All Activity

You can only do what you can do; by that I mean offer the options and tools and then let them use them. Eagle is, and should NOT be the goal, but rather self sufficiency and good citizenship. Having pride in themselves, whether or not the Rank is achieved. We can never win them all, but if we give up, we will lose them all. My frustrations are greater now due to my age. I can no longer just do some things and get others to join. Other than simple drive in camping, and preferably a good cot, my body rebels. And while the troop refuses to take me off officially, I am mostly a symbol or something; and I Am Able to do conferences and teach many skills still, though much more slowly. My greater frustration comes from the poor support from our council and the seeming impediments they put in place under the guise of avoiding "issues". Just CYA. And I have been labeled silently as someone to put off and ignore or keep from others, as I might infect them somehow with expectations of doing scouting in its truer sense. Yet, I will not drop out completely and hope to find a way to encourage other younger leaders to keep the good fight up and stay the course. And when obvious wins show up, it moves us forward, and it plants that seed in the youth, if we are lucky.

I don't understand. It appears your troop is a lifeboat for this scout and scouts like him. Our troop averaged one scout transfer per month because of our program reputation. Many were friends of scouts in our troop. Council often referred out-of-state transfers to us . These scouts lack of skills can be challenging, but I always found them and their parents enthusiastic and great supporters for our program. I'm so thankful for your service. Barry

Well, I had another disheartening moment yesterday. We had a life Scout transfer into the troop because "you do stuff." Yes their troop camped, but it was very infrequent. The Life Scout didn't know how to write a menu, food purchasing list, or duty roster. I am beginning to wonder if I am fighting an uphill battle staying in Scouting.

Harbor Freight has a couple options. Both are under $9. With a 90 day warranty, buy just before the project and any that end up breaking will be replaced. Both have good reviews as well.

Agreed... that's why I said a bit more background or perspective in the article would go a long way to negating that perception.

I am in no way wanting to restrict landowners using good management practices, but it looks like one thing, do something else if there is money to be made, scouting = $$

The Hill Country Amateur Radio Club (HCARC) invited members of Troop 111 to take part in building a radio beacon. “One of our members is an executive in scouting, so when we do something that’s STEM oriented, we invite them. If they can find two or three scouts who are interested, then we support them and we present projects to them at their meetings,” said Hank Ortega, a local HAM operator and member of the HCARC. More at source, very interesting: https://www.hccommunityjournal.com/article_ddbf679f-1255-4f6e-92c9-34ad8e79ff48.html

@jcousinoand @mrjohns2, it would have been nice to have a Wildlife Manager's perspective in the article to provide some balance and background on this. (We would hope that the area is under good wildlife management, as it is a National Elk Refuge.) You are both correct, that, under the principles of Leave No Trace, we should "Leave What You Find". However, for all principles, there should be an overriding understanding that the owners and/or managers of the land have the prerogative to allow activities which might seem to be in conflict with the principles. Hunting in the National Elk Refuge is an example. The land managers know the herd is too large for the land to sustain, so they permit the hunting of elk to cull the herd to reduce the numbers to restore a balance. As I understand it, the elk antler hunt is a strictly managed, limited time, restricted entry event, so as to keep some of the antler resource in place. https://www.jacksonwy.gov/668/Antler-Shed-Hunt it is also quite funny to see the other side of this... now, some businesses are upset that the land managers and game commission are limiting the number of elk hunting licenses because the herd is getting smaller. https://www.jhnewsandguide.com/news/environmental/local/jackson-elk-herd-hunt-season-sees-deeper-cuts-following-public-comment/article_5e6a7d56-4155-4832-8403-0b4af37f3594.html 'The outfitters blamed the herd’s downturn on wolves. “The pressure from predation up there is horrific,” Taylor said.' LOL... that's the mentality we really need to change... good luck 😜

@jcousino I was going to say the same, but it is so neat.

very impressive project. i would unfortunately have to say that scout involvement violates the scouting LNT principles as this sheds provide a mineral source for a lot of small animals so removing something that is part of natural process violates leave what you find and respect wildlife. but it does sound interesting money or principles. my 2 cents

April 25,2025: “Instead of selling Boy Scout popcorn, we go elk antler hunting,” "There’s a few rules to the Boy Scout shed hunt on the National Elk Refuge. Don’t approach the bison. Don’t touch carcasses. Keep your group in sight at all times." More at source: https://www.jhnewsandguide.com/valley/feature/boy-scouts-take-first-crack-at-shed-hunt/article_ebbb9c4b-56ba-42cc-a929-673cd18a6893.html

Build our own grabber gadget as a patrol project? Hmm, a scout is Thrifty, maybe build a grabber for a scout Earth Day cleanup then give it to Mom for a Mothers' Day present? Reduce, ReUse, Recycle. I found two interesting DIY grabber projects on Youtube. Note for safety reasons, I did not want to make/use sharp poker sticks for litter pickup. This one seemed the simplest. While this one required woodworking tools and skills or a perhaps there is a scout-crafted solution out there?

Safety is Job one which can be challenging with litter cleanup projects. We have been using gloves and grabber sticks as the scouts below. But buying grabbers ($15-25 each) limited the number we could bring to a cleanup, maybe there was another solution?

love to see more like that a very focus session on a field that is rare plus requires great skills and equipment that the scouts would not normally see. i would love see more state parks work with scouting to make good use of the rangers skill plus highlighting that whole profession (would aid youth and adults skills)

I agree the PowerPoint requirement is unnecessary, but I also think it's a pretty reasonable request. If this were my son, I'm not going to expend a lot of social capital to push back. Most kids learn how to use the free Google Slides program in school. As for the unnecessary paperwork - I know a lot of people who make good money by doing things like filling out 3 different forms with the same information and just keeping their mouths shut. 😉

Well, not always. They do have full veto, but on some volunteers, that have had lets say a DUI, it is up to the COR to approve after council does the background check and says "well, it is up to the COR". Not common, but it does happen.

I think you hit on a few big factors that transcend Scouts: Too often, we raise kids to go through life and check boxes. I, along with many in my generational cohort, am a perfect example. My parents earned a decent living but encouraged me to go to college as they viewed it as a "golden ticket." I graduated during the Global Financial Crisis and, all of a sudden, I was overeducated and underexperienced. I did everything that was asked of me - got good grades, joined clubs, played sports, worked summer jobs, etc. and was underemployed for over 3 years. Today, I'm doing fine with a steady corporate job and decent long-term prospects, but I'm not a risk taker. I'm just a very diligent employee who is satisfied with his current career trajectory. I'm raising my son a little differently. My only expectation for him in school is to earn B's and behave appropriately. If he spends 2 hours after school tinkering with a computer instead of studying, that's fine as long as he's still getting his homework done. He and I also operate an eBay store that sells used Lego. For me, it amounts to a crappy part-time job, but at least he's excited and learning about markets, customer service, and e-commerce. Scouting can be a bit of a mixed bag. Some kids go through the program and check the boxes to earn their Eagle Scout Award. Others stand to benefit more from the outdoor program and patrol method. I'm hopeful the latter will push him out of his comfort zone and better prepare him for life. Kids are expensive. Cut us some slack. I love being a dad. I always figured I'd have 2-3 kids but am turning 40 soon and just have the one son. My wife and I are the same age, and our prime reproductive years (25-35) were bookended by the Global Financial Crisis and COVID. We're doing fine now, but having an only child was our form of "economic triage" (despite living rather modestly). Every generation has its challenges and I'm not seeking to minimize anyone else's struggles - we've just had a perfect storm of conditions over the past 15 years that have led to lower birth rates. Sure, there are probably a small number of young adults who value their freedom over parenthood, but most couples are limiting their family size out of economic necessity.

Here a University Extension service, designed for vocational certification, was adapted for a whole day outdoor classroom merit badge experience. "Each mentor brought the latest equipment they use in the field, and Scouts rotated between five stations where they learned mapping and drafting, surveying history and careers, leveling, creating boundaries, and 3-D laser scanning." University of Florida School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences , Surveying Merit Badge Great story which captures the intent of merit badge program - spark an interest, enthusiasm, hands-on, minds engaged, adult association ( professionals and previous scouts}, career possibilities... https://alachuachronicle.com/scouts-earn-surveying-badges-thanks-to-uf-geomatics-extension-program/ https://www.scouting.org/merit-badges/surveying/ Scout Salute,

The Council always has the responsibility for Adult Leadership. They do final approval after the background checks and all other required clearances are submitted. Each unit must have the key 3 and a number of committee members or the council won't/can't process the charter. They don't pick the actual names, that's the COR or IH purview.

maybe i read it wrong is this policy a secondary policy on top of the churches normal policies. not a lawyer

Seemed timely and topic relevant... “Remember, we are just custodians, we are here for a very short period of time on Earth. So when you work with Scouts, make sure we pass along a good Earth and a good world and all the good values that are important.” “Often times, young people get sidetracked by and consumed with commercialism – things like television and cell phones are not as important as the values that you teach in Scouting. That’s what’s important, so make sure you teach your Scouts how these important values will stay with them the rest of their lives, while consumerism is just fleeting and passes through your life as a person.” Pope Francis (1936-2025) in a 2015 interview with ScoutingWire Bray Barnes Reference: https://www.scout.org/news/scouts-worldwide-pay-tribute-to-pope-francis

the most interesting part is the council picks the number and who is in leadership not sure what causing long term injury or death to a cub is worth in todays dollar but 7.5 million looks big but to me is really small when faced with a wrongful injury suit.

April 21, 2025: Scouting America announce its partnership with #MyFriendToo US, "a groundbreaking initiative and resource – MyFriendTooUS.org – launched during Child Abuse Prevention Month to help children support their friends in disclosing sexual abuse to safe adults. Originally created by Protect Children in Finland and adapted for the U.S. in collaboration with ChildFund, #MyFriendToo US is the first program of its kind in the country, directly addressing the fact that children often disclose abuse to a friend rather than to an adult. The initiative equips children and youth with the knowledge, tools, and language to guide their friends toward safety and healing." https://www.myfriendtoous.org/ More at Source: https://www.scoutingnewsroom.org/press-releases/scouting-america-joins-myfriendtoo-us-initiative-to-empower-youth-in-the-fight-against-sexual-violence/

Tonight! Sales pitch for 2026 slots at SA High Adventure Bases.

Recently uploaded Scouting America Annual Affiliation Agreement with Catholic Dioceses/Parishes/Schools https://www.scouting.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/524-95225-Catholic-Affiliation-Agreement.pdf