Blue and Gold's -- ???

[EagleInKY 14]

Back in my day as CM, I saw the trend you speak of. I tried my best to change things, and was pretty successful. Our Blue and Golds are now more of a celebration of the pack, a recognition of all members and an opportunity to thank leaders.

 

To accomplish this, I did several things.

- The only rank advancements we did were Webelos & Arrow of Light. Most of these guys would rap up in December or January, so it wasn't a big deal. We asked them to hold on for the formal presentation at the B&G. in 4 years, I only had one parent complain about that.

 

- We delayed cross-over until March. Many of the Webelos will go ahead and start meeting with their chosen troop, but the formal "cross the bridge" doesn't take place until March. It makes it a seperate and important moment from earning the AOL.

 

- We give out Year Pins and QU strips to every Cub. This gets them all in front of the group.

 

- We started saying "no" to the Council FOS chairman. They are welcome to come in March, but we're not making a B&G a fundraiser (for anyone).

 

These steps made it a much more enjoyable evening and our attendance shot up year over year.

[funscout 11]

A few years ago, our Web. 2 den leader chose to hold the AOL ceremony in January, when it became apparent that all the boys would have finished the requirements by then. This DL felt that the AOL ceremony was sometimes "lost" during all the Blue and Gold goings on.

 

Personally, I prefer to have AOL at the Blue and Gold, since that's the one pack meeting where extra relatives make an effort to attend.