desertrat77

I'm at that point myself. The shiny night time spider eyes...memories of summer camp in OK....

Last year I finally humbled myself and bought an inflatable sleeping pad. (Ego, I can sleep on the ground, my 35 year old foam pad still works just fine, etc...not so much any more!). All that to say I had a remarkably similar experience to the one you described.

This is great news. My longstanding beef with council fundraising is that as a unit and district level scouter, I have very little input in how my dollars are spent. I've found from experience that any inquiry to council staff (above DE level) regarding projects or financial matters is not well received. The boundaries are very clear: I write checks, the council spends my money, period.

@BBQ, welcome to Scouter.com!

Interesting! SF Bay Area and Mt Diablo-Silverado attempted a merger several years ago. Word on the street (from back then): SFBA was struggling with units and membership but had plenty of dollars in trusts left to them during the BSA's heyday. Essentially more money than they knew what to do with it. So SFBA reached out to Mt DS for a possible merger. Exploratory committee...then a vote...the nays carried the day. Mt DS said "no thanks."

Thanks @RememberSchiff! A silly question that I should know the answer to but don't: were any of these digital interactive merit badge pamphlets ever launched to the field?

The promised 15 April update from Philmont. Upshot: Go/No Go decision for each high adventure base will be announced on 1 May. https://www.philmontscoutranch.org/coronavirus/ High Adventure Base Update Regarding Summer of 2020 Update 4/15/20 – 8:30 AM Status of summer 2020 operations COVID-19 has brought unprecedented uncertainty, financial challenges and impact to our daily lives. The leadership of the BSA and the National High Adventure Bases (HAB’s) recognize that Scouts and leaders have been planning for many months to enjoy a li

"X Scouts earned Y badges/ranks/geegaws in Z period of time." Apparently, this is scouting at the council and national levels. The few folks left at HQ in Irving TX will still be leaning on councils for such data until their laptops and powerpoint projectors are liquidated in the settlement.

Quantity over quality.

Update from Philmont...on-line staff training...staff report dates...crew arrival dates.... Philmont Delays Staff Arrival and Invests in Online Training Solutions Update 4/14/20 – 10:30 AM Philmont will be delaying the arrival of staff and condensing the training schedule for the 2020 Summer Season in response to COVID-19 precautions. All 2020 seasonal staff should anticipate a change to their arrival dates. Staff arrivals are planned to begin on May 15th. This decision does not affect the arrival of crews beginning on June 8th. P

My Venture Daughter had a very similar experience when she taught LS MB at camp a few years ago. Solo instructor, way too many students, disruptive scouts could not be dismissed, and dealing with loud, oafish adult leaders. It was very stressful for her but she hung in there and did the best she could. Trial by fire, "character building" time. One of those weeks, I was across the waterfront most of the days, a student in the LG BSA class (superbly managed) and witnessed, from afar, what passed for swimming and boating instruction as well. Far too many students for the instructors and

Great discussion! While there are seams in federal and state response, the most glaring shortfall I see is the lack of preparedness at the local level--county health departments and local hospitals. There was nothing preventing hospitals--particularly big ones in highly populated urban areas--from stocking up on PPE and other equipment ("be prepared"). However, rainy day/contingency stock piles do not impress the bean counters that run health care today. Just in time inventory, who needs all of that dead stock lying around, wing and a prayer, nothing bad is going to happen to us..

@RememberSchiff, thanks for being lead blocker on this research! Those domains are definitely of "undetermined" value. Many are near duplicates. Just as many are obscure. Most of them probably aren't worth anything close to what the BSA paid/pays for them. Just a jumble of stuff. All over the map.

Very true, Carebear. I'm referring to the expensive, top-heavy layers of the BSA (National and some councils). Lots of resources are consumed at those levels, and little of it translates to value for the unit.

Well said, @Mrjeff. I've watched the professional levels of the BSA over the decades become more and more distant from grass roots scouting. Same with the council and National committees.

@GrantWherry, welcome to scouter.com!

@BPPatrolonaRoll, welcome to scouter.com!

On the topic of socks.... When I was an ASM many moons ago, one of the SMs I worked with was a Viet Nam vet, long range recon patrol (LRRP). He said at the beginning of his training in-country, he was told to dispose of his socks, t-shirts and underwear. Why? Extra weight, always wet, breeding ground for nastiness, just another hassle. They couldn't stop to change socks after every stream crossing. It might be several days before they could even take their boots off. So it was bare feet, brand new stiff jungle boots, put em on, lace em up, move out. When I was training for NT a

Source: https://ej2020.org/european-jamboree-2020-rescheduled-to-summer-2021/ European Jamboree 2020 rescheduled to Summer 2021 After extensive risk assessments and consultations, ZHP, WOSM and WAGGGS have come to the decision to move the European Jamboree to 2021. With the support of the host city of Gdańsk, the European Jamboree will take place 2-13 August 2021 on Sobieszewo Island. More than ever, we believe in the mission of the European Jamboree to bring together a global community of young Scouts and Guides. By rescheduling to 2021, we want to ma

A ray of good news: Philmont will honor ECSI Course Completion Card Extension Update: 4/6/20 – 8:30 AM The Emergency Care & Safety Institute (ECSI) has announced a 60-day extension to the validity of their course completion cards for those who are unable to access training. Philmont will honor this extension for crews attending in 2020. Philmont recognizes that this does not assist all crews who are struggling to complete the Wilderness First Aid requirements for their trek. We are working with the BSA Health and Safety Team w

Scout service, kudos to all! Paramus Boy Scouts, New Milford Fire Department and college staff cook meals for testing site operators http://newjersey.news12.com/story/41974200/paramus-boy-scouts-new-milford-fire-department-and-college-staff-cook-meals-for-testing-site-operators

If we are given the "all clear" in time for summer camp (and HA), and if councils are in earnest, they could take a page from our local school district: One Saturday before school starts, several volunteer doctors and nurses assemble at a central location and give free sports physicals for all the youth in the school district. Many families avail themselves of this offer. It meets the requirement, it's good for the school year, and it's free. An enterprising council staff could set up something similar. Alas, it may not matter. I too have the impression there will be no activitie

This would explain the two emails I received asking for early FOS donations. One was from my council, the other from the district community exec.

True! May I add: in the future, if a uniform is considered a neckerchief or a scout t-shirt, so be it. Does a Cub Scout really need a new hat, buckle, neckerchief and slide each time they advance in rank? Thirty bucks per scout, each rank. Or ask scouts to buy a set of Dickies work clothes from the local department store. Sew on patch or two, perhaps add a neckerchief, and call it a uniform.

Update from Philmont: https://www.philmontscoutranch.org/coronavirus/ Adventure is Unpredictable Update: 4/1/20 – 1:00 PM None of us have ever experienced anything like the last few days, weeks, and months. While we know, this too shall pass, we continue to evaluate what’s next. There are many moving parts, like understanding the impact of New Mexico’s “Stay at Home” order on the pandemic, or how other states responses will impact the virus, how domestic travel regulations will continue to change, and how all of this impacts our Scouting vol