Reminding people why we are here

[Scoutfish]

I'll start off by saying we have a great group of volunteers who run our pack.

 

Our COR is a former cub scout and boy scout and is very active and helpful.

Our CC is a former leader and is familiar with both sides of leadership.

I am trhe CM and been active 4 years overall.

Even our Tiger DL has continuous experience as he stepped down from being a Bear DL when his youngest joined as a Tiger- and his ADL took over as Bear DL.

 

 

WE have a very helpful and active bucn of parents on our committee too.

 

But. we have this one parent who is great except for one detail: She gets carried away when it comes to food planning.

 

For pack campout, she thought we should have Boston Butts and barbeque potatoes and yeast rolls. Yeah, I love that kind of food too, but the scouts don't.

 

For B&G, she talked about cooking a whole hog ( we did this in past at pack campout too) and hot wings and sourkrout (spel that right?)

 

I have to keep reminding her that the whole reason we are here is for the scouts and that our menues...while not having to be PB&J all the time - need to remember our focus......which is a group of boys aged from 6 to 10 years old, not college boys or grown men.

 

Now, I am not suggesting that we never eat more "grown up food", but it seems that this woman has no concept of what the scouts really enjoy...or any kinf of $$$$ restraint.

 

So for B&G, I told her that we could have spaghetti and salad and bread for a meal. She was okay with this , but still wanted to cook a few Boston butts as well.

 

Do you have any people like this? Almost thinks this is a dining club instead of a cub scout pack?

 

LIke I said, she's a great volunteer, but her sights are high. I love having her as well as the other leadrs do to...it's just we keep having to reel her in when it comes to food.

 

And if you are wondering, she's very fit and not an overweight food junkie. Very attractive. So it's not an eating disorder.

 

It's more like a "Lets go big, let's go glam, let's go all out with no restrint" kinda thing.

 

Might as well ask all the scouts to wear tuxes and dance the tango too.

[ScoutNut]

Does the food get eaten? If yes, then don't complain.

 

Does she use Pack funds to purchase her "extras"? If yes, tell her that if she purchases anything over and above the food items approved by the Pack Committee they come out of her own pocket.

 

Suggest to the Committee Chair that she not be put on any committees requiring the purchasing of food.

 

 

However, all of that aside, other than alcohol, there is no such thing as "adult" food, and you do your kids a disservice suggesting as much to them.

 

There is nothing at all wrong with including new and different items in a menu to help expand the kid's (and parent's) food experience. Kids who grow up on only burgers, dogs, PBJ, and such, will often end up very picky eaters.

 

BTW, the families in our Pack are a very diverse group, and both hot wings, and polish w/kraut, are a big hit with the kids at our dinners. We did marinated chicken breasts on one camping trip and the kids ate as many as they could get their hands on, along with green salad and baked potatoes.

 

 

[moosetracker]

What's a Boston butt?? I've heard of Boston Baked Beans. But, normally we don't serve up butts unless it's a rump roast.

[Basementdweller]

Boston butt is the Butt end of a pork shoulder. They make for easy smoking in the cooker....you can line a bunch up because they are rectangular in shape.

 

I like cooking picnics better, I think they taste better, but you can't put as many in the cooker.

 

Ya, mom has a problem. Boston Butts are expensive compared with what a normal scout menu consists of.

 

The question you need to ask her or the group is, are we here to camp and have fun or cook for the weekend???? I don't camp to cook, but I have to eat at camp......Minimum time in the kitchen. Boston Butts take 4-10 hours in the smoker depending on size and shape. Nope too much fiddling around.

 

 

[Lisabob]

Maybe that's what she thinks of as fun? Keeping in mind that this is a cub pack and not a troop, maybe she sees this as her special way to contribute by doing more fancy cooking than the rest of you ordinarily would do? Maybe she likes eating this way but doesn't do it at home because there aren't enough people to eat it all (cooking for one or two means eating leftovers forever)? Maybe she can't afford to cook this way at home and is using the scout events as a way to enjoy her favorite expensive foods, paid for (in part or whole) by someone else?

 

I agree with others - give her a dollar limit and make it clear that if she goes over, she's paying out of pocket. And/or put her on a committee where hers is not the only voice determining meals. Or do what you did with the B&G and tell her what you want the menu to be.

 

And then maybe once in a great while, let her splurge a little since she so clearly enjoys cooking.

 

 

[qwazse]

I, too , tend to eat quality, but not for a large banquet. And I focus on seasonal food. The gourmet meal that I cook on the trail Saturday is usually dictated by what's on sale at the market Thursday.

 

The challenge with B&G's is you need to balance finances and tastes of everyone involved.

 

Sometimes a parent needs to realize that their idea might not be the best one even if they are very enthused by it. The best way to put it is to explain that the goal is to honor the kids and we want a meal and a program that is good, but not so complex as to distract from any parent enjoying the day.

 

Now, if the parent would like to organize an adult evening for a district or council fundraiser, I'm sure those folks would appreciate her input!

[AKdenldr]

Potluck!

 

Pack provides the lemonade and the Blue and Gold cake ordered from Costco. All other food provided by assignment by den (salads, sides, main dish, etc...).

 

She can bring a Boston Butt if she likes as her contribution.

 

Food for camping should be planned with boys in mind for eating and helping cook.

 

-- AK

[Eagledad]

>>So for B&G, I told her that we could have spaghetti and salad and bread for a meal. She was okay with this , but still wanted to cook a few Boston butts as well.

[momof2cubs]

Honestly, I think this is a high class problem. If you can call it a problem at all.

 

I don't see anything wrong with a lady that is trying to make the food experience better in pack activities. They only issue here would be money. You can tell her what the budget is, and if she goes over it, she's on her own. If she's staying within budget and/or paying it out her own pocket, I don't see what's wrong with having "fancy" food. Specially if she's willing to coordinate it! I wish we had her on my pack. I'm sick of eating hot dogs and cold sandwiches at camp outs.

[Basementdweller]

It sounds like the lady is breaking the budget..........

 

 

If that's the case just tell her the facts.....

 

 

Does she cook the Butts or does one of the other Families.......What happens to the leftovers?????

 

 

 

 

 

[Scoutfish]

Here's the deal:

 

I do not have a problem with the kind of food she wants to cook. I very much enjoy that kind of food: Boston Butts, Whole pig , chicken leg quarters with boiled green beans and potatoes with yeast rolls and salad.

 

But when we camping, most everybody expects "camp food". You know...hot dogs, cheeseburgers, stuff like that.

 

Me? I'll eat any of it. But trime and time again, most of our scouts will not eat the food. Ever notice what they serve in school cafeterias?

 

Not a whole hog or boston butts, baked /grilled chicken quarters! They serve what the kids will eat.

 

And the cost is way down.

 

Now, this mom doesn't just decide th menu for events. The committee does. We all get together and make suggestions as to what we think will go over well with the scouts while still being healthy and cheaper too.

 

Every time we have served the hog, butts or chicken, we have lots of waste and kids who end up eating pop tarts or gummy bears or whatever snack junk they brought along.

 

Sure, the adults enjoy the food( including me) but the whole reason we are eating is because we are holding an event that was designed for and all about the youth.

 

My only issue with this mom - since she does not have free run - is that it's always the same menu ideas over and over and over. And she's been here long enough to know that most scouts do not want that.

 

It's pretty much like she just ignores the scouts tastes over her own.

 

Now, if we were hosting an all day adult leader training session that included the meal..I'd bend over and give her the golden apron to the kitchen.

 

But i's a scout thing we are doing here.

 

And she usually doesn't plan on doing the cooking...she just plans on doing the planning.

[Eagledad]

I'm trying to understand your thinking here, do you feel the adults in troops should eat the same food as their scouts eat on campouts?

 

Also, since all the members of the committee select the food as you said, what is the problem?

 

Barry

[Scoutfish]

Eagledad,

 

No, I think adults in troops should cook their own meals seperate from the patrols who cook theirs.

 

But if the scouts invite the adults to dine with them, then it reverses to the adults accepting what the scouts cook .

 

If the adult does not wish to eat what the scouts cook, then the adult goes back to cooking his own food.

 

 

 

But we are not talking about a troop, we are talking about a pack where scouts do minor cooking with an abundance of supervision.

 

The problem isn;t a real problem so far, more like an annoyance since it's the same thing over and over again and again.

 

But outside food selection, she's an awesome asset to the pack.

(This message has been edited by scoutfish)

[Twocubdad]

So you committee wants to dumb down the menu and this lady doesn't want to play? Good for her. 'Round here, what she's serving IS camp food. You give my boys hot dogs and Spagetti-O's while the adults are eating good eastern NC barbecue, you better duck -- a hot dog is going to be flying toward your head.

 

I don't buy the argument that "we're here for the boys" so we should serve the junk they want. That's just a justification. If the boys wanted Gummie Bears and PopTarts would you serve that? What's wrong with expanding their horizons?

 

Committee wants to be in charge of the menu? Then step up and take over the shopping and cooking. We have an ASM like this lady who does all the shopping, cooking and a lot of the cleaning for the troop adults. Know what we eat? Any dang thing he wants.

 

She's putting a high-quality meal in front of them and your boys want gummie bears and PopTarts? Who's giving them the junk food? There's your problem.

 

Count your blessings, dude. Many, many units would give anything to have someone with this level of dedication and willingness to put in a lot of time and effort.

 

And think big picture. Down the road I want boys in troop who think big. I want the boys who have learned by example that they ought to eat well on campouts. I don't want the guys who are accustomed to settling for hot dogs and PopTarts. "Hey guys, remember when Mrs. Smith used to make that great barbecue for us on campouts with the pack? I bet we could do that!"

 

What a great example she's setting for the boys.(This message has been edited by Twocubdad)

[Scoutfish]

nah, we don't feed them pop tarts. They brought that themselves.

 

We give them what you'd expect a kid that age to eat for the duration of a one day campout. Sausage and pancakes for breakfast. Hot dogs and chips for lunch. The past campout, we cooked chicken nugets and mac and chese for supper.

 

Not a single scout turned their nose at the food choices. They all ate, and were happy.

 

Now, you have to realize, we do not feed these boys for 3 meals a day, 7 days a week.

 

We are talking about a weekend event where they fend for themselves on Friday nights ( parent menues usually consist of Micky D's or similar), we cook 3 meals Saturday, and Sunday, we cook sausage again, and have warmed up danishes and juice.

 

One weekend, 4 meals.

 

Thing is, the scouts have spoken. I'm not the only person who is tired of tossing out a bunch of barbeque hog, boston Butts and chicken quarters because the CUB scouts do not eat it.

 

And to clarify, it's not the parents who ask for these meals. Just this one lady.

 

And to further clarify, she is not cooking, she just plans. She plans for these meals expecting others to prepare, cook, and clean up.

 

So, it's a weekend campout. What time do you start cooking a 200 pound pig?

 

I'll give you a hint: You do not start at 11 am. Think more like 5:30 to 6:00 am

 

How many adults does it take? Well, it can be done with only one, except when it's time to flip the hog and chop it and mix the sauce in, ect...

 

Boston Butts? We did it 3 years ago. It took 16 Boston Butts when you accounted for the size versus the number of servings it would take to feeed those in attendance. But then, those numbers were off because out of 70 or so scouts, only 3 or 4 actually ate any.

 

Scouts do not want what you and I know to be pretty great food. They want burgers and hot dogs and junk like that. If they had their way, we'd have only soda to drink and a cse of ice cream too.

 

And remember, thee are not Boy Scouts, these are cub scouts. First and second graders...third graders and 4th graders. The 5th grade boys will eat pretty much anything, but you cannot plan a menu for 80 boys based on the likes of 10.

 

Again, this isn't 24/7/365...this is 4 meals out of 9 during a weekend and also when we do B&G and sometimes crossovers.

 

If mom and da want to educate their palate's let them. But since camp food costs us money, it ain't time to experiment.