Kristian

that about sums up what the actual members want from a de. and also of course to help out/offer guidance when problems arise.

they should be doing that, but it rarely seems to happen.

use a proper real knife. something comfortable in size for each individual scout to actually use. those plastic knife and soap demonstrations aren't teaching anything useful and will not represent real world needs for a knife.

Any scoutmaster should be fine.

Some might possibly be made in the states but the vast majority of things sold in the scout shop are made in china. For any of the groups i have worked with we order from companies that produce in china when we expect the lowest price and have sufficient lead time to order them and in the states when we are more pressed for time and don't mind around double the price. I personally order patches produced in Canada or the uk but in those cases i need something very specific and willing to pay a significant premium.

Once the project is done, its done. It sounds like he did raise all the money, some came from fundraising and the rest is absolutely a donation from the parents. If the scout wasn't going to be accepting of family donations the project should have been delayed until other funding sources could be found. In many organizations those leading the fundraising or the board will personally make up any difference between what was raised and what might be necessary to fulfill some task if they can afford it.

I believe they have something like this around here too though not certain about it yet. It does sound like another complete waste of time and money. The eagle workbook explains all of this already and if you have a question after actually reading it talking to your sm is free. I find it hard to believe that no one in your troop would have enough knowledge to be able to assist a scout needing help.

at the venturing/troop level at least you can schedule the campout somewhere that you must hike into and miles from the parking lot. that will eliminate extra family members pretty quick.

"for more than a century, the Boy Scouts of America has been a leader in conservation - from stewardship to sustainability" if this is true why are their significantly more cases of bsa properties being sold off to developers to be turned into office parks, housing developments, and golf courses then preserved as open space.

well your son shouldn't be wearing athletic shorts anyway because that definitely isnt part of the uniform and would just look too stupid.

and that is the problem here. what many of the venture scouts want is just to run their program and organize the activities they enjoy as they see fit. advancement is much less important than actually having an enjoyable program. of course this would conflict directly with the corporate types that see the lack of advancement and awards as contrary to their JTE statistical disaster.

a 10mile backpacking trip isnt something i would ever recommend for scouts that haven't already had sufficient hiking experience already. proper gear selection is something that they will learn in time but its not likely to happen on the first or second trip.

i would define success as a trip that the scouts were actually able to complete, and also one that they were able to enjoy doing, though learning something also would also be a great benefit for some. distance is something that will vary greatly depending on the terrain, weather, elevation and many other things. i dont believe i ever said 5-8 miles inst enough for anything. i would see this as something most scouts would reasonably be able to do per day.

having witnessed a troop hike where several of the scouts weren't truly successful in hiking just 5-8 miles on a good day carrying just water/food i dont have much hope for them ever doing a 3 day backing trip. if you are doing monthly or so backpacking trips i would say you are doing pretty well as a troop. I agree with the above posters that these trips should be the lead up to things such as winter backpacking, and the more difficult and longer treks.

I would prefer they have skills beyond soliciting funds from either the scouts or outside orgs.