New Cubmaster

[Scoutfish]

 

 

 

Something about that statement bothers me.

 

Granted, I would not feel comfortable at a girl scout camp, but that's because I am not on the same mindset as girls. I have no idea what they like to do or their interests. But as a dad camping with my daughter at that camp...well, i'd be there for my daughter.

 

Thing is, Cub Scouts is not just a man thing or male thing. It's a family event.

 

From Experience, I have seen dad;'s who should have been VERY thankful the moms were there to set up the tents, help with activities, etc...

 

Then you have boys who's dad decided that being a da just wan't their cup of tee. Then you have boys who's dads are deployed or off due to work.

 

Then there are boys whos dads died. I commend the moms who do not stay hom3 because they think it's a "man's job" to do the scout camping thing.

 

Now, I am not meaning for this to sound condescending or trying to imply I know what the others in your pack think...but that is a big enough thing to make people have an issue with you being the CubMaster. At least , it is within our pack.

 

Between YPT measures , camping rules ,and following policy that scouts cannot sleep in tents with any adults other than their own parents...there should be absolutely no issue whatsoever with yourself or any other female at a campout with a bunch of boys.

 

Again, I do not mean this in a bad, rude, obnoxious or hatefull way...but if you don't think that you as a female need to be around cub scouts who are camping...you probably really shouldn't be a CM.

 

I mean, the entire program is about and for boys. Gender roles and stereotypes need to be tossed out.

[scoutmom0618]

Scoutfish,

Thank you for your opinion. I NEVER said that if my kid went, I would not go or if it were a pack camp...However, our current CM's son just crossed over and she is not going to a council camp in with the Bears or Wolves..

Seriously! Amazing that this seems to be major hold up!! I NEVER said or did not mean to imply that I thought it was'man's work'...to camp I WILL and AM there for my son AND my daughter!!!!!!!!!!! I am sure that many men would like the women to come because they can sit back and let the women do the work!!!!!!

BTW, the following statement is rather ironic!

"I mean, the entire program is about and for boys. Gender roles and stereotypes need to be tossed out."

While I know siblings attend events and such with Cubs, it is still a boy program!

I think you and I need to stop discussing anything further because I feel liek I am already turning negative and that is so against what I wanted!!!

BTW, it is amazing how many people seem to not know what the qualifications for CM are according to the BSA....I even asked council about it and CAMPING is not one of the requirements..They are to make sure there are trained leaders on the trips but are not required ot go themselves!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

The requirements are found here :http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/CubScouts/AboutCubScouts/ThePack/cmast.aspx

[Scoutfish]

No, I said:

 

" or trying to imply I know what the others in your pack think...but that is a big enough thing to make people have an issue with you being the CubMaster. At least , it is within our pack"

 

 

I'm not saying that you feel or think this way. But the current leadership of the pack may think that. That MAY be the issue you have.

 

And it is POSSIBLe that some of the moms may feel like they are getting scorned for camping if the CM wasn't cool with her husband camping with girls.

 

Again, not saying anything for sure as I do not know these people...but it is possible that others feel this way.

 

 

And you said you get defensive sometimes right> Don't we all? Same thing with the current leadership. The goals you stated are great and actually, within normal range.

 

BUT....depending on the current leadership, they may be hearing you say: "You guys are not doing a good job and I am going to fix your sorry program."

 

No, you did not say that, but that may be what they heard.

 

Kinda like when my wife asks me about a shirt. It could be the ugliest shirt in the world. All I have to say is ( not kidding either) :

 

"I don't like that shirt."

 

And she takes it as that I think she is ugly, fat, hideous and uis devastated that i told her. Doesn't matter if it's because it'sa color she KNOWS that I hate. I talk about the shirt, she hear me talk about her!

 

Same thing with the current leadership.

 

Again, I am only saying may, not is.

[Scoutfish]

And you are right about camping. Just need somebody trained in BALOO. Can be a DL, ACM, CC, treasurer, whoever in the adult leadership.

[scoutmom0618]

In our pack, if you have a child camping then you can go, if you do not then unless you are the DL, you do not..It has been that way for years:)

They have not as yet seen my 'vision' and I plan to tone it down before they see it, though.

I do not think the issue is as much me, as they had hoped that a certain individual would commit and that person has said NO. SO, how to deal with that!

[scoutmom0618]

Thanks for clearing that up! lol BTW, few in our pack now what is going on and most wonder why I have not been neamed CM. Oh yeah, I do not care if hubby camps with a bunch of girls as long as my daughter or I are there...lol but just to go set up the campsite and take care of the problems...means the ones there are not doing there job...just my opinion..lol

[jamist649]

Oh good grief! You can be MY CM!! How far are you from North Carolina? LOL

 

:-)

[scoutmom0618]

Not far, actually depending on which part...lol As long as you do the heavy lifting, I'll do the paperwork...lol

[ScoutNut]

>>"ON a side note, interesting that you say focus on my den and leave the rest to someone else...That seems to be the problem.. No wonder there is such a lack of volunteers in the scouting program! When someone wants to, they are told don't bother."

[5yearscouter]

Take it a bit slower, feel them out for what the existing pack leaders want and need, then help them find the holes and fill them.

 

Meaning, when someone you don't know their ability well steps up and says I can do this big huge giant job for the pack, the other leaders may be thinking to themselves we haven't seen you do a little job, and you want us to give you the biggest job in the pack?

 

So start smaller/slower,

if the cubmaster has been doing all the paperwork, ask him if you could do secretary/membership for the pack? start a newsletter, keep track of members, then start helping with advancement once they see you can do these tasks. I was secretary of our pack for 10 months, slowly taking over all those paperwork tasks until I was handed the committee chair job when the existing committee chair saw I was capable and caring and wasn't a flake. Then I had to work to find a capable secretary and treasurer to flesh out a real committee.

and along the way I've played cubmaster when our cubmaster had surgery and was out for pack events for a while, and played den leader at varying times for different dens as needed. A real committee chair person is able to step in to some of these other roles as needed--BSA says they fill the position of cubmaster if there is no cubmaster.

 

look for other people that should be cubmaster, or assitant--cause if you like paperwork, you should really be on the committee side of the equation and find a cubmaster to do the stand up in front of the kids silliness and the work of setting up camps, pinewood derbys, summer camps, day camps and all those other events that your pack does. Ideally it's a cubmaster that thinks like you of bigger and better, onward and upward.

 

 

but don't expect them to hand you the reins of the pack without seeing you do some of the pack level planning and running of events first.

 

I'm currently trying to train my replacement committee chair. He's never run any of our pack events until after he showed an interest in the CC job. He never even had a good record of attending our events, so I've been very very wary of giving him all the power.

 

[scoutmom0618]

Obviously, I left out an important part of my quandry. As of the end of this scouting year, we will have NO leadership!!!! They are ALL leaving!!! As for doing things, I have tried but they will not allow. For example, they needed something done. After seeing that it had not been addressed, I approached the CM and offered to take care of it. I was told that it would interfere with my desire to become CM so she approached someone else who said yes, but in the end she ended up doing it. That has happened several times. I just read something a few moments ago, disturbing on an email that I inadvertantly got. Seems that some of the current CM's friends, (who are the only others that make decisions and they have both left but are still listed as Committe Members on the recharter, decided they did not need to redo their training so she, the CM, had someone else do it for them. There have been other instances of this that I just found out! There are some very close realtionships among certain people at the top in our pack, to the exclusion of the rest of us.

I did not seek this out at first, just got tired of people complaining about how much they had to do...I have offered to help with paperwork such as permits, etc...Nope..Advancements..Nope...Budget...Nope...

The COR told me that the CO wants change so we will see how it goes...

 

[SeattlePioneer]

I know you are determined to register as CM if you can, but I have to say I think you would be FAR better off as Committee Chair.

 

A pack of 45-60 rather desperately needs a skilled Committee Chair, a lot more than it needs a CM.

 

Until you register a CM, the CC fills in as Cubmaster anyway. That's automatic.

 

As was noted earlier, a competent Committee Chair is a lot rarer bird than a Cubmaster, if both are doing their correct jobs.

 

As Committee Chair, I'd start immedietely to sign people up for Committee jobs and to be looking for someone to be Cubmaster.

 

It's not at all surprising that people wont agree to be CM now ---- the expectations for that job are wildly excessive. Cut the work down to what it should be and you should be able to find a good person without too much trouble.

 

I think that part of the reason you want to be CM is that the current Cubmaster did a large number of tasks he shouldn't have done had the pack run properly. You shouldn't continue to make that same mistake, in my opinion.

 

And lastly, people have repeatedly urged you to attend Roundtable despite the conflict you have with your church group. As A Cub Scout Roundtable Commissioner myself, I think you should attend your church group and find another parent to attend Roundtable. Don't be whipsawed into giving up another activity you value ---- you need to keep Scouting responsibilities within reason. Let someone else carry that load.

 

 

[Nike]

If the whole leadership is leaving this summer, I think getting a committee chair in place now is the first task and recruiting a CM, secretary, treasurer, and DLs this spring is the second. You have a chance to reinvigorate this pack right now. When a pack loses its core group, it oftens staggers for a while. You have the oppurtunity to forestall that.

 

I think you would be a great CC.

[moosetracker]

agree with SP & Nike.. Sounds like the best thing to do for this pack is get a good CC that can concentrate on dividing up the workload amoung many adult leaders..

 

One person willing to take it all on again is not the answer, because when they leave the Pack will then still have problems.. If 5 adult leaders move on with their kids at a crossover it is survivalble if you have 20 adult leaders.. If 2 adult leaders move on with their kids, and you only had 2 to begin with, it is devistating..

 

All the paperwork that you are willing to take on, should be taken off the shoulders of the CM, and be part of the CC and their committee members responsibility. Then the CM, ACM and anyone else willing to lend a hand should oversee (and do when no one else is avaliable) the manual labor of setups & takedowns, as well as the in front goofiness and entertainment like showmanship..

 

RoundTables are not so important to a CC to go to.. It is pushed that the CM or SM should go, but when that was the idea in our units.. guess what, no one went often, because the CM/SM was already doing alot.. My last unit had a COR that simply pushed that the unit would have a representative.. So a parent volunteered to do that for their job for the troop, they came back and reported anything of news worthiness to the SM.. With this few RT's were missed..

[Scoutfish]

I wish you luck!

 

Speaking of your leaders..it remind me of something Jeff Foxworthy once said:

 

"When women ask us what we think about something....they do not want to hear what we think, they want to hear what they think in our voice!"

 

Same goes for existing leadership. They do want help...doing it the way they always have. We have had a few people who want alot of help, but would let the help - help out because they might do it "wrong".

 

Know what I mean? They are scared you might do something different from "the way it's always been done".