Koda

I fall into the category of "solo scouter." I've never been married and I have no children of my own. Scouting did so much for me as a youth that I feel an obligation to give back as much as I can. I got back into scouting because I was in a relationship with a mother of 2. At the time her son was just starting wolves and they were in need of a den leader. My relationship with his mother didn't work out but I continued on as his scout leader. She encouraged me to keep a relationship with her children, if fact the kids and I just went out to dinner and a movie yesterday. Now I'm Cubmaster and Nate will be crossing over into boy scouts at the end of the month and me with him. I'm stepping down as Cubmaster and taking an assignment as district commissioner. I don't know how my longevity would compare to a married father but I know I'm in it for as long as I'm physically able. I'm 32 so I still have several more years before I 'retire' from scouting. I've never noticed any raised eyebrows because of my attendance at any event therefore I don't feel discourage to attend any scouting activity. Of course we always follow the youth protection guidelines but I don't think I've been singled out as someone to watch out for because I'm solo.

ok, why not... Positions held: ASM SM ADL DL Pack committee Cubmaster (current) Venturing Advisor (current) District Committee (current) Council Program Committee (current) *stepping down as cubmaster in March (son crossing over) Training: New leader essentials/Leader specific (Den leader, Cubmaster, Venturing Advisor, Scoutmaster) Outdoor leader training BALOO POW WOW Wood Badge Commissioner college of science New Leader essentials/leader specific (trainer) Climbing Lead Instructor Training BALOO (course director) Pow Wow (assistant course director) *National Camp School- Climbing instructor (spring) *Powder horn next fall *Pow Wow course director next fall Awards: Eagle Scout Cub Scouter Training Award Cubmaster Training Award William D. Boyce- New unit organizer award Wood Badge

It is up to you how your beads are presented. However, this is my view on adult awards. I have den leaders that say "I don't care about leader awards because it's not about me." My response is that it's just as important for the boys to see a leader being recognized for their accomplishments as it is for boy to be recognized for advancement. What kind of message does it send to the boys if they never see adults get anything for the time they put into scouting?

http://www.scouting.org/boyscouts/supplemental/ I believe that is the link your referring to. I stumbled upon this about a month ago, when I was looking for boy scout geocaching resources.

I made a decision to take Powder Horn. I spoke with the Wood Badge course director tonight at a council committee meeting. He understands my reasons for wanting to take Powder Horn instead of being WB staff. Since Venturing Advisor is my primary position I have to do what's best for the crew. There will be other WB courses in the future, I'm confident I'll be on the roster for the next one.

I took WB in '05 and earned my beads this spring. I'm a Venturing Advisor and our district training chairman. I've been asked to be Wood Badge staff for a course next fall. A neighboring council is offering a Powder Horn training on the same weekends as WB. This is the only Powder Horn offered in my state in '07. As a benefit to the Venturing Crew I would like to take Powder Horn, but as a benefit to my district and loyalty to WB I want to be Wood Badge staff. What would be the pros and cons to taking Powder Horn instead of being a Wood Badge staffer?

For those wondering what geocaching is look here: http://www.geocaching.com/faq/ It's awsome fun, if you haven't done it yet try it...you'll probably like it. Geocaching is much more than just looking for lost tupperware in the woods. There is a huge social aspect to caching. You get to know other cachers first by finding their hides and by them finding yours. Then you attend events to meet all these people face to face...there is always something to talk about. Some events are "Mega" events where 500+ geocachers get together for a geocaching convention of sorts. Another type of event is a cache-in trash-out event (CITO). This is where a group of cachers get together to do a cleanup project. Most geocachers are very enviromentally conscientious and do whatever they can to keep parks and forests clean. Some geocachers are collectors of signiture items and geocoins, this also adds to the social aspect of the sport. Geocaching organizations like MIGO (http://www.mi-geocaching.org)have formed to provide a community for geocachers, host events, commuicate with land managers, and in our case charter a venturing crew. IMO this is great theme for a Venturing Crew. I just wish there were more crews like ours, but we haven't found any others...yet. There I go rambling again...this post ended up being longer than I intended.(This message has been edited by Koda)

About a year ago I started a crew with a geocaching theme. We are chartered by Michigan Geocaching Organization (MiGO). Currently, we're the only crew to be sponsored by a geocaching organization. (as far as I know) I have been looking for other crews that have geocaching as their theme. I would like to open up some communication so we can share ideas and possably coordinate activities together.(maybe at a mega event) So, are there any other Venturing crews with geocaching as it's theme? if not there should be

I used to be a OWL, a good old OWL, too. But now I'm finished OWLing I don't know what to do. I'm growing old and feable, and I can OWL no more. So, I'm going to work my ticket if I can Back to Gilwell, happy land, I'm going to work my ticket if I can. Owl Patrol C-12-05

My sister and I both had beadings last night at our district recignition dinner. I was happy that I could share the honor with her. We took the course together a year ago, since then we've had a friendly competition to see who could get their ticket done first. (I finished mine first by a week ) ps.- I'm an owl, she's a bear

I just recently found a podcast about Cub Scouting. http://www.cubmasterchris.com/ I've listened to the show a couple of times and I think it's a great resourse for leaders and parents. Does anyone else listen to this show? If so what do you think of it?

Our venturing crew was recently presented with a patch from our chartering organization. This is a great 3"x3" patch showing the CO's logo. We don't want to place it as a temporary patch because it's anything but temporary. It looks best on the right sleve, where a patrol patch on a Boy Scout would go. Is there any official placement for a charter organization's patch?

I havent found much in these forums about geocaching. It's a hobby I just started and I think it would be a great addition to any scout units program. Durring the last couple outings I have been placing caches in the woods and giving each patrol a GPS reciever as a race to see what patrol can find all the caches the fastest. Several caches within 1/4 mile of the campsite keeps them busy for a couple hours (better than capure the flag with less arguing). If your a scout leader that is into the hobby, geocaching is also a way to find some great camping spots on public land. If you want to find out more visit http://www.geocaching.com/

Camp Greilick, Traverse City, Michigan youth 86,87,88,89 staffer 90,91 scouter 97,98,04 Camp Greilick is over 512 acres of beautiful terrain and is situated between Spider, Bass and Rennie Lakes. Not a hugh camp but those that go are very loyal to it. I will be a staffer this year...and a good old staffer too.

Update from original post: I contacted our district executive and we had a meeting with the PTO head, the principal, about their roll in scouting. He was not aware of the responsabilities that the CO had to the pack or what the pack could provide to them in return. He was very glad that I stepped up to open the lines of communication. Now that we are talking I believe that this relationship will grow and both organizations will benefit because of it. Reflecting on this problem I realize that this was a communication breakdown on many levels. This was the first time a DE had met with the COH for at least a decade. Someone from the CO was signing the recharter but not really paying attention to what they were signing, and there was no unit commissioner to help guide the unit in the right direction. I hope that the communication will coninue on all levels so this unit dosn't crumble to dust again. In 2 years my son will be crossing over and me with him. I have signed up for commissioner training and will be attending commissioner college in october (WB ticket item). My plan is to be the unit commissioner for the pack after we cross over.

when I was a scout I was in the Beaver patrol and there was also the Eagle patrol. Our enrollment dropped so we merged and became the Beagle patrol. We made custom patches with Snoopy as our mascot.

When my son became a member of our pack two years ago I immediately volunteered to be den leader because of the positive influence scouting had on my life (I'm an eagle scout). What I didn't know going into it was that the pack was failing. There was no pack committee, no unit commissioner, no trained leaders (except me and one other den leader), no charter organization representative, and the cubmaster treated the scouts like they were in the Marine corps. Now it's 2 years later. A pack committee has been formed, the leaders are trained, and now I'm the cubmaster (I just finished the woodbadge expierience and I'm working my ticket). Things are improving all the time. The one key position that were trying to get filled is the charter organization representative position. The CO is the elementary school PTO. The only support they offer is providing a place to hold our meetings. I would like them to take a more active role in choosing leaders, promoting the pack, and suggesting service projects. My committee chair and I have met with them about this matter but they still remain uninvolved and we still don't have a COR. What is my next step?

This is a rough outline one of our patrol came up with to use for our presentation. Let us know what you think, just keep in mind this is our first draft, it may need some tweeking. Family Involvement and the Selection of New Scout Leaders: a six step process 1. Meet 2. Assess 3. Educate 4. Select 5. Train 6. Reward 1.Make all scout families feel part of the Unit (Pack, Troop, Crew) family 1.1.Get acquainted with the parents in your Unit 1.1.1.Personal introductions 1.1.2.Participate with them in fun or challenging social or scouting events 2.Assess their capabilities and desires for leadership 2.1.Family talent survey 2.2.Interview show genuine interest in them 2.3.Dont assume they will have the same passion for scouting that you do 3.Educate them about 3.1.Scouting Mission, Vision, Values 3.2.Aims, Purpose, Methods 3.3.Resources available to help leaders 3.3.1.Extensive Training Programs 3.3.2.Professional Staff 3.3.3.Policies, Leaders Books, Web sites, Program Guides 4.Select the person best suited for the job 4.1.A CPA might make a good Treasurer 4.2.A Project Manager might make a good committee chair 4.3.Best suited to work with scouts, leaders, district, council level? 4.4. Start slow - baby steps - for new/inexperience leader, assign easy task 5.Train the new leader 5.1.Complete Fast Start and Job Specific training 5.2.Consider assigning to a mentor 5.3.Transition into a position with the help of the outgoing leader 5.4.Periodically assess their progress to determine timing to transition to higher level positions 6.Reward accomplishments 6.1.Formal leader recognition

What a great list. I'm sure we'll use several of these resources for our presentation. Thank you for your help. Shawn Owl Patrol C-12-05

I just got back from the first weekend of wood badge course c-12-05. It was Owl-standing!!! Our Owl patrol has chosen to do a presentation on family involvement and recruiting adult leaders. Does anyone have ideas or advice on this topic that we could include in our presentation? Shawn Owl Patrol C-12-05