baggss

Its all profit driven anyway....

Tell the scoutmaster to go topple a rock.

Try looking at the appy trails tents, no floor, 10 min one man setup Lightweight, Inexpensive had mine for a year.

Just ask this simple question: would you have done it if you knew you wouldn't get credit? or it wasn't required? (its a rhetorical question, watch the scouts face, and this is why I'm not asked to sit on Boards, its the only question I ask)

I disagree baggss.

 

Yes Yes I am familiar with the crew rules and Youth Protection. What I disagree with is it becoming a family outdoor adventure. That was never the intent of Venturing.

 

So what we have is Venturing becoming the new Cub Scouting????? Family camping and all...... Not a good thing.

I disagree baggss.

 

Yes Yes I am familiar with the crew rules and Youth Protection. What I disagree with is it becoming a family outdoor adventure. That was never the intent of Venturing.

 

So what we have is Venturing becoming the new Cub Scouting????? Family camping and all...... Not a good thing.

as to "family outdoor adventur"...So scoutmasters should not have sons in the troop, nor ASMs, Nor any committe members, nor should they be allowed on campouts?. So family members should not be recruited as leadership?

You need mom, most female advisors are moms, just as most male sdvisors are dads. Sometimes thats the only way the crew can get up and running is with whole familys my crew started with 1 young lady and both parents ( with a son in a troop) dad is registered with troop 2 sisters and mom ( brother in troop) mom is registerd with troop 2 brothers and dad ( oldest is bsa dropout, other is still active) all adults of the membership are registered with the crew as either associate advisor, committe chair, or committee member. You need family units to start. And as to no dating, Not my idea, my crew picked that one out from a dozen sets of bylaws from the net as a must-have.

You need mom, most female advisors are moms, just as most male sdvisors are dads. Sometimes thats the only way the crew can get up and running is with whole familys my crew started with 1 young lady and both parents ( with a son in a troop) dad is registered with troop 2 sisters and mom ( brother in troop) mom is registerd with troop 2 brothers and dad ( oldest is bsa dropout, other is still active) all adults of the membership are registered with the crew as either associate advisor, committe chair, or committee member. You need family units to start. And as to no dating, Not my idea, my crew picked that one out from a dozen sets of bylaws from the net as a must-have.

If I recall, belt loops once were the award that the activity pin is now. It was rare to see more than 5 'loops on a belt back then.

What part of the country are you in Baggss? I'm attending a 1hr lecture on this topic soon. I will share what I learn if it is pertinent.

I've been a lurker off and on these forums since 07, I got lots of great information from here. I tried registering back in 2012 when my son joined a troop, and i needed to ask my own questions, but there were problems with the server i guess. During the past year I've been working on forming a venture crew at my church, nov 2013 saw us receive our charter with the bare minimum, and I've been directed to these forums in my search for answers, but always while on the pc. A few days ago I again found myself here while using my portable internet connection device (iphone) , and it was formatted for the phone! and! it let me register! So I finally can come out of the shadows and into yhe light and i'll have a lot of questions to ask and yes, some opinions too. Oh, and Venturing Crew 24 Rocks!

Not knowing your parents, on the surface It sounds to me that you getting your eagle is more important to them than to you (hey everbody!! lookit MY kid, he made eagle!) That said, perhaps not having a license will help you be better prepared to succeed with limited resources.

Yeah... jpstodwftexas...I understand... Its just hard to motivate the Scouts/ leaders to become involved, as I am a new (1 year old) Scoutmaster, with a Troop that I have been working to revitalize (a top age of 12, with 4 brand new 1st class/ 20 night in the woods this past year Scouts). My Scouts have hiked, camped, whitewater rafted, climbed, sailboated, been caving, and backpacked over the past year. They have had a ball, and have bee aiming towards the goal of OA, as their next short-term endeavor. I believe in the promise that Scouting provides, and I cheer them on in their endeavors. I search out information to help back my advocating for Scouting, and have, on occasion, come here to review, as this site has a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.

 

It just saddens me to see those who have been around the Scouting world for longer than me being so critical. I thought that one of our roles as Scouters is to teach our youth how to problem-solve. That's a part of the reason I was drawn to Scouting, and encouraged my son to join. We need more problem-solvers in the world, and I have been of the belief that Scouting was the best extra-curricular activity to offer this skill.

 

I come to the OA thread, thinking the best of the best hang out here, and the first post that I read is about all of the problems... That's discouraging. I thought Scouters, especially OA Scouters, were of the "Great!... We have a challenge! Let's figure out how we can overcome.... Not, "hey, we have a problem... Lets all complain about how bad it is." Voicing issues is healthy.. It gets the issue out on the table... but the next step is to brainstorm through the wealth of knowledge throughout this site, to work towards overcoming the challenges... That's kind of what I thought Scouting; and the OA was about.

 

I look forward to when I am called out; when my son is called out, and when the other Scout 1st Class boys are called out. I look forward to Ordeal, and if the lodge is not the greatest; then I will do what I did when we entered Cub Scouts into a 6 boy Pack, that rose to 50 boys and well respected throughout the District and Council. I will do what I am working to do with the Troop that was about to fold; having 1 boy left at time to recharter last December, and now holds 17 active Scouts, recruited over the past year, with 100% retention. I will systematically work to strengthen the Lodge that we enter into one of the great lodges in the region.

 

I just have to continue to learn what a lodge is supposed to do...

 

Thank you all who serve in the OA... With hope, you are making a positive difference for our Scout youth.

What part of the country are you in Baggss? I'm attending a 1hr lecture on this topic soon. I will share what I learn if it is pertinent.

water and woods FSC

Heres an example of 3 of 4 shoestring outings combined into one high adventure 1 snowshoe day trip (cheap) 2 overnight backpack trip (cheap) 3 Overnight winter camp (cheap) 4 cross country sking (cheap) combined into a 2 night 3 day hike/snowshoe outing, in a state/national forrest, or even on a rail/trail

shoestring, ideally less than $30 per single event, per day, like $25 5 hour standup paddleboard rental. The overpriced bsa events to me are just pre-planned group vacations. planning should be part of the experience.

Venturing on shoestring. I've been trying to find "sample adventures" that dont bust the wallet, but will give the crew a sense of what a full-blown outing would be like. That way they can decide if they want to pursue it further before shelling out money for something they may not really like: The best example i can come up with is getting the sampler platter at a restaurant, you can try smaller portions rather than taking a chance on the full-blown entree. I'm looking for ideas to fill that platter with.

Before you go to the trouble of starting a new unit have a couple of outings....been there done that....our problem has been that the young ladies like the idea not the actual experience. Our crew has folded twice in four years because of it.....the last was because we wouldn't let the couples welllllllll couple....tent together and have a romantic evening by the camp fire.

An option our crew has adopted is using a Khaki photographers vest (the humvee safari vest) as our uniform with some of the venturing patches, with a yet to be determined crew T-shirt We are a new crew so its still a work in progess. http://facebook.com/VentureCrew24

In My opinion, OA is basically a good old boy network run by adults trying to recapture some unrealized aspect from their youth, numbers is all that matters, which details they deligate to underlings who have little knowledge as to what is going on. my son was elected last year, never contacted by oa, somehow the other 4 boys were. He finally recieved a letter less than one week before the last callout, what a joke. At the top levels of oa, they're quick to get back to you, at lodge level, its hit or miss.

I'm sorry, Kilts?..

In My opinion, OA is basically a good old boy network run by adults trying to recapture some unrealized aspect from their youth, numbers is all that matters, which details they deligate to underlings who have little knowledge as to what is going on. my son was elected last year, never contacted by oa, somehow the other 4 boys were. He finally recieved a letter less than one week before the last callout, what a joke. At the top levels of oa, they're quick to get back to you, at lodge level, its hit or miss.