BluejacketScouter

I believe officially it is Webelos Den for boys working on their Webelos badge, and Arrow of Light Den for boys working on AOL. So I see no problem in advancing from one to the other? "Graduating" is the term I use for Cubs who are moving by grade but have not earned their rank. It happens.

Thanks everyone, obviously I was being facetious about leaving the expired items on the doorstep. Maybe I'm not being facetious about asking the pack to do a service project this fall...put out flyers for "pantry clean-out day"...rid your pantry of expired items, and the Cubs will pick it up and haul it away. Problem solved!! If the glass was in the forest and no one was there to see it, would it be half anything?

I am flying to PTC from Ohio this summer to participate in a Trainer's Conference. Any suggestions for best airport to fly into, etc etc would be appreciated. Probably looking at flying into Albuqurque or Denver. There are no direct flights to Santa Fe around here. Thanks

One of the units that I am UC for is a new Pack with 18 boys in a small, rural town. For the second year in a row, they collected 1,500 pounds for Scouting for Food (yay). For the second year in a row, over 1/3 of it was expired items, dried goods that were already opened, or items so old they did not even have an expiration date (grr). All of which was promptly discarded by the food pantry in that very same town, that is run by a sister church of the CO. Come on people, what do you think - that needy people should just take whatever you feel like tossing onto the pile? I am about this " " close to telling the unit leaders that next year they should sort the bag when it's picked up, and leave the expired and opened items right on the porch. Thanks for letting me vent. Please return to your Scouting.

What a silly question!! How the heck does he get his cot into a backpacking tent?!!?

We had 2010 Scout Sunday "something" laying around our Council office when I was there on Saturday...don't remember if they were programs, patches or what. I'll ask.

One thing you could try, is having a "pit night" Pack Meeting where the boys and parents are working on the cars together. We bring in a stack of pencils and patterns. The boys get to pick the shape of their car and transfer it to the wood. We have someone bring in a bandsaw, and there's a line waiting to have their cars cut out for those who want. A vise and coping saws for those who want to try their own. A sanding table. A painting table. A few experienced hands roaming around and offering suggestions. Those boys who do not have a parent attending, still go home with a shaped, sanded and (maybe) painted car where the boy has done most of (if not all) of the work themselves. We do this around 2-3 weeks before the race. The week before the race, we'll bring in the scale and let cars be weighed and maybe help attach wheels, as needed. We also do an open class for adults and/or siblings.(This message has been edited by BluejacketScouter)

I also think the content is good for the audience you will have (registered adults). Cubmaster is misspelled throughout. I would add in using the Den Chief program as much as possible. Nice work!

No problem. When I dug out the box, I found I still have a box - probably 8 or 10 - of the old Tiger Cub activity T-shirts, too. Anyone needs them, let me know - but I think they're all size youth L.

If you can't find suitable patch material, ask around to see if anyone saved the extra material from when the cuffs were hemmed. That's what I saved mine for, and I've had to use it on a few snags.

I plan out the first 3-6 meetings ahead of time along with 1 or 2 go-see-its. Then sit down with the adults ASAP and make assignments. Eat the elephant one bite at a time. Rather than task one adult/boy team with hosting an entire meeting, I assign (do not ask) each team a different part of the meeting. Team A teach a new game as gathering activity for week 3 Team B lead opening ceremony for week 3 Team C lead advancement activity for week 3 Team D lead elective activity for week 3 Team E teach a new song etc etc Then everyone gets copies of all the 3-6 den meeting plans with the names assigned. Pass out the resource material here (game book, songbook, handouts etc). If a team doesn't show up, that part of the meeting does not get done. They'll figure that out pretty quickly. The first meeting is mine as Pack Trainer. The second and third meetings, I coach them through (or someone else, like CM or previous TDL). Fourth meeting I am intentionally absent helping out the other dens. After that you can check in from time-to-time. Be prepared to pitch in and demonstrate by example if the meeting seems to be faltering, but keep up a running dialog with the adults as you're doing this so as to not seem like you are taking over the meeting (because they will want you to). By the time they get finished with your pre-planned meetings, the adult candidates for leadership will be obvious. Hopefully you are not in a position where you have to take the only volunteer you can get, but have a few people to consider and approach by now. I figure this was a rhetorical question, since it's the end of November. But I will go ahead and state the obvious. Don't let the parents mill about in the back of the room texting on their cell phones. Every game, opening, craft etc should be lined up boy-parent-boy-parent-boy-parent. If Junior is coloring, so is dad. If they're taking home pinecone bird feeders, mom makes one too. I hope this helps,

If anyone has both Den Leader handbooks, can you scan through the table of contents and tell me what was removed from the 2011 printing? I know the Webelos Den Leader was spun out into its own handbook, but the 2011 printing is half the size of the 2009 edition. Just wondering because I am putting together my leadership enhancement topics for tomorrow's Pack Committee meeting, and I don't want to refer the den leaders back to something that isn't in their current version of the handbook. Thanks

Have an unopened box of ten. Send me your info! Regards

Most of the units in our District meet Monday or Tuesday. Wednesday is out because all of the units are chartered to religious organizations and there are Wednesday evening family and youth services. Also seems that all of the units and dens meet at the charter organization, not in homes. I suspects that's because of convenience and not enough adult leadership to go around.

There is no good freeware software that I am aware of, and it's usually the freeware that chokes you with the advertising, spyware, and limits to converted file size or length (or both). Here's a link to a site that compares some of the more popular commercial products, but you may be better off visiting a Best-Buy or similar and getting a good staff selection and explanation of their off-the-shelf products. http://video-converter-software-review.toptenreviews.com/

I think that Bemidji is out of the red jacket business. I ordered one in January and received a "backordered" response (something like that). Finally around April he contacted me and said he either has no source for the red material, or did not plan to order any more.

I'm going to ring in on this one because of the comments about the popcorn. One of our Pack Incentives the past two years has been that the top seller gets to toss a whipped-cream pie into the Committee Chair's face (Cubmaster was mostly non-existent and the youths and parents saw the CC more frequently). Anyway, she doesn't mind - it was her idea - and the boys love it. This year we ask the boys for ideas to mix up or change around the incentives, and what do they come up with? The top seller should be the one to GET the pie in the face. The boys are in love with the idea and already wanting to know if they can pick the filling for "their" pie. Try and call that "humiliation". Cubs are FUN.

One hour per week, per boy. Two hours if you throw in the parent.

I dunno. I guess I always considered hazing to be an action directed at an individual, that made them feel uncomfortable, embarrassed, or unwelcome. Having the whole patrol (or den) sing to get back a lost patrol flag? Sounds like team-building to me.

Our big thing for first-aid kits and survival kits were the old metal band-aid tins with the hinged lids. Altoids tins? There's some other candy in a round, flat tin with a screw-on cap, but I can't think of what it is.

BH, The part I need to know is, how do you iron down the shirt collars of the new shirts so the tips don't curl up and look like wings sticking out? I have watched about 20 videos on YouTube but have not been able to figure out this mystery. Boys were discouraged from taking Home Economics back when I was a lad...

>>Check law enforcement suppliers... Yah...that's the same one I got from US Cav, a law enforcement supplier. Bought two sizes, the L and XL. The L tore when I tried to put it on. The XL was so tight it pulled the hat brim up and looked goofy. I'll keep looking...Eagle92's idea about a western hat store is a good one. There isn't one near here, but I think there's an outfit that sets up a tent at the county fair every year. They can maybe point me in the right direction.

I appreciate the continued discussion. I didn't bring it up in the original post (re Papadaddy) because although I personally would not endorse the individual, the rest of the PC may do so. And the original question was only if the Council would automatically ditch a registration if a felony was indicated. It seems like the general response on that particular questions is...mixed. I understand about the ADHD / disability pitfalls. I'm currently trying to set up a District Chair position for a Scouting with Disabilities Chair as a go-to person in our District, and I've been neck-deep in that for a while. Also, my own son is an Aspy with his own challenges. I do see an opportunity for an opening to talk with dad and mom about updating the boys' medical records...because I have the forms from the last event and neither ADHD nor medication is noted. A brief conversation with my schoolmarm wife reveals that the boys spent in-office detention for threatening to kill another student (they just crossed over to Bear). They actually brought the bat to school. These boys need to stay in Scouting, it's probably the only positive thing they have in their lives. Good thing is they didn't try to stab me with a Silva when I was instructing Map & Compass (joking). But if dad walks, the boys disappear. Fun ain't it?? There is a good chance they're already in the CPS system. I need to give the elementary guidance counselor a quick call. As far as dad goes, all I am doing is making a recommendation to CC and COR to interview him privately before asking him to fill out an application. PS - the felony was within the past few years and he lost his nurses' aid certification? Not sure of the technical name for the position.

http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/insight/stories/2010/09/26/boy-scouts-wont-share-abuser-files.html There is a statement in this article about some files being created "just in case" an undesirable adult would submit an application. However in this case I am not necessarily worried about sexual abuse, but this individual is not someone I would solicit or endorse as an adult leader. There are some questions of his current behavior that don't seem like an active or enthusiastic volunteer. During pack campouts he spends his time inside his tent and does not come out to "mingle" with the other parents or help out. He also has not made any effort to assist his boys' den leader or help during events. He has told us that his twin boys are disruptive at school (ADHD / Behavioral disorders) but the only behavior I see is normal 2nd-grade boys. I don't know if this was a true medical diagnosis, or simply a frustrated parent diagnosis. Also some of the other parents have noted that the boys' "medication" administered by dad is two adult doses of Benedryl which dopes the kids up and makes them lethargic. When I've worked with them undrugged, they seem like pretty normal kids. We're actually pretty close to having a discussion with Children's Services about it. I guess the real reason for the original question, was to find out if Council would automatically zap the application, thereby releasing the Pack and COR from the onus of turning it down. Because my thinking is that the unit does turn down the application, he'll withdraw the boys from the Pack. I'd rather see them in the unit where we can continue to keep an eye on them. However if the Council turns down the application, they may stick around. I've spoken with the individual several times in an effort to draw him out or "mentor" him, but he doesn't like me very much since I got his pal the rogue Cubmaster bounced out of the unit. I appreciate the discussion.

Doesn't mean you have to give him one. It's probably so they can add it to the text-message alert system for severe weather and other emergencies.