A Scoutmaster's Blog

I am beginning to panic. Just a little. Boy Scout Troop 68, along with Cub Scout Pack 68 of Melrose, are planning to hold a Scouting Open House on Monday, April 18th. That is only a little over a week away! And hardly anything has been done yet. We are running out of time to promote this event.

The council has printed flyers to hand out to the public elementary school students and those at St. Mary’s elementary school. Our committee chairperson picked those up today and I have already delivered them to our committee member who teaches at St. Mary’s School. She will also get the flyers to the public school.

We have ten 16″ x 20″ posters from the council to place around town. (See the picture.) One will be going to each elementary school. Our chairperson has taken a few to bring to Burger King, Dairy Queen, and the two convenience stores in town. That leaves four posters to try to place in windows of Main Street businesses. Hopefully, we will find good spots for them.

The banks and credit union will allow us to place table displays in their lobbies. The problem is finding time and people to set them up. I do not know if anyone has asked them yet to post a notice on their electronic marquees. We did not plan very well at the last committee committee meeting to decide who would be in charge of doing the things that need to be done.

Our local newspaper, the Melrose Beacon, is being very supportive. In next week’s edition they will be printing an article about the 100th anniversary of the first Boy Scout Troops formed in Melrose. I have proofread a rough draft of the article and I like it. They have contacted some of the former committee members and a couple troop alumni about their Scouting experiences. The writer, Herman, asked a few of us to meet him at the local historical museum for some pictures next to the Scouting display. He also asked for current pictures of the Cub Scout Pack and the Boy Scout Troop. He was at Dakota’s Eagle court of honor last Saturday so I wonder if that article will also be in this next edition.

We want to get yard signs set up around town. I have kept the signs from several years ago. There are two kinds from two different years. It would be great to find ten good yards in town, preferably on Main Street and a couple other well traveling streets.

On the day of the event, the troop and pack will each have a table of information. The pack will have one activity for Cub Scout age boys. The troop is planning four activities for possible new Boy Scouts, but the activities will also be Cub Scout friendly. Those activities will be knot tying (square knot, two half hitches, taut line hitch), frisbee golf, flag and Pledge knowledge, and the human knot untying. We are hoping to be able to tell any Boy Scout age boys that they will already have a few requirements done for awards if they complete these stations.

What have you done for your open house? What was successful, or not successful? This is new to us so we could use your ideas.

100 Days of Scouting: Day 59.

Today, for Youtube Tuesday, we are leaving the USA and the BSA. The UK Scout Association has produced a great video that does a great job of promoting Scouting and asking adults to volunteer in their local units. What I find fascinating is most of the information in the video could apply to the Boy Scouts of America. This video was uploaded in October 2010. Check it out and let me know what you think about it.

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100 Days of Scouting: Day 57.

Everyone knows the song by Louis Armstrong, “What a Wonderful World.” It is a classic. Even young Boy Scouts are familiar with the tune. I have a feeling that the song will still be around during the next hundred years.

In August of 2009, a video was posted to YouTube  that featured Doug “Satchmo” Stone performing his unique Boy Scouts themed take on Armstrong’s classic. Doug was very active in Scouting and his council’s camp. His rendition of “What A Wonderful World” is fantastic.

I think you are going to enjoy it so it is this week’s featured video. It is a fitting way to recognize the half way point of this year’s 100 Days of Scouting. (8434)

100 Days of Scouting: Day 50.

This week’s YouTube Tuesday video comes from the Circle Ten Council of the B.S.A. It features Boy Scout Denzel Long. He talks about how the Boy Scouts have helped him raise his life to a whole new level. I liked the video, and I think you will also.

I know the 2010 National Jamboree is now a part of history, but there is a video posted by the Boy Scouts of America that packs a lot of activities into a minute long video. It is called “Dear Mom”, and it is this week’s featured video. Watch it and let us know what you think of it.

100 Days Of Scouting: Day 29 .

Have you checked out the PTC Media podcast site yet? ( http://www.ptcmedia.net ) The PTC Media network is a collection of eight Scouting related podcasts, seven audio and one video. They are produced by several Scout leaders from across the United States.

“What is a podcast?”, you ask. An audio podcast is similar to a radio program that you download to your computer to listen to at your convenience. Most audio podcasts are posted to the internet in an mp3 format and are compatible with most mp3 players. A video podcast is like a short television show you download to your computer. Podcast can be subscribed to through a website or a podcast feeder, like iTunes.

The An Hour A Week podcast is created by Cubmaster Chris in Texas. This weekly podcast is recorded live on Sunday nights. The show features information about Cub Scouting, leadership training, and other Scouting related news that caught Chris’ attention. An Hour A Week is approximately sixty minutes long. It is one of the original shows of the PTC Media network.

Another podcast that has been a part of the network since the beginning is The Leaders Campfire. This show is hosted by Cubmaster Chris and Scoutmaster Steve. The podcast covers a wide variety of topics from both Cub Scouting and Boy Scouting. Special guests are occasional brought in to discuss current events.  The Leaders Campfire is produced twice a month.

The Melrose Scout Productions Podcast is currently the network’s only video podcast. It is produced by Scoutmaster Steve. There are usually two episodes each month. The podcast features Scouting events, campfire songs and skits, and Boy Scouts having fun. The Melrose Scout Productions Podcast shows are about three to fifteen minutes long.

Around The Scouting Campfire is a monthly ten to fifteen minute audio podcast featuring Scoutmaster Steve and everyone’s favorite Scouting puppet, Buttons, the radical Boy Scout. They cover topics for both the Boy Scout and the Boy Scout leader, along with jokes, stories, and the occasional campfire song. The hosts produce one episode of Around The Scouting Campfire each month.

The SMM Podcast (previously known as the Scoutmaster Minute) is a podcast about Boy Scouting produced by Scoutmaster Jerry from Oregon. His troops loves to backpack so many of Jerry’s shows cover the ins and outs of backpacking and camping along with the proper gear to use. The SMM Podcast also includes many other topics about the Boy Scouting program, interviews with other Scout leaders, and Webelos transition.

True North is a podcast created by Scoutmaster Shawn from Wisconsin. Shawn talks about Cub Scouting, Boy Scouting, unit commissioners, and other Scouting topics. Of course, Shawn is not shy about bringing in a guest to talk Scouting on the True North podcast. There are usually two new shows per month.

The MISS Show (Moms In Scouting Service) is a twice monthly podcast dedicated to sharing Scout related information from the perspective of volunteering mothers. There’s a little something for families and leaders new to Scouting as well as more seasoned veterans of the BSA during each MISS Show. Topics discussed include outings, activities, resources and products, as well as round-the-table discussions about current hot topics in Scouting.

Akela’s Adventure has recently returned to PTC Media. Mr. Bob began producing Akela’s Adventure Podcast to help new scout leaders, like himself, find resources, tells stories of their experiences and to discuss ways to improve on being scout leaders. Akela’s Adventure was active from August 2006 through November 2007.

Be sure to check out the PTC Media site regularly for new programs and new episodes of the existing line of podcasts. http://www.ptcmedia.net

It has been a long time since I have been involved with a Pinewood Derby. I was never a Cub Scout so I did not participate in one as a youth. I do remember acting as a judge for one in the 1990’s for the local pack. I did videotape a derby one year for our community access television station. Oh, and I have seen the movie Down And Derby. This is the extent of my Pinewood Derby experience.

The Cub Scout Pack has invited the Boy Scout troop to join them in having a derby at the end of the month. The pack and troop would hold seperate races, but we may take the fastest car from each unit and race to see the overall winner.

The Cub Scout Pack 68 only has 7 or 8 members this year (all first and second graders) so their derby will not last very long. By inviting the Boy Scouts they hope to make it a more exciting evening. About half of the Boy Scouts of Troop 68 have shown an interest in participating.

I like the idea of the troop having a derby with the Cub Scout Pack. I think the Boy scouts will have a great time, but more importantly, it will give the Cub Scouts a chance to mingle with the “old Scouts”. I hope this joint activity (and others) will provide a little boost for the Cubs and their families to stay in the program for several years. It would be nice to see a Webelos graduation down the road.

The Melrose Beacon is our local weekly newspaper. For the last thirty years they have been very supportive of the local Boy Scout troop. They have printed almost every article I have given them on troop events. They have also interviewed many of the Boy Scouts who have earned the rank of Eagle Scout. I have four 3 ring binders filled with newspaper clipping of the articles printed over the decades.

A couple weeks ago I was contacted by the editor of the paper. She wanted to do an article about the Boy Scouts of America’s 100th anniversary, and also include information about the troop’s thirty year history. She needed my help to gather information for the article. I jokingly asked her how many pages of the newspaper she would like to devote to the article. I put together a few pages of information for her, and also spent about 45 minutes talking to her about the local Scouting program. I invited her to use any of the pictures found on the troop’s website.

The article was printed in today’s newspaper. It began on the front page and continued on page three. If you add the two parts together in almost filled an entire page of the paper. I was surprised, and quite pleased. The article did a nice job of covering highlights of the thirty years of the troop. It listed many of the assistant scoutmasters and committee chairmen of the last three decades. There was also a listing of the eighteen Boy Scout who earned the Eagle Scout Rank while a member of Troop 68.

I would like to take a moment to thank Roberta, Herman, and the Melrose Beacon for supporting the Scouting program in Melrose over the years.

The link to the Melrose Beacon article is found HERE.
Pictures of the paper can bee seen HERE (front page) and HERE (page 3).