RememberSchiff

1. Upfront, National needs to respect and trust volunteers. Respect their time and money investment. Respect their privacy. Trust them to do their best in safely delivering the program. 2. Listen and respond to their feedback. 3. Train remembering #1 and #2. My $0.02

YES! When I was a Cub Scout in the 60s we still had arrow points, no plastic beads. No instant recognition either! More about Fun and Do than Bling. When I became a DL and WDL, I dug out the old stuff. We built crystal radios on wood breadboards, made kites from scratch (Cubs were some impressed with my target kite) whittled neckerchief slides and PWD cars, used hand tools, assembled a covered wagon, rode bikes, went to the shelter and walked dogs, climbed trees (that was a requirement back in the day), made Christmas gifts for parents... the new books were just used for parent sign off, not thrifty. Before kids were called "makers", they were called "scouts". Lets get that back. My $0.02

Same Boy Scout troop 175, now with a female Boy Scout troop 1175, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro for the third time this past summer. Good information about what makes a strong program - scout lead, adventure, outdoor-experienced (not trained in classroom) leaders ....a little risk goes a long way in building the Scouts’ character. “We’ve engineered risk out of almost everything for teenagers these days,” Mead said. “One of the great things about a Scouting program is that it’s allowed to go into these environments where you don’t know what’s going to happen. We find on these trips, while we do strong safety overlays, it challenges people. You can’t suddenly go home. You are in hostile environments sometimes and you can’t just bail out. That’s an unusual experience.” ~ Scoutmaster Brad Mead “We run these types of trips every summer for our older scouts. We have taken them deep into the Amazon Jungle, sailing down the Belize Reef, exploring through Thailand, Rafting down the Zambezi River (Zambia Africa), SCUBA diving in Honduras, sailing through the Greek islands, and even a cultural expedition in Cuba,” said Scoutmaster Mead. “Properly prepared, teenagers can do extraordinary things. The Scouting BSA program provides those opportunities.” More details of experience and photos at sources: https://www.courant.com/community/simsbury/hc-va-simsbury-boy-scouts-mount-kilimanjaro-20191031-20191029-3t4wrtft5bfjlcrxvi2qzdrd3a-story.html http://simsburytroop175.org/troop-news/simsburys-bsa-troops-175-and-1175-on-top-of-africa/ We are proud of our adult leadership at Troop 175. It’s deep and experienced. Our Adult leaders have camped, climbed, fished, hunted and explored on many expeditions. They are all great teachers. In addition we have a very high participation by the Dads in our Troop and it is not unusual to have 10-15 dads on a trip. No experience is necessary and if you were never a Scout as a boy this is your second chance to learn the ropes. We have a Dads/Leaders Patrol, the “Usual Suspects,” on each trip and we eat very well (a source of some pride and a fair bit of competition) and share a lot of experiences as Dads and as professionals from all walks of life. Our Troop is Boy Led and our Boy Leaders are selected by the adult leadership based on their performance and ability to lead. The senior patrol leaders and patrol leaders share their wisdom and pass on their knowledge to the younger Scouts through our trip and advancement programs. The Boy Scouts is one of the very few organizations where boys can be put in leadership positions at ages as young 12. Good leaders often appear early and the fun of Scouting is watching them "take the lead". Troops are only as good as the boys who want to step up and take charge and the adult volunteers who are there to assist. This years boy leaders are:.... https://sites.google.com/site/simsburyboyscouts175/about/troop-leadership (older link, likely before girl membership ~RS)

I have wondered if there was an earlier radio net(s) similar to scouter.com K2BSA Radio Station

Hmm, I wonder if we could replace World Citizenship merit badge requirement with a WOSM scouting organization badge of a scout's choice. Sure, there will be some logistics and safety issues or maybe we piggyback with online course providers EdX, Coursera, etc.

LOL

Agreed. My recommendation, go back to old Tenderfoot requirements with its simple focus of Being Prepared for first campout. Get rid of Scout rank. All kids who join are scouts who start work on Tenderfoot requirements. Another $0.02

My SM and ASM were no nonsense WW2 veterans. While not an official BSA policy, in my troop, if a scout could not achieve achieve the little asked in Tenderfoot requirements quickly, why are you there? This was common with other troops at the time, particularly those with waiting lists. This may seem unkind today, but my SM was not there to babysit, he was there to develop first class scouts. You didn't waste his time . I took a long time to earn First Class too. Somehow, I eventually passed Morse Code after failing, trying Semaphore and failing, and trying Morse code again and again. I was particularly unskilled at understanding messages. Meanwhile, my Great Lakes (he said it was a Scout camp ) trained father tapped away at 20 wpm. My $0.02

Update from Narragansett Council (MA): Alert: Oct. 28, 2019 - The Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut Depts of Public Heath have identified numerous communities in Southeastern New England as at serious risk for Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE). All overnight camping at Council properties will be cancelled until the first hard frost. Stay up to date for camp closings, program updates, and safety guidelines updated each Monday at NCBSA.org/EEE.

Interesting ideas. Back in the 60's, most troops required that scouts earn Tenderfoot as a prerequisite for their first campout. Not hard to do and the name made sense "Tenderfoots on their first campout , where they are working on Second Class " . The speed of earning Tenderfoot was also gauge of Scout Spirit and Patrol Method. If the fault of not earning Tenderfoot, in say 2-3 months, was the scout's, he was usually asked to leave. The Tenderfoot, Second Class, and First Class were , in part, a common sense skills progression of outdoor skills. Every scout started at the beginning and no scout wanted to be a Tenderfoot or Second Class for long, they wanted to be First Class scout. So did their SM and BP. Your experienced scout would advance quickly. IMHO, the whole "Scout" rank/non rank is unnecessary confusion for a non-existent problem. Every kid who joins is a scout. Skills mastery was demonstrated by doing and not assumed absorbed from x number of campouts/overnights. My $0.02,

Hiking through the religions of Rochester (MN) On Saturday, around 100 people... took part in the eighth Ten Commandments Hike hosted by Gamehaven Council and the Boy Scouts of America. The daylong, three-mile hike through Rochester’s faith communities aims to help the scouts and their adults develop an appreciation for diversity, said Pam Legried, a registrar with Boy Scouts of America Gamehaven Council. As part of the day, faith leaders or representatives from each congregation gave short presentations about one of the commandments at each of the faith locations. The 10 stops on the hike were Christ United Methodist Church, Zumbro Lutheran Church, First Presbyterian, Calvary Episcopal, Masjed Abubaker Mosque, Salvation Army Church, Holy Anargyroi Greek Church, B’nai Israel Synagogue, Church of Christ and the Rochester Mennonites. More at source: https://www.postbulletin.com/news/local/hiking-through-the-religions-of-rochester/article_ae4a6cca-f832-11e9-8c04-6fa977d66004.html

Why not just Google his name as I did. He may not be currently in that position but he was in the past. I am more interested in his comments as a long time scouter than who the messenger was.

Negative feedback on fees increase continues from members on Bryan on Scouting and the New York Post The once-storied organization sent out a notice to leaders that the registration fee will nearly double from $33 to $60 on Jan. 1, blaming the increase on the rising “cost of insurance.” “Everybody knows what this is really all about,” fumed Charles Greinsky, vice president of the Staten Island Council Boy Scouts of America, who has been involved in scouting since 1963. “This is about the pedophiles and the insurance we have to pay because of these pedophiles and the fact that the Scouts knew about many of them for years.” Greinsky called the hike “horrendous,” charging that the scandal-scarred Scouts have been “mismanaged at the national level” for years. “The Scouts have been fighting for survival. There’s been a dwindling membership. … I’m afraid that scouting is on the verge of extinction,” he said. Source: https://nypost.com/2019/10/26/boy-scouts-membership-fees-nearly-double-in-wake-of-sex-abuse-lawsuits/

YP, adult supervision , two-deep issues? Maybe if someone expands a tandem harness to allow a scout and two adult leaders to jump together?

IMHO, rather than repeating the same YP content year after year after year after year, why not build and expand our knowledge and skills in protecting youth. According to the Mental Health First Aid Organization, the course, titled "Youth Mental Health First Aid," is designed to teach parents, family members, caregivers, teachers, school staff, peers, neighbors, health and human services workers, and other caring citizens how to help an adolescent (age 12-18) who is experiencing a mental health or addictions challenge or is in crisis. It introduces common mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent development, and teaches a five-step action plan for how to help young people in both crisis and noncrisis situations. Topics covered include anxiety, depression, substance use, disorders in which psychosis may occur, disruptive behavior disorders (including AD/HD), and eating disorders. “Everybody should be trained,” Carolyn Griess, assistant teaching professor in Penn State said. “Parents, friends, teachers, clergy, scout leaders, anyone who interacts with youth. Some schools train their janitors, their cafeteria workers.” https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/take-a-course/find-a-course/ https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/ https://news.psu.edu/story/594703/2019/10/24/academics/new-course-offers-tools-address-youth-mental-health-crises

Mike Lovitt is now officially a Boy Scout. Lovitt has been the owner of Chick-fil-A Bristow for the past 10 years and is retired Army Lt. Colonel, having served 30 years. Lovitt’s dream of becoming a Boy Scout manifested at a young age during the 1950s as a young boy in Hawaii. Lovitt, who is African American, didn’t have to worry about prejudice in Hawaii because many had a different nationality. It was only until his family moved to North Carolina where suddenly he couldn’t fulfill his dream of becoming a Boy Scout. When he wanted to join Boy Scouts, the leaders came to his home and told his father, who was a USMC Gunnery Sergeant, that he couldn’t join scouts because they didn’t allow African American boys. Despite his disappointment at a young age, Lovitt has supported the scouts by letting them hold fundraisers at his restaurant and helping out with scout functions. Recently, his disappointment ...(rest of story at source) https://potomaclocal.com/2019/10/25/40-years-ago-they-banned-him-because-of-his-skin-color-today-mike-lovitt-is-a-boy-scout/ Scout Salute!

Some of the local veterans groups that support Boy Scouts of America include AMVETS Post 57, Veterans of Foreign Wars Bruce Post 1146, the VFW Fraser-Reid Post 6691, VFW Post Menge 6756 and American Legion Post 261. They will be part of Operation Crossover 1-3 p.m. Nov. 2 at Macomb Mall in the Dick’s Sporting Goods Court. “We will have a number of area organizations and scout packs and troops at the mall in order to convince kids to join or continue in scouting,” Kevin Lauro said. “There will be a number of area youth and parents in attendance as well as some raffle prizes.” “Many veterans organizations sponsor scout groups. The veterans are our adult leaders and scoutmasters, or they assist scout masters. They provide scouts with a meeting place and fundraising opportunities and teach different lessons to kids. “They have flag retirement ceremonies, the means to earn merit badges and Eagle scout rank. The scouts perform service projects and learn outdoors skills. What the veterans do runs the gamut. Some are quite involved. They do it to give back to the community,” Lauro said. AMVETS is a chartered partner with BSA and has a seat on the National BSA Community Relations Committee. The effort goes under the motto “today's children are tomorrow's leaders.” Lauro is a Unit Service Executive of the Sunrise District Boy Scouts of America, Great Lakes Field Service Council, Dauch Scout Center in Detroit. Source link: https://www.macombdaily.com/lifestyles/service-circuit-veterans-support-boy-scouts-as-part-of-operation/article_8bce3734-f680-11e9-ad5c-bf3897d358dd.html

In Northeast, Feb and Mar seem to be the months with the greatest need.

In the Oct 23, fees announcement I had expected more financial disclosure regarding impact of abuse, personal injury, and trademark litigation, instead we got that liability insurance is more expensive. IMHO, for a national non-profit which has been considering bankruptcy for over a year, which included last December hiring Sidley Austin, a Chicago-based law firm, to help with a possible Chapter 11 filing, the priorities would be 1. Survival 2. Maintain Control 3. Continue service delivery Two out of three? My $0.02

Maybe. IMHO, nearly all MBC's are already unit leaders/committee members or registered family members in which case they already paid for a background check. I have been unable to recruit anyone outside of scouting to become a MBC. Once they see the paperwork, they immediately are concerned with protecting their privacy. This concern will only worsen with the broader information sharing in the new (2018?) background check form. For my troop's adult leaders, the fee increase in less concerning than the background check form.

From Heart of New England Council (Central Mass): To ensure BSA has the resources to fulfill the promise of Scouting despite increasing operating costs, the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America has made the difficult but necessary decision to increase the annual membership fee effective January 1, 2020 to $60 for Cub Scouts, Scouts, and Venturers, $36 for adult members and $60 for unit charter fees. Every dollar of the national membership fee will go toward the cost of essential services, including liability insurance for those participating in approved Scouting activities, program resources, safety standards, youth protection and personal safety training, and services to councils nationwide to sustain Scouting. The National organization will also continue to develop and improve resources that support our volunteers and youth members such as online registration, Member Care and Scoutbook, which now includes the Den Leader experience to ensure the safe and consistent delivery of Cub Scouting; as well as improvements aimed at simplifying the annual renewal process. The fee increases above are paid directly to the BSA. Including the $12 local insurance fee, that Heart of New England Council announced earlier this year, the recharter fees for 2020 will be: $60 for each unit charter fee $72 for each youth participant in Cub Scouts, Scouts BSA, Venturing $48 for each youth participant in Exploring $48 for each adult leader (includes cost of background check and Scouting Magazine) The BSA will be sending out additional information through ScoutWire and Bryan on Scouting regarding their need for this increase. We realize that the timing of this increase is challenging for our units. Heart of New England Council’s board communicated our frustration regarding this process to the National Executive Committee. Our council will continue to provide need-based financial assistance that can help a family with financial barriers towards participation in Scouting. We will also provide a method for your unit to request up to 3% in additional popcorn commission for units who need assistance managing this change. Details will be available in November. from FAQ: Q: How will these fees be used? A: Every dollar of membership fees will go to cover the cost of essential services, including liability insurance for members participating in approved Scouting activities, background checks for adult leaders, program development and training resources, continuously updated youth protection and youth safety training, improved IT/digital experiences and services to our councils nationwide.

@5thGenTexan created a new topic with new fees.

Yes, as you observed, we re-schedule or re-locate activities due to lightning where the odds are even less.

Rochester,, MA (SE Mass): The Boy Scouts Haunted Hayride event, planned for Oct. 25 and 26, will be cancelled due to the Eastern equine encephalitis threat levels. In accordance with the Boy Scouts of America Council, camping or overnight events are still cancelled until at least three hard frosts with temperatures of 28 degrees or less have passed and the mosquitos which transmit EEE and their larvae are dead. https://sippican.theweektoday.com/article/boy-scouts’-haunted-hayride-cancelled-year/44480

Okay let's refrain from personal attacks. Hopefully, tomorrow Oct 23, we will have a better understanding of BSA priorities. Thanks. RS @desertrat77 @MattR @John-in-KC