Tampa Turtle

We had a recent election and the candidate who one ran on a platform or making access to Merit Badges easier by have some MB classes available at the end of the meetings and going en masse to MB Academies. So that is what we are doing though I continue to press for Patrol times, stealth skills, and fun.

IMHO I would say my unscientific impression of our Eagles are: 25% Super-achievers who would make Eagle in most environments. 50% High attenders who either got an early push by parents or rushed to finish by 18--but did most of the work honestly. 25% Highly suspect, weak skills, and Mom/Dad lawyering. They frequently vanish from sight shortly after the ECOH. Frankly having the parents gone is a relief... What do I as a Scouter expect of an Eagle: - Proactive leadership coaching of younger Patrol leaders. - Pitching in to show first year scout skills without being asked. - Keeping an eye on the bully problem. - Spinning Yarns of great past Troop stories to the younger boys.

In my old Pack boys were encourage but not required to sell. 10% of the boys sold 80% of the popcorn--1 or 2 supersalesman and the remainder of the 10% were parents who were lawyers and business owners who made large orders from their own boys, gave them to clients, and charged it as a tax deduction or business expense. As we are in an affluent part of town I see this pattern over and over for school fund raising, too. So if you are a boy who has unsupportive parents, a bad part of town, or are a lousy salesman a fixed quota seems a bit much. At our Troop there is increased pressure for the boys to sell Popcorn though the Troop gives all "the Troop cut" to the boys for scout accounts. The rationale is it "sells the Scout brand". All scouts are expected to help with the main Troop fundraising dinner (by selling tickets, cooking, serving, clean-up) which I think is more fair--some boys are better workers than sales persons. My philosophy is everyone should do something. I have seen sometimes the "Popcorn Colonel" who is an adult gets over zealous in making the Popcorn sale THE focus of the scouting year. It is not unlike other areas where the adults can muck things up.

I like the Ponderous speech. I read that the average Bald Eagle has 7,000+ feathers (who counted?). Maybe there can be a ceremony like some flag retirement ones: "The 1st Eagle feather represents the pure heart of the Eagle; purer than all the other scouts....the 1,223rd feather represents the match of freedom that every Eagle holds ready"...etc, etc. At 4 feathers a minute we can add over 29 more arrows. We can change into the Eagle Ordeal!

We had a very successful Popcorn fundraising campaign so we pay patches, rewards, and belt loops (only once on the beltloops), no pins. Also camp-outs and some other stuff. As the pack has grown my old Pack may revisit the beltloop policy. I do not think many of the parents would do it if we did not--the Council store is a bit of a pain to get to. The main goal is to get the boys awards in their hands as soon as possible.

Seriously, I have seen that trend too. It seems it gets subverted by "the system": Emphasis on Eagles by parents and leaders, MB Academies, camps, and classes at meeting...

Intro: Once an Eagle, Always an Eagle--it doesn't matter how you get it. *You don't need to camp! *Avoiding the scoutcraft trap. *Eagle by 13 or last minute--which is easier? *Time-saving easy POR's, making the fake Den Chief, Librarian, and Bugler get you the credit. *Managing Mom and Dad: getting them to do the work. *Need a Counselor...ask Mom! *10 tips for double-dipping. *Service Hours that serve YOU. * They can't stop you-Scoutmaster end runs, ASM's play-offs, and Merit Badge Bamboozles from the masters. *Planning the easy Eagle appeal. *Easy and fun last minute Eagle Projects. *Post-Eagle Troop exit strategies: graceful moves that work. APPENDIX *Easy-path map to success. *Sample "How I live the Scout Oath and Law" scripts. *Writing the college application letter: how to mention "Eagle Scout" in a natural style.

Opps! Sorry Georgia I guess we burned some Florida firewood.

We had it as an option but most boys opted out. Boys that did it made more money for Scout accounts than selling popcorn--as least as on a per hour basis. I think it was because of the $5 price point. Did have to be careful boys did not break the break off sections of cards. Had some resistance from people who had bought the popcorn from.

(This from Cubs only) Then--Den Mothers only in the Blue Coat Dress. Mom showing boys how to hammer. Now-Dad's in Khaki and Mom's in pants. Must have googles to hammer. Then-Heavy canvas army surplus tents--sleeps 8. Cotten leaked, pole in center. Weighed a ton, smelled horrible. Now-Nylon tents with rain-flys. Gets old--throw it out. Then-Blue and Gold was a box from KFC and a couple awards and the local TV weatherman as a speaker. Now-Blue and Gold is a 3 course meal, 2 hours of awards, and a FOS lecture. Then-Soap Box Derby. Now-Pine wood Derby.

Boys bring their own. Typically 2 man but some have bigger. Mostly 2-3 boys in tent. Tents with more than 2 boys usually are noisier. (I prefer a 2 person cap but we will not make a boy, especially a newbie sleep alone) We do allow boys to bring singles--mostly backpackers and hammocks. We do keep an eye on "singletons" to see if there is a problem with them being the odd man out. Several boys we had who single-sleepers had bed-wetting issues and it made it easier for them before they out-grew it/got treatment. Most single-sleepers were into backpacking and just liked to use their equipment. A far bigger issue is when a patrol member does not want to sleep in his patrol area.

Come on guys; why don't you wear a Den Chief cord while you are at!

I have boys about a year apart so the 2nd. boy benefits from what I have learned. Bears are fun. Tigers are great in that they are pretty easily impressed. We used to have the occasional Boy Scout or Explorer do a presentation--the Tigers were in awe. For Webelos we did PVC catapults, water rockets, etc. We had a neighbor who was a marine biologist (did autopsies of critters for state like when folks fish the wrong species)He brought in all sorts of (dead) specimens. Any thing military was a hit and since so many military have families now it is a-lot easier to arrange than it used to be. I find the police and fire tours are highly dependent on how engaged the tour guide is. For some reason the firefighters seemed more fun and let the kids climb all over the equipment. We also did the maintenance yard for the local bus system and the streetcar barn. Also the local airport. We did a behind the scenes tour of the zoo which was pretty cool. 60 is big enough IMHO. We had 120-150 boys so the Pack camp-outs got out of control.

Well if you are making the purchase than it is a life cycle/cost issue. I agree about the venture Patrol.

Welcome. Speaking as a husband I am glad you did not shoot him. Best not to encourage the others. Cub Scouts is a lot of work but it is a cute, fun age. Remember to keep it focused on fun not advancement. I for one enjoyed the go-see-its almost as much as the boys. You never know what will impress them--the City incinerator/dump site was the biggest hit (trucks, huge piles of wreckage, furnaces, crushers, conveyor belts, flames!) You can make some good adult friends camping. Try not to get wrapped up with the adult conflicts when they occur, and they will. 3 campouts and a museum visit is a pretty good program. How big is your Pack?

Basement....yup, yup, yup. I have seen some pretty creative end runs assisted by parents... questionable Den Chiefs, orchestrated patrol elections (where boys dad bribes entire patrol), multiple MB academies and parents registered as MBC for 30+ MB's. So we have boys who are great raw material who are advancing too fast for their own good. And I know some of them will just vanish off the face of the earth once they make Eagle. Also got a boy barely 13 as SPL and will make Eagle soon. I think he will break our MB record. He is just on fire. But he is the exception to the rule.

Do you think the Troop has a bullying problem? (Mixed Age Patrols)How do the older boys treat the younger boys? (from all ages--wow the feedback we get) What is your favorite computer game? (they will not stop talking) Do you like camping? How is the boy leadership doing? (all second hand from talks with SM)

Oh man it is hard work!

Man your boys missed some easy service hours! ;p

No good deed goes unpunished, huh youngmaster. My boys have a notebook for there advancement and bluecards for home use only. They ONLY did it when an older boy showed his and then mostly because it had plastic baseball card holders. This skill has not transferred anywhere else. Furthermore, taking good notes does not always translate into action. I used to use the Palm PDA a lot and inputed everything I needed to remember but it never actually got me to do anything. I then went to a notebook but it's very bulkiness kept me from keeping it with me all the time. Now I use 3 x 5 cards and a pocket calendar and it works for me. I would expose them to different methods and let the boys figure out what works.

On a serious note I considered building a bike-wheel lightweight cart for the Patrol Boxes as an experiment.

I did not know that about North Pole. I got the following from Trailspace.com ------------------ Tent brands currently manufactured and supported by NorthPole include: Alpine Design Broadstone (Canada) Cabelas Embark Field & Stream (Dicks Sporting Goods) Gander Mountain Glaciers Edge Guide Series High Sierra Magellan (Academy) NCAA North Crest Northpoint Outdoor Spirit Susan Komen Tailgate Gear Terra Gear (Canada) Wilderness Gear X-Treme Discontinued brands previously manufactured but no longer supported by NorthPole include: Alpine Ridge Backyard Discovery Cascade Mountain Works Cascade Sport Cascade Trail Columbia Craftsman Emerald Bay Equipt Great Adventure Great Basin By Quest Greatland Guide Gear Hillary Lake N Trail Ltd Commodities Menards Mountain Tek NEO - Northeast Outfitters NFL NorthPole Northwest Territory Outdoor Spirit Ozark Trail (Walmart) Quest Restore & Restyle Kids Sportsman's Warehouse Stats Pro Timber Creek Timber Top Trail's End Trekker White Stag Please note: In many cases, NorthPole is not the only manufacturer that produced and/or still produces gear under these names. NorthPole can only provide customer service for tents that are NorthPole products -------------------

Our Troop has used Scouts Direct and found some of the gear was better than the Walmart ones and worse than the Eurekas, where-wise. We have had good luck with an ASM who grabs the deals at Target when the close out their camping gear each year. He got a bunch of Kelty gear marked way down last time. Also the backpacking angle. This brings up an interesting thought, what is the life-cycle of a scout tent in practice?

I think Basement's Troop may not be as well-funded as others and initial cost vs. life-cycle cost may be an issue. That is why asked what his budget is.

Why must you assume they are only doing it for service hours? Sounds a bit cynical. Maybe the others are students filling service hours also...