A Scoutmaster's Blog

It is the season for Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts across central Minnesota to be out knocking on doors to sell popcorn! I already have my 30 pack case of microwave popcorn ordered. How about you? Or do you need a Boy Scout to stop by your house so that you can place an order?

The local credit union is helping spread the word by posting a note on the marque. There should be a lot of people who see this since the business is located right on Main Street in Melrose. The troop would like to thank them for their help in this fundraiser.

Boy Scout Troop 68 of Melrose conducts three fundraisers during the year. In the fall we participate in the council’s popcorn sales. For the last few years the other two fundraisers have been a Dad’s Belgium Waffle meal. We have been holding a supper a week before Good Friday and a breakfast the first Sunday in October.

The troop usually does very well with these three fundraisers but last fall we did not do very well with our waffle breakfast. The pre-sales ticket period of time lapped over the council popcorn sales since the council sales began earlier then they used to. The popcorn sales went well but the breakfast proceeds were the lowest we have seen in decades.

This spring, the scoutmaster and I talked to the Boy Scouts about the importance of having a successful meal fundraiser. Yes, they would earn credit for camp for each ticket they pre-sold but the meal fundraisers were the main ones used to keep the cost of the yearly program to an affordable level for the families.

For example, each year the troop participates in the council’s annual Ripley Rendezvous, a weekend outing at the Camp Ripley National Guard Base in Minnesota. The cost for each participant is around $40. The troop has traditionally paid about $20 of this fee. Due to the troop not doing very well last during last fall’s breakfast our troop finances were getting a bit low, so the troop was only able to apply $10 to the cost of this year’s outing. As we explained to the Scouts and their families, we either work together to make the fundraisers successful or it will cost more out of the family pocketbook.

The Boy Scouts took the message seriously this spring. Most of them did go out and sell tickets. In fact, the top seller sold 95 adult tickets, just falling short of his 100 ticket goal. As the current troop treasurer I was impressed when I started adding up the final pre-sales tally.

The troop served over 430 people during the waffle supper. As we counted the income and started paying the bills we soon realized this fundraiser was turning out to be one of our best fundraisers ever. The troop made a profit of over $2000 which was more then three times the amount we cleared at last fall’s breakfast. The troop should be financially stable for the rest of this program year.

Now the committee has to look toward this fall and see how we can avoid the problems we had last year.

Yep. It is that time of year. Boy Scout councils are conducting their annual Friends of Scouting campaigns to raise money to support the local council and its program. Our district executive from the Central Minnesota Council visited our troop’s court of honor on Monday, March 24th. The troop almost met the goal set by the council, and still may. A few of the parents took the forms home with them to consider how they could financially support the council.

In our council, as I am sure in many councils across the country, there are various tiers at which a donor is recognized for their financial gift. For several years now, the Central Minnesota Council has presented donors with a special council shoulder patch for meeting the first level of support. These patches have featured a design based on a Norman Rockwell painting. The year’s patch was based on the painting of a Boy Scout saluting. I am not quite sure of the name of the painting, but it might be called We, Too, Have A Job To Do from 1944. As you can see from the picture, it is a fully embroidered patch, not a print like two patches a few years ago.

At another gift level the donor would receive a framed print of this Norman Rockwell painting. I think it was ten years ago that the council last offered this print. My home office wall displays 15 different framed prints offered by the council over the years. There is not much room left for any new ones.

I think the council did a good job with this year’s patch. I am happy to add it to my csp collection. This patch takes us nearly to the halfway point of the Scout Law. I look forward to seeing what the next seven years of patches will look like.

What sort of incentives does your council offer during its Friends of Scouting campaigns?

Boy Scout Troop 68 held its spring fundraiser last Friday, a Dad’s Belgium Waffle Supper. This was the fourth year we held a spring waffle supper. The troop use to hold a Palm Sunday pancake and sausage breakfast but when the troop membership became less than a dozen Scouts we switched to the Dad’s Belgium Waffle meals because we no longer had enough Scouts and parents to work our own breakfast. Melrose is a predominately Catholic community so we hold our spring waffle suppers on the Friday before Good Friday to give folks an option other than fish for supper. It has worked out fairly well.

The troop members began pre-selling tickets for the supper five weeks before the meal. We took the third February troop meeting and used it as a ticket selling kickoff event. I was a little disappointed when only three of the eight Scouts showed up that night. It was a cold evening but the boys went out and sold nearly $180.00 worth of tickets during that hour of sales. That was only a third of the tickets we sold last spring on the first night of sales. It was not a great start for this year’s fundraiser.

During the coming weeks the Scouts were on their own to pre-sell tickets. When the event arrived I discovered that only six of nine Scouts actually went out and sold any tickets, including our newest Scout who joined the troop after the sales began. While three Scouts did not sell any tickets two sold nearly $200 worth, one sold over $350 worth, and one sold over $900 worth of tickets. The troop pre-sold a over $2000 in tickets for the supper. Now it was up to the door sales to see how well we would finish this spring.

The supper began at 4:30 and lasted until 7:30 on March 22. People had already arrived at the opening time and for the next 90 minutes there was a steady stream of people coming to the church basement to eat all the waffles their stomach could handle. We also served fruit cups and cheese curds, along with coffee and milk to wash it down. Most people were satisfied with one of the huge waffles, but many went back for seconds, and a few even tried thirds.

This morning I, as the troop’s treasurer, sat down to see how the bills compared to our income. While things are not quite finalized it looks like we made a profit of over $1200. Of this, approximately $440 will go into the Scouts’ individual credit accounts which they will use to offset the cost of camp. About $850 will go into the troop’s general fund. While it was a good fundraiser it was down about $300 from last year.

This is the only spring fundraiser the troop conducts. In the fall the Scouts will have a choice to participate in the council’s popcorn sales. And, depending on what the committee decides at their April meeting, we may have a fall waffle breakfast.

Central Minnesota Council Friends of Scouting 2013 shoulder patch.

I don’t know about your council but ours, the Central Minnesota Council B.S.A., is in full swing for its 2013 Friends of Scouting (FOS) drive. Representatives from the council or district will visit each of the troops, packs, and crews to talk to families about the Scout program, and ask for donations to help the council provide a great program for thousands of youth. In Melrose Troop 68, this visit usually takes place at the March court of honor which will happen on Monday, the 25th.

The council will accept any donation but does have a couple of “levels” at which the person or family who donates enough financial support will receive a special token of appreciation. At the lowest of these level points the donator will receive a patch. At the next levels he/she will receive a Norman Rockwell unframed print or framed print.

I visited with Bob, my district executive, for awhile yesterday and found out the design of this year’s patch. This will be the sixth year that the council continues a theme based on the Scout Law. Each year has featured a point of the Law. This year has Kind as its theme. Is it a sharp looking patch, in my opinion. It is also nice to see that the council has returned to a stitched patch, instead of the cheaper looking print patches it used during the past three years. As you can see from the picture, this year’s FOS council patch is one you could proudly wear on your uniform.

What does your council do to show its appreciation during its Friends of Scouting drive?

Tonight, the Boy Scouts of Melrose Troop 68 will use their troop meeting time to begin sales of their spring fundraiser, a Dad’s Belgium Waffle Supper to be held on Friday, March 22. The Scouts’ parents will drive them around town as they try to presell as many tickets as they are able in one and a half hours. After the meeting, they will be on their own to sell tickets. The boys not only are raising funds for troop activities and equipment, but they also earn troop credit toward the cost of summer camp, high adventure bases, and other select troop functions.

Here is a quick rundown of what the boys will be told tonight before they begin their ticket sales:

NOTES FOR TROOP MEAL FUNDRAISERS:

Meal Ticket Information:

Each adult meal ticket will be presold for $7.00 each.
Each children’s meal ticket (age 5 to 10) will be sold for $5.00 each.
Children age four and under will eat for free and do not require a ticket.

Ticket Sales Kick-off Night:

Each pouch contains 40 adult tickets and 5 children tickets, in addition to $10.00 in change. Count the tickets and money when receiving a pouch to verify what you receive. Each Boy Scout will be responsible for the contents of the pouch when he leaves to sell tickets.

Scouts shall not mix contents of their ticket pouch with other Scouts. Each Scout’s pouch will be counted and totaled when he returns to the starting point. The amount of money returned should equal tickets sold plus the $10.00 starting cash.

Boy Scouts shall wear their uniform when selling tickets. They shall be polite, courteous, and kind at each household, whether a ticket is sold or not. Always thank the homeowner for their time.

All tickets sold during the kick-off sales event will be added together for the night’s total. This total will be used to give each Scout who participated an equal share of credit toward his Individual credit account with the troop.

Ticket Individual Sales:

After the ticket sales kick-off Boy Scouts are encouraged to take meal tickets home to presell before the evening of the meal fundraiser.

If there are brothers in a family, tickets and moneys must be kept separate for each Boy Scout.

Scouts are responsible for all tickets taken and for the money from their sales. They will be required to pay for lost tickets or lost moneys. Be sure to empty pockets before doing laundry. Destroyed tickets must be paid for.

Individual Scout Credits:

Scouts will receive credit toward their individual troop account based on the number of tickets presold. The credit from the ticket sales kick-off event will be evenly divided among the participants that night. After this kick-off event the Scouts will be on their own selling tickets, earning credit for his own account.

Each adult ticket presold earns (?) account credit. Each children’s ticket earns (?) credit. Keep in mind that this is credit toward summer camp, high adventure bases, and certain other troop events, and is not cash for the Scout to receive. (Credit amounts have been left out for this blog post.)

A credit bonus can be earned if 1) the Scout participates in the ticket sales kick-off event, 2) presells tickets on his own after the kick-off event, and 3) both the Boy Scout and at least one parent works during the entire meal fundraiser. If all three criteria are met his credit earned from individual ticket sales will be doubled. (This does not include the credit earned during the ticket sales kick-off event.)

Any questions?

It looks like there is going to be a sequel to the film Scout Camp: The Movie. It will be called The Klondike. A website has been posted for people who would like to be a part of this new film by donating money (as little as $10) to the financing of the project. I am thinking about it since I enjoyed the first movie. The website can be found at http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/threecoinproductions/scout-camp-the-klondike-a-comedy-with-merit . Check it out. Here is a video from screenwriter Jake Van Wagoner and writer/director Garrett Batty introducing the project. They hope to premiere the movie at the 2013 National Jamboree!

By the way, if you did not get a chance to hear our interview with Garrett Batty when Scout Camp: The Movie was released you should check out episode #67 of The Leaders Campfire podcast.

Have you ever retired from an organization only to feel that they never let you go, or that they are trying to pull you back? That happened to me Monday night with the Boy Scout troop. Unfortunately, I have no one to blame but myself. I volunteered for it all. Next week will now be a very busy Scouting week for this retired scoutmaster. Here is why….

On Monday, the 19th, the troop is using their regular troop meeting night to begin selling tickets for next month’s Dad’s Belgian Waffle supper fundraiser. The Boy Scouts will go door to door selling tickets, covering as much of the town in one evening as their are capable of doing. As the troop’s treasurer it will be my job to hand out the tickets, collect the leftovers and money taken in, and start the record keeping for the boys going out on their own.

Tuesday night is the monthly troop committee meeting. I still need to sit down and balance the checkbooks and prepare the report of the troop’s finances. I least I do not have to leave the house. I still volunteer to host the meetings in my basement family room.

I am a Collections merit badge counselor. One of the Scouts caught me after this week’s troop meeting to begin working on the badge. We decided on Wednesday, the 22nd. That makes three nights in a row I will be doing something Scouting related.

So far I have nothing planned for Thursday, but I volunteered my home to host a troop event on Friday. The troop’s one day outing for February was scheduled for this Saturday but only one boy was able to attend. I have always hated the idea of completely canceling a monthly activity so I offered to hold a movie night. The boys took me up on the offer. They plan to watch a couple movies and enjoy pizza, snacks, and sodas. I plan to send them home at 11:00 pm.

On Saturday, the 25th, the troop is hosting an afternoon retirement party to celebrate the three decades I spent as the scoutmaster. I hope some of the troop alumni are able to attend or it will be a small party. I do plan to bring the thirty or so photo albums I have made from those thirty years of activities and functions.

That brings it to five of seven days next week that I will be busy doing something Scouting related. I thought my schedule would slow down after stepping away from the position of scoutmaster. Wait. What’s that? Something is pulling on the back of my shirt. Aaahhhhhhhhh!