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If your boys are on the move a lot, I've used popsicle sticks with a 1/8" hole in one end. The boys write their name in indelible ink. My "buddy board" is an unused chain fishing stringer. (Given my luck fishing, my regular stringer is always empty.) Buddies slide their tags into the same link in the stringer. P.S. - If you want to use those tags for more than one trip, you'll have to reinforce the hole with duct tape. Obviously, durability of materials or even the level of improvisation depends on your objective. But, the boys -- if they've been to camp more than once -- seem to appreciate the opportunity to improvise.

This must be a rule of conflicts: "The moment you think you have the upper hand ... prepare for resounding defeat." Sorry you experienced this in a Scouting venue, but it happens elsewhere.

Our SMC's (once paperwork is out of the way) are essentially prep. for BOR. For some Life scouts it's been years since their last BOR, so yes it can be nerve racking. Our "coaching" amounts to basic communication skills (think before answering a question, don't reply with more than was asked, etc ...) and reminders that the committee members are there to get to know the boy to whom they are awarding this badge.

There are some boys who I wish would have earned Personal Management when they were 13. Namely the ones who are now 15 and tell me they want to go to Seabase, but money's an issue. (Actually, the guitar/game/girlfriend on which they spent all of last summer's earnings is the issue.)

Interesting that no one mentioned the First Class requirement to invite a friend to his troop. It has done nothing to boost our rate of recruitment, and it has uselessly added time the already difficult task of tracking advancement. Maybe we need to require the boy to invite ten other boys. Or, maybe we should just strike that one from the books.

Hey, maybe he can drop by one of the shining light telecasts!

"Any kind of religious service is by its very nature is not going to be voluntary. When a leader directs a Scout (the Chaplain's aide) to perform a service and read a sermon, it is incumbent that all the Scouts and leaders attend that service." That's not how it worked in any unit I was a part of. First, our troops and crews are youth led, so we *ask* the Chaplain's aide (who volunteered for that POR in the first place) if he could organise the boys in a moment of reflection. (The boy picks a passage or devotional of his choosing. The troop Chaplain gives him options including Scouts Own if the boy asks.) If one of the boys (or young women if it's a venturing activity) asks to be excused, we allow that. At summer camp, if our SPL would rather not muster the whole troop to attend a campwide service, we don't. If some of the boys want to go, we arrange for leaders to volunteer to escort them. If some boys would rather not attend when the troop is going, we can find a couple of adults who don't mind keeping an eye on them. In all circumstances, it's made clear to our youth that devotions are strictly voluntary. Occasionally we have an adult who takes issue with that -- they hear from me pretty quickly. You know what would really be involuntary? Forcing all youth to abstain from ANY service of any kind by using the lame excuse that it's bound to offend somebody or their parents.

Last year when the 14y/o's had to wait to complete 8th grade, an advisor I met called them Venturers-in-Training. A few of the younger sibs to my current crew are starting to call themselves that. Look for a gaggle of VIT's stalking a crew near you. P.S. - Nice info about the letters and pins. Got me longing for the days when being in the "Leadership Corps" was its own reward.

Evry: "So, why should I feel pressure to be a part of this nonsense? Why should my son be subjected to this? Isn't this proselytization to the protestant way of worshiping that I totally detest?" 1. I think we all buy in to attendance being voluntary. And "nonsense" is a pretty harsh judgment. The folks who put these things together really do mean well, and most of them think hard in the preparation. 2. Your son is subjected to a plethora of religious influences. Have you written letters of complaint to the producers of every book, movie, TV show, and video game that foists a religious perspective on your son? 3. I know plenty of protestant families with apprehensions about such a service. It runs the risk of teaching a boy he can "get by" with some watered down, campfire theology. (I think that was Bevah's and John-In-KC's point.) So please don't call this "protestant proselytizing" -- it demeans the grand history of both words. But, please consider this: Telling the boys "Y'all go off and sit on your respective rocks contemplatin' for 15 minutes and keep quiet about it" is proselytization to a "you don't need a church/mosque/synagogue/temple" kind of religion. Moreover, by not providing ANY interfaith service, we teach "keep your god at home" and "disrespect any folks who may want to assemble for a religious purpose". Essentially, we fail to model reverence.

I've seen two SM transistions (the advantage of my oldest being 6 years older than my youngest). I agree with all of the above, but would think in terms of a 1 month rule: Month 0 - let your ASM's know Month 1 - make a formal announcement at the next committee meeting. Let them know you will be reccommending your replacement to the CO. Let the COR know that it is ultimately their call. Month 2 - let your boy leadership know - especially the ones approaching Eagle, let them know if you will be available to assist them, or if after X months you'll have left town. Month 3 - let the rest of the troop know and begin letting your chosen ASM start leading meetings, campouts etc... In fact if your gut says it's fine to make speed that schedule up and do everything in a matter of weeks, go ahead. If a decent set of ASM's has your back, don't worry about the boys knowing long in advance. Kids are really flexible. They can sort out the difference between future and current SM's.

Count me as "yea" even though I tend to just stick with our troop's meditations at summer camp. Those wind up being some derivative of Scouts Own. If I'm doing it, I have the Chaplain's Aid pick something from New Testament & Psalms. I think the point is to get the kids to set aside time. So longer moments of silence and less preaching and singing is a good idea. The real goal is to model this: if you're out on a day of worship, don't let devotion to your creator slip away. Sure Scout's Own is watered down, and if there isn't a merciful and loving God watching over these boys, it's pointless. On the other hand, if you think the higher being that you believe in might knock on some kid's heart if offered a moment of time -- even during a theologically vague service where time is the only thing sacrificed -- it might be worth that time. On the other hand, if you're afraid some lesser being may invade the kid's soul in that moment of theological ambiguity, I suggest you look up a less wimpy god.

I would pull the pain-in-the-but-SM routine and require at least two shake-down/conditioning weekends (similar physical challenge, not so isolated) before the event. Scouts must attend at least one to qualify. (Or if you think you need more than a couple backpacking trips to be sure of everyone's skills, require as many as you need.) You might even emphasize an age minimum and at least 1st class rank for every participant. No compliance? No event. I would have your JASM line up the dates for the training weekends, and relay the above "minimum" requirments. Then, have the younger scout take responsibility for training during the first weekend. Since you have a sibling issue that might get in the way, you might want to encourage the JASM to focus on training the quartermaster or some other boy.

This is good stuff, but not much different than VLST. Of course you need to recap some basics, but I think commissioners need to know some council-specific stuff: Who needs a crew? (Talk about some of the back-and-forth that was typed on these other threads. Selling points to a scoutmaster/youth leader, etc... Possibly identify some CO's that have yet to be approached.) What are the top 5 crews in your council doing this year? Names and contact info for the council venturing officers association advisor, committee chair, and executive (whatever you have). My crew got a good "jump start" by partnering with another crew on a Philmont trip. So I feel the whole issue of networking is a bigger deal when commissioning a crew vs. a troop. Add this to your syllabus, and I think you've got a primo class.

Outfitters are a good bet. An outdoor/sportsman's club that wants to extend its reach to youth would be a good idea. A church that want's to add a wilderness component to its H.S./early college youth ministry might also work. Each of these may come with their own set of caveats. (E.g., a business might want you to sport the company's logo, the sportsman's club might want a junior membership fee, a church might ask your youth to work on their Trust Award.) Or they might be like our CO (a church) which just expects us to be good and say grace before meals (and turn the lights out and lock the doors after we use the building). My knee-jerk is relationships trumps resources most days. Thus your "Portland Area Friends" sounds great. But, there's no harm if your DE can put you on to someone with resources looking for a relationship.

You know a division has "arrived" in this organization when there is a "vintage" uniform. My daughter and I did choose vintage. One youth told me the only reason he bought the new one was that there were no vintage shirts in his size. If he can find a vintage one, he will return the new model. Of course it wasn't raining at the time. Oh: no cigarette pockets.

Have the fun of being a crew advisor is handing out membership cards to young women, shaking their hand, and saying, "Welcome to the Boy Scouts of America." I don't think any name change is necessary. The young women who join this program (through the few channels they are permitted to do so) are proud of the association.

Plus, the leadership corps patch looked really cool. (Gold lamp, with a flame, on a read background.) Sthiker, find out from your stubborn SM why he would be uncomfortable with a Venturing Crew under the same CO as his troop. Then, find someone who has been known to work well with this SM, is willing to get Venturing Leader Specific Training, and can serve as the crew's advisor. Crews are crazy things. (As the above posts attest.) They are trying to attract the age range that the BSA has the hardest time retaining. They function best with appropriate training and teamwork.

Prevention helps. We know in advance that father-son pairs can irk one another, so we dads have a pact that we will "ride herd" over one another's kids but not our own. I am always thankful when other adult leaders tell me (in confidence) how they've handled my sons' disciplinary issues, even if I feel they were too lenient. Frequent pow-wows at summer camp over how we've dealt with the tough cases of the day are really helpful. Our troop is blessed with some really experienced adult leaders who take time to camp with us, so their example in handling "tough cases" is invaluable. But when it gets tough. It's really nice to have someone who'll help you take a step back. Two-deep doesn't just mean get any old warm body. It means making sure someone knows how to run interference for you.

If you all haven't seen my recent replies on posts, the crew I advise has been slow in adopting a uniform, but ... After seeing another crew and their flag at a community gathering, a youth took it upon herself to sew us a crew flag. She's using the standard venturing unit flag as a pattern, and from what I was permitted to see so far, it looks pretty sharp. Now, the crew's not dirt poor. (She should know this, she's the treasurer.) We could buy a flag, but I'm always a fan of anything handmade, and she took up her first day of summer break getting started sewing. So I'm inclined to have the president move to adopt her handiwork as our official flag. Does anyone have any suggestions for any thing else formal that I could do in recognition? (Remember, this is a no-pomp-and-circumstance outfit, so forget any hour long dedication ceremonies.) Any controversies?

It's really not a matter of if you withold your reccommendation (right now it sounds like you don't want to give it), but for how long? Then, if you do so you may need to decide -- maybe along with your officers -- if suspension is in order.

I'd have to echo Bevah on this one. My first real rescue was when I was the only guy in a pool surrounded by swimmers (youth group, private pool) to identify a freind who was drowning. A simple "reach" saved the day with zero fanfare, but if it weren't for prior consecutive years of red-cross/bsa "in water" training, I would have missed it. My take on SSD is that it outlines the "minimum standard", and STRONGLY ENCOURAGES you to get "physically" trained adults and youth on your aquatics activities. If you're the only one in the group who has read GSS, and none of your adults have even practiced guarding in the past couple of years, be very concerned. For example, I'm re-upping BSA guard at summer camp in two weeks. The paper requirements are pretty much the same, but it seems harder everytime. However, it models the scout motto to our youth. And I rest easier knowing what to expect of myself and any youth who has life-guarding skills.

I see it in the opposite direction. We need to stand by the youth's choices (that includes choosing a crew with a particular uniform - or lack thereof) within the boundaries set by the program. If it means "educating" the board of review, when introducing the scout, so be it. ("It is my pleasure to introduce Pee-Wee Harris, currently sporting the uniform of crew ___, which is deemed appropriate according to BSA regulations for occasions such as this ...") Hopefully it will boil down to a few guys like Eagle92 sucking it their breath and moving on to more pertinent issues of character. And, after they've promoted a couple of worthy candidates, they'll accept that these boys are "by the book" -- even if it's not "their book".

I really owe the youth in my crew a lot of love and respect after reading this thread. But, dhendron, your crew members need to know that they will not be put at risk so someone can have a "safe haven" from their behavior in a sister unit. The crew officers are responsible for discipline within thier unit, so your obligation to them is to get them educated on YP. BSA has some decent videos on sexual harrasment and date rape. Even if they aren't making judgements (which in this case, it seems that's out of their hands), they need to understand why you are taking any action. What action should you take? The gold award is secondary. I would suggest a 2 month suspension. It gives the kid time to sort out if he wants to be in a group that frowns on his behavior. While he's away, keep an ear out for anything your officers might have to say on the situation. If he come's back and your officers deem he's shaped up, you can push the gold award paperwork a month later. The point here isn't to single out "slappy" -- he did that on his own --, but to let the crew know they have the right to demand a safe environment for themselves.

The best scout I ever knew got to second class and aged out five years later. My pack was not communicating well with the troop, if he didn't recruited me there'd have been one less Eagle ...

E-mail is not the perfect solution. But it definitely helps. Here's my suggestions: 1.a. Make sure the responsibility of tracking E-mails goes to the unit secretary. Sometimes that's a little tough because the best recorder doesn't always have the best tech skills, but if you can find a him/her a buddy to help with "best practices" then oversights will drop. 1.b. List-servers are helpful (groups.google.com is my favorite). The neat thing about these is that if someone misses a message, there's usually a web page that someone can go to to retrieve old posts. If your unit maintains a website they might offer something of the sort. (The downside -- esp. with venturers -- is that some folks only do Facebook/Yahoo/Twitter/Whatever and the'll throw up attitude when asked to create one more account.) 2. Make sure parents who don't get E-mail are partnered with adults who do. 3. Be very, very patient.