Cyclone

I’ve need some advice from the group. I was having a conversation with a Scout last night as we discussed how he has done his duty to God (2nd Class req. 10), he stated he was “more of an agnostic type of a person.” He then added that he was cool with everybody’s beliefs. We continued our conversation and I ended up signing off on it. I have no clue if I did the right thing. Or is this Scout going to have issues in the future because of his beliefs or lack there of? If he’s going to have issues I want to address it now instead of any later. Thanks for the help.

A number of Scouts in my son’s troop have partial MBs from both summer camp and a local MB University. The troop committee chair has been signing off completed requirements for the Scouts, as they complete them. Is this acceptable or should a new MB counselor be found if the original counselor is no longer available?

I think I will just wait until WB comes back to my council. I like the idea of building my Scout network at home.

My council offers WB every other year. 2018 was our year. I started a new job around the time the course was held and I was unable to attend because of a lack of PTO. I had to choose between WB in the fall or going to Summer Camp this coming summer. I chose camp. For some reason my employer has changed our PTO policy and I will have twice the amount of vacation time in 2019 than I normally would. Unfortunately, the “double your fun” policy is only for 2019 and in 2020 I will be back to normal. My question is this: Since my council won’t be offering WB in 2019, should I attend a course in one of the neighboring councils? Will I loose something from the course if I rarely, if ever, see my patrol mates during the rest of my Scouting career? Or should I just wait until the next course is offered in my local council? Thanks for the advice.

Hi! I've been reading this forum for quite a while but just joined today. I'm currently a Den leader but, will be joining a troop soon. I was a SM for a local troop but stepped away from the troop when my son joined Cubs. I was pretty active as a youth. I was able to go to Philmont, a Jamboree, and a couple of NOAC's. Good to know you!

Thanks for the feedback. Just so you know I live in a very rural area. 28 of the 30 miles is a 60-65 mph speed limit and only one stop light. I drive this route every day for work and it is really a pretty quick trip. During harvest and planting season you might have to slow down for some farm equipment on the road but, that is as bad as the traffic gets. We have to drive 12 miles to get anywhere. The decision is ultimately up to my son. But, I want to guide him to a troop that will give him a great scouting experience like I had when I was a kid.

There are three or four local troops in my area. I'm trying to decide which to encourage my son to join. Which would you suggest? --Troop A meets a couple of Sunday nights each month. It's small with maybe 6 scouts. Last year they went camping maybe 3 or 4 times and from what I can tell there is little or no Patrol method used and minimal scout leadership. When I asked if the troop was going to scout camp this summer, I was told that there was no reason to go to camp because the boys will earn 3 merit badges at a Merit Badge University for less than half the price in a single weekend vs. a full week at camp. --Troop B doesn't meet very often, if at all but, they do go camping every month and go to summer camp. I'm not sure how large the troop is or how the troop is lead. --Troop C meets about once a month or so. They camp about 7 or 8 times a month and have about 10-14 scouts. They go to summer camp every other year. --Troop D meets weekly, camps often, is fairly scout lead, goes to scout camp every year, and has about 20 scouts at almost every meeting. The only reason this troop isn't the easy pick is it meets about 30 miles from where we live and on meeting nights I'd drive 30 miles home from work, pick up my son, and then drive 30 miles back to the meeting place. That would be a pain but, I haven't dismissed the idea yet. Which would you pick? Thanks.