meyerc13

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 a lot of space.  Another go-to idea for Scouts is foil packet meals.  You'd need many campfires burning to pull that off for such a large group.

Here's how I'd approach it.  Growing up in a thrifty family, we had to be creative in making the meat stretch to feed 7 (Grandma-Grandpa-Mom-Dad-3 Kids).  One great option for a group is pasta.  You can do it meatless with just spaghetti sauce and dry pasta, or you can offer a meat sauce and a meatless sauce.  The meat in the meat sauce will go a long way - a pound of hamburger can stretch nicely.  You can buy giant jars of sauce at most warehouse club stores.  The pasta you don't use will keep for your next outing as well.  You can cook the pasta in stock pots with strainer baskets - pull out the basket, the past drains and can be served, and the water is still on a boil for the next batch.  You can probably do several batches of pasta before you'll need to add more water.  You can keep an extra pot on the boil so there is no downtime to wait for water to come up to temp.  With 3-5 gallon pots, you'd probaby want to have 3-5 pots going at once.  If you can find bigger pots than that you might only need 2-3.  For the sauce, I'd brown the meat 1-2 pounds at a time in a skillet, and then drain it and transfer it to a pot of sauce.  Don't use aluminum pots for the sauce, it can react with the acid.  You could use large steel stock pots or large, well seasoned, cast iron dutch ovens.  You can stack the dutch ovens with coals in between to keep the whole stack warm.

Another option would be tacos.  I'd go with soft tortilla shells, less space and easier to transport.  Maybe have tortilla chips for those who prefer crunchy.  You could easily do pulled pork or chicken in dutch ovens as a topping, and ground beef as I explain above, transferring it after browning to a larger pot.  Again - this stretches the meat a long way.

As for breakfast - large rectangular griddles are your friend.  If you are using Camp Chef stoves (highly recommended for a group this size), you can buy griddles that cover their three burner stoves.  On a griddle that size you can whip out burgers, grilled cheese, or pancakes in no time.  If you are using smaller Coleman style two burner camp stoves, you can get a griddle to cover both burners but the most you'll probably get is 6-8 pancakes, whereas you can probably do 3x that on the Camp Chef in a batch.  If you buy precooked sausages that just need to be heated, you can do those over a campfire with a Coleman broiler basket or similar long handled grilling basket.  Serve these in batches - one batch can probably feed a den+family.  If you have 2+ stoves you can feed multiple dens at a time.  You'll be able to crank out another batch of pancakes every few minutes - but serve them while they are hot - don't try to precook for the whole group.  Breakfast burritos is another option if you aren't doing the tacos.  I'd precrack the eggs and store them in a tupperware style jug.  scramble a batch at a time.  Serve with shredded cheese, chopped up sausages, salsa, etc.

As I mentioned before, grilling is another option, but transporting grills for that size of a group could be tricky.  Stoves are more versatile and I'd probably design my menu around stoves rather than grilling.

Hopefully this helps and gives you some ideas of the thought process around feeding such a large group.  Hopefully you have some parents or leaders who enjoy cooking and will take on that role.  I know I'd rather be the chef than the dishwasher - especially with a group that size!  ;-)

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 can recruit Committee Members.

With that said, you could go back to the COR and say, "Look, you can keep the CC if you'd like, but my wife and I can't work with her.  So you can keep one and lose two, or you can keep two and replace the CC with someone who can work well with me."  I don't know if that would work, but before I walked away from a Pack I'd give it a try.

The lesson to be learned here folks is to recruit a good Commitee Chair.  Find someone who understands Scouting, is helpful, and can be a leader (not a manager).  Stosh's posts on servant leadership come to mind - if you can find someone like that you'd be in good shape.  If you don't look for these traits in a Committee Chair you proceed at your own risk.  You might get a good one, or the Cubmaster might need to step up and take on more leadership than they should, or you might end up with a dud.

If you've really decided to quit, you might talk to your District Exec to find out if there is a Pack that needs a good Cubmaster.  I know in our District we have Packs that would love to have a family like yours right now, even if it is only for a few months.

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.  Ultimately the UC has no power to decide who is doing what in a pack, but the UC may be able to bring the parties together and can also engage other District Resources as needed.  At the very least, the UC should know what is going on because the health of this Pack is certainly in jeopardy.

Thank you for the time you put in, it sounds like a challenging Pack to work with.  Also thanks for making sure your son continues in Scouting.  I hope you find a resolution no matter which path your decide to pursue.

If that doesn't work, perhaps working with your Commissioner to help you sort out a resolution.

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, but if it's the latter then perhaps the new parents feel that the old parents aren't the best ones to teach them since they failed to do so before their sons crossed over.

If these folks really want to stay involved in Cub Scouting, there are many Packs who need help and most Districts would be happy to gain a few experienced Commissioners.  I was already a Commissioner, and the District has already found 2-3 Packs that needed my help far more than my old Pack which is one of the higher performing Packs in the District.  This is also something that the Unit Commissioner may be able to assist with.

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 United Way still isn't overly interested in supporting the Council.  Before this happened, the Council received approximately $200,000 from the local United Way.  When our Council approached them recently about the membership changes, from what I've heard we were told that the most we could expect would be somewhere around $10,000.  That's 5% of what we had been receiving 15 years ago, and our Council decided it wasn't worth the effort to let people think the United Way supports the Council when in reality they wouldn't be supporting the Council in any significant way.

So a Council can survive cuts from the United Way, but it takes work.  If I were you I'd be asking around locally why the local United Way is making this decision.  There must be some reason.  Here's the info from our Council from 15 years ago: 

http://journaltimes.com/news/state-and-regional/united-way-groups-debate-scout-funding/article_24547915-db12-51e8-a41f-60aabbb8e7ca.html

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.

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 problem because parents aren't required to stay.  However, if a parent did decide to stay and I saw a sibling sitting on the sidelines while the boys were about to play a game, I'd invite the sibling to participate.  However, I wouldn't expect the Sibling to participate in advancement activities because they are typically not age appropriate for younger kids.

For Pack Meetings, I expect the entire family to attend and participate, but sadly most of the time I wouldn't see both parents.  Yet we try to make games accessible to all ages at Pack Meetings.

So perhaps this isn't as revolutionary as it seems - I just wonder how well it will work because some advancement activities at Wolf-Bears-Webelos isn't going to be very accessible for younger siblings.  Building a robotic hand?  Not likely to see a Kindergartner be able to do that without a lot of parental assistance.

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 can tow, not to mention the presence or absence of a trailer braking system, the hitch class, etc.

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 needs to read/see/be taught something several times before they will truly learn and remember what they are being taught.  For a gifted child, learning comes much easier.  Often if they see or read something once, they will understand it and learn it.  My son, for example, taught himself to read.  True, my wife and I read to him every night before bedtime from the time he was a newborn until he taught himself, but we never really worked on teaching him to read.  It just came naturally to him.  LIkewise, in math class at school they often go over a topic day after day after day, with endless repitition.  Yet my son will understand it very quickly (often the first time it is explained, sometimes before the teacher finishes explaining it), and then he becomes bored with repeatedly having to redo the same thing for no apparent gain.  In fact, the more it repeats, the worse his grades will get because he won't continue to put in the effort and he'll start being distracted and won't finish problems.  I was reviewing his math homework last night, and after 5-6 days of going over the same topic, out of six problems he had finished one, two he had started but never finished, and three of them he completely missed although he thought he had finished the assignment.  If you test him on the topic he'll generally pass with 100%.  Trust me on this - having a gifted child is not a joyful experience.  I'm not bragging, just trying to explain.  The challenge is that teachers often have to spend so much time working with struggling students, that they don't have time to keep the work challenging for gifted students.  Also, many teachers don't understand how a gifted mind works.

The flipside to giftedness is that may gifted students also struggle socially.  Their emotional development doesn't keep pace with their mental development, and because their brains work differently they struggle to find common ground with others their age.  My son will happily talk for hours on a topic, not realizing that everybody has stopped listening to him.  When he was younger, he'd be talking to us in the car, but not realize we had gotten out of the car to walk around to the other side to let him out of his car seat.  He still does that at times - not realizing that someone doesn't care about what he is so passionate about.

Now, with all of that out of the way, I suspect if your son is gifted some of this may be coming in to play.  The Scout leaders don't understand the gfited mind, can't believe that someone can learn a topic in half a day.  Can't believe that someone would actually spend time researching a topic for weeks before a merit badge class.  I can believe all of that.  I wish I could give you an answer, but I'm not sure that I have one.  If the Scoutmaster is willing to read up on working with gifted children, maybe he'll lay off your son.  If not, then perhaps you should find a different Troop.

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 adults in the Pack.

Hope to see you down in the Cub Scouting forum, we need more discussion down there. 

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.

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 camps will bite the dust. 

Good luck to all of our Scouting brothers and sisters in these two Councils.  Hopefully it isn't your favorite camp that ends up on the chopping block.

Looks like it's now a done deal:

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/A-message-regarding-the-Council-Merger.html?soid=1109014350059&aid=mmkZYzT7iG4

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 DEs, but how they are going to deal with this they still don't know.  It's either give out a lot of raises, or cut hours substantially.  I know for a fact that our DEs put in insane amounts of hours, especially this time of year with recruiting and popcorn sales both going on simultaneously.  Add to that all of the District Subcommittee meetings they attend, and most of them aren't done with work until well into the evening, despite the fact that they start work early in the morning.

Being in IT, I've worked in jobs with a lot of after hours work, but I don't think I consistently worked as many hours week after week as our DEs do.  Despite that, they make far less than I ever did working in IT.  It's really fascinating to me how dedicated they are when many of them never had a background in Scouting prior to taking their position.

One last point - for those who wish the BSA would go away, just remember that no matter which non-profit you are talking about, the problem is the same.  So all of the other Scouting organizations are facing this same dillemma right now - do we cut hours or pay more.  If they cut hours, what work isn't going to get done?  If they pay more, where is that money going to come from?  It's a big problem, so keep that in mind as you plan your charitable giving for 2017.

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 pay for District staff to help us and for our camp properties.  The remaining third is used to send that much popcorn to our Troops.  It's a win all around.

Our Pack was very upfront about this at our Popcorn sales.  Not only has it never resulted in someone complaining, on one occasion when my son was doing Show and Deliver it resulted in a customer deciding to change his $40 popcorn purchase into a $40 military donation instead.  He was still helping our Pack, but did it because he remembered receiving Scout popcorn when he was stationed in the Middle East.  He told my son, "Those guys will enjoy the popcorn more than me."  Doing this is a way to turn some 'no' responses into a $5 (or other amount) donation, 1/3 of which would go to our Pack, which is better than 1/3 of 'no thank you.'

But the current pilot going on in many councils (including mine) is not part of Learning for Life, right?  The kindergartners will be a Lion den in a regular Cub Scout pack, right?

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.

@@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 program is like drinking from a firehouse.  There's Position Specific Training, BALOO, and other training out there, but if you are starting at zero trying to absorb everything is daunting.  Ideals, Methods, Adventures, Outings, Pack Overnighters, Blue and Gold Banquets, Pinewood Derbies... these are all parts of a strong program, but just the terminology is overwhelming.  As a Commissioner trying to help these units it's hard to know where to start.  So I thought of your idea and the fact that it stresses fun while also instilling the basics of Cub Scouting... and that seems to me a better way to introduce families to Scouting in a new Pack than expecting them to dive into the deep end and run seven adventures between now and June when the Leaders won't even have gone through training before October.  By the time the den leaders know what they are supposed to be doing, we'll be hitting the holiday season (Thanksgiving through New Years) and it's hard to get an Adventure done each month with all of the days that schools are closed during that 5-6 week period.  Before you know it, you are down to January - May, and that's not a lot of time to get 5-6 Adventures done plus host a pinewood derby and Blue and Gold Banquet.

I still think the BSA is doing new Packs and small Packs a disservice by not having an easy way to offer the Adventure Program to them.  I really like your ideas... but I worry that if we discuss them too openly that you'll be branded a heretic by the national office.  I've seen a few cases where someone who worked on the new program lectured someone who suggested that combined den meetings could be done.  I think we all know that these situations aren't ideal, small Packs and newly formed Packs are at the extreme ends of Scouting, but they need to have a way to have a fun program incorporating as many elements of Scouting as possible, and suggesting that they try to hold Den Meetings for 1-3 boy dens is crazy.

The big problem is that we all know that some of these struggling Packs would be better off merging, at least temporarily, with other Packs in order to have a strong program.  Yet the BSA doesn't want to see the number of Packs drop so they will do everything they can to prevent that, but yet they don't offer any program aids to these Packs so that they can become strong Packs.  It's a vicious cycle, and I thank you for thinking outside the box.  I just wish someone at National would acknowledge this need and make something offiicial more widely available.

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 plus at least one or more family member each).  On their own, few dens could pull it off.  Not to mention, few Packs have the depth of leadership required to host multiple such campouts each season (one or more for each den).  If the BSA allowed flat-out den camping I think it would result in some boys in the Pack having no opportunity to camp because their den leaders couldn't pull it off and the Pack leadership wouldn't want to put in the effort because they've already done one or more campouts for other dens.

With that said, if all of the BALOO rules are being followed, it's essentially a Pack Overnighter regardless of who shows up.  I think the right thing to do is invite all of the boys in the Pack, but there are undoubtedly times when only families from a single den decide to go on a Pack Overnighter (because their den leader is the most enthusiastic about the campout), and I know there are Packs with only a single den (either dying Packs or Packs that were newly formed).  Since camping is a requirement, we can't expect those Packs to not hold an overnighter just because they only have a single den... if their leaders are BALOO trained and they follow the rules and what they've been taught in BALOO it is a Pack Overnighter, even for Packs with a single den.  At that point we're nitpicking about semantics.

So I can understand national saying no, and I lean toward that being the right decision even though I can understand and agree with the points above, but if the Pack Overnighter format and rules are followed you can call it whatever you'd like.  We generally go with 'Fall Camp,' 'Winter Camp,' and 'Spring Camp.'  It's less of a mouthful than 'Fall Pack Overnighter.' (Which, by the way, some might mistake for a lockin or something like that - we want families new to Scouting to know that our Pack puts the 'out' in 'Scout'.)

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 this year essentially came out of their Pilot that has been ongoing for many years now.

 Are most pot growers Democrats?  I don't know.  They are very entrepeneurial.  They could be Republicans.  

Nah, they are Libertarian.  Some just haven't realized it yet.

The final cherry... The current leaders hung around afterwards and we put together a rough plan for a new scout orientation next year that will incorporate many of the ideas you all have shared.

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! 

Ran into this one yesterday, looks interesting (but very, very expensive):  http://kazoomagazine.com/

I can't quote chapter and verse, but I believe soliciting cash donations without some good or service attached is a no go under the rules for unit fundraising.  

 

You can accept them when offered.  So if instead of buying popcorn I just give a $10 check to every kid who shows up at my house that's OK, likewise if someone tells you to keep the change, you can accept it as a donation.

Here it is, from the Fiscal Policies and Procedures for BSA Units FAQ:

We can’t solicit gifts for our unit?

No. Simply put, units are not permitted to solicit any gifts. Both the Charter and Bylaws and the

Rules and Regulations of the BSA make this very clear; only local councils may solicit individuals,

corporations, United Ways, or foundations for gifts in support of Scouting. Units, unit leaders, and

youth members may not solicit gifts in the name of Scouting or in support of unit needs and

activities (except in unusual circumstances where the unit has received permission to do so from

the local council). Units are also prohibited from soliciting gifts on their websites.

Does that mean people can’t make gifts to our troop?

Units are not supposed to solicit gifts, but they can receive gifts. Anyone can contribute to a Scout

pack, troop, or unit—and many donors don’t need or care about charitable deductions. Obviously,

defining a “solicited gift†is not always easy. But we rely on our unit leaders to set good examples

and honor the intent and spirit of these important guidelines. We know it’s hard to stop people from

being generous, especially toward Scouting.

 

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 all agree is an adult leaders responsibility.

Just watch any of those cooking shows on TV.  Do they say "Using the basket ingredients, and using all industry standard food hygeine and food safety protocols, create a delicious, nutritious, and edible meal for the judges"?  No, they don't say that.  Yet if the judges cut into their chicken and its raw, or if they see the contestant grab a handful of lettuce for a salad after handling raw chicken without sanitizing their hands - the judges don't eat the food and the contestant loses that round.

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.

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 for one of them to be the den leader unless they also have an opportunity to go through IOLS/WOLS in the very near future.  A good way to recruit may be to get one or more den camping trips scheduled yet this fall.  Remember that two deep leadership is required, but beyond that it may be best if the adults and parents camp in separate tents away from the boys - let the boys do as much for themselves as possible so that they can experience what Boy Scouting (and Webelos) is all about.  Make sure you plan a healthy amount of fire building and whittling into the weekend.  Any chance boys that age get to experience hands-on with fire and knives is priceless as far as recruiting more boys.  Just be sure the leaders keep a close eye on the boys to make sure that any injuries are minor.