Eagle1993

That is not how any Troop or Pack I have been involved with reads that statement. @RichardB May have some additional input The statement seems clear: YES NO Non-prescription medication administration is authorized with these exceptions:_______________________________________________ Administration of the above medications is approved for youth by: parent’s signature The section above this is to simply list any meds (including OTC) the scout is on. It is not to limit the OTCs. Limiting OTCs is done on the exception line.

Correct. If the parent signs that line, they are approving blanket OTC except where notes. 100% of the forms that we have received have that signed.

Interesting.... The Second page of Part B of the BSA form states “Non-prescription medication administration is authorized with these exceptions:_______________________________________________“ This would apply to the Troop leaders and these forms should be filled out in addition to any local form. https://filestore.scouting.org/filestore/HealthSafety/pdf/680-001_ABC.pdf

Health forms should cover this correct? They state allergies to meds & if you are approved to give over the counter meds. Most med kits contain Benadryl in wipes or creams. We have had ER docs in our Troop and we use it all the time if med form doesn’t counterindicate on Benadryl. It is correct about use of prescription drugs without a prescription is illegal, Epipens fall into a special category. As far as Epipens, laws vary by state. California now allows organizations to get prescriptions for Epipens to use them on people without prescriptions. https://californiahealthline.org/news/new-california-law-allows-organizations-to-buy-epi-pens-for-emergencies-but-will-they/ 36 states now have laws to allow usage and stocking at entities. https://www.ems1.com/anaphylaxis/articles/87691048-25-states-now-allow-public-access-to-epinephrine/

I took it more as a frivolous lawsuit type story... but they did give a lot of lines to the story. I didn’t see it as a shot against scouts. Perhaps a slow news day....

If this wasn’t Troop policy before camp, then I don’t see an issue. If the PLC believes this is an issue, then it should be discussed in the PLC and policy set prior to camp.

I will echo @Cburkhardt that our linked Troop of girls had a great experience at camp. They were the only girl Troop (5 girls total) at a camp with nearly 400 attendees. My primary concern was how other Troops and scouts would treat them. Other than 1 minor comment the girls said they were treated well and loved the camp. The camp didn’t make a big deal of girls attending, other than during a leader meeting. I’m sure there will be bumps on the road, but it was a great start.

I never thought of suing 10 year olds... man, I have a long list of trauma. *picking up phone to call lawyer* https://buffalonews.com/2019/07/10/den-leader-sues-cub-scouts-after-sledding-accident-i-remember-blood-everywhere/

There may have been mid year numbers released; however, I expect those are always going to show growth for Scouts BSA. 1) They show the additional AOL crossovers 2) They don’t drop any youth until recharter at the end of the year

Many camps have some sort of First Class or First Year program. Those focus on exposing the scout to the entire camp while working on Scout through FC requirements. Outside of that, the most important aspect of a first year scout is for him to have fun and want to return. MBs are not required for advancement until Star and he will have plenty of time to work on Eagle required MBs by that time. Otherwise I agree completely with @wdfa89

We just returned from Freeland Leslie, a Patrol cooking camp. 51 scouts, 6 patrols, 23 first time summer campers. Only 5 adults present all week with 1 - 2 other adults rotating in to provide a bit more coverage. Adults stayed out of the patrol areas except to eat, check food safety in 1 instance and address a couple of breakdowns that escalated beyond SPLs ability. Our PLs, SPL and ASPL were busy all week. Nearly every PL had at least one moment where they had some sort of breakdown. One quit for a meal after dealing with patrol members that didn’t pull their wait. One designated another patrol member that they could PL (that scout was mouthy all week and said PL was an easy job). One went away for a bit and cried after one particular tough day. At the end of the week we met with the PLC. 100% ... no debate, only positive feedback, wanted to return to this camp. The PLC members had past experience with dining hall and hated it as it led to lack of what they see Boy Scouts is about. It was tougher than a dining hall camp, but the experience is invaluable.

27! I think they made a movie about that kid...

Had the start of a conversation during our annual planning meeting (adults only, but SPL and a few other senior scouts were invited). Overall it went well, but I can see this could take several years to get a really strong patrol method Troop. The issues go back years where a previous adult intentionally broke up groups of friends between patrols. This came up when I asked if patrols go on their own outings. One of the other leaders said his son would hate that as none of his friends are in his patrol. I asked about camping arrangements and they never tent with Patrol members. I asked why and once again... the current patrols are not groups of friends. There was really no reason behind that.... other than a leader from years ago. So, one of the first tasks is to relook at how we divide up our scouts into patrols... then build from there. We talked about other changes and overall received support from the adults to increase usage of the patrol method. ... now I need to talk with the SPL to get his thoughts.

Follow up... sounds like the drop off was due to elimination of some inactive ScoutReach groups and very late rechartering by many units. Those units didn’t charter until the numbers had to be set.

The BSA said in their letter this week that they are going to formally announce in the coming days a new youth protection education initiative. "Through animated lessons and age-appropriate learning materials developed specifically for younger audiences, the 'Protect Yourself Rules' program will educate children on recognizing inappropriate conduct...," Surbaugh wrote. He also described a multi-layer screening process for all applicants 18 years or older, which has recently been enhanced, and said BSA has recently expanded its background check policy. https://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/447107-democrats-want-more-information-from-boy-scouts-on-lobbying-effort

The CSE just stated in a letter to Congress that they have discovered instances where the BSA reinstated leaders after creditable claims of sexual abuse allegations. Now this is decades ago, but if they did I have a hard time defending the BSA in those specific instances. Most of this does sound like simply a race to money and they only ones hurt are those who never were involved in the program when the majority of the instances occurred.

https://www.scribd.com/document/412383206/Letter-Representative-Jackie-Speier-5-28-19 New letter to Rep Speier from CSE. It goes on to state that the BSA has hired a law firm to investigate further. “... I have the highest respect for this organization and the vital role that it plays in American life. When I sent my response to your November 20, 2018 letter, I believed in good faith, and with deeply felt conviction, that BSA would never have knowingly allowed a sexual predator to work with youth. I told you that in my response. Since then, I have learned that my response was incorrect. I have reviewed information that now makes clear to me that decades ago BSA did, in at least some instances, allow individuals to return to Scouting even after credible accusations of sexual abuse. I am devastated that this ever occurred.”

Mr. Kosnoff said the abusers they have identified victimized more than 400 boys or men, who are now aged 14- to 97-years-old, while they were members of the Boy Scouts. The abuse took place in 49 states and Puerto Rico from the 1950s to 2017, the lawyers said. The lawyers said they were taking as many as 30 intake calls a day from potential new clients who say they were abused. “Nine out of 10 are identifying perpetrators who do not appear in the perversion files,” Mr. Kosnoff said, referring to the ineligible-volunteer files. On Wednesday, during the Boy Scouts’ annual meeting in Denver, a bankruptcy lawyer and a turnaround expert spoke on a panel about how bankruptcy would work, should the organization choose to file for chapter 11, the Boy Scouts said. https://www.wsj.com/articles/list-of-accused-boy-scouts-abusers-grows-lawyers-say-11559253681

Sad story. I have fairly good knowledge of the river in my area and can tell you when I would and wouldn’t take scouts out based on flow rate. I know my river can go from canoes scrapping the bottom to life threatening rapids after a heavy overnight rain. I don’t know this river nor what was done to prepare for the trip. Water levels across Wisconsin rivers are high, flow at this river seems nearly 3 times historical average. https://waterdata.usgs.gov/wi/nwis/uv?site_no=05429500 Regardless, it is a very sad story and even if mistakes in planning were made it is a horrible lesson for all involved.

Great feedback, thanks! I will need to plan working with both the parents/adult leaders and PLC. My first conversation with adult leaders about patrols was interesting. I asked how leaders are selected and they said annually by the adults. I asked about having the patrols vote for their own leaders and the reaction of was mixed. One parent in particular was not a fan (“we don’t want this to be a popularity contest and the boys never asked for this anyway”). A very active ASM who was a prior SM (a great leader) was more reserved, indicating that it was discussed and decided previously ... but perhaps we should reconsider. So, I definitely can see that I need to come in with a strategy and work with both adults and youth on any changes. Your inputs are very valuable!

So it appears I will be taking over as SM of a fairly large Troop (70 - 80 scouts). The previous SM has been looking to step down the last few years and has not been present for most of this year. My son recently crossed over into this Troop and after a few adult leader meetings the CC asked me to take the role. After declining twice, I had further discussions and found that while the Troop is large they are becoming less active and there is concern they will collapse. Several Troops in my area have already died (over 4 packs feed this Troop) so I accepted. I have a general idea of this Troop’s culture and don’t want to rock the boat, but there are a few areas I think the scouts could change. My primary thought is that we can improve the use of the patrol method. Currently: patrols are set by the leaders PL and SPLs are set by leaders A scout told my son that Patrols only really matter at summer camp, Klondike and a few Troop meetings. This sounds like a lot of Troops where patrols are used, but not in the original concept. Given we have 70 - 80 scouts I think the Patrol method is critical. Any thoughts on a plan to increase usage of the patrol method?

This is second hand but Many years ago our (20+) our Troop took a multi day horseback camping trip. The first night they forgot to hobble the horses. When they woke up, all the horses were gone and no where in sight. They ended up hiking (quickly) back 15 miles or so with the leaders worried how they were going to tell the owner they lost all of their horses. As the they approached closer to the ranch, they found the owner on the trail who yelled... you forgot to hobble the horses, didn’t you. The leaders admitted it and told the owner they lost all of the horses. After letting the scouts sweat a bit, the owner said the horses all walked back to the ranch in the middle of the night and they could restart the trip. I was told it was a great experience and they never forgot to hobble the horses again.

I think I’ll have to go into hiding after sharing this link. I’ve tried a couple of these.... they are identical cookies to the point the space between chocolate drizzle lines are identical. I still recommend buying the cookies as at least part of the funds help local scouts. https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/girl-scout-cookie-equivalents-grocery-store-alternatives-to-thin-mints-samoas-tagalongs