What do you to to engage your CO?

[dsteele]

I spun this off only because I like to examine questions/problems/opportunities from more than one angle.

 

What do you do to engage your chartered organization?

 

For example, when I became a Scoutmaster, I was the first one in years who was actually a member of the church. The relationship between the troop and the church was pretty weak.

 

One of the first things we did was to get a new Chartered Organization Rep who was an Eagle Scout and a member of the Board of Christian Education, which oversaw all youth programs involved in that church.

 

Through his help, we had the church start sending it's bulletins to every member of the church. BTW -- none of the boys in the troop were members of the church congregation, but the CR and I were able to convince the Board of Ed. that we were part of the church organization because the church owns the troop.

 

When we did our service project for the church (our Charter Partner) as you're supposed to do, I made sure one of the parents did a write up on the project and sent it in to the church newsletter editor.

 

We attended Scout Sunday services in uniform and assisted with candles, prayers, etc. One year, the pastor even used parts of a sermon someone dug up from somewhere about Scouting.

 

It came to be a much closer tie bit by bit. Actually, when the troop suddenly gained 18 new Scouts and needed camp stoves, propane lanterns, etc (it had just doubled in size,) the Board of Christian Education donated $800 to pay for them.

 

What are your thoughts?

 

Unc.

[SemperParatus]

Some ideas:

 

1. Service Projects (more visible the better)

2. Scout Sunday (if church)

3. Invites of CO leaders to COH, Blue&Gold, Other Large Events, Charter presentations.

4. Articles for CO bulletins/newsletters

5. Push for strong COR - scouting background preferred.

6. Engage in fundraising for CO

7. Scout presentations at CO meetings

8. A Unit Annual Report showing all the great things you are doing - present at CO meeting.

9. Perform annual meeting facility inspection with COR (especially if problems).

10. Recruit MBC from CO (e.g., firemen for fire safety MB (fire dept CO), teachers for scholarship/reading MB (school CO), etc.)

11. Invite interested CO members on a campout.

 

Folks seem to complain that their CO is AWOL. It is a two-way street - let the CO see the scouts too.

[fotoscout]

I'll play.....

 

SemperParatus,to what end, for what purpose???

[dsteele]

Not to answer for "Always ready," but I can sum up the why in a sentence.

 

To make the unit what it's supposed to be . . . part of the chartered organization's organization.

 

Unc.

[SemperParatus]

Thank you Unc!

 

Unit leaders have several choices:

1. They can do their thing without CO involvement and be perfectly happy.

2. They can complain that there CO is nowhere and do nothing about it (except complain and wait to be noticed).

3. They can initiate the CO contact and seek its involvement. A strong CO-Unit relationship can make both better. CO can be a great source of funds, resources, leaders, etc. Sometimes all it takes is to ask. If CO doesn't know you, don't expect much.

 

To what end...to make your Unit better.

 

 

[fotoscout]

I did know the answer, but I wanted to make the point.

 

Let me answer the original question, what do we do to engage our CO? Our CO is the local Chamber of Commerce. We provide a Color Guard for them when asked, we do a fall harvest event for them and the larger community, we take care of a couple of small memorial parks for them, they participate at our Pinewood Derby and B&G as judges, and thats pretty much it. What we do, or how much we do, has no bearing on their involvement in the pack.

 

I believe that the concept of the Charter Organizations organization is flawed in todays world. No one needs to step forward to provide a youth program for todays boys. From Church youth groups, to 4H, to Jaycees, to the plethora of sports groups there, are plenty of outlets for todays boys. If run well they all have the potential to provide character building opportunity for the kids. They are all staffed and run by parents of children in the organization.

 

So beyond the simple necessity of facilitating a BSA Unit in the community why would the CO want to take on the true ownership of unit? There is nothing in it for them. Perhaps maybe some servitude. If I were a CO with no children in the unit, why would I want the problems of bad leaders, angry parents, insufficient funds, no meeting place, bad program.etc, etc. Back in the old days, COs chartered units because the kids needed a structured program, there were none others. There was good reason to take on the potential for problems. In a one horse town the church or General Store chartered a unit for the kids. Everyone knew each other, and when the unit was successful, the whole town beamed. The world most of us live in is very different.

 

If we move to the larger picture, its the concept of the CO that has lead Scouting to its biggest problem ever. Its probably time that we moved to a system more like the GSA.

 

[Laurie]

1. Find out what a CO is; none of us had a clue two years ago. All leaders, even those around for awhile, thought the pack ran the pack, and that it was allowed to do so by the CO.

 

2. Serve the CO. Little odd jobs as they are seen, bigger jobs when able to.

 

3. Make sure the community knows that the pack is owned by the CO. Do so by naming the pack as "St. Joseph's Cub Scout Pack 000" when submitting publicity releases, for example.

 

4. Thank the CO, in writing, and whenver possible including boys' signatures, for the opportunities it allows the unit to have in providing the program that the CO began long ago. [poorly worded, but I think you follow]

 

Last year when we did the Scouting For Food drive, I learned that the CO had a food ministry. The pack hadn't done SFF for a long time, if ever. I got it going last year, and as my son and I headed out with another Cub and leader, we spoke to neighbors along the way. They were thrilled to see Scouts in the area, and we took the opportunity to tell them where we were from, where the food was going, and to thank them for their generosity and their interest in the Cubs. This year when I called to set up a drop off time for the food, the church secretary apologized for not telling me something that happened last year. Apparently after we did our pickups and PR along the way, people began to drop by with bags of food and even frozen foods. She said it was such a blessing and that people stopping in had named me and the Cubs. I'll tell you what: I feel blessed to know that we had a small part in something so much bigger, and then had the privilege of hearing how it grew and continued on by others. Oh, and last year it was a hassle for the CO to take food (not sure why), but this year they were thrilled.

 

 

[dan]

Do nothing, keep flying under the radar. It is the way the CO wants it and the way the CC wants it. Remember township, may or may not be legal. I have asked 2 DEs about this, and they both sad they where working on it. They are both gone know, Number 3 in a year. The district has no more CO to provide. We have 3 troops within 15 miles of each other that are over 70 boys each, If no CO available no new troops.

I Love this scouting stuff!

[SemperParatus]

fotoscout,

 

Excuse my ignorance, what do you mean when you say, "its the concept of the CO that has lead Scouting to its biggest problem ever."??

[fotoscout]

Semper,

 

Please check your private email.

 

foto

[eagle90]

Our CO is an elementary school council.

 

We have invited the president and principal to each COH, Eagle COH, etc., and never once in over 20 years has one made an appearance.

 

We have invited the same people to our annual dinner (with an RSVP request), and very rarely do we even get the courtesy of a reply.

 

In past years the Troop has made a fairly substantial donation to the chartering organization (200-300 a yar). We never even rteceived a thank you from them. So we stopped making said donation.

 

We have tried, but to no avail.

[EagleInKY]

Why keep in touch with your CO? (Besides the obvious) You want to stay in good graces with them. At some point, someone will make noise about something. Perhaps it was something that got damaged at the building, perhaps it was that another group couldn't use the building on "troop night", perhaps a member doesn't like the BSA stance on (fill in the blank). Whatever the case, sometime, somewhere, something will not go right. If, when that happens, you are "just some group that uses the building", then you may find yourself on the street after that. But, if you have an ongoing relationship and they understand who you are, why you're there and what you're doing.... then you'll survive the bumpy times.

 

Why do I say this? It happened to us. Several years ago, our pack was "kicked out" over a little misunderstand.

[anarchist]

SemperParatus,

Let's see (not to beat a dead horse)....

#1. Annually we provide waiters and bus-boys, dish washers and cleanup staff for the CO's big church fund raising supper. We build and maintain trails for devotional walks in the 'wood behind the church', built and rebuilt the play ground....

#2. never miss Scout Sunday (even though it is usually a different day than BSA schedules, also do the Vets. day presentation for them each year ( and only three of sixty scouts are members).

#3. CO/IH and COR are on our invite list for everything.

#4. provide info for church handouts and local news articles...that usually when we see the COR (after a news article appears in a local paper)

#5. COR is very old ex-scout who was a new scout in out troop 53 years ago (when troop was new and had a different CO)

#6. See #1.

#7. Do an annual Sunday Charter presentation

#8.Unit report - Part of Quality unit package at semi annual church business meeting.

#9...not sure on this one (

#10...caving instructor from church as well as aviation

#11 yes, and each year we set up an exhibit campsite on the church grounds for their annual community picnic...how easy can it get (no one camps with us...we even hold a scout cooking contest and let CO supply judges...

gosh and this fall the CO moved an outside preschool operator into the rooms we had been sharing with sunday school classes for 19 years...Go figure!

And now they wonder why we are looking for a new CO....

Roll on!

 

[SemperParatus]

Anarchist, at least you made the attempt and can move on without any regrets. I hope your unappreciative CO is not the norm.

[Scoutmaster Ron]

Are COR ( a female with much scouting experience) went to the CO to get their support in banning women from attending campouts unless another female or her husband attended, it ruined the troop it went from approx. 22 scouts to 9 within 5 months. Of the 9 only 4 were atending meetings when I transferred out.