Mr.D

A lot of good discussion around the Arrow of Light here. As a former Cub Scout, Webelos I and II leader, I was fortunate to have 100% of my boys earn Super 20 and transition to Boy Scouts. They found themselves well ahead of the pack, so to speak, of other boys transitioning from other Packs. Not that they were any better than the other boys. They simply impressed their new Troop by demonstrating mastery of the concepts, flying through Scout and Tenderfoot ranks in little time, taking on leadership roles, and helping other boys in their new patrols. They added value very quickly and their parents pitched in to help the Troop. Two keys, in my opinion, were parent / family involvement and a focus on what really matters during the Cub and Webelos years. We made a big deal out of our Arrow of Light ceremony and reached out to the parents to bring them onboard - well before the event. I made this video to explain the ceremony and the patch to parents and participants in the ceremony. Feel free to use it if it helps your Pack during transition: http://rch.evsuite.com/arrow-of-light-significance/ Here's the YouTube version (open for embedding):

Thanks, Packsaddle. Lot's of good advice here. It helped me out yesterday. So, in take-a-penny/ leave-a-penny fashion, I felt compelled to leave something of value behind. Though the string is a decade old, I'm sure I'm not the only one who struggles (or will struggle) with pockets. To answer your question, patches are as they always have been - at least where I live. Badge Magic sells a popular product that is like a sheet of gummy two sided tape. Link Below. It works, but after a few uniform washes the patches can start to peel away - especially the shoulder patches that tend to be under a little pressure. I've also found myself You-Tubing how to take the patches off when it came time for upgrades. The WD-40 method seems to work, but it mottles the color in the synthetic uniform. I bought a sewing machine, taught myself how to string the beast, and went back to stitching - until that pocket confounded me. I very nearly took the pocket off so I could sew the patch or Velcro on with the machine - except I figured I'd never get it back together correctly. The Velcro option helped me justify the pin pricks to my big hands in that little packet. Velcro means that I will do it once and use it many times. I also found that attaching the hook portion to the back of rank badges makes mounting in a shadow box a snap. Bonus!

Here's an idea taken from the military: buy a couple of strips of 2" beige Velcro (I actually use Country Brook Hook and Loop - linked below). Stitch the soft side the old fashioned way to the pocket using many of the tips already given. Use a sewing machine to attach a strip of the hook side to the back of the rank badge. Trim neatly. Attach the rank badge to the uniform pocket. This method means sewing one time by hand. The machine takes care of the rank badges. Since the boys change rank often, it's a matter of simply pulling off the old patch and sticking on the new one once rank is attained.