MikeS72

We offer STEM and NOVA activities for scouts at our Roundtable. Very popular and well attended.

Two recent updates to YPT; one on March 1, when a newer iteration was released to account for some of the membership changes we have experienced. I took the new version, and found it to be well done. At the time of that release, we were told that new, optional modules were coming. Those were released last week, and cover: 1. Physical Abuse Prevention; 2. Exposure to Violence Prevention; 3. Emotional Abuse Prevention; 4. Neglect Prevention These new optional modules are well worth taking a look at.

As an ADC, that 72 hour rule is one of the new YPT policies that I see the most confusion concerning. It is not a total of 72 hours of attendance per year, it is an event that lasts 72 consecutive hours or more. For most troops, that means something like summer camp, or the occasional trek during winter or spring breaks. It may also come into play for Cub Resident Camps, although a number of councils have cut those to just a weekend, to miss hitting 72 hours.

It kind of puts those 18, 19, & 20 year old ASM's in a kind of limbo. They are no longer considered youth, but not yet trustworthy adults. Thankfully, this has not yet affected us, although had we not had an ASM dad we were initially not expecting, show up for a backpacking trek last fall, we would have had to cancel and send everyone home. One of the over 21 leaders had an unexpected medical issue preventing them from attending, which would have then left us with myself and two 20 year old ASM's. I am sure that this policy change came from the legal eagles at national. It makes zero sense to me that we are saying to these young men, 'we really want you to continue your scouting career into adulthood, but we cannot trust you to do so without 2 people over 21 present, even if neither of them was ever a scout themselves'. We can only hope that at some point, someone in Irving will apply a little common sense.

From HHS.gov Who must comply with HIPAA privacy standards? Answer: As required by Congress in HIPAA, the Privacy Rule covers: Health plans Health care clearinghouses Health care providers who conduct certain financial and administrative transactions electronically. These electronic transactions are those for which standards have been adopted by the Secretary under HIPAA, such as electronic billing and fund transfers. These entities (collectively called “covered entities”) are bound by the privacy standards even if they contract with others (called “business associates”) to perform some of their essential functions. The law does not give the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) the authority to regulate other types of private businesses or public agencies through this regulation. For example, HHS does not have the authority to regulate employers, life insurance companies, or public agencies that deliver social security or welfare benefits. See our business associate section and the frequently asked questions about business associates for a more detailed discussion of the covered entities’ responsibilities when they engage others to perform essential functions or services for them. While we do not fall into one of those categories, we should do our best to respect the privacy of all scouts and families. I would hope however, that any parent would willingly make us aware of any potentially serious medical issues, particularly in regard to food allergies.

I spent the weekend assisting with scenarios and skills practice for a WRFA class. There were 3 medical doctors and a nurse teaching. As each person checking in Saturday morning turned in their Part A & B forms they were asked if there were any issues we should be aware of, and the forms went straight into a folder, where they remained until they were returned Sunday afternoon. No reason to read anything on them.

Not sure when it first appeared, but I recall wearing one after having my Eagle COH on my 18th birthday.

We did a 30 mile kayaking trip a couple of weeks ago. In about a 150 yard stretch the boys counted 11 gators, some on the river bank, most in the water.

Made minecraft slides on a 3D printer for our Webelos a couple of years ago.

We do a lot of backpacking, hiking, and kayaking as a troop, and the majority of them have their own backpacking tents, hammocks, stoves, etc.. We have plenty of troop gear for those who need it, but find they tend to take care of those items better when they belong to them.

I am 65, and sleep on a Kylmit Static V sleeping pad. Lightweight, easy to inflate, compact, and very comfortable (as long as getting down to, and up from, ground level is not an issue). When we are backpacking, I carry an ultra light weight Big Agnes tent, for things like camporee, etc. I bring a tent I can stand up in, and always tent singly.

Cub - yellow Boy Scout - green Explorer - red I was not a big fan of the knee socks/garter combo. You had to have it tight enough to keep the socks from sagging, which meant it was fairly uncomfortable. They also produces the dreaded 'camp staff tan'. By the end of the summer we all had a tan line of about 4 inches! Bottom of the uniform shorts to the top of the sock and nothing else.

A quick google search brought this camporee guide: https://filestore.scouting.org/filestore/Outdoor Program/pdf/430-001.pdf

I have found that not all election teams are equal. Some do nothing but read a script, others are not very adept at answering any questions scouts may have, and then you have the team that comes in fully prepared and on top of their game. (the team that did our election this year did not mention that the boys could vote for both of our eligible candidates, even when asked, so I stepped up and made sure they were aware of that) No scout who is not interested in being elected should be on the ballot. We begin talking about elections a month in advance, spending a few minutes at the beginning of the meetings explaining what OA is and does for the district and council, and what we expect of anyone who is elected. We also speak individually with each eligible scout to gauge interest, and if they indicate that they have none, we respect that and do not put them on the ballot. As several others have stated, even if elected they do not actually become members until they complete the ordeal ceremony, which must be done within 1 year of election. There is no 'tough, you're in'.

Quite true. I am hoping to bring some skill instruction to gathering time on Roundtable nights. I was working with Cubmasters and Webelos Den Leaders last week, and while talking about how a Den Chief can be a big asset asked how many of them could tie a bowline or taught line hitch - 3 hands out of 15. That shows later when these scouts cross over and we have to start from scratch with some of them.

Hey now, I loved the red beret & still have one that I occasionally wear with my 70's green uniform.

Wasn't allowed when I was a scout (I will hit 55 years in November), although I would much rather see them on the back of a MB sash (neatly) than see someone with 6 or 7 temporary patches all dangling from the button on their right pocket.

Unless you are on the last leg of the trip, when our scouts seem to be particularly speedy. On our last backpacking trip day 3 was 5 miles. They did that with full packs in an hour and 45 minutes. Thought they were trying to kill me! 😉 We typically do not cook breakfast when backpacking; they usually go for protein bars, dried fruit, or oatmeal mixed with a little cold water and eaten right out of the packet (my nephew was skeptical about that until he tried it, now that is how he eats instant oatmeal at home). I do find that it takes very little time to bring water to a boil with my Pocket Rocket 2, and it will maintain a rolling boil for as long as I need (8 minutes is as much as I have ever needed with it) using very little fuel.

Be sure you are using meritbadge.org, rather than meritbadge.com. It works fine for me right now, and did also yesterday.

They do that one thing well.

🤩 I have occasionally responded to an SPL question with a couple of questions - 1) is it safe? 2) if that answer is yes, what do you think you should do? If where and how he wants the scouts to set up camp on a backpacking or kayaking trip does not present any safety hazards, it then becomes his decision. Sometimes that becomes a learning experience, like the ones whose response to 'are you sure that is where you want to put your tent' was yeah, why not. They learned why not early the next morning when taking the tent down after heavy dew, only to find out what happens when that tent is pitched on Florida sand rather than in the grass like everyone else. I am fairly sure they will not do that again.

$4.49 for shoulder loops is a bit much. About the only time I have told anyone to pay attention to the color of the loops on my shirt is when representing the district at a cub school night, and then only to tell parents that if they have questions specific to the unit, see the folks with the blue loops, if they have a question that the pack leadership cannot answer, look for one of us with the silver loops.

4b only specifies using some type of GPS device, making a scout use it in conjunction with a map would be adding to the requirements. We frequently travel several hours for backpacking, kayaking, camping, etc., and always use GPS to plot those routes. One caution we give our scouts about being overly dependent on GPS, is that sometimes construction is going on that temporarily changes where an exit on the highway may located. We also remind them that if the GPS device they are using is a phone, it's usefulness ends when the battery dies, at which time you better be well acquainted with map and compass skills.

If you are looking for period insignia, check out this site, they have scouting patches and memorabilia going back as much as a hundred years. https://www.scoutstuff4sale.com/

I haven't checked the Scouts BSA shirts, but the current khaki shirts being sold are embroidered.