Stosh

All grocery stores in our neck of the woods sell alcohol and cigarettes as do all convenience stores. That pretty much negates any popcorn show and sell at any of these places. The only time I have personally been involved in an actual break-in of a scout shop was back in the early 1970's when robbers broke in one of the less secure back doors of the scout office so they could knock a hole in the shop wall to access the drug store next door. (Handy way to avoid setting off door and window alarms... Scout office didn't have alarms on their doors/windows.....) Except for a broken back door and cosmetic replacement of the wall, the scouts didn't have a single thing stolen. Can't say for certain how many drugs the drug store lost. It was a bunch.

An annual cursory audit is done by the committee as a whole, a financial statement of spending/savings/fund raising is created and shared with the CO and any family member of a registered scout who would like to have it is provided. Everyone in the unit knows exactly what's going on financially in the operation of the unit.

We have COH's. Sometimes we have had boys reach the rank of Eagle. It's all part of the COH. If someone wishes to have something more than that, it's up to the family. Troop provides the rank patch like they would for any other rank advancement. I as SM provided a small personal gift to the Eagles, but the troop does not. The COH's are run by the boys and the PL makes the presentation of the award to his patrol member. If the scout or his family wants more than that, they need to make arrangements with the PL prior to the ceremony, i.e. parent pins, mentor pins, comments by the scout(s), etc. If there is going to be any reception beyond the regular Koolaid and cookies, it's up to the family to provide that.

If a boy is expected to pay his own way, that means he can't be asking his parents for the money? When I was a scout my parents bought my uniform and I paid for everything else. That doesn't wash in today's society. No Boy Scout is asked to be a Popcorn Colonel..... but I have witnessed a very effective troop sale with a boy in charge. I don't care who pays for it, but if parents can't afford to cough up the money, then they better work with the boys to make sure they can cover the costs. The only other option is to drop out of the program because it's too expensive and this is always a dynamic in play all the time. I have seen boys show up at summer camp with $100+ in discretionary money from Mom and Dad. I have also seen boys show up with $10 because that's all the family could afford. That's $2/day for treats and nothing more. Remember, discretionary money does not come out of any fund raising accounts.....

I wonder how many Boy Scout service centers are within 500' of a liquor store or a convenience store that sells cigarettes? This sounds like some political game the locals are playing. In order to be fair and balanced, maybe BSA ought to institute a policy that states that uniformed Boy Scouts cannot be within 500' of an establishment that sells alcohol, cigarettes or firearms. Of course all those things are perfectly legal operations, growing medical marijuana is as well. And seriously,... if the Boy Scout service center and the marijuana shop were right next door to each other and someone needed something to steal, what makes any one think that the robbers are going after compasses, jack knives and uniform shirts vs. marijuana?

Right now our "budget" consists of paying off last year's loan to get everyone to summer camp. Once we do that, we'll start working on next summer's expenses. We're starting popcorn sales this weekend so the boys have been told that first we pay off the debt, then we fund next summer's summer camp, then we buy new tents. Depending on how many tents we buy depends on how hard they work the popcorn sales. It's their problem to solve, not mine.

When I was a scout, I went to Boy Scout summer camp and never earned a MB there. They weren't offered. Somehow we managed to find things to do and have fun anyway.

My boys did the first year program at summer camp. The Totin' Chit was taught and given to the boys. The boys were not satisfied with it so next week they have asked me to re-do the training so they have the proper information and training. The boys know when they have been short shafted on the training by ineffective teachers. There's nothing in the books that say skills can't be retaught on a regular basis. As a matter of fact, our swim tests are valid for only one year. Same holds true for the Totin' Chit. Just because they have FC rank (having passed the swimmer's test), does not mean they automatically jump in the canoe and head down the river.

Even the experts have been known to be wrong at times.

Just because land is donated, does not mean it is needed or can be developed and maintained properly. There's always a practicality associated with the sentimentality of such situations. Yes, it is a shame it has to happen, but unless the powers-that-be are committed to the project, it has virtually no chance of survival.

Everyone has their own idea of what works. I just did a stint in a flood zone where FEMA policy and Red Cross practice, handed out Clorox to combat mold and act as an anti-bacterial. The local health department said vinegar works better than bleach. I guess it just depends on which way the wind is blowing that day.

That really looks like fun. We do something similar with a photo scavenger hunt. Take a group pic and various locations of interest around town. Your idea is a bit more in depth and educational.

Acquiring and accumulating gold is of no value to anyone. People can't eat gold. Money in the bank is of no value to the scout troop until it is spent. Right now our troop is running in the red. We owe people to lent us money to get boys to summer camp. We currently have two fund raisers trying to pay off that loan. THEN we can start fund raising for next summer's summer camp and activities. The fund raising efforts of the troop are purely the responsibility of the parents to organize and run. The boys assist them so they have a bit of skin in the game. Is anyone in a panic? Nope. We just keep plugging away hoping the money will be there when needed. It is. Our biggest fund raising scout quit the troop because we don't use ISA's and is much happier now that he has his Philmont and Jambo funds raised. His buddies don't, but he does. Our funds are maintained on a patrol level. Troop gets a % and the patrols get a % depending on the work the patrol members put into it. The troop pays all but $50 for summer camp expenses. If the patrol decides to drop that further the boys can make that decision on their own.

Why would anyone feel the need to run a program when there are no adults to work it? One can run around like Chicken Little all they want, but until there are sufficient adults to step into the various roles, those roles don't function. It's great that one has a ton of new scouts, but if the new parents don't step up, I'd drop the new scouts and keep with what's working. Getting a bunch of new scouts with no adult leadership is NOT a good thing, it will backfire on the program and next year's crop of boys won't be joining because of the horror stories they have heard about that pack. Get your adults first, then go after the boys when you have a program to offer. Getting the boys and then not delivering on the program is a waste of time for everyone.

My uniform with a 1993 Scoutfest patch on it is a bit stained, but otherwise is in good shape. I've always done the 100% cotton shirts except for the dress wool shirt I have with my UC patch on it. The only problem I have is the pockets in the pants, they never hold up with the keys, knife, junk I carry in them.

We've done BWCA at 1/3rd the cost of a normal summer camp. I have no idea how much Northern Tier charges, we've never used them.

Better yet, do it this way all the time. I was gone for the past 3 weeks and my ASM was running the show. Got the boys all organized and after flag told them to go off and do their requisite patrol meeting for 5 minutes and then come back for the "rest of the meeting". The boys were promptly told that there is no "patrol" meeting. We have only one patrol. In a mere 3 meetings the troop had gone from a boy-led, patrol method troop to a 5 minute boy-led patrol method meeting with a one hour 25 minute adult-led troop meeting. That got corrected on the spot. Yes, people it can happen that fast.

If finances are a concern, one could always by-pass the BSA Resort and Spa camps and take a week and do your own thing for 1/3rd the cost. We've done this on many occasions and it is a nice alternative to the requisite summer camp of most troops. It does work better with the older boys because they have had more experience and are better able to handle the organization needs of doing in on their own.

PL's take care of your boys. However he wishes to do that is up to him. He can use whatever communication technique he wishes, if it ain't workin' better try something else. They'll eventually figure out what works best for them..

Yep, that's what I was referring to as the AP classes, they are college credit classes taken before going to college. It's like the Head Start program for high schoolers. It's not that the school is year-around, it's just that the kids make it that way to get a leg up on the competition.

I've always felt the field uniform was appropriate.

Back when I was teaching CPR, it was taught to professionals by the American Heart Association and to the public by the American Red Cross. The techniques were different. The use of iodine was discouraged back when I was a kid in the 50's and 60's but it's still the pre-surgery antiseptic of choice.. Basic first aid says soap and water is enough for a cut. I also wash with a alcohol wipe and as long as the pain is minimal and only temporary, I do enjoy not having infections in my cuts. Every pre injection and post injection clinical procedure is marked with the use of alcohol. Major clinical procedures include iodine. So do what you want, nothing is right or wrong. If the cut is minor, soap and water should do it. If the cut is major, pressure bandage and get increased medical attention. If they want to use alcohol, that's their SOP.

I teach my boys to do it by the book. It doesn't make any difference as long as it is by the book. Me, on the other hand, wash dishes in the camp just like I wash them at home. After 60+ years of washing dishes I haven't poisoned myself yet. 2 bins, hot water wash, hot water rinse with a bit of bleach or vinegar, set to dry. I also don't have food particles from a half dozen different plates to contend with either, just my own dishes. I cook alone, I clean alone. If I get invited to a meal, I still go back to my site and do my own dishes.

I guess that pretty much makes the official expedition hat obsolete unless the troop decides to do it as a whole. I've worn the expedition hat for 35+ years and I guess I've been doing it wrong all these years.

With the heavy emphasis on AP type classes and "success in the classroom", a lot of our boys attend summer school as well as regular school. Year around school is just around the corner for us and a few of the grade schools have already moved in that direction.