Troop Dues

[rwh1955]

Our troop holds two fundraisers a year. We ask our scouts to participate. We ask that they sell popcorn or Christmas Wreaths. They need to sell enough to contribute $50 profit to the troop. Any profit above $50 is then split 50/50 with the troop with the remainder going into the scouts "cash account" that can be used to offset rechartering, summer camp, etc. If a scout does not contribute $50 in profit to the troop then the scout or his parent must write a check for the difference. This is technically "dues". It's much easier to write a check for $50 then actually "work" trying to sell popcorn, etc. So many of our older boys opt out of fundraising and stroke a check. My thinking is we should require them to contribute $100 in profit for the troop. Maybe this would make them get out there and actually fund raise versus simply writing the troop a check. I'm open for your comments or advice. What does your troop require from scouts?

[Gold Winger]

Nah, they'll just write the check. My son's troop made it a requirement that you have to participate in the fundraiser and by participate they mean sell one item or show up at a show-n-sell. Not sure of what the penalty is yet because they haven't had too many that haven't participated.

 

My son's troop doesn't say, "sell so much or write a check." They say, "If you sell over $100, 50 % of the troops share goes into your scout account." You can use that for rechartering or gear or summer camp or whatever. Somehow in December you need to get $50 to the troop no matter how much popcorn you sold. So the money can come from your scout account or you can write a check.

 

If it was up to me, if you didn't participate, I wouldn't let you recharter. A troop is a team. If you don't want to help the team, you can't pretend to be part of it.

 

Some units do have alternative fundraisers. I know of units that do a candy bar sale because the Scouts can take the box of bars to School and sell them to their friends.

 

 

[insanescouter]

Interesting... we just split all the funds raised 50 / 50 ... not after a certain amount is reached ... nor do we charge dues all funds come either from fund raisers or the families...

 

 

Anyways just my wacky 2 cents ...

 

Scott Robertson

http://insanescouter.org

[Beavah]

All kinds of ways to do it, rwh1955.

 

Yours sounds interesting.

 

I have a question, though.

 

If many or most of your families are willin' to just write a check, why fight it? That seems to be your market telling you something.

 

Families these days are busy. Both parents working, kids at multiple activities.

 

Time is often a lot more "expensive" than cash.

 

Yeh might figure out what the troop program expenses are and make that "dues."

 

Then spend your time teachin' teamwork in the woods and fields where they learn faster and have more fun, rather than hockin' overpriced popcorn.

 

Beavah

 

[eolesen]

We discouraged annual dues in my old troop... A Scout is Thrifty. We took the approach that paying dues is a lot like tithing -- if you just write a check once a year, the Scout learns nothing.

 

By making the patrol leaders collect the dues on a weekly basis, the kids realize they have an obligation to fulfill, and with our son specifically, he had to find that $1 a week.

 

It came out to the same $50 that our current troop collects once a year, but the lesson learned was perhaps a little more useful in real life.

[LongHaul]

I also dislike the "over priced" popcorn and the effort it takes to manage the fund raiser. However looking at it from the Council side selling popcorn provides a large chunk of the operating budget. If a unit chooses not to sell popcorn because the parents just want to write a check to the troop should that troop be required to meet some "quota" when it comes time for FOS? Shouldn't the PLC, after all they decide to sell popcorn or not right , be taught that each troop needs to support the Council if the organization is to prosper? As Gold Winger said this is a team effort.

LH(This message has been edited by LongHaul)

[eolesen]

I wouldn't count too heavily on FOS picking up the slack. The Salt Lake newspaper expose on SE salaries last week is probably going to cause FOS to drop this year....

[Joni4TA]

Well I verily agree with LongHaul on the issue of over-priced Popcorn! It can, and usually is, a nightmare of a fundraiser. And it only gets worse if you don't have the participation coming from the boys and their families.

 

Every year at Popcorn time I see the numbers of boys showing up, drop from about an average 14 per function, to about 4. They (and their parents) just don't want anything to do with it. I don't blame them much - I don't want to either, but two years in a row one of the adults in my household has been the Popcorn Kernel! We've picked the stuff up, housed it, been responsible for its inventory and set up a sales schedule. We must be nuts! I don't think I will step up next year even IF the boys decide at the PLC they want to! My husband concurs!

 

Anyway, our Troop splits 50/50 with the boys on commission, regardless of how much they sell. And dues are separate - at $1 per week. We HARDLY squeak by! Right now I think more is owed to the Troop account than we actually have in it. Needless to say I believe our budget needs to be revised badly, too.

 

I do think most parents will probably just write a fatter check versus getting more involved in a fundraiser. My opinion though.

[highcountry]

Our Adult leadership and committee in our troop has been seriously talking about the idea of a large dues increase for next year and then backing off on the fund raisers. I am of mind that teh scouts need to earn their money and make it on their own steam, it is a major part of whrt they need to learn from the program. Reality is the fundraising is causing lots of damage and is taking away my time and others and the participation is dwindling. I absolutely hate the entitlement attitude and laziness amongst the scouts for the lack of particiaption and parents willingness to smooth those bumps out of their son's life by whipping out the checkbook, the problem is, this is the normal common behavior they see day in and day out by nearly everyone else thy know at school and the community.....it is almost impossible to fight overwhelming odds like that and when I do I end up getting bitter and angry about it. I try to individually encourage scouts (and somethiems their parents)with low scout accounts that they need to participate in any given fund raiser and my success rate is maybe 50-50. After showing that once they feel they did their part and drop out of sight fund raising wise. The lazy attitude still prevails and when push comes to shove the parents whip out the checkbook and the scout learns nothing.

My wife asked me to back off on a couple fund raisers recently for a spell untill more help started to show up, a few scouts and their parents she has heard me say some really bad things about in private and she knows I am getting to hate these people for their cliuelessness and lack of aprticpation. For my own sake and the sake of the troop I had to back off my participation and learn to chill. We normally split profits 75% to the scout and 25% to the troop. Dues are $50 a year additional ($10 to council and $40 to the troop). We are considering cancelling candle sales for lack of particpation for next year and making just wreath and popcorn available but we are not going to push it or plan on much proceeds from it.....if boys want to participate that is thier decision. Jack the dues up to $125 but any fundraising they do the profit goes 100% to the scout. Anyone still short needs to write a check.

[Scoutmaster Ron]

So they have to sell enough to earn $50.00 profit for the pack and then you take a 50-50 split above that?

Does not sound right to me.

[anarchist]

fundraising is getting old...

 

on an average year our boys are asked to do two fund raisers for scouts (not including the FOS dance)...

-then there is the candy bar sale for church

-and the wrapping paper for PTA

-then the fruit for the FFA

- then the discount cards for the wrestling team

- then the band dinner

- then the christmas "stuff" sales for the high school "class"

-then the work session in the stadium kitchen for the football boosters

-then the mulch for the atheletic department

-not to mention the donuts for the soccer team

-or the drinks and popcorn for the cross country team...

and of course dads check book for uniforms, shoes, new pads, travel and overnoights...

 

families get hammered more and more to raise funds for the activities...is it any wonder why some of us would rather whip out a check book than face one more weekend (or longer) sales effort...frankly, I would rather be out camping and ask my sons to do extra work around the barnyard to pay dues (and other things)

 

anarchist

[scoutldr]

Our troop charges the annual recharter fee, plus $1 a week. We have two fundraisers, popcorn (which is minimal) and Christmas wreaths. 50% goes into scout accounts and they can use that for camp fees, or the parents write a check.

 

The idea of fundraising is to reinforce B-Ps idea that a Scout should earn his own way. Having mommy stroke a check is a cop-out and defeats the purpose. If Scout wants to stroke a check from his own funds (job, birthday money, etc) that's ok. IMHO, if the fundraisers and Scout's contributions don't fund an activity, then the activity shouldn't happen. The BOYS didn't work hard enough for it. The plan for all this is the annual Unit Budget Plan, which the PLC should have a hand in developing. Life is hard for those who don't work and plan. A lesson which we should be teaching them.

[Gold Winger]

" IMHO, if the fundraisers and Scout's contributions don't fund an activity, then the activity shouldn't happen. The BOYS didn't work hard enough for it. "

 

Oh, the horror of it all. You'd let boys miss out on an activity because they didn't care enough to raise the money to take part in it? You are a vile and evil person.

 

Boys cannot be expected to anything other than horse around at the PLC while the SM plans the activities. They shouldn't have to keep track of their accomplishments or know where they stand for advancement, they just don't have the brainpower even though they are taking calculus in the 9th grade.

 

Oh, evil thy name is Sctldr. :-)

 

[Beavah]

Yah highcountry, how 'bout this...

 

Instead of fundraisin', yeh have service.

 

Boys who want to participate on outings have to participate in community service on a 2:1 basis (or some other ratio). A day of community service "pays" for a weekend outing.

 

If their parents are bein' generous with them by writin' a check, seems like we should teach them to be similarly generous to others in need . Almost seems more in keepin' with the Scout Oath than sellin' stuff.

 

Plus, I reckon community service that their son does will be a lot more attractive to parents than sellin' popcorn (which, mostly, da parent does).

 

Beavah

 

[scoutldr]

My take: service should be done because it's the right thing to do (not to mention the Scout Oath)...not something to be done only in exchange for a reward.

 

I guess I am evil...so be it.