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Buggie

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Everything posted by Buggie

  1. I know of an event a few decades ago where National made the rule, Troop refused to follow, CO got involved and told the Troop "you will follow the BSA National rule". Troop said "you can't make us" CO said no more charter. If there's one thing I've learned from David CO, Charter Orgs are in charge. Scout of one of the families involved on the former CO side was then targeted by the former SM and friends of SM for when that scout went to the Eagle Board, of which they were involved and led. Eagle Chair didn't even bother looking at the scout's project etc. Said he was in no way ev
  2. When i recommend things other than what's been mentioned above, if the scout was old enough / large enough, our local animal shelter is a great place to help in walking dogs. Though it is in high demand, herding cats (socializing with them in their room) is another option. It's the more difficult one to find spots for though, as it's a smaller room and only so many folks can be in there at a time. For the dedicated volunteers, it's about cleaning cages and feeding/watering. The shelter doesn't let the casual volunteer do that job as they want it done correctly and to build a trust with t
  3. One of the main reasons for not being allowed to help in the southern part of OKC tornado zones was the risk of hazardous chemicals within the tornado struck neighborhoods. My son's troop and church youth groups also attempted to volunteer, but were turned away for this reason. Imagine all the chemicals that folks keep under the sinks, in washrooms, garages etc. There's a danger that the disturbing of any rubble etc can cause damage containers to leak and mix creating toxic clouds. Not to mention the chemicals themselves. This is on top of the already dangerous environment of nails, brok
  4. Some of the issues in my kid's school district is either they don't have network connectivity, or they don't have enough computers to share between the kids at home plus the parents currently having to work from home, if they have that luxury. My daughter's district took the stance of whatever work you can do, can only improve your grade. If any work can not improve it, it is not considered. Those unable to do school work, who can't do it all, or do poorly at it because they aren't used to doing external classroom work, are not going to be penalized for the situation.
  5. Boy Scout makes Ear Guards for Medical Workers After his local hospital asked people to help out medics with the pain they endure from wearing protective masks all day, Canadian boy scout couldn’t just stand by Go Canada!
  6. Even though all the schools here are on temporary (we're all sure it will permanent soon) shutdown, the district I'm most acquainted with has restricted access to the school buildings to approved by the superintendent only. To help with them not having to keep disinfecting areas that have already been cleaned. No teachers or administrators can go in without approval. I can imagine other school districts doing the same, limiting entry to keep from costly re-cleaning procedures already taken. However the buildings have opened up limited use to the kitchens to allow feeding kids in curbside picku
  7. Definitely visit more than one troop. There are different flavors based upon the mix of scouts and scouters. Some can be as different as night and day, but generally most have different focuses of activities that their scouts like to do. Nice to call ahead if you can get a contact number from the council/district site to see if that night is a good night to go. Very important these days with everyone practicing social distancing. Oh, and if they are going camping, ask if you can attend. Nothing better than seeing a troop in action in the field. And a great way to get to know the adults a
  8. Our boards are convened at the CO of one of the units because that's where the Scouter who usually conducts them has access. They are in a common meeting room with a nice broad table. It's meant to be relaxed and semi-formal. A mini-celebration as well as a careful review. Post review, Eagle candidates come out into the hall, nervous beyond belief generally. Sometimes they wander to the door of the gym where the local troop is having their meeting. Most often everyone knows each other between scouts and scouters. Those of us who encounter the candidates in the hall provide a nice relaxing chit
  9. Our troop was planning on having their normal meetings, but were reminded of the CDC recommendations and have since decided it was best to not meet. I haven't heard anything from the CO (a neighboring UMC) about their facilities and their concerns, but I know our local Methodist church is planning to announce a two week hiatus at minimum.
  10. You should clarify that all adults attending summer camp must take Youth Protection Training. I leave it up to you to state whatever policies you feel you need to state, but I would definitely state that if you can not supply proof that you've taken the training, you will not be allowed to attend summer camp. I also recommend it even if they aren't going to attend, because the more you know the better things can be. Also agreed with earlier comments you can cut out some aspects. I do like that you are stressing that this is the time for a scout to grow and it is easiest to g
  11. Not what you're looking for, but I picked up a full size yoga mat with one of those straps you can carry it with. I recognize this isn't the greatest of sleeping pads, but I liked the carrying strap for it. It's fairly comfortable. I've not had a chance to camp with it yet, but already I get very tired when I'm on it. 😀 But seriously, it's not a terrible cheap one and I'm going to get a double use out of it.
  12. I've always suggested to scouts/parents that they photocopy or scan their scout handbook whenever things are checked off etc. Simply because those blasted things fall apart so easily. And you never know when something happens and everything is suddenly ruined. Far easier to have your copy than to trust it has been kept up electronically by the troop. Learned these lessons the hard way.
  13. My pedantic mind always goes into logic mode. Sure, the MBC isn't registered at council this year. The cards are all dated last year by the MBC Signature. Was the MBC listed in the BSA last year and during that time period, were they registered as MBC for those badges. If they weren't, the whole set of blue cards aren't valid. Which is a tough thing to tell the Scout. If they were, you can't retest. All you can do is advise that this will be noticed again and could be questioned. You have to accept the cards as valid (with the exception of the one card with the subject line crossed
  14. @Eagledad At what point would you report? We all have that line we find ourselves having crossed where we realize we have to do something.
  15. Then they report it. I'd get investigated. Maybe my time in scouts comes to an end. I get what you and others are saying. A rash report could jeopardize and ruin someone's life and reputation. I'm not calling for rash reports. And yes, I fully admit that one can get into difficult decisions about this. It isn't easy. The grey areas are where the predators love to roam. And like you have acknowledged, a non-report could do far, far worse if abuse is going on. But again, look at what the training tells us to do. It says not to determine if there's something going on by ourselve
  16. I know it will seem harsh, but YPT dictates a report to national. You took the training. You should be doing the same thing. I'd also report to SM, CC, and COR unless one of them was the one I was reporting. It might end my involvement in scouting because I reported someone that people in charge like, but I've read too many articles, some mentioned here in this forum, where the situation is pushed off because the scouter would never and they are good folk etc. Only to find out later that they aren't as good as everyone thinks. In a lot of those stories, they talk to the guy, it's explained off
  17. I would say "yes" because we still have issues with folk who have passed YPT and do it. Also folks who pass YPT and don't follow the process of vigilance and reporting, because <name> is such a good person, they couldn't possibly be doing that. the other day I exercised my YPT muscles by verifying a scouter who took other scouts home was following YPT in the process. (he was thankfully) and I would not have hesitated to report him if he wasn't. He might be a great guy and making a simple error, but these scouts depend on us to defend them. There's no way I can judge if he's innoce
  18. After taking a hard and professional look at everything going on and all the problems we are facing. I think we're going to need more popcorn.
  19. Our council camp allows bikes for staff, scouts, and scouters as long as they also use helmets. Rarely do you see anyone use them though. Most find them to get in the way of things as they have to park them out of the way of main traffic zones etc. Most times I only see a few staff use them, rarely any scouts unless there is some need for them. Most common wheeled vehicles one sees are wagons and "cars on approval". The wagons haul back the ice. Cars are for general staff needs, adults/scouts with mobility issues where warranted, or field trips out of the camp.
  20. One of our elder scout leaders was talking (hooray for Scouting Heritage MB) to some scouts about the days of yore... somewhere around the late 70's. Oh how I wish I had that recorded. Anyway, he talked about one of the SMs of the time after lunch was done brought out a live chicken. "Here's dinner. I'm going to teach you how to do this." He then proceeded to assist/teach the scouts in the process of making a live chicken a cooked chicken dinner. I don't know who killed the chicken (some legends say he still wanders the woods today), but the SM definitely showed/taught the scouts wi
  21. My son's former troop used the 2x2x( 6 or 8 ) lumber for their tarp poles. Mostly they used ridge lines where possible between trees and the poles were used on the edges. They also used a self made quonset hut for longer stays (rebar/plastic conduit/rope/bungee balls/tarp), especially for summer camps. They had enough to make super long ones or a couple of them to break them into their own units. Either way, the longer poles or plastic conduit usually required a pickup to carry because of their length.
  22. Except of course, that the scout has to show leadership and you'd have a tough time selling that leadership of one counts.
  23. Are you asking about team performance or public perception?
  24. My council is notorious for losing paperwork. Most often, it isn't lost per se. More that the form is lacking some information or something is incomplete or not checked off, so instead of communicating the situation back to the unit/individual, they toss it and you have to figure it out months later and submit new paperwork. And likewise, even when it is received and processed, that isn't always updated on the right systems. Add the fact that some committees are horrible at following the status of things online and you can have situations where a leader is not official registered for over a ye
  25. I brought up the subject of fee increases to the SM/COR in my troop and they had no idea it was coming. Desertrat77 and I share the same council, so I'm thankful he stated that council is clueless. At least now I know why my troop hasn't heard anything yet. My troop and myself like so many others, can not generally absorb sudden fee increases. I tend to do long term planning to avoid the sudden major fees, like summer camp. If I plan on going next year, I drop $20 a month into my scout account so that I can stay ahead of the wave. However when my son was in scouting, we didn't do that fo
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