SSScout

What he said. Pay attention to everything they send you. Ask questions as needed. Bring extra rope, duct tape, and a silly hat. And if you are so skilled, your bugle. Have fun.

My opinions: 1) Do not donate to any council, encumbered, conditioned or free in clear. See above mentions. 2) Organize a non-profit trustee type foundation, dedicated to "Scouting". Find a good, Scout Friendly lawyer to set things up pro bono. The properties could be leased back to the Council for summer camp and rented to Troops/Packs for their use. The Trust could log the land or rent it out to other "educational" users, county rec department, school districts, colleges, etc. and make a little income thereby. Make it a Nature Preserve. Camp Store? Boat ramp fees? Any professional outfitters, boat renters around? What's on the opposite shore? 2)A)....Multiple Troops? I do not think I would try to divide the ownership, that only complicates things. The trustee Board can have required members from several sources. Talk it over. Private cemeteries and other campgrounds are set up this way. 3) Find a Scout CO that already charters a Unit that might fulfill the Trust idea above. Lions Club? Kiwanis? Isaac Walton? Rotary? Church (?) ? 4) When one of the above options is in place, (or before?) work with the local OA chapter(s) and District Eagle coordinators to find project help in developing the cabins tent sites etc. needed. I think this is a wonderful opportunity. I hope you can find the support to make it happen. We have a "public Park " nearby that is locally known as "Mount Sugarloaf". It is used for hikes, picnics, rock climbing classes, OA events.... Legally it is known as "The Stronghold" , established by a rich department store owner back in the 1930's. See this: http://www.sugarloafmd.com/

Oui, le sauce e tout....

WB was a good experience, learned some taught some, exampled some.... Blew bugle some.... First time, When I presented my ticket ideas, everyone said they were good/great, BUT . . . I couldn't do them. Why? Well. in my past Scout time, I had done alot of Cub Scout stuff, and so at the CSDC, I earned the position of "First Assistant Everything Else" (wife was CSDC Director), so many of my tickets were Cub Scout directed. But at the time, I was "officially " registered as a Assistant Scoutmaster. Scoutmaster types CAN'T do Cub Scout things... What to do? The WB staff huddled and came back :: "You should be a COMMISSIONER !! They can work in ANY program !" Great ! What's a Commissioner ? Within 48 hours, I was a registered, bonafide Commishner. And the rest, as they say, is prolog.....

Sure evokes the BSA look... shoulder loop/epaulettes (color loops for Daisy, Brownie, Cadette, Senior? ? ), tan over green, got the flag over right pocket, service stars, cargo pockets..... Lavender shirt might not be BSA...

Can include veggies and such in the batter? No transfat? Wife would favor gluten free....

How to gain respect: Be able to admit and say "I don't know" and "I will find out." I am reminded of the scene in Master and Commander when the 12 or 13 year old Midshipman, who has already lost an arm in a battle, asks the old sailor for help n sewing up the sail around one of his dead friends.

" If lost...." MAKE YOUR OWN ! Carve, mold, weave, glue, scratch head and design and MAKE YOUR WOGGLE !

Faith and Chaplaincy? When I served as a Jamboree Chaplain, I met more than one Scout that expressed the idea/concern/opinion of "I'm not so sure about this God stuff." We would have a VERY open ended conversation . Scoutmasters that required their Troop to attend some religious service, if only for "educational" purposes, was an idea that raised some questions in my mind. Pick a service, I don't care what , just go. The idea that atheism is NOT a religion is always interesting. The idea that belief in a "higher power" delineates a sub group (large tho it may be) that must totally exclude folks that cannot in good conscience promise to "do my duty to God" also makes for a good discussion. Then too, we have the not-too-sure agnostic label. Perhaps a choice of Scout Promise is a good thing, an inclusive thing, maybe. I have come to say that there are really FOUR promises in the BSA promise, anyhow, rather than the THREE that are mentioned in the Handbook explanation. After all, we promise to "do my duty to God, to our country, to others and to myself. Country and God should NOT be one and the same, yes?

Checks. Cheques. True story: Second World War. American army officer. Goes into a British army officers' club as a guest. For cash, he writes a "cheque" on a plain piece of paper (sometimes said to be the back of a cigarette package, but no matter), to be drawn on a local (to me) US bank. The bank is so well known, (in Britain!) that the cheque is honored, and makes it's way, all the way, , back to the USA where it was , for a time, displayed in the bank.

Oh, let me share a coin horror story. While working as a Transit Bus Driver, in rush hour, it was not unusual for folks to pay the fare with a handful of coins, carefully dribbled into the electric farebox. I had a lady board and proceed to unroll a penny roll and carefully line'm up into the slot. It took a few seconds for me to realize THEY WERE BRIGHT UNCIRCULATED STEEL CENTS. I put my hand over the farebox and asked her where she had got that roll. She responded out of her husbands desk drawer, as she needed money for the farebox. I explained to her that each of those "pennies" were probably worth a couple of dollars EACH. She still had about 2/3 of the roll left, but I explained that neither I nor her would ever see those pennies again.....

Yep. I earned that MB. One of my "specialties" was the Franklin half dollar. My dad had dealings with our local bank, and one of the tellers (wife of a Lion's Club member, in which my dad was very active) had nothing much to do one afternoon (!) and took it upon herself to scan several hundred (!!) dollars worth of halves and found the one date I was looking for....

There goes my dividend....

Good on ya, mate. My stints as Cubmaster and "First Assistant Everything Else" for CSDC are some of the most fun I have ever had. I still run across some of the "boys" in my travels and am remembered. One CUB made Eagle , is now head cashier at my local bank . Not my story, but I can claim some credit. One year, the CSDC theme was "Way Out West" and our District decided to tell the story of the Lewis and Clark expedition. My partner, name of Ted, and I were the chief instigators. Every morning at opening, we would "tell " a story about the L&C trek, and thus set the theme for the day. We thus moved the expedition across the country. Ted did a cartoon French Voyageur accent ("augh augh augh, you tie ze nout laak zis, an' zen you peek heem up laak zis,,, augh augh augh, mes ami....") . We carried a canoe around the site, led the Scout Skills Pavilion to good effect. Ted once told me he and family were in the local Safeway when a young boy ran up to him, pointed his finger up at Ted, cried "AUGH AUGH AUGH ! ! !" and ran off. Of such are reputations and memories made.... Lead your song. Help the Scouts make the memories. AND... never forget , these are the people that will pick out your Assisted Living Facility. See you on the trail.

Oh for the days of yore... My Cub Pack, back in paleolithic Scouting days, played in a Cub Scout softball league. Each Pack in the area fielded a team, I seem to remember this was spring time and thru the summer too. Ribbons for the flag. Tshirts and a REAL ball cap (wool !) for the Cubs. This was in addition to the usual Den meetings, trips to the zoo, hay rides, fire station visits, and movies, Cub-a-rees, and Pack Meetings . My dad was one of the coaches, I was a first baseman owing (so they said) to my long arms (at age 8 and 9?) and reach. Competition with Little League? Maybe, it was softball, not hardball. Even I learned the softball didn't travel as far as a hardball when hit, but it did travel. We learned alot about sportsmanship and tactics and predicting where that "lefty" would hit. No more Scout sports, eh? Too bad...

Why would the Catholic Youth of America be concerned with this?

This is certainly not crazy, it is very well thought out. But it ain't Scouts. It is Parents who are afraid to "trust" their Scouts to do the Scout thing, within safe. sane limits. The Parents can always veto any project/activity, but as to the actual desire, planning, accomplishment, that is what is lacking here. The SCOUTS should be the originators, not the parents. THEY should be the encouragers.

Native American,,,, First Nations,,,,, Anyone here heard of "Straight Arrow"? http://iloveshreddedwheat.com/1949-52-straight-arrow-cards/

USPostal service letters (remember them?), email, phone calls/tree, cell phone texts, Knock on door leave card in door..... You try, you "do your best". When you are convinced the horse is dead, you quit beating it. Schedule a last B&G picnic with magician and catered BBQ, spend the last of the Pack's treasury, transfer the remainder on to the CO, and move on to ScoutsBSA.

Measure distance between the lug holes in the spare wheel. Go to Tractor Supply or Harbor Freight or equivalent and buy a looong square u-bolt to match the distance. Four nuts and four big fender washers to fit. Decide on location on front or rear door of trailer, drill holes in wall/door. Reinforce with a piece of scrap lumber inside if deemed necessary. U-bolt thru wall, run first pair of washers/nuts down. seal with appropriate goo against water infiltration. Mount spare, run second pair of washers/nuts down to hold. If you are lucky, the u-bolt thread will match the wheel lug thread(ours did) and you can use extra lug nuts to hold spare on. Total cost about $20. Leaves tow bar empty of obstructions. Doesn't catch rain, promote rust. Go to Action Auto, buy a cover for the spare, paint a smiley Scout face on it .

Eagledad: Yep, the ideal. Somebody ought to do something about (this). Yep, very often, nobody will step up and "do something". Why? Because "I might be wrong". "I don't want to get involved". "I don't want to embarrass an (otherwise) good person." "I haven't got the time for this." "It's not my problem." "Somebody else, better equipped than I, will take care of it." "I might be affected/hurt/threatened." This is what "assertiveness" training in our schools is about. Our kids are correctly taught about this.... Child abuse? See something say something? If it makes you uncomfortable, speak to an adult you trust? yep. It does take a certain amount of.... ""A Scout Is Brave."" Make the ideals well known (Scout Promise, Scout Law, Golden Rule, US Constitution to name a few) and then when something don't seem right, speak up about it. As Barney Fife used to say, "You got to nip it in the bud ! Nip, nip, nip it ! " The longer such problems are allowed to continue, the harder they are to "nip". And it's certainly not just Scouts.......is it ?

It's gonna be a long, long time....

You miss the point (sorry....)

Should the Scoutmaster be held to account for his lack of Scout Spirit and not following BSA guidelines ? Yes. Should the Scout accept the brunt of this man's vengeful behavior (and that is what it is, the Scout not bending to the SM's will) ? No. Should the parents of this Scout speak up for what they see as un-Scoutlike behavior ? Most definitely yes. And all the other parents. Should the COR and IH of the CO involved be apprised of all this ? Yes. A long sit down and several cuppas are called for. Should the COR be involved? It is their noted responsibility. Should the District Executive, the District Commissioner, the Council Scout Executive and the Advancement Chairs of Council and District be apprised? Yes. Should a journal like documentation be made? A very good idea. Include other folks names and signatures. I have great sympathy for these men's families, both the SM and the UC as described. A Scoutmaster and Commissioner are supposed to be about the Scouts, not the Scoutmaster or Commissioner.

International Owl Awareness Day , , , , Today , , , https://www.internationalowlcenter.org/owlawarenessday.html