gwd-scouter

Congratulations on your new position as SM! To echo SueM a bit, I began my Scoutmastership a little less than 2 years ago (I think she's about 6 months ahead of me). And, yes, I am also a female. Agreeing with everything everyone has posted so far, let me please add one more thing - get to know your Scouts, their personalities, strengths and weaknesses. Remember, one style of leadership and mentoring from you may work for one boy, but not have the same effect with another. Also, be ready to let them fail. One of the hardest things I've had to learn was to sit back and watch while pancakes were burnt, tents fell down from a strong wind, boys begging to borrow a flashlight because none of them brought one, etc. Then, of course, there's my personal favorite - the young scout that started chugging the six pack of Pepsi's he brought because after a couple of miles on the trail, his backpack started to get heavy! Good luck to you RM - have a great time with your Troop.

Thanks, Semper, for giving me the best laugh I've had all day!

Gonzo1. I do have a cubscout flag retirement ceremony to share. Several years ago, when I will still in cubs with my boys, we attended a District Cuboree. After the campfire program (that in our case was very well done, I'm sorry yours wasn't), several adult leaders retired a flag, with the help of a few Cubs. Before the actual burning, the purpose was explained very clearly to the boys. It was not a lengthy explanation, but rather a concise easily understood commentary suitable for young boys. They did not tear the flag and explain all the stripes, etc., but had four Cubs, one on each corner, hold the flag over the fire until the center caught, then folded the corners in as they laid it down. The Cubs were completely silent during the ceremony, which only lasted about 5 minutes, in keeping with their short attention spans. After the ceremony, several parents came up to me and said they never knew that was the proper way to dispose of a flag, and what a wonderful thing to teach the boys. And, yes, our Scouts should be seeing Old Glory going up the flag pole while standing at attention with the Scout Salute. They should also observe proper attention at flag lowering and all learn how to properly fold a flag. Hopefully, this is being done at ALL your Cub campouts. I will agree that if a flag retirement is done at every campout, it may become just something to do in their eyes, rather than the dignified and solemn ceremony it should be.

Funny this should come up now. Our District just had its annual youth protection training last night. We are always told that the training is good for 2 years. However, a few guys have been to Commissioner training and the course they take is good for 3 years. The video is a bit longer, but not substantially different. If you listen very carefully to the video, one of the adults (I think it's the pediatrician) says that the training SHOULD be taken every 2-3 years. But, should is very different from MUST. I have never actually seen anything in writing that states an expiration on the training, but there may be something somewhere. The question came up last night about 2 or 3 years and our District Commissioner said he would look into it and find out if there is an official policy. By the way, queenj, youth protection training is not required to get your trained strip.

Well, thank you Gern for the lovely compliment to the lady leaders! Our dutch ovens are well-used and well-seasoned. We never line them with foil. For that matter, we never oil them before storing them either. We clean with hot water and a scrubby as suggested by others, allow them to dry thoroughly, place a paper towel inside with an edge hanging over the lip, and put the lid back on. Always stored in a dry place. No rust, no rancid oil taste. Just perfect cooking every time.

Beavah, that's Knights of Columbus. Anyway, we have very active Boy and Girls Scout Troops at our Catholic Church in town. They do not require that the youth be members of the Church. They also do not require most unit leaders to be members. However, they do require it of the top unit leaders: SM, CM, etc. We had two boys from that Troop transfer to our Troop a couple of years ago. They were not Catholic and actually were having a good experience with the Troop. Their only complaint was that all campouts ended on Saturday night so that the Catholic members could attend Mass on Sunday.

A pearl learned from my mother - you only have to clean the top of the refrigerator when you invite your tall friends over. Some things I've learned from my sons: A teenaged boy's definition of clean is very different from his mother's. A teenaged boy cannot understand the purpose of a clean room or a made bed. He teaches his mother to simply close the bedroom door - out of sight out of mind. If you buy a new gas powered yard device, your teenaged boy will be excited about using it - but only once. A teenaged boy can remember his friends phone numbers, complex moves to electronic games, and what time his favorite show comes on television, but he cannot remember to pick up his socks or where he left his shoes. A teenaged boy will use the same cruddy towel for a whole week at camp, but at home will get a new clean towel everyday for a shower. A teenaged boy's laundry pile is greatly reduced in proportion to the amount of times he has to wash, dry and fold it himself. A teenaged boy can simultaneously watch television, talk on the phone, and play a hand-held video game, and know what is happening with all three. But, he cannot remember what his mother asked him to do five minutes ago. A teenaged boy puts off practicing for band, but will run out the door with his trumpet when the pretty girl next door comes over and asks if he wants to practice with her. A teenaged boy will take great pride in coming to the rescue when his mother screems at the sight of a bug in the house (in our case, gigantic cockroaches called Palmetto bugs here in the South). A teenaged boy will accept praise and compliments from his mother, but will puff out his chest and stand taller when that praise comes from his father. Gotta love those teenaged boys!

Welcome to the Forum, jhankins. Hope you and your son have fun in Tigers and many great years in Cubs.

I know the definition of active has been bandied about on this and other forums for much longer than I've been a member, and I'm sure it's been a subject of debate for as long as we've had Boy Scouts. I have mixed feelings about National putting into place an actual policy on what active means, but I've always found it interesting that a requirement for Varsity Scouts to earn the Varsity Letter is: "Have an attendance record at team meetings and activities of at least 75 percent for three consecutive months." Why would National put an attendance requirement for this award and not for anything else?

Ed, just read an article in this month's Scouting Magazine "Green Bar Bill's Own Troop" Troop 1 in New Jersey. Is that your troop? Wonderful article.

Welcome Jerry. Spread your enthusiasm amongst the forum!

Beavah - I've felt many times over the past two years like the wheels were coming off the bus. Then, something or someone would come along and tighten one of the lug nuts and we'd roll along for a while longer. I don't know when or if we will ever get a real committee. Troop never really had one. It always has consisted of parents that were involved while their son(s) were involved. Our Chartered Organization has never provided any support for the Troop. They really show no interest at all. Our Chartered Organization Representative was selected by our former Committee Chair, but has no idea what he is supposed to do. We do not have a Unit Commissioner and our District Executive is busy helping other units that are in more trouble. Our former Committee Chair served for one year and stepped down last Spring. His main reason was that he is too busy. But, I think it just goes back to his feelings about Scouting in general. He has two boys in the Troop, but just isn't interested in paritcipating. Unfortunately, his feelings seemed to have influenced his sons as well. Besides, I can't count the many times he said to me, "maybe it's time to just let this troop fold up." But, here I am finishing my 2nd year as SM with a small group of boys that are beginning to get the boy-led concept, and are actually doing it to some degree. The few older scouts we have left are starting to attend more regularly and take charge of the program. We have a new, freshly trained ASM who seems gung-ho and ready. Just can't quit yet. Getting a real functioning committee started from scratch will take some work. Not exactly what I had anticipated having to do, but I guess it's just one more fire to put out! Eagle-Pete. Yes, they've made it very clear that they will only serve on the committee until their son makes Eagle or ages out 8 months from now. (This message has been edited by gwd-scouter)

Yes, they are husband and wife. I think they feel a bit chagrined now after making such a big fuss about joining the committee only to help their son get Eagle. Had a talk with the son and the Mom and stated very clearly that the parent's participation on the committee will have no influence on whether he makes Eagle. It is up to him to EARN the rank. He's shown up for the past couple of meetings and has actually participated. His POR is Jr. ASM and he has scheduled to work on the trailer and equipment with the QM and my husband (ASM) in the next week. So, he's showing some initiative. We'll just see.

Back in the year 2000, I was on a camping trip with the Cub Pack. Adults were sitting around the campfire after the little guys had gone to sleep. I sat my large plastic insulated coffee mug a little to close to the fire. The plastic bubbled out and formed a small bulge on the side of the mug. It was dubbed the pregnant chad. (anyone remember that) Still have the mug. Boys in the troop ask me about it when we go camping. Older guys get it, younger guys just looked puzzled.

Without having all the facts in this situation it is difficult to respond. I do have a few questions, though. If the parents are telling you that he did not hold regular den meetings last year and that there was not 2-deep leadership when meetings were held, have you asked those parents why they didn't step up to help him? One family moved to another pack. Again, why didn't they offer to help? He may have confronted the 9-year-olds about not having a commitment to the campout, and I agree that is not appropriate. But, could it be possible that he is just frustrated with the lack of commitment from the parents and is tired of being the babysitter in Babysitters of America?

Campcrafter. It is so disappointing to those of us in the trenches when we hear about someone having a negative experience from scouting and pulling out. Perhaps you and your son can take a break for a while. Then, after things settle down, you may find you'd like to try one of those other troops you mention. Good luck to you, and Happy Trails.

I can't find anything written specifically about den chiefs and adults on campouts, but our Den Chiefs do not bring along their own adult when helping on a pack campout. In our case, their adult leadership has been provided by the Pack or Den leadership.

Here's a link to a photo of the contraption made by our Troop last Spring. Let me know if it doesn't open and I'll try to post it a different way. This is probably more elaborate than most, but the guys were proud. http://www.emeraldis.com/troop313/images/exporee-06/exporee-5.jpg

My son wore his to school last week. When he got home he said no one could tell they were scout pants. He even unzipped the legs for PE and then zipped them back on for the rest of the day.

Pardon my ignorance - what is JOTI?

On one of our winter campouts it was cold and windy. A few scouts were sitting around the small campfire and one scout got up from his very light aluminum and cloth chair. A gust came up and the chair blew over and into the fire. Very nice char marks on the cloth that he'll always remember. (This message has been edited by gwd-scouter)

So, what did the leader do after being told the flag was being displayed incorrectly? Hopefully, he gathered up the Scouts and had a nice flag lowering ceremony.

Thanks for the responses so far. Let me add that I, too, think Den Chief is a terrific position for a Boy Scout. Both of my sons have served. Older son (now in college) was a Den Chief for years and earned the Den Chief Award. Younger son (the Star Scout mentioned above) has been a Den Chief for a year. The Tenderfoot Scout mentioned looks up to my son a great deal and has been calling himself "Den Chief for a weekend" since he's helping his younger brother's den. I see no harm in that really. I agree that this campout is not a patrol or troop activity which is why I said I was inclinced not to count it toward 2nd class for the Tenderfoot Scout. Since, neither Scout has asked about this trip counting towards anything, I was just wondering if it ever came up with any of the forum members, and if so how you handled it. In our troop, the SM has always been the counselor for camping merit badge. It's the only one I counsel.

Hi folks. Darboy got me thinking about a situation in our Troop. Two guys are going camping with a Cub Scout Pack and will serve as Den Chiefs. One Scout (Star) is officially a Den Chief, the other (Tenderfoot) is brother to one of the Cubs. Not especially concerned about credit for the older scout since he is Star and also already has his camping merit badge. But, the Tenderfoot Scout? Should this campout count as credit toward activities for 2nd class? I'm not inclined to think so. What about nights camping for camping merit badge? I know he will pitch his own tent and help his Mom and brother with cooking dinner since his Mom really has no camping experience (that's one reason why Tenderfoot is coming along). Your advice?

A thread is running right now about a Scout showing evidence of doing his Duty to God when applying for Eagle. So many threads and posts on this and other forums about reverence and duty to God, I have always wondered if anyone places as much emphasis on a Scout's Duty to Country, or, for that matter, the other 11 points of the Scout Law. Does anyone ever ask a Scout how he's done his duty to his country? What would be the criteria for a teenager to do his duty? What about helping other people at all times? What evidence must a Scout produce to prove he's physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight? Does anyone cover as thoroughly whether a Scout is Trustworthy or Loyal, Helpful or Friendly, etc., as it seems the Reverent issue is covered?