A Scoutmaster's Blog

Buttons, the radical Boy Scout, is a puppet that was given to me by my parents one year in the 1980’s. I played with it for awhile, even brought it along on a few Scout functions. It was a fun puppet to have around. Kids loved it. Adults thought it was cute.

The hardest thing about using the puppet was not playing with it or making it do things. That comes easy to me. The hardest thing about Buttons was coming up with a voice for him. It had to be a voice that fit his looks. I also realized that the voice would also play a major role in the type of personality that Buttons would have. After playing around with several voices, and rejecting most of them, I finally decided on a deep throat-style voice based on a surfer-type dude’s way of talking.

Buttons has never been the same since. The voice defined his personally like I thought it would. Suddenly this puppet became alive. Kids would howl with laughter. Adults would smile, and even giggle once in a while. But there was a price to pay for using that voice. It was very hard on my throat, and I could usually only say a few sentences at a time as Buttons.

When I did the first videos with Buttons, the radical Boy Scout, they were short videos. I wanted to see how the puppet looked, how the voice worked, and if he would look real enough to pass what I wanted to accomplish. After viewing the videos I was pleased with what I saw. I began to expand the videos, and take Buttons away from the den. He toured my family room, went around town filming in parks and at school. People saw these videos and enjoyed them.

It was time to take Buttons to the next level. It was time for him to perform with a live person. Michael is the Cub Scout brother of one of my Boy Scouts.
When he saw a video of Buttons the first time he broke out laughing and could not stop. I thought it might be fun to try doing a video in which he would have to interact with the puppet. I knew he would have a tough time trying to keep a straight face, but to tell the truth, I did not want him to be too serious.

This podcast video is the first video in which Buttons shares the limelight with Michael, the radical Cub Scout. Michael tries to teach Buttons the Cub Scout Promise. And tries, and tries. Buttons proves to be a slow learner. Michael has a hard time not giggling. It has become the most popular video featuring Buttons, the radical Boy Scout.

Watch it HERE on our troop’s website, or download the PODCAST, and then leave a comment about it. Thanks for watching.

The Boy Scouts of Troop 68 went to Philmont Scout Ranch the first time in 1986. They enjoyed the adventure so well that plans were made to attend the ranch again in 1989. Seven Scouts and two adults from the Melrose troop would attend the second trip. One of the Scouts and one of the adults of this crew would be making their second trek.

I am not going to write about this trip very much with this blog entry. However, if you would like to see several dozen pictures of what Philmont was like in 1989 you can check out the troop’s photo galleries of the trip by clicking here.

As we did for the 1986 trip, we put together a slide show for the parents and others troop members, which was later turned into a video. This video becomes today’s entry to the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast. The script was written by one of the Scouts, and it was narrated by a few of the crew members. Let us know how you enjoy it by leaving a comment.

Watch (download) the video by clicking HERE.

The Boy Scouts of Melrose Troop 68 participated in a trek at Philmont Scout Ranch for the first time in 1986. I like taking a lot of photographs when I am out with the Scouts so I came home with over 200 pictures ready to be developed. I also wanted the parents and families to see what we did while we were on the Philmont trip so I wrote a script and used many of the pictures in a slide show, complete with narration and music.

Shortly after the trip, I also started taping Scouting activities and producing video programs for the local cable access television station. It did not take long before I turned the slide show into a video for the station. It was crude, being a video of an actual slide show, but it got the show on the air.

Years later I would have a computer capable of re-editing the program and making the production look much better. I scanned the pictures of the trip into the computer and re-made the program, keeping the soundtrack but replacing all the video with clearer pictures. I was now able to add more photographs. I was also able to pan across the photos, and zoom in and out of them. The program became a lot more fun to much and looked much more professional then the video of the slide show.

This entry to the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast lets you download and view this reconstructed production. It presents a trip into the past of Philmont Scout Ranch, and our troop’s first, but not last trip, to this Scouting paradise.
Watch Video
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I have heard it said many times over the years that anyone who is a scoutmaster (or cubmaster) must be a little crazy. Well, I do not know if crazy is the right word to use but I will admit that a Scout leader must have a lot of patience, must be able to still find the kid within yourself, and must have a good sense of humor. The sense of humor is a necessity. You must be able to laugh and have fun with the boys, and sometimes the summer camp staff.

During the weekly closing campfire at Many Point Scout Camp the staff asks the scoutmasters to come down to the stage. The staff thanks the scoutmasters, and the other adult leaders they represent, for taking the time to spend with the boys at camp. They then present the scoutmasters with a gift. Of course, this happens after they get the scout leaders to perform a song in front of all the Boy Scouts in attendance. You can bet the song will be silly and will be enjoyed by all the boys. Participating in this song is a great test of a scoutmaster’s sense of humor.

This video podcast demonstrates the humor of several scoutmasters during the closing campfire at Many Point Scout Camp in July, 2006. My Scouts thought I would erase this footage since I am one of the scout leaders in the video. However, I have often stated that if you can not laugh at yourself, then you should not be laughing at others. So, sit back, relax, and watch the MPSC staff and the week’s scout leaders “Go Bananas”.

I decided to upload two videos to the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast this weekend, after all, it is raining outside so I can not go for a bike ride. Both videos feature your favorite Scouting puppet, Buttons, the radical Boy Scout. The first shows Buttons reciting the Scout Law, the second features him talking about the Scout Motto, Be Prepared.

The video featuring the Scout Law is actually the very first video made with Buttons. (Click HERE to watch it.) It was an experiment that went fairly well. I posted it on Youtube and actually received a few positive emails about it. So I made other videos with the puppet.

The video that features Buttons talking about the Scout Motto was probably the fourth or fifth video made with the radical Boy Scout. (Click HERE to watch it.) I thought it might be interesting to hear Buttons point of view on what it means to really Be Prepared.

There are more videos of Buttons waiting for their turn to be placed on this podcast, along with a few ideas for more videos of the radical Scout. Stay tuned to see them all. Or, if you can not wait, check them out at the troop’s website.

Three members of Melrose Boy Scout Troop 68 attended the Naguonabe Lodge Spring Conclave at Parker Scout Reservation in May of 2006. I was along for the ride to provide moral support, transportation, and to capture the weekend in photos. The three newly elected candidates did very well during the weekend, working hard, and passing the “tests”. The ate well at the Saturday night feast and met many fellow Order of the Arrow members. All in all, it was a great weekend.

Once I arrived back home I did what I do so well. I downloaded the pictures from my camera to the computer. Turns out I had taken quite a few during the weekend. During the next few days I thought about turning the pictures into a slide show but could not quite decide on what music to use. I finally decided to use a song from Steve McDonald’s Sons of Somerled album called Celtic Warrior. It was a great fit.

The video has been on Youtube since October, 2006. It has received nearly 1800 views since then, mostly by Order of the Arrow members, I believe. It has also created a small controversy which is something I did not expect. Because there are a few pictures from the ordeal ceremony several OA members from around the country thought I should remove the video from Youtube. Other members claimed that nothing was given away by the pictures unless you knew what happened during the ceremony. I agreed with the later comment and left the video on Youtube. Besides, most of the secrecy about the OA is no longer a secret.

Well, this video is the next installment on the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast. You can view the video here. Watch it, and see which side of the camp you fall on.

In the mid-1980’s Troop 68 began camping on 40 acres of private land north of Melrose. After a couple years the owners of the property allowed the troop to start developing campsites near a pond on the south end of the land. The campsite soon received the name Camp Watchamagumee, a name made up by one of the Scouts in the troop.

In 1987, the troop was still working on various parts of the camp. A council-style campfire ring had been started, three campsites had been cleared, and the adult’s site had been created on top of a hill overlooking the camping area. The adult’s site was named Bunker hill because the older Scouts and former troop members had built a small “bunker” there that contained a homemade bunk bed. (That bunker only lasted for a couple of years, but the hill has retained that name. It is still the adult leader’s site.)

If you have seen the camp food fight video on Youtube or the troop’s website then you are already familiar with this weekend. With this video, which is an exclusive to this website and podcast, you get to meet many of the Scouts who attended that weekend and discover what they think about Scouting. It is a great video of boys enjoying Scouting.

This video was edited from an old VHS tape which contained a show called “Silly Troop Tracks” that was aired on Mel-TV3, the local television access station. I wish it was better quality but it is what it is and there is nothing I can do about it. So, sit back, download it, and enjoy the video.

This podcast is brought to you from Many Point Scout Camp. During Troop 68’s stay at camp in July, 2006, we were treated to a great campfire program by the Buckskin staff. During the program the staff paid this tribute to the largest American legend of all time, Paul Bunyan. You can tell the staff had a lot of enthusiasm and were having a lot of fun. (Unfortunately, I do not know the names of all the staff members who were a part of this ski/song.) So, sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.

http://melrosetroop68.org/QTmov/MPSCPaulBunyan.m4v