blaster531

Rlculver, Which camp in Oregon?? And where are you coming from? I might be able to help with some of your questions. Blaster

The Flag may be removed for religious reasons. So it is optional.

Purcelce, Our camp's fyc program is laid out like so; A schedule is posted for the week in one hour blocks. 3 hrs in the am and 3 in the pm each day. Each session has a theme; cooking, knots, first aid, 2nd class, tenderfoot and such. There are no registrations for these classes just walk-ins. Classes are taught by revolving staff members. (nobody gets STUCK with the newbies for the whole week) Scoutmasters are STRONGLY encouraged to attend and assist. The sessions are taught at least twice during the week, once in the am and once in the pm. This allows a great deal of flexability in scheduling. The scouts can attend when they want and work on those things they need help with. On Friday, the afternoon hours are left open, this lets the scouts come in and work on whatever they need a little more instruction on. The councilor doesn't sign off on any task but will send a note to the SM detailing what has been taught. In my troop the scout would have to come back to our campsite and get with his PL and/or other more advanced Scout or ASM and demonstrate his new skills. Then his book could be signed. Each FY was expected to be at at least 3 sessions a day, this gave them plenty of time to do a MB or two and still have a bunch of time for fun at the lake or whatever. I hope this helps Good Luck

I look at this question from several viewpoints. When I was actively working with my Troop as an ASM, I was the SM for summer camp. I took the troop to camp for 7 straight years. For the first five we went to the same in council camp. Then in year six, we went out of council (out of state). This involved a 12 hour train ride (most of our scouts had never been on a train, some had never even been out of state). The situation is this; 21 scouts and 3 leaders with full gear plus troop gear in patrol boxes, on a train, having to get off at a 2 minute train stop, What an adventure! It made the Keystone Cops look like a precision drill team. It was a magical trip and worth every bit of time and work it took to pull off. In year 7 we went back to the same in council camp as before, but in the intervening years they have gone OoC twice more. We are very lucky that our council has 5 camps, with 4 of them offering summer camp programs for scouts. Each of them is different and has its pluses and minuses. They all have thier own niche and each offer a few unique programs the others don't. So letting the scouts make the decision of where to go is the only option for our Troop. I said I was looking from different directions. For the last 2 years, I have served as the OA Lodge's Camping Advisor, and I was actively promoting ALL of our council camps and camping in general. Our Council camps have a large number of OoC Troops that attend each year and we welcome them eagerly. Now I serve as the Council's Outdoor Program Chairman. My committee is tasked with putting together the outdoor opportunities for the entire Council. Our focus is to make sure that every unit has a quality outdoor program and I am really looking forward to this new challenge. I guess to sum up; I say whether your Troop stays in Council or travels to camps far and wide, please go camping, please let the scouts decide where they want to go and make every effort to support that decision. Thanks Blaster531