many who would...

Oh, this is sweet! Logic, cooperation, physical exertion, communication, all in operation at once! The little table top game I have has seven wood discs on three poles and was called the "Hindu Temple Puzzle", and all along it was a french mathematician? I would favor 4x4 poles sunk securely in the ground, about 5 feet tall, (Boy Scout hieght). Grind/sand off till smooth, chamfer the top edges and use tires of graduated size. Inner tubes are too bouncy and light weight, maybe use them for the Cub Scout version. Go to the local Merchant's or Tire Kingdom, they have been very Scout friendly in my experience. Ask them for the "loan" of sufficient number of different size, old tires. Even the biggest car tire should be manueverable by two or three boys. Go to the tractor/lawn mower place for the smaller tires, if necessary. Paint the tires (a good latex will stick fine) if you want more "pizazz", different colors, of course. If you expect rain, you may want to punch three or four holes in the bottom edge (sidewalls) of the tires for drainage. Make up two sets, side by side, for speed competition. I would favor the three pole set up because when the first "pyramid" is successfully transferred, then you can merely direct the game to the other end, rather than taking the time to mix up the stack on purpose. If possible, avoid steel belted tires, when the steel bands fail in a worn tire, the steel wire will stick out and be a decided hazzard. Gotta pass this on to our camporee folks...

If the mom in question wants to go as a Scouter, she should step up, volunteer as a ASM, take the training and see what happens. If , indeed, the SM meant "no females allowed", that action would flush the question out. Speak to the Charter Org Rep or CO Head, local DE, the Friendly Neighborhood Commissioner, and go for it.

" I always go to funerals. I figure, if I go to theirs, they'll come to mine, ya know?" =Yogi Berra=

Many different possible accomodations and plans. Sabbath considerations between the various Christian and non-Christian religions leads to all sorts of variations. At my WB course,(friday,saturday, go-home-sunday late) there were accomodations on saturday morn, saturday night (movie night) and sunday morn. The council also held a go-home-saturday WB course in the fall (arrive wednesday afternoon). Some Districts in our Council hold LST and IOLS in Sunday start courses (go home Monday late). At my WB course, on sunday, worship was divided into "Scout's Own" and "particular faith". Catholics went to one area, LDS gathered in another. The most adaptable seemed to be our Muslim WB brothers. I spoke to one, he said he had no problems worshipping in the Scout's Own, said it was a new and interesting time.

In my travels I have come to be acquainted with several Council Camps. I would like to see a discussion as to the possible reasons a camp is popular/successful/on going or not. One possibility I would put forth is the use of Scouter Volunteers. I know of one very popular camp that is operated largely by volunteer Scouters. The Camp Master program essentially does everything off season, weekends, and oversees much of the summer program. The Pros do the "heavy lifting", but make use of the eager, loyal cadre of Scouters to help make things happen. I know another Council that made a conscious decision to rid itself of the Camp Masters that had done much of the camp upkeep and weekend management. When the Chief CM was told his loyal group was to be disbanded, he ceased to be a Council person and is now(if he still is, I have not seen him in several years) only concerned with his local unit. Guess what happens in that unit when FoS comes around. And I can only guess about the rest of the disbanded CampMasters there. Only Pros at that Council Camp, (Scout Staff is paid, of course). This camp complains of "low useage". I know of another camp that is well run, Where the pros are good at what they do, that welcomes all Scouters or volunteer projects. They do not have an organized volunteer program like "Camp Master", but goes out of it's way to utilize Scouters when they come by. I am sure there are other mitigations, such as distance, age, financial concerns, changed neighborhood, that come into play to lead to a camps popularity, use or ultimate closing (shudder). What have you observed?(This message has been edited by SSScout)

NJCubscouter and Scoutnut have it in an eastern state nutshell. As a Quaker Scout Chaplain and Commissioner, (see "Urban Legends" threads) I have had to disabuse folks on occasion about the "swearing" and the "Christian God" thing. The Scout Promise is just that. It is not what some of us know as a "judicial oath". It is not "swearing by". Check James 5:12 and Mathew 5:33. Some COs "may" make a requirement of specific declared belief for membership in THEIR units, but it is not BSA's requirement. I commission Islamic units and find much agreement between their religion and BSA's teachings. Sometimes the Muslim parents express pleasent surprise when the religious requirement is discussed. I hope someone has approached the family in question here ("a Scout is courteous"), and determined their true reason for leaving Scouting. Change of address? disagreement with a malinformed Scouter? "boring" program? bullying issue? misunderstanding of "Oath" vs "swearing" vs "promise" vs "religion"? Perhaps there is education possible on both sides here.

Remeber the "Rock Throwing" CSDC activity? With trained Range Safety Officer?

"Do not light a fire unless you have established the means to easily extinguish it". Note the word "easily" . A one quart pot of water does not qualify, in my experience. A shovel, a rake, and several 5 gallon buckets, FULL of water, all close to hand is more like it.

Research Scouter dot com. you will find much good discussion about W/C. and Totin' Chip (the Boy Scout sharp tool award). Realize that 1) there is NO official BSA curriculum OR requirements, other than what is on the W/C card. 2) All instruction is dependant on the tradition, skill, and experience of the instructor. Google "Whittling Chip, Cub Scouts" and you will find many good, well established instruction and award sites. Teach the boys to have pride in the safe, skillful use of a well maintained tool. Sharp, oiled, valued, useful. A respected instructor, who uses the EDGE philosophy, will be well remembered by the boys he works with.

NASA is no more socialism than the National Parks, research into fertilizer, requiring safe automobiles and airplanes, regulating the EM spectrum, monitoring water quality, rescuing drowning crab fishermen, checking the cleanliness of hog farms, or requiring that elections at the county level be fair and honest. And only a couple of these things are directly directed by the USCon. I think I'll go to the Webelos Weekend down the road and watch the Scouts burn some American flags. We are expecting a local TV film(video?) crew in attendance.

I would POLITELY inquire as to the venue of the earning, encourage the parent/Akela to realize that part of Cubbing is the group experience. If the Cub is to earn the bowling BL, why not organize a Den outing? Many BL and pins MUST be earned at Council/District events, notably archery and BBs. Clarification can be a good thing. If you want a fun time, ask the Cub about the earning....

W-E-E-E-L-L.... Should be a a huge affair, for sure. I'll be in the welcoming contigent, Wave as you go by. I'll be the one with the beard in the Scout uniform ;-)> Welcome to our Nation's Capital, in advance!

It all seemed so simple, once upon a time... Walt Disney and Werner Von Braun, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRCQ2Cu3bSE&feature=related

You are right in that there are many important problems here on our Big Blue Marble to solve. I'll not list all of my choices here. But Humans have always sought new places to go and see. True, Francis Drake and Eric the Red were not merely tourists out for a "new" experience, but the inherent desire is there: to "Go and See". (where did I hear that?) It is not enough to send robots to send back pretty pictures. As I get older, I like the idea of knowing that someONE has been there. Many moon ago, as I led my then young son thru our park, I noticed the NEED in him to go and climb and look under things and ask questions. True, most of the places he wants to go now, some other human ( a whole lot of humans) has been there first, but the desire to go new places is still there. I would much rather my grandson go to Mars than to a battle front in a unsettled corner of our world. Can we not help bring calm and peace where there is now death and strife so our wealth can be used to explore and "go and see" ? You want to see a "moneyhole"? I'll point you to my brother-in-law's sailboat!

Had to go check out my memory, and yep, it's still there... "Scout Field Book" c.1948, 1959 printing... pg. 83, bare chested "indian" Scouts. pg.129, canoeing and swimming Scouts, sans shirts. pg.149, "construct a shower bath (and) a good wash basin stand". Scouts washing up, shirtless. pg. 150, Shirtless Scout hard at it, chopping down a tree. pg. 175, Scout cooking "planked fish", smoking himself, too, it would appear. pg. 202, "Fun in the Water", etc. WoW!Birling at Scout camp??? pg.216, "indian Scouts" (?OA ? )and pg225, demoing breechclout wear. pg. 231 A pirate skit, bare chest with skull &crossbones painted on. pg. 235' "The indian camp is the place for advanced Scout camping." And there are many more. So what is the problem now? When "FIRE ON THE MOUNTAIN!" was called out, we knew to dress up, 'get more decent' as my old SM would say. It's not your Father's Field Book.....

"Why would any patrol be using three pots at once, let alone two frying pans at once? I can't recall once when my old patrol used the cocoa pot. (And why does the kit only include four plates and four cups? Has the ideal patrol since been halved recently?) " Waaay back when, we used the Patrol Cook kit. Either divied it up for carrying, or one boy schlepped the whole kit and one or two carried the tents and grub. Big pot was for boiling water for washing and coffee/tea/cocoa. Keep it full and hot until time to pack up. Coffee pot was always for Tang(!)or powdered milk. Small pot was for cocoa mixing, and then dish washing. The plates were augmented with more plates, and the cups were discarded in favor of personal cups. The inside of the teapot was filled with a roll of "AP"paper. One frying pan for cooking, the other for serving, usually. Everyone had their own utensils, but the Chef's Kit was used as is. Aluminum plate served as cutting board, not that many "precooked" meals in the stores, but we learned to premeasure and prepack the raw stuff to simplify things. Our Troop had a "property" that someone's uncle's brother-in-law owned, and we went there very often. Natural spring water, creek thru the camp for foot dipping. It was filthy with downed American Chestnut and we used that almost exclusively for cooking. Unmatched coals. Every other wood for other purposes. I agree the plastic wrapper for the Chef's Kit is a problem, our original kit was housed in cloth, made drying easy. ! Don't forget to "soap" the bottoms/outside of your cookpots. Campfire black comes right off. Check out the Thrift Shops in your area. Tell the staff there what you want, they usually have stuff in the back.