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So there is a couple of scout parents.............


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Just Musing here.....read on if your interested.

 

 

The troop has a facebook page and all the parents and some of the scouts are friended in.....

 

It is an interesting glimpse into their lives outside of scouting.....I have had occasion to discuss with a few den leaders who liked some adult entertainers or posted pictures of themselves in scout oath and law violating situations.

 

Be that as it may.........

 

So there is a couple who vacation 5 or 6 times a year. Post pictures to their facebook pages, New York city, chicago, carolina coast, florida coast......Not sure how they afford it or where the vacation time comes from. When asking dad to help with scouting no time or money....hmmmmmm...really????

 

 

Interestedly their house is about to be foreclosed on...

 

So what do you do???? Get on facebook and beg for money.......You use a donation site to collect it from around the world..... Well in a week they collected enough to avoid the foreclosure and are currently eating a Joe's Crab Shack.......did I miss something???????

 

 

Just makes a fellow shake his head......

 

I am confused on a number of levels....

 

How can I help a couple out who can't manage there money and live a much more flamboyant lifestyle than I do????

 

I can't see why anyone would give them money and the Joes crabshack thing is a slap in the face for anyone who donated to them....

 

Of course I don't donate money to the homeless guys on corners holding up signs.....I have given them sandwiches on occasion but never money....

 

I just don't get it...

 

 

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Basement, I don't get it either. Too many folks raised with no pride, no character. And yet they'll sleep like babies.

 

At base I was stationed at a few years ago, the first sergeants' council collected money to buy thanksgiving baskets for needy Airmen and their families...turkey, taters, can of cranberry and the like.

 

The word goes out--quietly identify those in need, have them stop by the chapel annex on such/such day to pick the basket.

 

I'm standing in the parking lot that day, and a tech sergeant jumps out of a brand new Escalade, and walks smartly into the chapel annex to get her thanksgiving basket.

 

Values are all out of whack.

 

PS Forgot the facebook follies! Same as you mentioned, Basement...some military folks posting stuff on FB that destroys their credibility. And career. What could they possibly gain? But folks do it anyway, even though they've been briefed on the consequences.(This message has been edited by desertrat77)

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It bothers us also. "We don't have the time" when asked to help with knot-tying, but they can sit at the meeting and spend that same amount of time playing on their cell phones.

 

Our den dues are $1 a week. Last year, it went to snack and we just used the supplies that we had bought when DS was a Tiger the year before that. (I spent probably $100 on supplies for the group the first year.) Out of 24 boys, 14 brought dues this week.

 

My husband is on the kidney transplant list, and we drive a falling apart 2000 minivan. We do have cable but that is our only vice--no drinking/smoking or vacations. They complain about not having enough to get their nails done (or they get their nails done and complain about not having food).

 

We pay our dues and camping fees and everything else because we want our son to understand that bills and obligations come first. And we have parents who complain that our dues are too high, but won't do the popcorn sales to help fatten the coffers so that we can subsidize their costs. Responsibility...it's a dying art.

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The whole thing bothers me.....

 

I am not sure if it is the fact they just don't know how to manage their money....

 

The fact they brag about all of their trips.......

 

Or

 

the fact that people were dumb enough to donate to their Save our Homestead plea......Look at their facebook page folks.....I bet they go to disney over christmas........

 

I would like $1,000 to buy some tents for the troop and these folks raised $8k in a week to save their house...

 

I just don't get it.

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awhile back we had a kid transfer in from a "scoutreach" troop. Very Poor, or so the parents always said. Active family though, mother an asset on the comittee and father a strong asst scoutmaster. Always needed help for summer camp money wise though. Always had old rusted cars and marginal equipment. Then at one meeting another scout just back from DisneyWorld started talking about his favorite ride, and the poor kid chimes in on where his favorite rides were and where the best places to eat was and where he just had to go "every time we go to Orlando, and did you go to Sea WOrld, we always do"

 

How people spend their money is their business, I have no idea how some people arrive to the conclusions they do on how they spend their money but its their money, their choices and we have to similarly choose

 

Still scratching my head over that family however

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A couple of years ago that exact thing happened to me...

 

The boys couldn't afford to go to summer camp....so I paid for it.....

 

Then the first meeting back from summer break they were talking about their trip to disney.....

 

 

How do they afford it........on the backs of those gullible enough to fall for their shtick.

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After sleeping on it.....

 

"Fun" and personal gratification are more important than doing the right thing.

 

Being a responsible adult, at times, is not the least bit fun. One forgoes luxuries and indulgences for the greater good, like keeping family finances in/near the black, and meeting obligations at work, school, church, scouting.

 

The pay off is in the long term, securing the reputation a dependable parent, leader, etc.

 

CCbytrickery--thoughts and prayers go out for your husband.

 

 

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OGE

 

My philosophy is if folks make their own choices than they shouldn't complain. I do not drive a car but the money I save means I can not sweat the family scout bills. I walk (and in the summer it is rough)3 miles a day but think I rather enjoy camping with my boys more. But I do not complain to everyone about how hard it is.

 

On the other hands my boys will not be going to Jambo. They are saving my money and theirs for a trip to the UK next Summer. We all weigh our choices. Just stick with them.

 

But yeah I don't get some folks. I do my own lawn, fix my own house, will give large appliance or car repair a shot and I am a freak in my own neighborhood. My neighbors, some of home are in bankruptcy, buy all these services they could at least try to do themselves. Heck, some of them have kids and hire nanny's and they still let the nanny's take care of the kids after they get home to hang out with the neighbors.

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BD, folks just don't relate to the need for a boy to hike and camp. They can relate to the "importance" of preserving their middle class dream.

 

Ya know what's totally awe inspiring? These are probably the folks who will rant endlessly about the latest public figure's financial foibles .... Check some of their old FB statuses just to see.

 

I might suggest that FB strategy to a guy who just got his car repo'ed. I know half his problems and can guess the other half, but he's too proud to out and ask for help.

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I'm not on Face Book.

I admit that I don't understand much about it.

One of my main reasons for not being a member or whatever people who are on are called? Is that I fear that an inmate might be able to find me and send his pals around for a visit. Were that to happen? I think that it wouldn't be for tea and crumpets.

Both my son and HWMBO are members.

HWMBO mainly plays games, but joined because my sister in the UK said it was a good way to see photos of the grandkids.

My son posts just about any and everything.

About a year back, him and his then girl friend split.

I didn't see it all but it seems they both posted blow by blow accounts of what was going on and both were out to score points by trying to hurt the other as much as they could.

Both were upset, both were hurt but this public display is something that I don't understand and refuse to have any part of.

 

I like to say that I'm frugal.

Others have said that I'm cheap. -I disagree.

I will and do spend money on what at the time I think and what I believe is quality. Very often waiting till what I want goes on sale or if it is out of my reach? Waiting till I can afford it.

This of course isn't the big problem that it once was.

My big fear now is that I'm going to out live my money and will end up standing in line waiting for some nice kind person to hand me an orange or some other food stuff that I feel I can no longer afford.

Many of my friends have been hit very hard by what has happened in the markets over the past few years.

I'm lucky that I invested in property and while the market is very slow here in the area where I live we didn't see the boom that other areas seen but we have not as yet seen the bust either.

Talking with good friends that are about my age. I'm surprised how few are worried or even thinking about retirement. They are spending a lot and seem to be living from pay check to pay check.

Not so long back I thought that a million dollars was a lot of money. I don't any more.

Even with my long term Nursing Insurance policy, when the time comes that HWMBO and self are in our 80's things are going to be both tough and expensive.

 

Sometimes, much as I try it is hard not to judge others.

HWMBO works in our local hospital ER.

Over the past couple of years there has been a lot of medical centers open these are good and useful. Most are open seven days a week from about 9 till 9. You don't need an appointment and it's a lot faster than waiting for an appointment to see your GP.

They charge the same co-pay as a specialist which is about half what the co-pay is for the ER.

They cater to people with good health insurance.

This means that more and more the people using the ER are people on welfare.

Lord knows that I'm very much for helping anyone who needs a hand and I believe that welfare is a good thing.

Still seeing these people standing around outside the ER smoking (In a very clearly marked no smoking area) Talking on their cell phones and hearing that some of these people visit the ER several times a month for trivial things is kinda of upsetting.

 

I don't expect everyone to be as frugal as I might be.

I tend to think that everyone is free to spend their hard earned money as they please.

I learned a long time ago that the fastest way to lose a friend is to lend them any money.

I'm not sure why? I think that I'm a nice enough fellow, but for some reason that I don't know people don't ask me to borrow them any money.

Which is good as saying no would be hard.

Ea.

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I've seen similar things happen with our local sports teams. Scout can barely pay our annual $30 registration fee, and cannot go to summer camp unless the Troop provides a campership. But football, baseball, or soccer fees and uniform costs that are easily 2 or 3 times summer camp costs are taken care of without a problem. Not that I have a problem with sports -- I believe in a well rounded teenage boy. But I know that these same parents wouldn't even think of not paying the required sports fees in full and on time.

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Been stung too. Wife had a co-worker whose husband was spending the rent money on a cocaine habit. So wife "lends" her money (about a thousand bucks total), then she claims she can't pay it back. I show wife the Facebook photo gallery of their trip to Disney World. That was the end of it. Like you, I don't know how they sleep at night. No good deed goes unpunished. As I enter the home stretch toward retirement, I am starting to dial back my spending and donations. It's all about me from now on, since the Govt will be deciding who gets my "charity".

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Not so much parents, but sometimes I point out to some of my Scouts what they post on Facebook. (Remember, I'm 19, I can get away with it). It's amazing how people in general don't think things through before they post them forever under their name and with their picture attached.

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