B&G Program

[pack1003cubs]

How long is your Blue and Gold Banquet? Between awards, dinner and announcements - there is hardly any time for games or fun for the Cub Scouts. How or where do you fit this in?

 

Our agenda looks like this:

 

7:30 p.m. Opening Ceremony

 

7:40 p.m. Invocation

 

7:45 p.m. Dinner is Served (BUFFET STYLE)

 

8:00 p.m. Welcome & Introductions (WHILE EVERYONE IS EATING)

 

8:05 p.m. Review of 2004/Announcements for 2005

 

8:20 p.m. Entertainment (20 MINUTES??? NOT A LONG TIME, RIGHT?)

 

8:40 p.m. Awards Ceremony (SHORT CEREMONY, SMALL PACK)

 

9:00 p.m. Closing Ceremony

 

Can we improve?

[johndaigler]

pack1003,

 

WELCOME!!!

 

Our program is similar. In fact, we probably go a bit longer than you, but we definitely start earlier.

 

I love the crossing over ceremony - especially if you can get a good bunch of Scouts to do their thing. For us, the OA plays a terrific ceremonial role.

 

Our entertainment is usually professional - last year it was a ventriloquist and this year it's a magician, so 20 minutes often become 35.

 

Do your boys have school the next day? 9 pm seems like a late finish to me. It's 10 by the time the boys are snug -- my Wolf would be useless (and grumpy!) the next day!

 

It may be late in the game, but you could consider throwing in a skit or some run-ons or a song or two. Just throw them in between the parts you've already got scheduled -- but don't expect to get out by 9 . . .

 

Have fun -- the boys will love it no matter what you see as an imperfection.

 

jd

 

 

[Joni4TA]

Seems like you've got a good program schedule there. You could always start earlier if you are worried about cramming too much in to the time frame you already have.

 

I agree with Johndaigler on the skit, song or run-on issue. Something I have always thought was neat at B&G's was to have the adults do a funny skit for the kids - they like watching the leaders be goofy at times, too

[Sparkie]

First of all i'd like to welcome you to the forums! glad to have you here. I too think your agenda looks good. Being cubmaster for 6 years i've had my fair share of B&G's. Our B&G is held on a Friday night. Our agenda does not includ a review or announcements. My review is more in the form of thanking all the individuals that ran programs; basically, anyone that volunteered. The only announcements made are for those activities happening prior to the next pack meeting.

 

I guess i have a different take on the B&G. I see it as a social occassion to honor scouting, and a great forum for recognizing individuals who give of their time. We have entertainment, and i've had a skit or two if a den has requested to do one (how can you turn them down?). Of course you want everyone to have fun. But you want it to be something more than a regular pack meeting where games and skits are the norm. I try to impress upon the scouts that this is not a pack meeting (although it takes the place of one), they are to be on their best behavior because we are saying good-bye to our Webelos crossing over, and have guests from the Troop(s).

 

Our awards ceremony and crossover are held prior to the entertainment. The first couple years I never seemed to get the colors retired properly due to families leaving early. So now they are retired prior to the entertainment. Our outgoing Webelos II always present the colors (for the last time), and our new sr. group of scouts, the Webelos I, retire the colors for the evening.

 

[mjengels]

This is a first dinner for me. We are having ours on a Sunday from 3 to 6pm. They are not doing awards, they will have entertainment and some skits.

[ScoutNut]

No awards? Why not?

 

Our B & G is set up rather like pack1003's though the timing might be different. We do awards after dinner with the crossing over to BS by the 5th grade last. The Troop is planning the crossover ceremony this year (guess who's son volunteered their parent to "check out all of those weird scout sites you are on all of time" to find indian type ceremonies!). After awards we will have some short announcements (what a horrible way to die - LOL!), retire the flags, and then have the entertainment. We usually hire someone.

 

By the time everything is cleaned up & put away it will be a total of 3-3.5 hrs.

 

[Advancement_Lady]

Our B&G will be on a Saturday 6-9pm

 

We dont give out advancements because we use this time to recognize our leaders and they receive their knots and plaques.

 

This year our leaders and parents will be doing skits instead of the boys.

 

Our Banquet will be about an hour long and then we have a closing ceremony. The last 2 hours is for our cake auction.

[newbie-cubmaster]

we do games as the boys come in along with a chineese auction. then we go to opening ceremony, our entertainment, then dinner with guest speaker from friends of scouting, then we move onto arrow of light ceremony and achievements awards, then we announce winners of the auction. do any other packs out there hold a chineese auction attheir B&G Banquet? would love to hear what you auction off.

[beasties mom]

we do a cake auction each boy that wants to makes and decorates them. The boys really enjoy it.

[Joni4TA]

If you don't do advancement awards, you may consider certificate of appreciation awards for adult leaders to be presented at the B & G. I have always felt the birthday was a good time to show thanks to the selfless volunteers that untimately make the program a reality for the kids.

 

We've always been big on a "Fellas Cake Bake" or "Dad and Lad Cake Bake" in our Packs, silent auctions have worked also, skits, songs, some kind of entertainment presentation.