A Scoutmaster's Blog

Boy Scout Troop 68’s theme for the month of June is Cooking. Each troop meeting will cover a different area of cooking and give the Scouts a chance to sharpen their cooking skills a little. During the first meeting we will do breakfasts, the next will be desserts, and the last will be suppers. Of course, everyone is looking forward to desserts.

The troop usually meets at one of the city parks during the summer months, but this month we will meet in my backyard. The troop’s storage shed sits next to my garage so it is easier holding the meeting here instead of loading up all the gear needed and bringing it to the park. Much easier to put everything away also.

It was thirty minutes before the first meeting of the month during which the Scouts would be making pancakes and omelettes. As I began to take the gear from the shed it began to lightly rain. “Oh well,” I though, “I guess I will have to set up the stoves in the garage.”

The light rain continued throughout the meeting but the Boy Scouts did not seem to mind. After opening the meeting with the Pledge of Alligience and the Scout Oath, and a brief intro about cooking today’s items, they began having fun cooking an evening breakfast, and then eating their creations. They could have cared less that they were in a garage.

They tried various ingredients in their omelettes. They tried making pancake batter at different consistencies. They discovered thick pancake batter is as challenging to fry as batter that is too thin.

As the last scrambled pancake was scraped out of the frying pan, the dishes and stoves were cleaned and stored away in the shed, and the floor was swept. Then it was into the basement of the house for game time which included card games, darts, and ping pong.

As the meeting came to a close we discussed the June calendar, this month’s camping trip to Duluth, and the upcoming court of honor. The Scouts ended the meeting with the America Yell, and then the parents arrived to take them home.

It was great watching the boys as they had fun cooking breakfast at 7:00 in the evening. They had a good time trying new foods and working on their skills. I hope on the next camping trip they put those skills to use.

Next week is desserts. I have a feeling the meeting will be even more fun as the boys try making a cake in a dutch oven, and a pie, and a cheese cake. My mouth is already starting to water.

Last week the Boy Scouts of Troop 68 held their monthly activity which happened to be the LPMRB. What is that, you ask? Long day of Pizza, Movie, Rollerskating, and Bowling. It is basically a twelve hour activity that has been a popular troop activity for many years. (The L of the LPMRB was originally for Laser tag, but the BSA does not want Scouts playing that game any more.)

The activity begins at 12:30, Saturday afternoon, when the Scouts gather at my place. We then drive to the Skatin’ Place in St. Cloud, about 35 miles from Melrose. The troop rollerskates, or inline skates, for about three and one half hours, also playing the occasional arcade game. There were not many people at the rink this year. There were times when the Scouts were the only people skating, which in a way was nice since we did not have to skate around other skaters.

Godfather’s Pizza was the next stop on the list of places to go. This year we only needed to buy three large pizzas to fill the bellies of the nine boys and two adults. We had a little time to kill after eating so we did a little shopping at a dollar store and browsing through a skateboard and snowboard store.

When we arrived at the movie theater complex it did not take long to decide on a movie. Over half of the eighteen movies showing were R rated. Most of the PG-13 movies were not suitable for the age group of our Scouts. We ended up watching Dan In Real Life which was a pretty good movie. Even the younger Scouts enjoyed it.

We arrived back in Melrose with over an hour to to kill before our session of bowling would begin at 11:30 pm. I thought the boys would play table tennis, darts, or boards in my basement but we all ended up in my living room watching a dvd of Weird Al music videos.

I was getting tired by the time we arrived at the bowling alley. I quickly discovered that my bowling skills had deteriorated since last year’s event. Either I have to spend less time playing Wii bowling, or more time actually throwing a bowling ball. By 1:30 in the morning the last parent had arrived to pick up their son. The boys had gone home. I was ready for a good night’s sleep.

Yes, the LPMRB makes for one long day but the Scouts really enjoy it. Maybe this event does not fit the usually outdoorsy type of Scouting activity, but the boys have a great time with each other and enjoy the camaraderie. Once in awhile you just have to leave the tents and knots behind and do something different.

If you have been involved with Scouting for any length of time you have probably heard someone say, “It only takes an hour a week.” What a joke that is! Just a bit of a misleading line there, huh? Let us take a look at a typical month of Scouting during this scoutmaster’s life.

We have three troop meetings a month. At ninety minutes per meeting, plus drive time, plus waiting for parents to pick their boys after the meeting, I can estimate two hours per meeting. Monthly total here is 6 hours.

One committee meeting per month, average of 1.5 hours. One patrol leader council meeting per month, average two hours. One district roundtable meeting each month with drive time to council office, average of three hours. Total of monthly meetings is 6.5 hours each month.

One weekend camping trip per month. The Scouts arrive at 6:00 Friday evening. Parents pick up the last boy at 11:00 Sunday morning. Total hours of camping trip is 41 hours. (Yes, I counted the sleeping hours. I am still in charge of the Scouts, am I not?)

Now, let’s add this up. It comes to 53.5 hours during the month. (Keep in mind that this does not include any prep time, fund raising, training, or special activity time yet.) Divide this figure by four weeks per month. Gosh! That comes to an average of 13.75 hours per week.

An hour a week? Not even close! But this demonstration does show that those of us who are scoutmasters can be quite dedicated to the program and the boys. The amazing thing is that I sometimes feel that I am spending more “quality time” with the boys then some of their parents do. What does this say about our society?

Scouting can be a great organization for boys and their parents. It gives them a chance to do some things together. Come on parents! Get involved with that Cub Pack or Boy Scout Troop. Become a committee member, a pack leader, or an assistant scoutmaster.

After all, it only takes an hour a week

The Boy Scouts of Melrose Troop 68 have had an interesting and fun time during their troop meetings in May. The theme was cooking, and a special guest paid them a visit during the last meeting of the month.

The Scouts experienced new ways to prepare food during May. The guys kept busy during the first meeting trying to cook a breakfast of bacon, eggs, and hash browns in a paper bag, and then trying to cook an omelet in a plastic bag placed in boiling water. During the second meeting they made tin foil dinners using carrots, potatoes, hamburger, and chicken patties. Deserts were the subject of the third meeting as the Scouts made apple cobbler and fritters.

Lance Stueve, race car driver at the local I-94 Raceway, brought his car to the troop’s May 21st meeting. As the boys stood around his race car Mr. Stueve discussed what it is like to be a racer, the fuel used, and the car itself. The Scouts were then given the opportunity to sit behind the wheel for a photo. The visit ended with each of the boys receiving a photograph and wrist band from Mr. Stueve and his son.

The troop would like to thank Lance Stueve for taking the time to visit with the Scouts. A video of the visit can be seen on YouTube and the troop’s website at http://melrosetroop68.org/videos.html

Over ten thousand Boy Scouts and leaders gathered at Camp Ripley in central Minnesota for this year’s Ripley Rendezvous. I will be writing a blog entry about this event later, but in the meantime you can check out this article found in a local paper: St. Cloud Times.

(Sorry, but the Times does not archive its articles for very long.)

I recently received an email from a troop Scout leader asking for help in a few areas in which they are having some difficulties in their troop. Two of the questions were about troop meetings and having a boy planned program. As I wrote my reply, it occurred to me that this might be a good blog entry for other leaders, especially newer adult leaders. So here it is, the letter I wrote in reply to this Scout leaders questions.

Okay, first of all, I am no expert, but I do have quite a few years of experience (over 25 years as scoutmaster.) I can tell you what works or not in our troop, but that may not be the case in yours. That being said….

Melrose is a community of 3300 people. Troop membership has varied over the years. We peaked at 41 boys a decade ago but membership has been in a decline since then. We are currently down to ten boys, nine active. Part of this is due to the Cub Pack having a rough 5-6 years, barely surviving at times. Of course, most of the boys graduated from the Cub Pack. During the last 5 years I think only 3-4have graduated from Cubbing.

I blame parents for a good portion of this because it appears that many parents do not want to get involved in Scouting anymore. I think many parents are blind to what Scouting can offer their sons. Of course, and I hate to say it, there are many lazy parents also. But I also think some of them do not understand what Scouting is all about.

Our troop meets year round. Many of our boys have been involved in sports over the years. I encourage them to attend the meetings as often as they can. It works pretty well until the parents pull them from Scouting to concentrate on sports instead of Scouting. (I could right a whole column on how I feel about high school sports. Maybe a subject for a future blog entry.)

The troop meets the first three Mondays each month except July (summer camp month) and December (only two troop meetings), from 6:30 to 8:00. Once in awhile we make take a month off, but that does not happen too often. There are too many activities the boys want to do during the year. We begin the meeting with an opening ceremony involving something Scouting and something patriotic. Then we have skill development taught by older Scouts,adult leaders, or special guests, depending on the subject. This is followed by 15 minutes of game time or patrol competition, which is the highlight of the meeting for the boys. After patrol meeting time we end with announcements and a quick closing ceremony.

Just try to keep meetings fun. We try to keep the skill development portion of the meeting hands-on if possible so the boys are actually doing something, instead of just sitting there. Boys like to do something, not sit around like in school. You just need to be sure to bring enough “props” for everyone to work with.

The patrol leader council plans the meetings during their once a month meeting held on the last Monday of the month. They plan the opening, closings, games, and the skill development sessions. They decide who does what and if guests need to be brought in.The PLC also plans the details for the outing each month, and the agenda for courts of honor. Of course, there is always a bit of training involved after each election, but the boys ARE capable of doing the planning, so LET THEM. Just be there to help them out when they run into problems.

Also, the boys are more willing to participate if they planned the program instead of being adult planned. Once a year the troop has a weekend “yearly planning session” in which the boys brainstorm and plan a program schedule for the next twelve months. In is interesting to watch the boys in action, but can be a bit frustrating at times. It would be quicker for the adults to do it, yes, but then it would be the adult’s program and not the boy’s program. It is important for the boys to plan their own program. The adult’s job (troop leaders and committee) is to help the boys carry out that program.

You can see some of my troop’s yearly programs at http://melrosetroop68.org/yearlyprogram.html Okay, this email has gotten long enough. I will write back about more later.

YIS

Steve B
Scoutmaster, Troop 68