The Bloggers
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The September issue of Venturing Magazine contains what is, in my opinion, a pretty disturbing article titled " What's in Store for Venturing? " According to this article, there are several changes in the works that include the elimination of the Venturing oath, code, sign and salute.
I'm one of those guys that thinks every Scouter should go to Wood Badge. It is fantastic training that will bless the lives of not only those who take the course, but all those with whom they interact afterward. I believe it made me a better person and helped me improve my Venturing crew more…
A couple days ago I saw a news story on our local television network that showed Mitt Romney being greeted at the airport by a troop of Boy Scouts. I commented to my wife that someone really messed up on that one.
I recently found out about a new program called Messengers of Peace. It is actually an initiative of the World Scout Committee that started in September 2011. The Boy Scouts of America joined up this year. There are relevant materials at two websites: BSA - http://www.scouting.org/jamboree/sitecore/content/Home/International/messengersofpeace.aspx World - http://scoutmessengers.com/index.html In looking through the materials on both sites…
In my new responsibilities as Chartered Organization Representative in my ward, I want to do all I can to strengthen our Scouting program to help our youth. We have several problems I'm trying to figure out how to address (committee support, adult leader commitment and training, etc.), but there's one thing that I am powerless…
I just got back from the first weekend of Wood Badge. This is my second time on staff and has been so much more relaxing than the first time. I was supposed to be a troop guide again, but we didn't have enough participants for me to have a patrol to guide.
I was officially released from the young men on Sunday, when we sustained the new YM president in our ward. I know he will be great for our youth and will do a fantastic job with them. I'm confident he will continue the work I started with the Venturing program in our ward and I…
I realize the title of this post may raise a few eyebrows (and tempers) but let me explain. Last night I met with a young man in my ward who just turned 14, and his mother. This young man has just recently started coming back to church (good for him).
The final day of our trip, and probably the most challenging: If you look closely, you can see a bright spot near the center of this photo. That's from a signal mirror near the trail head. The destination. Elevation: 11,440 feet.
Day 2 of 3:...
I just got back from what is likely to be the last big thing I do with my young men. We took both the Venturers and the Varsity Scouts. I'll let the pictures do the talking. This is Day 1 of 3.
One of the interesting things about Scouting in the LDS Church is that the leaders don't (usually) volunteer. They are called. That is, they are asked by an inspired leader to accept the responsibility. That also means that most Scouters don't retire.
Everyone knows Scouts do service. But there are some who don't understand the concept very well. I don't know how often I've gotten a call from someone requesting the help of my young men on some project or another. It's always put forward as a great opportunity for service.
It seems that I go through phases with this blog. Sometimes I have a lot to say. Other times I go for a while without any thoughts to share. I think I'm in the latter category at the moment. I was just wondering what I might be able to post about.
After my wife and I found out we were having a baby boy, she started to work on a present for him/me. He showed up a bit on the small side so he couldn't try it out until recently--just in time for our last court of honor.
Last night, I witnessed a major milestone in the lives of two of my young men. These two young men (twins) have been with me almost as long as I have been in Venturing. They were teachers when I moved into the ward and joined my Venturing crew just after I attended Wood Badge and…
A week ago at our combined Troop/Team/Crew court of honor, I shared a thought that went something like this: We have just handed out several Scout awards tonight, and I'd like to tell you a little about them. I'll use my own awards as an illustration.
I'm sure anyone reading this post has heard the term "super-scouter." It may have even been applied to you. I think there are some who are starting to apply it to me and I'm not sure I like it. The term almost always comes across with a slightly negative connotation.
Once upon a time there lived a young Boy Scout named David. One day, David's father gave him a very important job. He was to travel far from home to deliver a care package to his three older brothers, who were serving in the army.
Last night my Venturing crew was supposed to have a party. Two of our members are graduating from High School this week and the others wanted to throw a party for them. It has been on our calendar for at least two months.
Scout Camp: The Movie came out a few years ago and I saw it with my youth at a Council sponsored centennial camp in 2010. The reason I am blogging about it now is that news of a sequel got me thinking about it.
Robert Baden-Powell called St. George "the Patron Saint of Boy Scouts everywhere." Image found at Pine Tree Web - http://www.pinetreeweb.com/eer-scouts5b.htm From Scouting For Boys : "St. George was born in Cappadocia in the year AD 303. He enlisted as a cavalry soldier when he was seventeen, and soon became renowned for his bravery.
Today (April 19) is Holocaust Remembrance Day. The remembrance day marks the day of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camps. Last night my wife and I caught a program on television, telling the stories of seven survivors of the holocaust.
On Saturday I attended my first staff development meeting for this year's Wood Badge course. I get to be a Troop Guide for the second year in a row. Which means, I already have all my presentations basically ready--I just need to do some tweaking.
I'm working on a presentation about the Venturing Silver Award for round table this month, which got me thinking about the Venturing method of recognition. And I decided I've been wrong. Sort of. In the past I have tried to emphasize the difference between the Boy Scout method of "Advancement" and the Venturing method of…
I had an interesting conversation yesterday. Someone came into my office at work and told me he had been in a District Scout meeting (advancement committee, maybe?) and my name had come up. Apparently, the district executive told them that I had the only Venturing crew in the district that was doing it right.
I get to be a troop guide for Wood Badge again this year and I've been reviewing my presentations from last year. One that I needed to modify a bit was the presentation on Leave No Trace. One thing I worry about with this presentation is that it can be a pretty sensitive topic in…
One of the things I've been trying to do to improve our Venturing activities is to close with a reflection. This is something that was mentioned in Brad Harris' book Trails to Testimony as a way to find spiritual lessons in our activities.
Let me begin by saying I don't necessarily have anything against sports. But as an LDS Venturing advisor, I'm beginning to dislike them. At least the high school version. Over the next month and a half, there is exactly one of our regular Wednesday nights that will not be interrupted by a track meet.
I finished reading Trails to Testimony by Brad Harris a little while ago, and I keep thinking about it. One thing that struck me was the need to have the Scoutmaster be the best man in the ward. This actually came from a talk in General Conference by Bishop C.
There is an excellent article in Venturing Magazine about youth leadership, specifically as it relates to Venturing, but Boy Scout and Varsity Scout leaders may find it useful, too. The "Let the Youth Do It" Dilemma "It is not realistic, nor is it wise to throw out the question "What do you want to do…
My job (the way I pay for my Scouting addiction) involves improving habitat for mule deer, elk and other game species. One great way to enhance habitat for these species, at least in certain areas, is through fire. In the right place at the right time, a wildfire can be a great thing.
Last Friday we had our second Venturing date night. (For my discussion of our first one, see here .) After our last date night, we had a discussion about the purposes of dating and I challenged them to do a second date and incorporate what they learned.
I've been thinking lately that I really need to get our youth camping more. This has been a chronic problem in our ward since before I moved in. The Scouts (deacons) go camping exactly once each year--to summer camp. They should be camping monthly.
I just finished reading Trails to Testimony by Brad Harris, and thought I would give a review. But I'm not really very good at that sort of thing, so this probably won't be quite like your usual book review. In many ways it was a difficult book for me to read.
This morning I was directed to the blog of Brad Harris, author of Trails to Testimony . He describes how Nephi was an Eagle Scout. http://www.trailstotestimony.com/blog/2011/07/nephi-would-have-made-a-great-boy-scout/ This is right in-line with my own thinking about LDS Scouting heroes. See my previous posts here , and here .
I've been meaning to do this for a while and just got around to it. I've added some labels to my posts and have links to the labels in the right hand column. I don't know if they're very good, but they might help people find things better.
This was shared by David Pack from the LDS-BSA relationships office at a Little Philmont training last Saturday. I wish I could have recorded it word-for-word because it was so good. But I can't, so you get my re-telling of it.
On February 8, 1910 the Boy Scouts of America was officially born. We all know the story of William D. Boyce, lost in a London fog, who received help from a young man who refused a tip for his service.
Our district is holding its annual merit badge pow-wow in March and I've been handing out registration forms for the last couple weeks. One boy, a Life scout, asked me if it would they would let him sign up for three required merit badges (the pow-wow rules say a max of two).
This is something I've wondered about a bit, but since I'm in Venturing and not Boy Scouts, it isn't something I've actually had to deal with. But I still wonder. Requirement 11 for the Tenderfoot Rank reads: "Identify local poisonous plants; tell how to treat for exposure to them."
During Wood Badge, both as a participant and a staff member, I noticed that one of the more popular presentations was about the Stages of Team Development. This one really seemed to affect people I've just been going over the Introduction to LeadershipSkills for Crews course, preparing to teach it to my young men in…
From the fortune cookies at dinner the other night: "Leaders are like eagles. They don't flock, you find them one at a time." "Management is doing things right. Leadership is doing the right things."
Our Venturing crew did a snowshoeing trip this weekend. It was great. In fact, I think it more closely fit the ideal for a Venturing activity than any other activity we have done. At least in regards to the planning and implementation process.
Quite some time ago I discovered the online Venturing Magazine. The only problem was that it was never updated. Until now. The new and improved Venturing Magazine can be found at http://www.venturingmag.org/ There is also a Venturing Magazine Blog at http://venturingmag.blogspot.com/ I really hope to see this take off.
