Ranman328

In our Troop we allow First Class and above Scouts to sign off on First Class and below Scouts Rank Advancement. We feel it helps with Leadership. We do have a discussion with all new First Class Scouts to ensure they follow the "Describe", "Show", "Demonstrate" instructions for making certain the Scouts completed the requirement.

I think when it is all done, you will be glad you did. You also get to experience those campouts and events all over again. I know I would have regretted not doing it. Just enjoy the moment.

In our Troop, we don't have any rules prohibiting it. I have two sons in the Troop and if anything, they get held to a higher standard by me as the Scoutmaster for that very reason also. But, that being said "A Scout is Trustworthy". I have signed off on several things in both of my sons handbooks. I have also been their Merit Badge Counselor. On Tuesday, I conducted my Sons Eagle Scoutmaster Conference. Who else better to do it than me, I have been with him on his Scouting Adventure since he was a Tiger. It lasted almost 45 minutes and we could have talked all night. I did have another ASM sit in and he asked some questions as well. All in all, it was a great experience. If you have the chance, don't miss out on it. Your sons will have worked hard and you will have been right by their side.

Now wearing a uniform makes it harder. Sad

Again and I'm sorry but as the IH and CO, you have no say in BSA Policy. You are suppose to promote Scouting according to BSA Policy and Guidelines not as YOU see fit which includes the uniform. You should go back and read the Guide and Responsibilities of the Charter Organization or take some additional Training. By allowing the bar to be lowered, we just accept a lower standard of our Scouts. We are suppose to be helping guide and shape these Scouts to be future leaders of this country. By allowing them to take the easy way out is not why we are here. Life is hard and we have a responsibility to prepare them for it.

Are you saying that there are not any Girl Troops in your area? If not, I would contact your District Commissioner and have them get together with other Packs in the area with girls that want to cross over. I am sure there are many businesses, churches, Moose Lodges, that would love to charter a Girl Troop. Then I would contact local sports stores like REI and tell them your story. Might get gently used equipment for donations. That is absurd that no one will step up.

So David CO, why do you do Scouting then. You constantly push back against everything that is Scouting. I notice that you are one of the folks on this group that post negative comments about what Scouting is. I don't get it. If you don't want to wear a uniform or follow policies and want to do the exact opposite or find and pick each and every opening to do the opposite of what the program is really about, why do it. Why not move on and find something that aligns with your views?

So now we are talking about every country in the world to make the narrative fit right. Yes, that is why we wear the uniform. This is the problem with BSA today. A great program was developed and is based on following the Scout Oath, Law, Outdoor Code and the points of Scouting. Also deeply rooted is TRADITION. Things keep getting changed in some cases just to change things other times, people want to come in and cause trouble just to cause trouble. BSA has a program with a rules, policies and yes, we wear a uniform. Again, I say, if you don't want to follow the rules, policies and wear a uniform, then don't join. There is nothing requiring or forcing anyone to join. There is the four H club, the Boys and Girls clubs, and so on.

Once again go as far to the other end as possible. Yes we wear a uniform for a reason. Pride, Unity, are two examples. No we do not wear our dress, Class A, Field Uniform to everything. We have a Class B or Utility uniform we wear to do work, summer events, etc. Yes, my baseball teams wore a practice uniform to practice. Yes, football players wear a practice uniform, as do soccer and lacrosse. Not sure where you are going with this other than oppose my post. Never did I say I would send anyone home if they didn't wear a uniform. I frankly, am offended you would even suggest that I did. I am a Scoutmaster that tells his scout I would rather have them there not in uniform instead of them not being there at all. BUT SINCE YOU ASKED, SCOUTS WAS STARTED BY LORD BADEN-POWELL AND I THINK HE SAID IT BEST AND HE SAYS ABOUT THE BOY SCOUT UNIFORM: "The uniform makes for brotherhood, since when universally adopted it covers up all differences of class and country!" ANY QUESTIONS? Does that cover why we wear a uniform. Thanks

Sorry but I was a baseball coach and now a Scoutmaster. In BSA, we wear a uniform for a reason. If one of my players showed up not in his baseball uniform then you dint play. My question to the people pushing back on the uniform is this. Would you show up at your Softball, baseball, soccer, football, lacrosse, hockey game wearing jeans and a T-Shirt and expect to play? No, why? Because it doesn't fit to the activity. We wear a uniform,. If you don't want to wear one, don't join.

This is the concern I posted on another discussion thread and I can't tell you how many times I was slapped on the nose with the newspaper. I do hope all the talk of "Eagle, Eagle, Eagle" is just the initial excitement of the girl program but I fear it is not. Most of these girls have not earned Scout or Tenderfoot yet but we are talking about Eagle. I was at our Troop Shed recently which is at our CO location on a Friday evening. They have a large property with a Pavilion and field where they let Scouts camp for free. Our lone girl Troop in the District was going to camp there that weekend. I had to take my son to the lower field because he is putting in a stage at the fire pit for the Scouts to do skits and things and he needed to take some measurements. This is his Eagle Project. As we drove through the area, we noticed two of the Scoutmasters and one mom already there and they had set up the camp kitchens, and tents and already had a stack of chopped wood for the fire. Not a single Scout in sight. That would have been a great opportunity to let the girls do it and check off a bunch of requirements at one event.

Not to be a downer here but one thing I don't hear anyone saying is that not everyone earns the Eagle Rank. I get the feeling that people are walking in thinking that every girl is going to earn eagle. Stats show that only 4 of every 100 Scouts earn Eagle. My Troop has been around since 1970 and has produced 82 Eagle Scouts. I have 23 Scouts in my Troop and it is hard enough to get the these guys the positions of Rank each year. I would recommend teaching the Program so they learn the skills and not be so worried about getting badges. Those will come but they need to do the work and learn the skills through First Class as they will be teaching the younger ones the skills. It won't look very good having a Star or Life Scout that can't tell you how to tie knots or treat water for drinking. The Scouts run the Troop not the adults.

Agree. Our Troop is in the process of buying a new trailer. Our current 1996 6x12 trailer is too heavy for everyone but me and my vehicle to pull. We are looking to sell it and use some of the money to buy a new one. They are so much lighter and easier to pull. I have been eating the cost to rent a trailer for our recent campouts. The easier you make it for volunteers to help, the more volunteers will help.

Case in point. I just received this email with this news letter advertisement. Decisions like this are the reason boys and families are leaving the program. They are making exceptions for allowing girls to go to the World Scout Jamboree but not the boys. I understand wanting to get the most participation but you can't make exceptions for one group and not allow the other the same exception. This will open the door for questions to be asked and other exceptions to be made elsewhere and then where does it stop. There's a lot happening in mid-April 2019! Share your favorites with your Scouting network! World Scout Jamboree Registration Is Still Open! The 24th World Scout Jamboree (WSJ) will be held at the Summit Bechtel Reserve in West Virginia, July 21 - August 2, 2019. Some 50,000 Scouts from 170 countries will take part in this once in a lifetime experience. Troops and Crews are doing unit shakedowns in April-May; many Scouts BSA Troops for girls will gather in Charlotte, NC a couple days before the start of the WSJ to conduct the shakedown with other members from across the country, before traveling to the WSJ as a group. Scouts must be between 14 and 17 years of age at the start of WSJ. To encourage participation by new Scouts BSA troops for girls, the 1st Class requirement has been waved for these units. For more information, contact Jay Eidson, NCAC International Representative and BSA North East Region Commissioner.

I completely agree with you. I have two young men that earned their Eagle Badges and one aged out in December and the other in January and a third that will age out in June. The two Eagles no longer attend meetings and have no interest in Scouts due to not being able to serve in a meaningful position. Both served me well teaching Scouts and were respected by the Scouts and I am losing a great wealth of knowledge due to this new policy. Funny how they are mature enough to serve in the military but not to be an ASM with BSA. Sad times. Sadly, I do not see BSA Membership increasing. I don't think the girls will outpace the losses of the boys. I know in my District alone, we are still at a loss in numbers. Come December, we will lose 17 LDS troops alone. I don't think we will ever recover from that.