PinkFloyd

SM Ron, the ceremony is planned by the parents of the Eagle Scout. Ours is being held at that family's church, with refreshments to follow in the fellowship hall. The mother of the scout is about to go nuts....I told her it was like she was trying to plan a wedding...lol. The good news is that the former SM has just agreed to attend and speak also...the bad news is that now I don't know what I'll do or say!

KS, I've tried sending you PM's to get a copy of your Eagle Scout Ceremony comments, but no reply thus far, so I'm trying this route. Thanks, PF

KoreaScouter...have sent PM's to you w/ no response...hope all is well.

Yikes! I was just informed that as SM, there will be a time set aside for me for comments at an Eagle ceremony this coming weekend. I am new to scouting and have never attended an Eagle ceremony. My brain is dead and refusing to cooperate. Any ideas for such a momentous occasion would be tremendously appreciated! Thanks in advance for any suggestions, ideas, or comments!

Hello everyone! Well, it has been a fast, furious, and fun 6 months, but I wanted to give you all an update. I did in fact accept the SM position, and am learning just as much as the boys are! I have an outstanding group of 15 boys, ranging from 11 to 13 years old. We're a small troop, which is probably a good thing at this point in time. My employer generously donated one week of my time this year so that I could attend summer camp without using personal time....he's very involved in his local troop and has just returned from Philmont. Thanks to all of you for your valued input and advice! Additional gratitude to B.R. (you know who you are) for his personal emails of guidance and inspiration. I am now loving this scouting stuff!

Thanks to all of you for your input, and thanks most of all for your support! Here's an update: I accepted the SM position several months ago, and am in the process of organizing the troop to be boy-led. Apparently in the past, as well as for the next few weeks, meetings have been mostly MB workshops. We will be electing (or rotating) an SPL and PL's in a couple of weeks, and re-organizing patrols. As soon as the new organization is in place, I will be meeting with the PLC for actual program planning, and will hopefully implement the (6) steps to a successful meeting. Do all of you use this approach? We have a great outdoor activities program already in place for the next several months. We have a great group of boys that are really fun to work with! We have 12 First Class and Star scouts (12-13 yrs old), 1 fairly new Scout working on Tenderfoot, and recently recruited 2 new members working on Scout rank. What qualifications do you look for in deciding to hold an election to the OA? At a recent Tap-Out, it was explained that this was an honor for scouts who stand above the rest. I don't really feel that any of my boys qualify for that yet - maybe in another 6-12 months, however several parents are very anxious to hold an election so that any elected can be Tapped-Out at summer camp. This may be my first real parental challenge! Sorry this is so long....I could go on forever! (I am beginning to really love this scouting stuff!) Thanks again for your assistance.

HELP! I have been approached be the Scoutmaster for a local troop. I have scheduled a meeting with the committee for next week to get answers to some questions that I have. Does anyone have any additional questions that would be appropriate to pose to the group, or any other items to consider before assuming this responsibility? I have very limited scouting experience, but am interested in the position. My main concern is that I would be just a name on paper, with several parents actually controlling the troops activities and functions. Thanks for any input or advice!!!