FOS at Eagle Court of Honor

[WAKWIB]

shortridge,

At least for our unit an ECOH is just that and only that.

And in the event I described in the previous post, due diligence is given to the Scouts getting awards at the regular COH before other things come into play. The Court is technically ajourned before other business takes place. The brief, and I do mean BRIEF, presentation is given by a familiar and friendly face. Our COR is actively engaged with our unit.

NOT A STRANGER BARGING IN ON AN EXCLUSIVE EAGLE COURT OF HONOR

(which was the point of the original post in this thread)

 

It is obviously a matter of the right time and place.

Also SMT224 has a very good point about whether it's even appropriate at all to hit up families with active Scouts for FOS. I know that I am not a heavy FOS giver, and I'm very sure many other families give little, if at all.

 

 

 

 

[sherminator505]

Here's my feeling:

 

At a roundtable? Of course!

 

At a troop committee meeting? Yes.

 

At a regular COH? Maybe, but don't get your hopes up for an overwhelming response.

 

At a ECOH? No. It's the Eagle's night. As I said before, that would be crass.

[Beavah]

Yah, I think it's a different question, eh?

 

Da question should instead be what's the most effective way to conduct family FOS in a way that is successful at raising funds and building long term good will and donor loyalty? Group presentations might not be da right way at all. How many college alumni development efforts rely on once a year group presentations? When was da last time ARC did somethin' like that?And yet I reckon they're pretty successful.

 

There's a difference between thoughtful, professional fundraising and this sort of mildly offensive and unprofessional court of honor mass solicitation stuff. Anyone who has had experience with da former realizes just how poor the latter is.

 

Beavah

 

 

[ctbailey]

I still haven't heard any viable solutions.

 

It's not always the DE/DD who is presenting. Very often it is a District volunteer, who has been asked to make a presentation by another District volunteer.

 

Maybe someone with some "experience in professional fundraising" would care to shed some light on when and how to successfully run a campaign.

[sherminator505]

We really are trying to be helpful. I think what I've been trying to say is that regardless of who is giving this presentation, that person should use some judgment in selecting an appropriate venue. IMHO, an ECOH ain't it.

[Abel Magwitch]

Totally agree with sherminator. Also don't forget the last minute on the spur of the moment timing of the DD - Hi, thanks for inviting me to the ECOH. I know you want to start the COH in a few minutes, but before you begin, could I solicit FOS from your guests first?

 

There was no advance notice what so ever.

 

Houston, we have a problem.

[packsaddle]

"Group presentations might not be da right way at all."

I think Beavah is correct. Talk of 'pitches' and 'takes' is what I heard long ago when I was being recruited to sell encyclopedias. There just isn't a way to intrude on a family gathering in this manner and NOT cause ill will among some persons, actually most of them in this area.

Put the solicitation on radio ads, mail them to the families, get creative and produce a website that someone actually WANTS to visit and put it there. Take out newspaper ads. But don't force a captive audience to endure a 'pitch' after which someone at the council analyzes the 'take' to see whose 'pitch' was most productive.

It might just be me but then, I passed on those encyclopedias and instead worked to exhaustion each day fabricating steel rebars. For some reason, I felt THAT was a more honest way to make money.

[T2Eagle]

ECOH is not the time to do an FOS, the ECOH is about the Eagle Scout.

 

B&G is OK but not my favorite, I'd rather do it at a well attended Pack meeting when you can separate the parents from the Cubs for a little bit. You get a few less listeners than at a B&G but they're probably listening a little better. COHs are also OK, we always have a parent meeting following the COH and once a year FOS is one of the agenda items at that meeting. Whenever possible we have a volunteer, ideally someone from the Pack or Troop, do the presentation although the DE is usually there.

 

A smart DE does go to ECOHs and does his job: properly honoring the scout, introducing himself, meeting and engaging lots of folks, being the face of professional scouting. That way when the proper venue for fundraising presents itself the DE is someone already known, not just some guy who shows up to ask for money.

 

As to the most viable action for FOS, it's us. Yes fundraising can be uncomfortable, but one on one requests from someone that is part of the program is more effective than any group meeting. We want this program to work, and until someone comes up with a better way to fund it, those of us in it probably need to be a part of that fundraising.

[Old_OX_Eagle83]

In bad taste would not even cover this. There is a time and place, an Eagle COH is neither.

[SeattlePioneer]

Oh, I think there are tasteful ways of doing lots of things if one puts ones mind to it.

 

Without funding for councils, there arguably wouldn't BE Eagle Scouts.

 

Raising money for Scouting is a fact of life. Part of being thrifty is for boys to raise money to pay for their own Scouting expences --- I might argue that includes funding for the council.

 

However, there are lots of ways to do that, and an Eagle COH might or might not be a method chosen by a Troop or an Eagle Scout canidate.

 

If a Troop chose aqnother method to help their council, that's certainly fine with me.