FREE! Badges of rank!

[Trevorum 24]

(but wait, there's more!)

 

In perusing the website for the Great Alaska Council, looking for some info on their new CSP (they're voting on some great designs!) I discovered that this council is offering free badges of rank for an entire year to any unit that satisfies certain criteria. Units must participate in the FOS compaign, sell popcorn and also sell tickets to their Scout-o-rama event.

 

This is a great idea! Does any one elses council do this? How does it work out?

 

goto http://www.bsawac.org/ (click on "More on the merger", see page 7)

[gwd-scouter 11]

Yes, our Council (Blue Ridge, South Carolina) does this too. It is called Gold Star Unit. Units must meet criteria each year at recharter and then all rank badges are free. Requirements are: recharter on time, recharter with at least one more youth than year before, hold a Family Friends of Scouting meeting for the Troop and participate in popcorn sales, and conduct Scouting for Food drive or other service project.

[EagleInKY 14]

Our council (Lincoln Heritage) gives free badges of rank when you turn in the advancement report. It's their little incentive to make sure units turn in their paperwork.

[kittle 10]

Our council (Buffalo Trace Council) gives free badges of rank, excluding Bobcat if your unit turns in the renewal and you qualify as a quality unit. I just figured it was a National thing.

[Trevorum 24]

Wow, I guess our council is behind the curve on this one. I suppose your councils must build the cost of badges into the annual dues structure (probably one rank badge per year per scout?). I wonder why our council doesn't do this ... hmm ...

 

Our advancement chair told me that badges just increased in price (again). MBs are now $1.65 (can that be right??) At this rate, awards for our fall CoH will have a price tag of $500 or more!

[scoutingagain 20]

Our council offers free rank badges for participation in FOS and Popcorn Sales at some modest level of sales volume.

 

SA(This message has been edited by scoutingagain)

[Lisabob 13]

Our council gives free rank badges to any unit that meets a certain FOS goal but as I recall, it is a ridiculous goal so I'm really not sure whether they ever have to make good on this offer.

 

Lisa'bob

[oldsm 10]

My council gives free badges of rank for 1 year based on a total unit FOS formula. It's the total dollars contributed in each unit equivalent to about 70% (I think) of families giving the "suggested" donation that they would ordinarily make to acquire a special FOS council strip. Some families contribute the recommended amount, some less, quite a few significantly more. In my unit, this simple incentive made a sizeable increase in FOS contributions.

 

It think it's good for the Council and it's good for the unit. There's no limit to the number of rank advancements. This does not apply to merit badges, CS activity badges (just wolf, bear, webelos, AOL).

 

My council hasn't attached popcorn, rechartering, etc., onto it - I think that would discourage FOS participation from the parents.

[Eamonn 61]

We have free Rank advancement patches.

This doesn't cover MB's.

Sadly the list of requirements kept growing and got bigger and bigger.

If I remember right it started with participation in popcorn and inviting the FOS team in, then Quality unit was added and so the list went on.

In the end leaders started to question if it was worth it?

Eamonn.

[jr56 92]

My council, Glacier's Edge, offers free rank patches to troops that meet certain criteria. The program has a catchy title and everything, I think its called Gold Star unit , or something, but you get the idea.

[moxieman 11]

Trevorum wrote:

" Wow, I guess our council is behind the curve on this one. I suppose your councils must build the cost of badges into the annual dues structure (probably one rank badge per year per scout?)."

 

The annual dues you have to pay at recharter goes to National (at least around here). Your local council doesn't get to keep it. Your council relies on FOS, other donations and sales in their scout shop and popcorn/other council-wide fundraisers.

 

My council does not offer the free badge incentive. I have been in other councils where this has been offered and the requirements are similar to those others have posted:

 

Recharter on time

Participate in Council Fundraising event

Host a Friends of Scouting (FOS) fundraiser event.

 

[ScoutNut 147]

My council also participates in the Gold Card program. Units earn their Gold Card by having every family return their FOS card (donating or not) & meeting a FOS goal that is based on a % increase over the previous year.

 

The card can be used for the free purchase of rank awards only. It is good for one year from the date of the card. Our card is dated in April, 2006. It will cover the rank awards we still have outstanding for this year & all of those earned next year up until April, 2007.

[John-in-KC 311]

Ours uses FOS family collections only. Date is from when the unit raises their FOS goal to Dec 31 annually.

 

Goal is $135 x #Scouts on charter x 0.25.

 

 

 

[funscout 11]

Our council does this, too. The requirements have changed over the years. Some years free rank badges were given to all quality units. I think this year units have to qualify according to the FOS formula. When the Advancement Coordinators pick up badges and awards, they are asked if they are a Gold Card unit. This is verified on the computer when they check out.

[stevejb 10]

Our council also gives out the free rank patches if the troop meets its FOS goals. We do not have to participate in a popcorn sales or other events to qualify.