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Art merit badge has the distinction of being the shortest named merit badge. Since I cannot draw a straight line, even with a ruler, let us say I never considered this one when I was a Scout. Many Scouts can tell you that there are 8 basic colors: red , orange , yellow , green , blue , purple , black…
1 Vote On Idea It would be nice to have email address show up on "PAS Find" personal profile. It could be on the List at left under "Home Phone" "Work Phone" ect.. ALso add Mobile Phone. I assume this data is pulled from ScoutNet.
Indianapolis is the racing capital of the world, and area Scouts helped spread this legacy by collecting and shipping more than 1,000 Pinewood Derby Cars to send to Scouts in Iraq this summer. The effort was led by First Lt.
Most packs fall into one of two categories: Once-a-Month-Together (OMT) Packs. OMT packs have den meeting schedules and locations which are independent of each other. A Webelos den may meet every Monday afternoon from 4-5 p.m. at the den leader's house while a Wolf den meets every Thursday evening from 6-7 p.m.
Hello fellow Scouters, Have you heard about the religious emblem program? My son is about to finish the second program offering of our faith, and I thought it would be good to discuss. The religious emblem program is a program that teaches your Scout about your religious faith, at his level.
Our troop has had a challenge of getting permission forms turned in on time. It seems we always have a scout family or two oblivious that they missed the deadline for an event registration and this makes it tough to make reservations and arrange drivers.
I have already wasted 288 hours since I was handed my recharter packet. There is currently 90 days left before recharter. So what should have I been doing and what have I done? First off according to the packet I should of had this 15 days longer than I have.
3 Vote On Idea Is it possible to have the ‘Other’ Registrant Membership Certificates to automatically generate labels like it does for ‘Unit’ registrants? My council mails out Membership Certificates to all the ‘other’ registrants, and it is so time consuming to have to look up address in ScoutNET and hand write/type the labels for…
A year ago I wrote about my trip to a Hallmark Store before Christmas and discovering an ornament featuring Snoopy, the Beagle Scout, roasting marshmallows around a campfire with Woodstock and a couple of his friends. I left the store with two of the ornaments, one to hang on the tree and one to store…
As previously discussed by the blogs included on HalfEagle, the BSA has a website for Scouters to share and vote for ideas to improve the Boy Scouts of America. To support this effort, HalfEagle includes recently posted ideas with a special format to encourage voting.
Resources come in many forms. Financial, physical, time, and, of course, people. This month's campout was a climbing / rappelling trip to Enchanted Rock in Fredericksburg, Texas. We had twenty-three scouts attending and it was important to be sure that we had the appropriate number of trained leaders.
In 1785, just a year before his death at age 37, Robert Burns enshrined 'the pith of sense and pride of work' above wealth or aristocratic birth in his poem A Man's a Man for all That . Burns knew the privations of poverty from the earliest age yet became a legendary poet and favorite son…
In 1785, just a year before his death at age 37, Robert Burns enshrined ‘the pith of sense and pride of work’ above wealth or aristocratic birth in his poem A Man’s a Man for all That . Burns knew the privations of poverty from the earliest age yet became a legendary poet and favorite son…
Every Cub Scout leader should be trained. It is hard to put on an effective Cub Scout program without trained leaders. As soon as a new Cub Scout leader is registered, he or she should take online Fast Start Training .
Show #162-Feels So Good Tonight-Popcorn Distribution, Pack Meeting prep, lots of other personal stuff, a cool website from BSA and a great reality check from Mike Rowe. Cool Website of the Week: http://ideas.scouting.org/ Tonight’s show sponsored by Badge Magic
0 Vote On Idea When making a payment to a vendor for an electronic payment, please allow us to pay more than one invoice at a time. It is time consuming to have to go into each invoice and mark it paid rather than being able to select the total you are paying and mark…
0 Vote On Idea I just noticed on www.lds.org/abrandnewyear that the LDS Church is preparing to launch a youth website. It might be good to watch how that develops to get ideas for a BSA youth website format. Also, it would be great if a BSA youth website had a "New Idea" input blog like…
2 Vote On Idea I hear from many of my volunteers that they would love to see the various registration forms, but specifically the New Adult and New Youth Applications, transformed into digitally fillable .pdf files. Their argument is that this would greatly simplify the process in today's digital world.
I still had my copy of the Boy Scout Handbook I used as a youth when I became an assistant scoutmaster in 1980. I bought a new handbook so I would be current, and picked up a scoutmaster handbook so I would have an idea what I should be doing.
1 Vote On Idea In the wake of school violence, many school districts have turned to using an automated phone system. The phone system has the capability of calling hundreds, if not thousands, of phone numbers at one time and delivering a recorded message.
As with all the Webelos activity badges, the best resources for Outdoorsman are the Webelos Handbook and the Webelos Leader Guide . Here are some other Outdoorsman resources that may be helpful: Meritbadge.org Outdoorsman Worksheet (pdf) SHAC Outdoorsman Packet (pdf) [ via Buckeye ] Scouting the Net - Outdoorsman Hendra’s Outdoorsman Packet (pdf) [ via MacScouter and scoutingthenet.com ] Leave No…
0 Vote On Idea When transferring youth to another unit especially if there are Ap/PS involved the adults also should be transferred to the new unit. In other words they should not be left on the roster if their child is moving to another unit.
0 Vote On Idea Many food items will occasionally have special branding to donate to a cause. Why not have Coca-Cola, Little Debbie, cereals, etc. include information about 100 years of Scouting on their packaging and in return give a very small percent back to Scouting - maybe a penny each.
-1 Vote On Idea I am looking to find a contact, or a place on where to start in the discussion of the creation of a new Belt Loop. I would like to submit that a belt loop for Martial Arts be created.
Several councils have been severely affected by the hurricanes and their aftermath. The full impact of the storm will be known in the coming days and weeks. Your generous contribution to assist members of our Scouting family and to help rebuild Scouting in the affected communities is greatly appreciated.
’Tis the season, and we’re taking a look at fun activities, advancement opportunities, and how Cub Scouts’ monthly core purposes and values are supported by next month’s Cub Scout theme of Holiday Lights. Plus, earn a chance win a free scholarship to Philmont Training Center next summer. Listen to this podcast for details.
0 Vote On Idea I have received at least a half dozen calls regarding the internet advancement application. The volunteers do not know that if they submit additions or corrections through our Program Center during the year that they need to refresh the roster in internet advancement.
1 Vote On Idea When entering advancement it would certainly speed thing up if the youth were not just listed in alpha order by last name, but first name as well. It would also be VERY helpful if both the first and middle name or intial were part of the list.
1 Vote On Idea We have several requests from parents and Eagle Scouts for a wallet-size paper card showing the rank of Eagle. Most of our Eagle Scouts create a permanent display of all awards, etc. and want a card to be part of it.
1 Vote On Idea By outsourcing the fulfillment side of the National Distribution Center to a company like Amazon or UPS, BSA could leverage their global sourcing and logistics strengths while reducing BSA’s capital commitment and still retain control of the brand and marketing of BSA merchandise.
1 Vote On Idea Money, Improve Efficiency In the New BSA, it’s all about individual contributors making the difference and employees using their brains to collectively contribute to a New BSA. Brand Management and Marketing should publish guidelines that allow us to make individual decision for the collective benefit of BSA.
0 Vote On Idea Begin a new period (week or month) with a theme, like: “How can local councils increase membership in minority areas?” or “How can local councils increase traditional membership?” or “What changes need to be made to the program to attract today’s youth?”.
1 Vote On Idea With so many new Scout Executives anticipated in the next several years, it would be nice to have a brand new SE "either assigned or selected from an approved listing) have a seasoned SE as a mentor.
0 Vote On Idea With many councils coming up short on budgets, it is apparent that a lot of Councils that are "inherited" are found to be in some sort of quagmire. As part of the Administrative Review process, if a council is found to be in a situation or possess a number of deficiencies…
Dirty Jobs host Mike Rowe is an Eagle Scout. Here is an exchange of letters posted to his blog Mike, I'm not sure where I heard that you are an Eagle Scout, which brings me to my question. Could you PLEASE take a moment & post to my 13 year old son Kelby & encourage him to…
Hello fellow Scouters, Happy Friday to you! Hopefully whenever you have an outing with your unit you file a tour permit. You know it's required by Scouting for any meeting outside of your normal den / troop meeting place. But if you have an outing where someone helps you in any way, I would suggest something…
Here is a new Pinewood Derby participation patch ($1.19) available from BSA Supply Group. Boys usually love to get patches. In our pack, we give everyone who participated in our Pinewood Derby a patch at the next pack meeting. Link Posted in CUB SCOUTS, Patches, Pinewood Derby
-1 Vote On Idea In the year of a Scout Executive change, a Counicl should not be in the running for Quality Counicl. A Scout Executive should be in place 12 months before the Counicl can be considered for Quailtiy Counicl Comments (0) Category/Tags : Other (36)
0 Vote On Idea The recent organizational changes at the National office were implemented to break down silos and remove bureaucracy. I think this is a good first step, but in order to progress and completely remove these silos, we need to build a culture of collaboration.
0 Vote On Idea Scouting faces stiff competition from video games, this badge may be a way to bring those boys into scouting, or keep thier interest peaked Comments (0) Category/Tags : Boy Scouting (20)
The snow is beginning outside my window. Lows this weekend in the teens--but a whole lot warmer than my years growing up on Eielson AFB, Alaska! Yep, I'm still in t-shirts. And loving the cool weather. I do try to encourage my Scouts to mentally fight the cold.
2 Vote On Idea What is the best way to offer a nationally driven solution to finding out which companies offer matching gift programs? Having each council find, link into and pay for a resource seems inefficient. Could this be coordinated at the national level? Comments (0) Category/Tags : Fundraising & Sponsorships (17)
0 Vote On Idea In keeping with the idea of catch and release that is taught in these badges I think it is time to remove the clean and cook requirement. Many people enjoy fishing and never keep any of the fish they catch.
0 Vote On Idea Consider subscribing to a national change of address database service through an approved USPS vendor. Push this data through ScoutNet. This would reduce the number of returned mailings and could be cost neutral to Scouting as a whole. Comments (0) Category/Tags : Technology (64)
1 Vote On Idea Local United Ways use QBase www.qbase.net to garner more information on prospects and doners. We could do the same or leverage our relationship with ChoicePoint/Equifax to populate our database and keep in current. This may be something that is on the wish-list already for the MyBSA Fundraising program.
2 Vote On Idea Today most children are developing earlier than ever due to preschools starting the kids at the earliest age possible. BSA needs to be in tune with the desires of the majority of parents. This would increase retention and membership while giving BSA an opportunity to work with local and national preschools…
1 Vote On Idea A nationally subscribed CRM solution would provide economy of scale that most local council's cannot afford. Connecting it to the ScoutNET database and allowing local tie in to Outlook and even possibly telephone systems could have added value.
5 Vote On Idea Over the course of my career, there were many times at Cub Scout Day Camp that we could have just run kickball all day long and the boys would have been thrilled. A wonderful blend of two universal favorites: baseball & soccer, it takes some athletic ability, but not as much as…
2 Vote On Idea The name & address of the donor that prints on the bottom half of the billing statement form does not show completely in a window envelope. Can the form be changed to move the name and address down a line or two?
I visited the troop this week, hadn't been there in almost 2 months, due to some mistakes that were made…another post, another time. With that said, I can say that my batteries are recharged and I am raring to go.
You have probably read Mike Rowe of ‘Dirty Jobs’ Eagle Scout Perspective , but there is more! Mike is now writing customized letters to Eagle Scouts. According to Mike's website, he has written a Eagle Scout Congratulations letter that he will personalize and sign for any Eagle Scout that requests it.
One of the official suggested Webelos activity badges for May is Artist . Here are the requirements for the Artist Webelos activity badge : Do these: 1. Talk to an artist in your area or to your art teacher about the different occupations in the art field.
Governor Bobby Jindal addressed the Southeast Louisiana Council of the Boy Scouts of America’s award dinner last night where he was presented with the Distinguished Citizens Award. The event was attended by over 300 community leaders who volunteer and financially support the Boy Scout troops in Southeast Louisiana.
It's the time of year again that we all think of things we're thankful for so I thought I'd share a compessed list of mine. Our faith. The health of myself, husband, and children. The BSA!!!, eager scouts, giving adult leaders, and the support the Lion's Club gives our troop.
Today, the Boy Scouts of Troop 68 will participate in the yearly LPMRB outing. It is a twelve hour activity extravaganza that is very popular with the boys. The outing begins with a few hours of rollerskating at a local roller rink in St.
This could reflect any number of Boy Scout topics couldn't it? Let's leave it that way. Honestly, the answer applies to all the scenerios. The most recent instant may have been coaxing members of the troop to trust the rope as they backed off a completely sufficient rock for their first rappel, but there are…
2 Vote On Idea With all of the many creative minds designing recruitment flyers, why not have a central location where these templates can be downloaded by DEs for district use. Maybe even have a rating system for best flyer design! Comments (0) Category/Tags : Cub Scouting (12) recruiting tools
Maybe you've heard of the tight Coleman-Franken senate race in Minnesota and the recount being conducted now. About 2/3 of the 2.9million ballots have been recounted but it will still take weeks for the 2,000+ challenged ballots to be examined.
Per my last post, I recently visited the troop...one that I hadn't visited in about 2 months, due to a mistake on behalf of some other leaders. Regardless, that is moot, and really, isn't going to be brought up again.
1 Vote On Idea For a District Executive and their district committee to better understand the health of the units, keeping track of advancements is the pulse of the success of a district. Currently upon request the district advancement chair can ask someone in the office to run a monthly district advancment report.
I'd like to introduce all the Scouting News readers to a great project that I was made aware of, and will be participating in. The American Red Cross is partnering with Pitney Bowes this holiday season for the Holiday Mail for Heroes campaign.
Eagle Honor Co. has introduced a new series of Eagle Scout Honor Rings. The Eagle Honor Ring features a deeply engraved eagle atop a signet style ring. This historic seal type ring has been worn for hundreds of years and carries family crests and other meaningful symbols.
About a year ago, I did a post on this neat-looking Pinewood Derby schematic t-shirt from BSA Supply Group. I inquired via email to see if there was a photo of the shirt that showed some more detail, but to no avail.
2 Vote On Idea Do we need to create a training module for Scouts and Venturers to smooth their public Service projects? Include how to write proposals, securing building and/or public gathering permits, discuss liability issues, and other sspects of plaaning a project Comments (0) Category/Tags : Other (39) training boy scouts venturing
Hello fellow Scouters, Happy Monday! Looking for an idea for your den meeting? Looking for something that will help prepare your scouts for the outdoors? Why not try making a survival kit? Nothing fancy or elaborate - just something they can carry with them whenever they camp or hike.
1 Vote On Idea A successful way to start new traditional units at religious insitutions is to turn the initial emphasis by focusing on the church's membership and organizing a faith-focused youth group. Name this group after the Scouting religious emblem for that group.
0 Vote On Idea There are over 2 million homeschooled children in the US, and the number is growing. These parents and kids will not be reached through school programs. I suggest a recruiting program that targets homeschoolers via book fairs (The Arlington, TX book fair is a good example: http://www.homeschoolbookfair.org/) and homeschool support groups…
-4 Vote On Idea The new BSA uniform was a needed change to appear relevant and appealing in today's American society. However, I don't think the change was progressive enough. Here are a few suggestions: -Eliminate the shoulder loops and epaulets.
-4 Vote On Idea I suspect that the time for Wood Badge has run its course in the BSA. The fraternal format of the program acts more as a social program than productive training. Let's pull the valuable and effective leadership materials that are in the course, and infuse it into a new format.
Show #163-Better Tonight-My Pack Meeting and Leader Meeting, a Chrisbacca sighting, holiday party suggestions, a possible new AHAW logo and what I'm thankful for. Tonight’s show sponsored by Badge Magic
The Coronado Area Council is pleased to announce the two significant personnel changes. Gary Shoemaker has been promoted to the position of Program and Outreach Director and Rex Lowe has agreed to serve as the 2009 Camp Hansen Director for Boy Scout Resident Camp.
Our local scout shop now has the 2008 printing of the Webelos Leader Guide in stock. The cover is still the same as the previous edition (shown above) except that the right title bar has a yellow background instead of blue.
0 Vote On Idea My idea to offer a BSA Lifetime Membership (LTM) Registration in BSA's 100th year. The timing for this launch is perfect for our Centenary Celebration although it needs to be started real soon. Especially the media blitz.
2 Vote On Idea After several years of reviewing what i do at our council as new staff members arrive and of course how i want paperwork handled, etc. I typed up a report that covers all the topics i want to be sure to cover with the new staff member.
A few weeks ago, I wrote about getting things started. How do you get things going in your pack. For us it was getting started participating in a Webelos Campout or Web-o-ree. I have been thinking back to that campout.
1 Vote On Idea Can the innovation division start the process whereby professionals & volunteers can post items that a council or person is looking for? For example: a council brochure for welcome wagon or a reality company or a military base to give to new residents; another would be a Tiger Cub to Scout Cycle…
0 Vote On Idea I would like to know if you could assist with the following effort: I learned that OSHA required US hotels to discard their towels and sheet linens every six months. This means tons of linens and towels from hotels across the US rotate into landfills on a weekly basis, where they…
0 Vote On Idea We love reading about Scouts in the News on the national home page. The stories on Scouters abusing Scouts and others, are a downer, important to hear, and I don't want to sweep them under the rug.
1 Vote On Idea This is really a best practice/question. I'd like to use the Anny Curry segment shown at the NLTC this summer for my FOS presentations. Does anyone know how to get a copy of that? Does anyone have other good videos or touching stories for their FOS presentations?
0 Vote On Idea I just learned about Honor Flight today and think that getting involved with them could be one of the most important things that the BSA has ever done. Please go to the site www.honorair.com and watch the video of what happened in Hendersonville, NC in support of WWII vets.
More than 30,000 Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts and Venturers helped feed the hungry on Saturday, November 22nd, as they collected 2.2 million cans of food during the 2008 Scouting for Food drive. The collection was 6 percent larger than last year's drive.
As with all the Webelos activity badges, the best resources for Artist are the Webelos Handbook and the Webelos Leader Guide . Here are some other Artist resources that may be helpful: Meritbadge.org Artist Worksheet (pdf) SHAC Artist Packet (pdf) [ via Buckeye ] Scouting the Net - Artist Hendra’s Artist Packet (pdf) [ via MacScouter and scoutingthenet.com ] Pack 152…
Space, the final frontier. And we have a new Star Trek movie to remind us! We continue to learn new things all the time. Want to see a new planet in our solar system? Or one in another solar system ?
1 Vote On Idea Over the past few years I have found a major breakdown in our orginization is in our middle management.I dont believe this is a dynamic that is occuring at the top level of our orginization but at the council level.
0 Vote On Idea When re-chartering units at the end of the annual charter year it would be extremely helpful if there was a way to identify those scouts who show up as dropped scouts who have been registered less than 60 days.
I got to reading some posts about knots and some of the other things that go along with forums...sometimes a thread can get way off track, and then there are the ones that are just plain mean. There used to be a whole bunch of knots that are no longer in service...I don't want to…
How Scouts around the US are celebrating Thanksgiving this year: Gilbert Boy Scouts to roast 160 turkeys The Thanksgiving tradition for Troop 830, based out of the Maplewood Chapel of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, began more than 30 years ago, Day said.
2 Vote On Idea After reading some of the other suggestions, I can see there are a nuymber regarding the Advancement Reports. My suggestion would be to add a year or two worth of history for that unit. Lack of Advancement can be a warning sign for a problem in the unit.
The Thanksgiving Holiday has once again come to those of us in the United States. As I prepare to join my family in the annual turkey dinner I look back on my years in Scouting and discover there are a lot of things to be thankful for over the last three decades with the troop.
I would like to wish all of my Friends in Scouting a very blessed Thanksgiving. As you have read my blog over the last year you know a bit about who I am and I have shared on many occassions just how thankful I am.
Boy Scout Troop 1 Scout Master - Trained, seasoned, a little tender, yet a little tough 6-7 Assistant Scout Masters - Trained, seasoned, a little tender, yet a little tough, not yet a Scout Master 1 Committee Chair - Trained, highly organized, eager to serve 1 Awards Chair - Trained, attentive, and strong-willed to preserve the honor of earned…
When we found the spear point and the potsherd under a sheltering wall of rock the dig began. A archeologist's expert hand peeled back layers of time connecting us to those we never met but knew as we know ourselves.
One of the first things taught to new Cub Scout leaders is the principle of KISMIF : Keep It Simple; Make It Fun. Keep It Simple. Cub Scouting does not need to be elaborate or complex. In fact, making activities and events needlessly complicated or difficult is usually counterproductive because it increases the chances that something…
One of the sad realities of today's world is that many kids seem to think the only way to have fun playing a game is with a computer or a video game controller . Kids who never play board or card games miss out on a lot.
After Thanksgiving dinner yesterday and a weekend full of leftovers coming up, the Weekend Patrol Box is here to give your hands something to do that doesn't involve a fork. But I'll keep it light. Turkey, sausage stuffing, pecan pie, frozen pumpkin pie, broccoli casserole, mashed potatoes and giblet gravy all have their place.
It is the morning after another great Thanksgiving. What made this Thanksgiving great for me this year was the simplicity. Now I don't want to start sounding like a old fuddy duddy... But, coupled with the fact the leading up to Thanksgiving I was on the "impact" subject and did a lot of soul searching…
One of the official suggested Webelos activity badges for June is Handyman . Here are the requirements for the Handyman Webelos activity badge : Do these: 1. With your parent, guardian, or Webelos den leader, complete the Responsibility Character Connection. a. Know: List all the tasks you can think of that are necessary in keeping a household…
The newest edition of Baloo's Bugle is now available in HTML, Word.doc and Adobe.pdf Everyone loves to play games!! This month Cub Scouts and their families will have fun playing board games, and solving puzzles and mazes. This is a great opportunity for adults to teach boys the games they used to play as youths.
Hopefully, you all exercised properly yesterday and shopped the great deals at your local sporting good stores for scout worthy equipment. Goodness knows we all ate far too much Thursday and can use all the help we can get. I did.
Reports have been coming in over the past weekend that some Scouts and Scouters who applied to be on the staff for the 2010 National Boy Scout Jamboree have received letters from National that have included their staff patches. Even if you have yet to be selected for a staff position and returned your Letter…
