The Bloggers
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________________________________________ Dear Andy, My dad has been reading your columns for years and he suggested I write to you about a problem I’m having. My family just moved here from another state and I’ve joined up with a new troop. This troop doesn’t have Order of the Arrow elections or anything.
________________________________________ Hi Andy, This isn’t really a question so much as it’s something we’ve learned along the way… As references for soon-to-be Eagle Scouts come in to us, we respond with thanks to the person participating in the process. However, more important is that we believe the Scout himself should contact all references and get permission…
________________________________________ In my Issue no. 563, Lee Murray asked, “Can a Scout start a merit badge under the old requirements and finish under the new, provided he has completed all of the new requirements? Is there anything that says he can’t do this?”
________________________________________ Dear Andy, For his Eagle board of review, a Scout provides the names and contact information for up to six references. Following his successful review, two questions for you: Should “thank you” notes or letters be sent to the people who provided those references?
________________________________________ BSA REVAMPS PHILMONT! CIMARRON, NM – Following several years of nationwide conferences and planning sessions, the Boy Scouts of America will be launching major reconfigurations of Philmont Scout Ranch and Training Center this summer. Here are some of the highlights of changes to come… The famous “Tooth of Time” will be drilled out and converted into…
________________________________________ Hi Andy! Your recent discussion about counting service hours brings up two issues we recently faced, and I’d like to get your take on them. At this year’s Scout Sunday, one of our Scouts, who regularly operates the electronic sound board in the sanctuary, wore a jacket over his uniform for the entire service.
________________________________________ Hi Andy, I just read your column last week, and the piece about the Scouts who did an opening ceremony at a hockey game and then stayed to watch the game. I so rarely disagree with you, but this time I think you “dumbed down” the requirements so much and just gone too far when…
________________________________________ Hi Andy, We just had three Scouts help out at a Wounded Warriors Hockey Game as the flag detail for the opening ceremony. After they’d completed this, they stayed and watched all or part of the game. One Scout was there for about a half-hour; the other two for an hour-and-a-half each.
________________________________________ Dear Andy, I’m concerned that the Boy Scouts of America has had a long relationship with the NRA, but today the NRA really is a political organization and is tarnishing the reputation of my beloved BSA. I think it’s time to sever ties with the NRA publicly!
________________________________________ Hi Andy, Is there a way to find out what project a Scout accomplished in order to become an Eagle Scout in the 1930’s? My sister and I are trying to get more information about Charles Frederick Day. Thanks! (Susan Day) In the 1930’s there was no specific “service project” requirement for Eagle.
Thanks ever so much for your patience, folks…and special thanks to you all who sent best wishes to my bride! I’d started out today with every plan to get back to you with a fresh column before sundown, but that just wasn’t destined to happen.
A funny thing happened on our way to the tepee… Well, actually not so funny. While visiting our daughter (one of three) who lives in Colorado, my bride Linda fell and fractured the top of her femur, requiring immediate surgery and now about two weeks of physical therapy before she can get onto a plane.
Hi Folks! I'll be on the road from now till early next week, and that's when I'll get my next column out to you. Happy Scouting! Andy
________________________________________ Hi Andy, We have a pack in our home town with around eight Webelos Scouts: Three were born in 2007 (two in August, one in October). Will they need to “cross-over” to a Boy Scout troop when they turn 11 years old?
________________________________________ I’m a Merit Badge Counselor for COMMUNICATIONS. I regularly get four types of inquiries, in this order: (1) Emails or texts from Scouts, (2) Phone calls from a parent (99% his Mom), and (3) Phone calls from Scouts. This order is important.
________________________________________ As we pop out of 2017’s holidays and wend our way into the beginning of a new year, let’s promise to be kind to one another and loyal to the spirit of Scouting! ————————————————– To get started, I have a personal request to PAUL GEISSLER … Paul, you wrote to me and I’d like to respond, but…
________________________________________ Hi Andy, Our Troop has a board of review process that operates very smoothly and places a high priority on making sure the content and discussion is beneficial to our Scouts and assists them along their advancement path. While at a recent campout, two of our newer Scouts completed their requirements for Tenderfoot rank.
________________________________________ In this column… • Rank- and grade-appropriate “Cyber Chip” earning • BSA Membership numbers—How it works • Keeping your Scout troop “Scout-led” • Lone Scout service opportunity…By a former Lone Scout ============================= Hi Andy, Our troop has a Scout who will be First Class on December 6th.
________________________________________ In this column… • “Co-” Senior Patrol Leaders? Really??? • Under-age drinking. What would YOU do? • Eagle project gone sideways? • How to be smart about Eagle references. ============================= Dear Andy, I’m a Troop Guide and I’m getting ready for our troop’s elections. Last time I ran for Senior Patrol Leader, two other Scouts ran together as co-SPLs.
________________________________________ In this column… • Is Assistant Patrol Leader a qualifying position for advancement? • When to wear your Eagle medal. • What makes for “conservation” service hours? • How to handle “Two-Deep Leadership” and The Buddy System. ========================================================= Hey Andy, I’m a Patrol Leader in my troop and something here has been going on that I don’t agree with.
________________________________________ Here’s a conversation from November 7, 2007—ten years ago—with a fellow online columnist… Hey Andy, As I read your considerable archive of advice, I note that some of the most intractable situations brought to you involve leaders with some serious blind spots—they seem to be caught in a cul-de-sac of their own importance and their…
________________________________________ Hi Andy, My Eagle Scout son earned a total of 51 merit badges. That’s 30 beyond the 21 for Eagle rank. So how does he pin six (!) palms on the ribbon of his medal? (Lynne Ghwieny) That’s an easy one… He actually doesn’t wear six palms; he wears three: one silver, representing fifteen merit badges…
________________________________________ Dear Andy, I’m proud to say our son Joey is officially an Eagle Scout. He had his board of review successfully in July, and his Eagle court of honor was last night. Even his new Scoutmaster said, “This kid is a rock star!”
________________________________________ Do YOU subscribe to the BSA’s “ADVANCEMENT NEWS”? This isn’t a “blog”—it’s a newsletter published about ten times a year that you can subscribe to. Each article is written by an advancement expert and vetted by the BSA National Advancement Team.
________________________________________ Please take a moment of silent personal reflection before reading this column, in respect to the victims of the Las Vegas massacre and their families, and to honor all those who responded immediately and afterward to this singular tragedy. Thank you.
________________________________________ Hi Andy, One of the Cub Scout packs I serve is struggling because of the lack of parent participation. I need some good advice on how to approach parents at upcoming recruitment nights and what to say. Can you help me out here?
________________________________________ Just a heads-up… I’ll be traveling sans computer till September 22nd, so no columns on the 12th or 19th. But when I return I’ll be personally answering every letter and there will definitely be a new column on the 26th!
________________________________________ Dear Andy, We have an Eagle Scout candidate who transferred from our troop to another when he was a Star Scout. While at that other troop he received his Life rank. Following this, he transferred back to our troop and has since completed all requirements for Eagle.
________________________________________ Hi Andy, Just read your last week’s comments about “how any knots?” and just had to share this with you… A couple of my own uniforms have 12 square knots, which drives at least one Scouter friend of mine nuts!
________________________________________ Hi Andy, Thanks to a great district committee and a marvelous nomination I hadn’t expected, I’ve recently received the District Award of Merit and, with it, my tenth “square knot.” But then, at our summer Roundtable, a long-time Scouting friend who scanned my uniform shirt pointed out to me that the BSA only allows a…
________________________________________ Hi Andy, I’m a kinda new (seven months) Scoutmaster. My problem is that, here we are, mid-summer, and I’m seeing our troop’s Life Scouts flounder and squander their time with no clear direction toward Eagle; so far, they’ve wasted a half-year of their Scouting lives doing little to nothing in the advancement arena.
________________________________________ Messages have been flying around the Internet ever since President Trump’s speech at the National Scout Jamboree yesterday. The USSSP has received a bunch and I’m sure the BSA has received even more. I’ve received a number also, and the very best one I’ve seen is from a Scouter in my home council: Howard Lee…
________________________________________ Just a quick heads-up, folks… (If I can remember what month this is!) I’ve been traveling for the past couple of weeks, with a last stop coming up at the Jamboree on July 23-24. On Monday, the 24th, I’ll be lunching with the great Scouter-Rotarians at the IFSR exhibit and then giving a talk early…
________________________________________ Bryan Wendell, BSA Senior Editor and author of the “BRYAN ON SCOUTING” blog site has just published major changes in the way Scouts earn Eagle Palms. The modifications, Bryan informs us, will take effect on August 1st this year. For a complete read—which I can’t emphasize enough!—go to: https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2017/07/10/changes-to-eagle-palms/ Here are some of Bryan’s highlights……
________________________________________ Hey Andy, At a recent meeting, our council advancement committee announced a “Scout Night” overnight campout at our local minor league baseball field. This campout was posted on our council’s website as available to all Scouts, Cubs, Venturers, and families in the council.
________________________________________ An international convention of over 40 thousand Rotarians, a quick vacation at Oak Island, North Carolina, two major all-day in-town events, and now the dust has settled a bit, so I’m finally back at this keyboard, with most of my fingers functional again.
________________________________________ Hi Andy, I’d like to help Scoutmaster Kociemba, who was having problems securing a Unit Commissioner for his troop. I’ve forwarded a link to your issue No. 533 to our Council Commissioner, who has tasked the appropriate District Commissioner to get on this.
________________________________________ Hi Andy, I’ve been our troop’s Scoutmaster for the last five years and an Assistant Scoutmaster before that. We’d like to have a Unit Commissioner for our troop, so that we can function better and run our troop the way that it’s supposed to be (particularly Scout-led).
________________________________________ Have you ever thought, “Wow! I wish I’d said that!” Well here’s one that, for me, fits that category. It’s from long-time loyal reader, Jason Orton. Jason’s message can stand by itself today, and be remembered by us all for the future… Dear Andy, Another great issue of Ask Andy this week!
________________________________________ Thought for the Day… “It’s easy to lead a group of Scouts who want to go where you’re leading them. The challenge is when they don’t want to head in that direction!” (Tim Donohue, Eagle Scout-April 12, 2017) ========== Dear Andy, We have a Scout in our troop who we’ve been working with for years to…
________________________________________ “Thought for the Day”… We applaud the youngest Olympic Gold Medalist. We honor the octogenarian who crosses the finish line at the Boston or New York marathon. But when it comes to Eagle Scouts, far too many of us dismiss this singular achievement by calling the youngest “baby Eagles” or the oldest “cardiac Eagles.”
________________________________________ Hi Andy, What’s the BSA policy for an adult leader to wear his actual Eagle Scout medal? The term, “formal occasions,” has come up on some websites. What’s considered a formal occasion in Boy Scouting? (McKay Dunn, CSLRTC/CM, Trapper Trails Council, UT) Let’s start with this: Male, uniform-wearing BSA volunteers who earned Eagle Scout rank…
________________________________________ Hi Andy, Our son just got home from a weekend campout. While there, he participated in a Firem’n Chit “class” taught by a Second Class Scout (same rank as our son). During this class, he was told that since he couldn’t start a fire with one match he wouldn’t get his Chit.
________________________________________ Dear Andy, I’ve heard that some troops are recruiting new members by inviting Scout-age boys to come on a campout. The idea is camping is where we shine, and boys who missed or dropped out of Cub Scouts can be hooked back in.
________________________________________ Hi Andy, There was, for years, a clear policy on alcohol: No alcohol when Scouts are present. It now seems to be gone; or else I just can’t find it. I tried the Scouter Code of Conduct: “I will not possess, distribute, transport, consume, or use any of the following items prohibited by law or…
________________________________________ Hi Andy, Long time ago, as an Assistant Scoutmaster then, I “taught” the Scout handshake to one of the troops I now serve as commissioner. Happily, they not only adopted it back then, but even today they execute it correctly, both youth and adult: When I visit the troop today, even the new Scouts and…
________________________________________ Hi Andy, There’s a rumor running around my council about a new program called “Virtual Scouting” that’s going to be introduced in late 2017. Do you happen to have any advance information on what this is all about? (Dylan Marshall, Happy Trails Council) Yes, this is in beta-testing right now and is expected to be…
Hi Andy, Any ideas or resources on recruiting for Venturing crews, especially female crew members and advisors? (Ed Millington, Teen Programs, Washington Crossing Council, NJ-PA) If we’re talking about increasing membership in existing crews, I think your best resource will be the current Venturers themselves.
________________________________________ Hi Andy, I’ve been our troop’s advancement chair for the past several years. In this capacity, I’ve had to deal with long-standing concerns about our Committee Chair (“CC”) and Chartered Organization Representative (“CR”), and their deviations from BSA advancement standards and principles of Scouting.
________________________________________ Hi Andy, Can a Life scout start working on his Eagle packet and project before he’s finished all his required merit badges. (Paul Horwitz) You betcha! In fact, he can begin working toward his Eagle project the morning after his Life board of review.
