ScoutNut

I agree with John-in-KC. Get the adults out of there. It does not matter how many boys back out of a trip. The ones that are left do their own cooking - period.

Not specific tents to specific scouts, but patrol specific gear. Divide up all gear between the patrols. Give each patrol their own storage area, and some way to mark the gear as theirs. Have a patrol QM, who is in charge of his patrols equipment, and reports to the Troop QM. Then if the patrol ends up with damaged, missing, equipment it will be their own fault, and hopefully they will learn from it.

It is an indoor camp, what is available at the site both indoor and outdoor? What is available in the immediate area (not on site)?

Ahhhh, the English version of pigs in a blanket!

Here is a good one for Tiger Teams - Achievement 5D - Make a leaf rubbing Cut sheets of printer paper into 3" squares. Use these for making rubbings of smallish leaves. Have Tiger Teams cover squares with clear packing tape. If they want, they can then cut out leaf shape, or just leave it as is. Make slide backs using pipe cleaners (nice and lightweight). Once or twice around a finger with a bit left over on each end. Attach slide backs to back of rubbings with clear packing tape. Make sure boys put their first name on the back before covering it with tape. Best done in the Fall for the Scouts very first necker slide! Make sure that you do all crafts beforehand, and have a sample made for your class to see the finished product.

What would I want out of this class? New ideas. Crafts that tied into various achievements/electives. Gathering crafts that tied to a theme and could be adapted for all ages. Slide crafts. Fun ideas!

There is no way to RELIABLY determine which cars are youth made and which are adult made. We made it VERY clear that making the PWD car was to be a joint activity between the Scout and his family. Providing a venue that promotes Family Understanding is one of the reasons that the PWD exists. The level of involvement of adult vs Scout we left up to the family. We check to be sure that our basic rules were followed - size, weight, wheels, axles, etc. Beyond that, unless they volunteer the fact that they purchased a pre-made car (had a family do just that one year), they are good to go. We downplay the win at any cost feeling, and encourage everyone to simply have FUN and practice good sportsmanship.

>>"But if you read the guidelines it heavily leans to this fact."

Does the food get eaten? If yes, then don't complain. Does she use Pack funds to purchase her "extras"? If yes, tell her that if she purchases anything over and above the food items approved by the Pack Committee they come out of her own pocket. Suggest to the Committee Chair that she not be put on any committees requiring the purchasing of food. However, all of that aside, other than alcohol, there is no such thing as "adult" food, and you do your kids a disservice suggesting as much to them. There is nothing at all wrong with including new and different items in a menu to help expand the kid's (and parent's) food experience. Kids who grow up on only burgers, dogs, PBJ, and such, will often end up very picky eaters. BTW, the families in our Pack are a very diverse group, and both hot wings, and polish w/kraut, are a big hit with the kids at our dinners. We did marinated chicken breasts on one camping trip and the kids ate as many as they could get their hands on, along with green salad and baked potatoes.

This is NOT a den activity. I would definitely have ALL of the boys (and especially the Jehovah's Witness) talk to their own spiritual leader/church about the religious emblem program. These programs are created/run by the individual religious organizations to help their OWN youth reach a better understanding of their OWN faith. Many of the religious organizations require the emblem counselor to be trained in some way. Most require that the religious leader of the youth go thru the booklet with the youth and approve his work.

Actually (with the approval of the COR and the CO), the CC DOES indeed have the ability to "fire" (and hire) leaders. The Scout Exec (other than a problem with youth protection or the background check), Commissioners, and all other council/district level folks, "higher up" or not, have nothing at all to say about who is, and is not, a leader in any specific unit. You need to contact your Pastor and the COR and have a bit of a face-to-face with them RIGHT NOW.

In my area Packs do not publicly advertize what their Pack/den programing is. Unless an event is specifically open to the public, these are basically private, members only, events. In this day and age advertising these events to the public at large can even be dangerous. At our Cub Roundtables, one of the biggest draws (IMO) is the ability to talk to, and get to know, folks from the different units around the district. There is always much talk about new ways to do traditional activities, and new things to do, places to go. Some council/district newsletters will include a section on Scout friendly events coming up in the community. Also, most Packs will have at least one computer/internet savvy person who browses for ideas online.

What "book"? Doesn't your Troop do outdoor activities on their own? As others have stated, get your PLC together and see if a PB outing is something they would like to plan for the Troop. Then help them do it. You do not need your council/district to do your program for you.

SP - if you decide to go the route of allowing FOS donations thru Scout Accounts you had better make it PERFECTLY CLEAR to the families that FOS donations made that way are NOT able to be used by them as tax deductions. The money in the Scout accounts belongs to the unit, and Charter Organization, NOT the individual Scouts or their families.

I would bet that the Troop shares it's Committee members, and CC, with the Pack on the Pack's charter. I would also bet that many of those are "in name" only. You said that you had your WB person redo her ticket to only reflect her den. With the CM leaving in 1-2 months, and her 6 families having one foot out the door, I would say that trying to improve the Pack would be a BIG benefit to her den as there will be NO Pack, and hence no den, if there is no CM. In fact, she has already taken a step to help her Pack - she got someone to take over as CM! I would think that, considering they are (or will be in a month or two) the only adults left in the Pack, encouraging the parents in her den to take training, get registered, and take on some Pack positions, would be great ticket items that would not only help strengthen her den, but the Pack as well. Encouraging a parent or two to take Webelos outdoor training, or even IOLS, would definitely help the den (and even possibly the Troop which also seems to be in trouble). Do any of the 4th grade Webelos have younger brothers that will be looking for a Pack in the near future? Those Webelos parents might be encouraged to help the Pack stay around for their other son(s). While her primary position is as a den leader, a den does not operate in a vacuum. Attempting to improve the Pack will also improve her den.

Per BSA24 - >>"I don't take the advice of 8 year olds as to whether an activity is appropriate."

Nothing to get in a tizzy about here. Tanga appears to be a site that is similar to Woot. It has deeply discounted daily deals, and specials that last for a specific limited time frame. Although Tanga does not state where the magazines are being purchased from, I really doubt that it is from BSA National. Most likely some magazine distributor wants to offload a surplus inventory. The $5.99 was most likely a short time special that Tanga ran on Saturday. Today it is back to its "regular" "discounted" price of $23.99 + shipping, down from a retail of $36. As Lisa pointed out, the Boys Life site is selling subscriptions to the public at $24/year, not $36. The $36 could be an estimate by Zanga based on the single issue cover price. Scouts can get Boys Life at their regular discounted price of $12/year. Based on their "wonderful" discount on Boys Life, Tanga does not seem to be very honest in their cost listings. Not a big plus for the site in my opinion.

>>"I think inviting the OA in to do it is a huge wet blanket. Those are slow and generally offensive and uncomfortable for most 21st century educated americans."

Keep in mind these monthly meetings are NOT just for the Pack members registered as Committee Members. These are Pack Leaders Meetings, and are for ALL registered leaders in the Pack.

BDPT00 - I don't see how Pixiewife's committee is doing anything really against BSA policy. According to the BSA pamphlet on selecting quality leaders that you linked to, the Troop should have a committee (I am assuming the members are appointed by the CC, or COR) that helps to select needed Troop leaders. This "recruitment" committee comes up with a list of prospects. The list of prospects are approved by the IH, or COR. The recruitment committee then ranks the prospects based on who they would prefer to have in the position. A few members of the recruitment committee then approach each prospect from first choice down to last choice until one of them accepts the position. How is this significantly different from Pixiewife's committee interviewing prospects to help them decide on who their first choice is?

Interesting. I do not have to re-log in every time I visit. The site remembers my info, and logs me in automatically. I also have spell check. I think that some of your issues can be fixed by how you have your browser set up.

Even if I held a job where my personal life was scrutinized minutely, I doubt that linking to a video with "cussing" in it on my personal Facebook page would be grounds for termination. Again, the SPL was NOT the one doing the "cussing". The appropriateness of the video is really between him and his parents, not you. You seem to have discussed this with everyone else in the country, have you talked to his parents at all? And what about the failure of the adults in the Troop to live up to the Scout Oath and Law? What kind of "punishment" is being meted out to them?

While all Scouts and Scouters should aim to follow the Scout Oath and Law in their everyday life, BSA's Social Media Guidelines are NOT aimed at personal social media pages. They are aimed at UNITS, and/or councils/districts, using social media for SCOUTING purposes. This was the Scouts own, personal, page - NOT - a Troop page used for Troop communication. Yes, the younger Scouts were "Facebook friends" of the SPL. I would bet that a lot of non-Scouts are also his "Facebook friends". Perhaps he even considered the other Scouts in his Troop his personal friends as well. That is why he gave them access to his personal Facebook information. While the SPL, and other youth, should follow basic internet youth protection safety guidelines such as never give out your full name and address to someone you know only online, this is NOT the same as the BSA's Social Media Guidelines aimed at the use of social media for the Scouting program. Just as you can not dictate what a Scout writes, or reads, you and your Troop can not dictate what a Scout has on his own personal media sites. Forcing the SPL to >"faces the Troop, apologizes and works on and gives a talk on the "Suggested Media Guidelines""< is out of line and has nothing to do with his posting of a video on his PERSONAL site that contains what some consider "bad" language. You repeatedly state how your Troop is "considered to be the best", this does not sound like the "best" to me.

What Calico said - in spades. The SPL was not the one "cussing". It was on a video of someone else (music video?), on his personal (not public) page. A FRIENDLY (not confrontational) talk with his parents and him when he gets back is in order. Anything else is way over the top and just plain wrong.

If I were SM, I would first have a sit down talk with his parents. They need to know about what he has posted. Then, his parents and I would have a sit down talk with the boy together. He must learn that actions have consequences, and that things posted on Facebook, and other social media outlets, are not really private, and can come back to bite you even years later. I would talk to him about what kind of an impression his video had on the other Scouts, especially the younger ones. I would help him to come to a decision as to what the consequences for his actions should be.