Blue and Gold - where do you hold it?

[ScoutMomSD]

we need some quick cheap ideas for blue and gold - our community centers are all booked - where do you hold yours and about how much per scout does it end up costing? do you charge or is it part of the annual dues?

 

thanks so much

 

[Karen_216]

We hold ours at the middle school. It is 35.00 per hour and we must use their food service. Scouts are free, any others are 7.00 each.

[Buffalo Skipper]

Our pack uses a church facility. Ironically this is not our charter's church facilities. Despite the size of our church (1 full restaurant, 2 campuses, 3 sanctuaries, and 4 full service kitchens), none of our facilities are large enough to accommmodate our pack and families. We are fortunate that we are not charged for our facilities, either at our church or the one we use. We generally get catering (buffet style) from a local restaurant.

 

With payment of the annual dues, we include 3 "tickets" for the B&G. we generally pool these tickets by paid dues per den. So if a den has 8 paid members, the den gets 24 tickets. If 2 cubs and their families do not attend, the remaining 6 tickets can be used by the other 6 families (for siblings, grandparents, etc). Additional tickts are usually $5.00 each. It sound complicated but it is not.

 

We have 50ish in the pack, and ususally have about 200-250 attend the B&G. It is always a great time!

[CNYScouter]

This year we are using a school cafeteria. No charge.

Because we want to use the kitchen we have to pay to have one of the kitchen staff to be there.

The Pack also hs to pay a janitor (overtime wage) if we go past a certain time.

Cost - Cubs and any registered leaders are free - others $4 in advance/$5 at the door.

 

In the past with my older sons Pack, we used a local businesses cafeteria (on a weekend) for free.

It was cool place as they have an artificial creek running through it with bridges.

 

The Pack also used an American Legion Hall.

Not only did they give us the room for nothing, they also gave us free soda.

 

For a couple of years with big popcorn sales my older sons Pack rented a room at a local college.

It was held on a weekend in Feb. during a long weekend when there were no classes

It was pretty expensive as we had to have the collage caterer it, but they prepared all the food and supplied collage students to do setup/cleanup, all we had to supply were the decorations and entertainment.

 

I dont think for any of these the Pack charged more than $5 per person.

 

[DYB-Mike]

We hold ours in our Charter Organizations (Church) Hall. Were fortunate in that the Hall has upper and lower floors with the upper having a stage and open space and the lower having kitchen facilities and a smaller open space. There is also another space on the lower level that we occasionally use. It costs us nothing to use the space. This is the same space that we hold our Pack Meetings and some of our Den Meetings. All of this space is not always available as we share it with several other groups, including the Troop. I assume your Pack Meeting space is either too small or you want to do it somewhere else to make it special. If you think the Pack Meeting space can handle it then decoration and a program different from the normal Pack Meeting can make it special and pizza or a pot luck menu can make it cheap.

 

Some of our Blue and Gold is subsidized through the annual dues but the bulk comes from ticket sales. We usually charge $10 per adult with the scout and children under a certain age free. It sounds like a lot but weve never had a complaint that Im aware of. This year, given the state of the economy and through some scaling back, we are charging $10 each for the first two adults, $5 each for all other adults in the group, and no charge for the scout and all children. The biggest costs for us are the food (catered in the past, although were just doing pizza and salad this year) and entertainment (animal handlers, dragon dancers for Chinese New Year theme).

 

YIS,

Mike

 

[Beagle Scout]

We use the school gymnasium for our B&G banquet. It is free of charge for us to use on any day that school is in session, subject to being first to reserve it. This year our banquet is on a Wednesday night to avoid conflict with basketball (our pack meetings are normally on the last Tuesday of the month).

 

The last several years we have done potluck dinners and have not charged anything, but we have had problems with running out of food, so this year we are going to try having a buffet-style meal catered by a local restaurant. There will be a charge for dinner, but we have not figured out how much yet. It will probably be in the range of $3-4 per person, with the pack picking up whatever the balance is.

 

[2eagles]

Church halls, gyms are about the best. The most fun and in expensive Blue and Gold we have gone to was - camo tarps on the floor, native american tacos and the dens had all made Native American shelters -- long house, wiki up, hogon, tepee and pueblo out of refrid. boxes and other assorted items. They had it set up like a Pow Wow with a center fire. Fire was made out of logs light bulb and colored gels.

[GKlose]

Our pack has used a local "function hall" in the past, and this year is moving to a country club. The roughly $18/head cost is built into the annual dues (the pack doesn't really fundraise), and parents/siblings pay another $18/head added. The good news is that parental pressure at least got the banquet moved away from the function hall that had been used in the past. They were marginal at best.

 

I don't really care for this formula at all, and I'm glad this year is our last year.

[Lisabob]

I've never understood why some packs seem to want to get really pricey and rent out banquet facilities or something. Keep it simple! We used a local school gym/cafeteria. Nothing fancy, low or no cost for facilities. Our school district policy was that we only had to pay janitors for weekend events and B&G was usually on a Friday, but we always invited whoever was on duty to join us for dinner as a courtesy and we made sure not to leave a big mess behind. Believe me it was worth the cost of feeding that extra person or two, to be in good with the janitorial staff.

 

 

[ScoutNut]

We use the Parish School Hall of our CO. This is where we have our Pack meetings. We are not charged for the space.

 

We cater the meal from a local VFW. Cheapest deal around, and tons of food. We charge a minimal amount ($7, under 5 free) per person. Our aim is to come as close to breaking even for the evening as possible.

[Buffalo Skipper]

Lisabob,

I could not agree more. We always invite our commissioner, DE and anyone else we like. It keeps us in everyone's good graces. Out of 200, we often have 2 tables (12-15) honored guests. We keep our meal simple but nice, and we have a stellar slide show (no cost) and have a great time. We have "fancy" decorations (table mirrors, and vases wit fake flowers, etc.) which the pack purchased several years ago and continue to reuse. We buy plastic blue and yellow tablecloths which makes clean up easy; at 3.00 a table, clean up is a snap. Dens are, of course, encouraged to make their tables' decorations. It is all done on the cheap. We get away with a total cost of around $800 feeding 200+. Pretty good.

[tdk101]

We hold ours at the CO where we hold our meetings. It's and Elk's Lodge. Our B&G is a pot luck dinner. The CO and pack supply the drinks and paper goods. Last year our den made centerpieces - clay pots painted blue & gold and my wife made blue & gold candy lollipops to put inside. Each scout and sibling got a lollipop and then we raffled the pots off. This year my wife and sons will make cookies and paint them blue & yellow for all of the kids. We have a cake decorating contest and that takes care of desert.

 

We are having a talent show for the 1st time at the B&G. Looking fowrward to seeing the kids perform.

 

The boys last year each got a movie pass in a little Cub Scout backpack made out of cardstock. There was also a patch included. Not sure what they will get this year. The pack provides the little gifts to the boys.

[shortridge]

Local fire hall.

[SctDad]

This year we are going to hold it at the Local Golden Corral. They do the cooking and cleaning. Plus there is enough variety that there has to be something for everyone to eat.

 

We have a short program taht we will do. Some awards to give out. and aspecial guest from the local AFB.

 

Of course we will also have the DE coming for the FOS speach.

[SSScout]

Ideas I have seen used (or used ourselves)

 

Food? Pot luck.

Local VFD did a pancake supper for the Cub Pack.

One year, Outback Steak House catered our B&G for $5. a person. Steak and salad and hot vegetable (!!!). And we divied up the left overs!

Local Chicken Out or the Italian place down the block may do the same.

Attached Scout Troop did a cookout for "it's" Cub Pack.

Indoor picnic... Hot dogs, potato salad, cole slaw, etc.

 

Places:

Local hospital has "community rooms" for free.

 

Local Volunteer Fire Dept. used their hall for free.

 

Check any local church/synagogue/temple, even if it is not your faith.

 

 

Knights of Columbus, Lions club, Kiwanis, American Legion, Vets of Foreign Wars, Moose, Isaac Walton League, etc. Knock on their door and mention"Scouts" and watch the opportunities open up.

 

MiF KiS YiS