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meyerc13

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Everything posted by meyerc13

  1. Wow, that's a big group. Not undoable, but it certainly presents challenges. Some go-to ideas that work for a smaller group might not work for such a large group. I think one of the big challenges you'll have is food storage - it will take a lot of coolers and ice to keep the cold food cold for such a large group. Keeping that in mind, you may want to tailor your menu to minimize how much needs to be kept on ice. While Hot Dogs, Brats, and Burgers can certainly feed a large group fairly quickly, that may end up being a lot of meat per person. Not to mention transporting buns takes up
  2. Wow... thanks for the further details. While many people think the Cubmaster is the most powerful position in the Pack, the reality is that the Committee Chair actually holds more power than the Cubmaster. Many don't understand that and don't use the power, but since the CC signs the application for the Cubmaster, it's really the CC that holds the power. If the Cubmaster quits, it falls to the CC to run the Pack Meetings and carry out the duties until a new Cubmaster can be selected. If the Committee isn't staffed, ultimately it's up to the CC to make sure the jobs get done until the CC ca
  3. Are you sure you don't want to give this one more try? If it is really as bad as you say, with your departure and the CC staying, it's quite likely that this Pack may soon cease to exist. Even though Eagle90 is right and most CORs do little more than rubber stamp any adult applications handed to them and most Institutional Heads have no idea they evern are an IH, it is possible that the Chartered Org has a desire to sponsor a Scout Pack and may not want to see that Pack disband. As Eagle90 said, if things were really this bad it is probably long past time to call in the Unit Commissioner
  4. A few weeks ago, I was that Committee member who wanted to stay. The new Cubmaster and I had a talk and I realized that it was time to Enable them and step back. It's part of the EDGE method, which we use in Scouting. Perhaps one of the problems here is that there wasn't a good transition plan in place before they stepped down, and the 'Explain, Demonstrate, and Guide' steps of the EDGE process weren't fully implemented. I think the fundamental problem is that the new parents feel they are ready to be 'enabled' and the old parents feel they are not. Which is truly the case is hard to say,
  5. It could be specific to your area. Our local United Way hasn't given funds to our Council for 15 years now. It started because of the BSA's discrimination against homosexuals. I wasn't active in Scouting during that time period, but from what I've heard it took a lot of work for the Council to line up alternative funding sources. Some well off individuals who supported Scouting certainly helped, but even at a grassroots level many of us who believe in Scouting diverted our charitable giving from the United Way to the BSA. Interestingly, now that the BSA has changed its policies, the Un
  6. We were lucky in that a former Cubmaster for the Pack works at a hospital. You might check if there are any Explorer posts in your area specializing in medicine or emergency services. Or check with the local Troops, undoubtedly some units have medical profesionals that would love to help.
  7. This was already happening somewhat in my Pack. Since Tigers (and now Lions) requires that an adult partner attend the meetings, in some cases the parents had no choice but to bring younger siblings (somehow I've never lucked out and had older siblings) - it was either that or lose the boy's participation in Scouting. With Tigers, if we were doing a project and I thought the sibling might be interested, I'd bring along extra supplies. Also, if we were playing a game and I felt it was safe, I would invite the sibling to participate. For Wolf-Bear-Webelos, this hasn't been as much of a pr
  8. I will add this, most Troops should probably load their trailer and take it to a scale to see how much it really weighs. With the wood added for shelving, I suspect many trailers are over the weight limit for the tires and axles on the trailer. Also, you need to be concerned with more than just the weight of the trailer. You also need to be concerned with the tongue weight. If you aren't familiar with the following acronyms, I think you should do some research before you thinking about towing anything: GVWR GCWR GTW TW All of these come into play when determining what your vehicle
  9. My son is tagged as 'gifted' as well. Many people who haven't done the research don't understand gifted children. I didn't even understand until I read up on the subject, even though in retrospect I would have probably been considered 'gifted' at that age had I been tested. People think the label is all about grades in school or about parents wanting special treatment for their children. There is a nugget of truth to that (special treatment), but it's not a 'want' it is a 'need.' For those reading this who haven't done the research, the simplest explanation is this: The average person
  10. Welcome! As a dad who just finished a three year stint as Cubmaster - it's a blast. I will admit there were times that were stressful, but by the time I left our Pack was working like a well oiled machine and I was having fun in the role. As long as you remember what's on the job description for Cubmaster, and what isn't, and try to avoid getting tasked with too many of the things that aren't part of the job, then you should do fine. When you start doing too many of the Committee's roles you'll find yourself no longer having fun. The key to this role is delegation and clear roles for all
  11. The past couple of years our Pack had a whole stack of awards, everything from "Best Super Hero Theme" to "Best Paint Job." Most of these were voted on by the Pack Committee and Leaders. We then had a 'Scout's Choice' which was voted on by the Scouts. One year I think we used ballots with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd choices, but last year I think we did it by having the Scout's whisper their choice to us.
  12. Saw this in my newsfeed yesterday: http://www.bnd.com/news/local/article104537296.html A few interesting points in the article caught my attention: First, they say that it was the United Way that suggested the merger. In our area, the United Way won't give any money to the BSA, so they must have a lot more influence with Scouting in St. Louis than they do up here. They also say no lay offs, but that they'll save $400K... wonder how that works. Must be by not back filling open reqs? They plan to keep three OA lodges. They feel they'll have too many camp properties. So a few more BSA c
  13. Your unit is the exception then, not the rule. For every thriving unit, in our District we probably have at least one (if not more) units that are struggling to survive. It is in all of our best interests for Scouting to grow or at the very least remain level. Without DEs to recruit new Chartered Orgs, help struggling units with recruiting kids and leaders, raise money to fund our camp properties, etc... without those DEs the slow decline in membership would have been a dive off of a cliff, and eventually there wouldn't be a BSA. In our Council, the word is they don't want to cut any DE
  14. Even though this takes my thread even further off topic, I've got to side with Andysmom on this one. Perhaps those of you with Troops are too far removed from the Cub Scout program to remember, but many Cub Scout Packs choose to use a prize program as part of their popcorn sale. It's a big incentive for the boys to sell more popcorn. In order for the boys to get credit to their prize goal, donations have to be recorded as 'military donation.' I'm not sure why so many have a problem with this. Over 1/3 of the money in our Council stays with the Pack. About 1/3 goes to the Council, to help
  15. Correct. The current pilot, and the pre-pilot it was based off of (Northern Star Council), are not part of Learning for Life. Lions will be members of Packs, just like Tigers were back when that program rolled out.
  16. @@bbender, thanks for sharing this idea. I had seen it on your website after going there to look at your plans for mixed dens and was intrigued. Just this past week I thought of this idea again because I'm trying to help a Pack that is just forming and another that is rebuilding after nearly going extinct. Both of those Packs are bringing in interested boys, but both of those Packs have too few boys to have strong dens across the board, and both definitely need to recruit and train den leaders. While I love the new Cub Scout program, for a newly forming Pack, absorbing the Cub Scout pro
  17. I can see the logic in this proposal, but some part of me thinks it's a bad idea. Putting together a Pack Overnighter is a lot of work. I often had to burn a day of PTO as well as a couple of evenings just to get the shopping, packing, etc. done. A Pack Overnighter is a strange combination of a camping trip, multiple den meetings, and hosting a huge day long party. Reducing that to a single den would help some, but it would still be the equivalent of a bunch of den meetings (to keep the boys occupied all day) plus hosting a bunch of parties the same day (to prepare three meals for 6-8 boys
  18. I did some research on this earlier this year for a Roundtable session I was leading. In addition to the Northern Star Council's Lion pilot there was another Lion pilot in the Hiawatha Seaway Council. That one was operated under the Learning for Life organization. I believe that my research also showed that two more Councils had piloted Lions, but I didn't note which Councils those were. The one your sister mentioned must be Northern Star Council though. I met one of their experts on the Lion program at the Philmont Training Center this past summer. What is being piloted nationwide th
  19. Nah, they are Libertarian. Some just haven't realized it yet.
  20. Your whole post made me smile, but this part especially. If we can continually improve as Packs from year to year we'd have awesome Scout Packs nationwide. Sadly, we seem to go through up and down cycles as leaders' kids age out of the program and a new cycle of parents step in. With things like new parent orientations, the parents of the next generation of Scouts will experience it themselves, so you'll have years of potential leaders who will know the right way to do it. Way to go!
  21. Ran into this one yesterday, looks interesting (but very, very expensive): http://kazoomagazine.com/
  22. Here it is, from the Fiscal Policies and Procedures for BSA Units FAQ:
  23. I think that's the main concern - we are making merit badges more of a chore than a fun experience by making them more like homework (or doing your taxes, which is something thankfully most of them haven't had to experience yet) than about learning while doing. Plus, I think we have far too much "explain" and "discuss" and not enough "do" and "demonstrate." When they are 'doing', should they be following proper food safety protocols? Absolutely! But that should be implicit and on the adults. After all, 'food safety' is still 'safety' and falls under one of the few things that we can al
  24. I think this actually falls under the District Training Committee. I'd talk to the chair for that Committee and explain the situation. You may also want to consider the Silver Beaver if he hasn't earned that already. Ultimately that is decided at the Council level, but if you write a compelling enough nomination for him, it can certainly help. Another idea is the District Award of Merit. Especially if he has taken an active role in helping the District.
  25. Personally, I'd talk to the local Boy Scout Troops. Find a Troop with an Assitant Scoutmaster who needs something to do. Webelos is all about preparing the boys for Boy Scouting, so who better to lead them than a Boy Scout leader? Now, the Boy Scout leader may need to be reminded that this is Cub Scouts and the standards are a bit looser and the leader needs to put in a bit more effort, but by the time our boys are Webelos the difference between Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts shouldn't be all that much. If the parents of the boys don't have Boy Scout experience, I personally wouldn't push fo
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