Armymutt

He's a volunteer.

The CO apparently didn't care - good ol' boy thing. The issue to me is that if this is happening, in light of BSA's current issues, why is this individual still on the district staff?

As a Scout who was shy around girls, I would not have wanted a co-ed troop. It would have been high school extended into Tuesday nights. I got a taste of it at Kandersteg when there were female Scouts there. Guys who were friends turned into total d-bags trying to impress the Norwegian and Italian girls. With the added sexual pressure from the presence of girls, we would not have had a night of running around the "Pioneer Stampede" camporee in our underwear. While we got in trouble, it built a huge amount of esprit de corps and brought us closer together. Almost 30 years on, I only talk to the guys from HS who were in my troop.

We're trying to recruit members of a pack that is not rechartering. One of the parents said she was done with Scouting because an adult leader was sexually harassing her and other mothers. Our committee chair knows her from another organization and has convinced her to come to our pack. The issue is that the adult leader in question is on the district staff and is the parent of a Scout in the presumably defunct pack. There is concern that he might try to join us. So, what do we do? The harassment was reported to the District Scouting Exec, but nothing came of it.

If the COR signs it, then the CO is approving it. If the COR is not doing their due diligence and exposes the CO to liability, then maybe the CO will do a better job at filling the COR position. There's a parent who has apparently sexually harassed several mothers in a unit that is not rechartering due to a lack of volunteers. We may be absorbing some of them and our committee chair flat out told me that this parent will not be allowed in our unit. We don't want to expose our CO to the liability.

I don't know if national even does background checks. I know that my references were not called. Is there a person at national tasked with reviewing and approving every single adult application? I doubt it. My bet is that this is conducted at the council level.

That's where the judge should come in and focus the action where it would be most beneficial to society. We had a guy sue our county in Indiana about 25 years ago over the condition of the jail. The judge ordered the county to spend the money to build a new jail. Far more beneficial to the greater number of people than giving one person a bunch of money. It would be more beneficial to require BSA to spend the money to conduct better background checks.

I see this is the real issue. Scouting isn't some large corporation where every adult involved is an employee of the national head quarters. It has more in common with a guerilla army than the US Army. I don't know how one can reasonably hold the national office responsible for the actions of volunteers, especially in the pre-internet days. COs approve adult membership. National's role would be in checking records to see if an applicant has been reported as an offender, but beyond that, I don't buy responsibility. This is truly a case where the primary responsibility is at the lowest level. I realize there is more money at the top and it's far easier to sue a single entity than it is to go after a thousand individual organizations, especially when they may no longer exist. I don't think there will ever be enough money to compensate the victims. How do you put a dollar figure on a life altering injury? I certainly know that a paltry amount of money from insurance (my insurance company, no less) for a drunk driver destroying my foot will not fix it. I'd rather the perpetrator be permanently removed from society so he can't hurt anyone else, and that the rules be changed to prevent it from occurring again. To me, that harms the least number of innocents as possible.

He joined the troop in 1933, became the SM in 1945 and died in 2011 at age 89, still the SM.

I noticed that too. I was in a troop with a known abuser - I've seen the police report and the newspaper story. Troop 510 in Okaw Valley Council, just east of St. Louis, Don White. That case does not show up on the tracker. Interestingly, my old troop does, which is really odd. It had the same SM since around '44 until '11 and I haven't heard any reports from guys who have been associated with that troop since '55.

I guess it kind of depends on your level of commitment. The training isn't exactly difficult and could be easily knocked out in a couple of evenings worth of TV shows. I was amazed to find out that it was all available online - we last did it in '92 and it was an all day event.

Some of my Cub Scout leaders have not completed all the training to be considered "trained". How big of a deal is that from the stand point of the district/council/national? Our YPT is 100%, which is a non-negotiable for me. I'm not sure about the other.

That's still nowhere near the variety that Philmont offers. It's fun, I agree, but Philmont has a much richer environment.

I disagree. The logistics required would kill HA for all but the most affluent troops. Philmont has it down to a science. You aren't going to find any other organization that can provide the same level of experience for the same cost. I've been to Kandersteg and it had nowhere near the level of support as Philmont.

The day went much better than expected. Weather was perfect. We kept it very informal. Grilled up hotdogs and brats. People ate and the Scouts played in the woods and around the shelter. The biggest success was the networking of the parents. Hopefully we'll get more involved, since several are due to move this summer. Such is life in a Pack closely associated with the military.

Well, ours is this weekend. High supposed to be 53 and 60% chance of rain. Cubmaster had a hard landing on Friday during a parachute jump and may be in the hospital. So now, I'm in charge. Awesome. Any ideas for games to keep 8 Cub Scouts entertained in a picnic shelter?

I was a Cub Scout in Rantoul, IL in the early 80s. I can't find my uniform, but would like to find the CSP from that time. I know it is currently the Prairielands Council, but I have no idea if that's what it was back then. Anyone help me out?

It looks nice, but it's also $395. We need a heavy coat here for about 2 to 3 weeks a year. I bought one of the red ones from our Scout shop locally. It will do for my purposes.

That's true. This one looks a bit heavier. https://tradingpost.classb.com/scouts-bsa-red-sport-tek-jacket-with-bsa-universal-logo/

I'm looking for a jacket to put all my patches on. I have a bunch of TAC patches as well as a couple of CSPs from a now-defunct council in IL. Thought this might be nicer than the wool one because it has a hood. https://tradingpost.classb.com/scouts-bsa-red-hooded-jacket-with-bsa-corporate-logo/?sku=B63006

We're talking kids to adults. Adult to adult, it's first name anyway.

I'm generally laid back, since I rarely hear my first name at work - I'm in the Army. I'm a veterinarian, but don't really care if people call me Mr. or Dr. My wife is a pharmacist and really hates being called Mrs. or Ms. She's about to become the Committee Chair for our pack. It brought up the idea of using titles in Scouting. My personal point of view is first names are better. I have/had a closer bond with my Scoutmasters that I called by their first names, than with those I interacted with in a more formal manner. What's the crowd say?

We're planning on having a cook out at a local state park. Probably won't be in Feb, which is our coldest month in NC.

Cub Scouting in the time of COVID has become very challenging. My son's den consist of two Tigers, and a Lion. We are meeting outdoors as of now, but might be moving to someone's house as the weather gets colder here in NC. Our Wolf den has one kid. Bears have two, one of which will be moving this summer. I've lost track of our Weblos - I think 2, both are moving this summer, along with their den leader and the Cubmaster. I'll assume that role. We're trying to figure out recruiting, both for new scouts and for participation from the parents we have. One told me flat out, "not this year". I told another tonight that we won't be able to survive with the 4 parents we have involved - two couples. We had a very active presence at our church's Trunk or Treat, handing out information sheets on how to join to every kid that was eligible. Nothing came of it. Apparently, we aren't the worst in our district either. The lack of schools being in session makes it difficult to get the kids talking to their classmates about coming. How are other packs recruiting?

This worked for me. Married a girl who became a pharmacist.