Webelos Camping vs. Pack Camping

[denleaderamy]

What's the best course of action when a Webelos Campout is scheduled on the same day as a Pack campout?

 

I am a Webelos Den leader and picked a date that would work for my family and my Den's families, chose a spot, made a reservation, and planned the event two months in advance. (All of my boys are very sports involved and all have games at various times and places.)

 

Our Pack had a tentative date picked for a family Pack level campout. The date is the same for both events. The Pack event is still listed as tentative with no location (the date is less than a month away) and we had a Pack campout this weekend.

 

My CM is upset that we didn't coordinate our schedules. He offered April to me as an option for my den.

 

What are your recommendations? Do I cancel my event or not attend the Pack event?

[PACK15NISSAN]

Obviously the ideal situation is to coordinate schedules to parents/boys don't have to choose. If you do have a den campout and a pack campout on the same date then parents with boys in other ages group will probably end up taking their boys to the pack, if that is even an issue.

 

Realisticly and practically speaking, to me a den campout for Webelos is far better than a pack campout. They are more focused around the Webelos, what they want and are able to do and toward their advancement. It also allows the boys to bound more as a patrol and get them ready for Boy Scouts which is a WDL's goal.

 

This is why all leaders attend the calendar planning sessions in our Pack and perhaps you can do this in the future. However, for now I would just go on as planned.

[Eagle92]

OUCH touchy situation. Unfortunately I'm seeing something similar in my council, i.e. two different council events and a district event scheduled the same weekend.

 

A few questions.

1) Was your event planned prior to the proposed pack event?

2) Was the pack notified at the leaders' meeting that you had an event planned?

 

If the answer is yes, i'ld go ahead as the Webelos need the experience.

[ghermanno]

Amy,

 

I can see both sides of this post as I have a very procrastinating District. Somehow, you failed to mention the outing that has been scheduled for over two months (I assume you had the Tour Permit routed through the Pack Committee?) at the Committee meetings? I also see a Pack that wants to schedule something but is in no rush to get to the final planning stages saying "We had this planned".

 

If the Pack "Campout" is less than a Month away and still not planned then I am thinking it will not be planned in less than a month. Ask you CM where/when/cost of the "planned" campout. If s/he has the info, ask why it wasn't shared with all the DL's. If s/he does not have the info and it is less than a month away, inform him/her that your campout is planned and you are willing to help them plan a family campout in the future but yours is already planned and scheduled. If the Pack tries to schedule off the cuff, you may lose one or two boys to a family that has a boy in more than one level but I think the Pack will still be "planning" after the scheduled date.

 

Just my $0.02

 

YiS,

 

Rick

[John-in-KC]

Amy,

 

By and large what Rick and Eagle92 said.

 

IMO you as a DL (albeit a WDL) have an obligation to inform the CM and Pack Committee of your schedule. The CM is the principal program officer of the Pack. At the same time, the CM and CC have the task to make sure all DLs have all the information on Pack level program.

 

That said, have a great time at your weekend. Yours will come off, I'm not sure the Packs' will.

[Mafaking]

 

Stick to your planned Den outing.

 

The CM should have had his pakc schedule out well in advance of your Den planning calendar.

 

The CM is slacking. He didn't get the calendar out in time, does not have a location and has no real plan or budget for the outing.

 

He will cancel the pack outing and blame you. Your lack of participation made him cancel.

 

Shrug it off as it was he who completely failed to plan according to BSA guidelines. Any Baloo trained leader will recognize and make every attempt to stick to the schedule for planning an event. With less than a month to go and no site selected he is way behind.