A Scoutmaster's Blog

The first requirement for the ranks of Star, Life, and Eagle is to be active in your troop and patrol for at least 4 or 6 months as the previous rank. This is a pretty vague requirement and can be one that troop leadership can struggle with sometimes. What does it mean to “be active” in the troop and patrol?

The national BSA website states:
“A Scout is considered to be active in his unit if:

1. He is registered in his unit (registration fees are current).
2. He has not been dismissed from his unit for disciplinary reasons.
3. He is engaged by his unit leadership on a regular basis (Scoutmaster conference, informs the Scout of upcoming unit activities, through personal contact, and so on).

The unit leaders are responsible for maintaining contact with the Scout on a regular basis. The Scout is not required to attend any certain percentage of activities or outings. However, unit leaders must ensure that he is fulfilling the obligations of his assigned leadership position. If he is not, then they should remove the Scout from that position.”

Okay, that made things crystal clear, didn’t it? I think that statement made things even more confusing for scoutmasters and troop leaders. Let me explain my view on this BSA statement.

If you read this as the “letter of the law”, a Scout only needs to be registered to “be active”. He does not need to attend any troop meetings or troop activities. It seems to be the scoutmaster’s and unit leadership’s job to contact him and tell him what the troop has coming up, but gosh, he does not need to attend them. Um, excuse me National Office, but how is a Scout to be considered active if he does not attend meetings and outings? (Keep in mind, I am only writing about being active, not about his position of responsibility.)

I understand National’s statement of “The Scout is not required to attend any certain percentage of activities or outings.” Every Scout is not going to make every meeting or activity. A youth in Scouting is usually active in other groups and activities. If he is in sports then practice and games will conflict with Scouting. Family schedules conflict with Scouting. Even homework can get in the way of attending a troop meeting. So yes, I agree that we cannot impose a percentage requirement on attendance.

When I meet with new Scouts, and Scouts during their Scoutmaster’s Conference, I tell the boys, and parents, that I would like them to set a goal of attending at least two thirds of the troop meetings and at least half of the outings. This is a goal, a guideline, for the boys to follow. An example – I have had several Scouts over the years that have been involved in high school hockey. They sort of disappear from Scouting during those three months of the season. But they still try to make meetings and activities when they are able to. This is a sign to me that they want to be active in the troop. Once the season is over they return to the regular schedule. I can live with that.

According to this statement from National, it seems that a Scout would never have to attend a meeting or activity to qualify as being active in the troop. Sorry, but I do not agree with that. It is not fair to the boys who are active in the troop. A Boy Scout must make an attempt to attend meetings and activities. Would a coach allow a player to play in the game if he never showed up for practice? Would the the school allow a student to letter in an activity if he did not participate in that activity? Would an employer keep employing a young man if he did not show up for work when he was scheduled? No, no, and no.

Part of the Scouting program is to teach the boys responsibility. A Scout needs to attend troop functions, or at least make a good attempt to do so. If a Scout does not want to actually be active in the program then he needs to make a decision whether to continue his membership. Sorry National, I am not signing off a boy just because he is registered and because I talk to him a few times. A Scout will need to attend troop meetings and functions, not just meet with merit badge councilors, if I am to sign my name to that advancement form.

The Boy Scouts of Melrose Troop 68 recently took a tour of Dick Young’s Memoryville which is located west of Melrose. Mr. Young was the Scout’s guide as they went through several of the historical buildings on the site, including a railroad depot, a country school house, a one truck fire station, and the Spur gas station that once was found on Main Street in Melrose. The Scouts, leaders, and parents were amazed as they walked through the buildings, each a museum in itself. The train depot was full of train memorabilia from the last hundred years. The school house was complete with old desks, maps, and books from over fifty years ago. The visit served as a great field trip for the troop as they discovered a few new things about the history of central Minnesota during their Local History month.

Update 9/23/19: I was contacted today that Memoryville has now permanently closed. Dick Young, the owner, wishes to thank everyone who has visited over the years.

Another Update 5/17/21:  It looks like Memoryville will be open this summer once again. Reservations will need to be made for tours. Some virus restrictions will be in place.

A slideshow of the Scouts 2007 tour can be seen at

             https://youtu.be/UHuVvCCoiko           

The Boy Scouts of Melrose Troop 68 enjoy performing in front of an audience. That is why they have done the annual Laughs For Lunch Show for eleven years. The Scouts also enjoy watching and being a part of campfire programs during camporees and summer camp. That is where they get many of the ideas, skits, and songs that they perform.

During the 2002 Laughs For Lunch Show two of our older Scouts did the Candy Store skit. This skit has been a popular one for the Scouts of Troop 68 since they first saw it performed at a summer camp campfire in the 1980’s. During this version of the skit, Jacob and Enrico, the two Scouts, decided to have a little extra fun with it. They knew this was probably the last time they would perform the Candy Store as Boy Scouts.

I think the two guys had planned a surprise before they went out on the stage. I believe they already had the “volunteers” in mind they would choose to be in the skit. The horsie ride was a new addition to the skit that we had never done before. Enrico chose his father to play that part. Jacob’s mother became the cash register. The part of the bench/counter that “broke down” was a buddy of theirs who had earned the rank of Eagle Scout. All the volunteers except one had already seen the skit and knew the punchline, but they were great sports about it and went along with the fun.

Have fun watching this podcast. It is a longer one, over eleven minutes, but I think you will enjoy it. Have your Scouts watch and practice it for their next campfire program.

Download Video Podcast
Watch Video on the troop’s website.
Subscribe through iTunes.

Boys love to play games. They want to be physical. They live for competition. “Rough and tumble” is their middle name. I am the first to admit that now that I am in my forties I am not quite as active playing the physical games with the Boy Scouts as I was when I was in my twenties. It seems as each year passes I am a little more content to stand on the sidelines and watch or referee.

Our troop has moved its weekly meetings into the local Catholic school’s gym for the winter months. This means the Scouts can start playing their favorite games again, bombardment and “Wizards and Warriors”. Both games involve bursts of running, ducking, dodging, a bit of strategy, and a lot of trying to hit the opponents by throwing balls at them. The boys play to win. They play hard. And they have a lot of fun.

The best thing about watching the Scouts play games and sports during the troop meetings and activities is that although they play hard and competitively they do not keep track of the score very well. Many times, if you ask them what the score is during a basketball game they may know who is winning, but they may not know what the point totals are. They do not care about the points. They are there to have fun and be with their friends.

Here is another example of the Scouts gameplay. Monday night, during the troop meeting, the nine boys played Wizards and Warriors. As I got the balls from the storage room I expected the boys to be choosing teams. I thought they would divide the older and younger Scouts into teams with equal skill levels. I was surprised to see the younger Nighthawk patrol on one side of the gym and the older Wolves patrol on the other side. This should not take too long, I thought to myself.

The first game lasted much longer then I thought it would. The younger boys did a great job of holding their own against the older boys. My assistant and I, watching from the sidelines, were having fun just watching the Scouts. I am always amazed at how fast and nimble they are. The game finally ended with the Wolves as the winners.

As the second game began I noticed the younger boys were playing a little different. They had learned a couple things from the older boys during the first game. Both teams were still playing hard but the Nighthawks had added some new strategy into their game. When the last ball was thrown it was the Nighthawks who won the second game.

Well, of course we now had to have a tie breaker. One more game. Once again they boys played to win. This time the older Wolves had to adapt their game to go beyond the Nighthawks. Although the Wolves were victorious in the end I got the feeling that no one really cared. True, the Wolves had proven they were still the dominant patrol, but the Nighthawks had proven they were a patrol that could win games also. I got the feeling that the only thing that really mattered is that all the boys had fun.

That spirit of fun is missing in so many things that our youth participate in these days. Take high school sports, for example. There is so much emphasis on winning that the spirit of fun has been lost. I have been a part of both worlds, and to tell you the truth, I think boys learn more from the fun of Scouting.

I enjoy browsing through Scouting blogs and forums. I may not leave many messages or comments but I do find things interesting, and sometimes quite helpful. I also like to google melrosetroop68 once in a while to see where links to our troop website and this blog have been appearing. I found two interesting things on the net today that made me think “Wow! I must be writing okay.” (I know, that is horrible grammar, but that is what I thought.)

The first site I found today must be a fairly new site. It is called “Scouting With The Mouse” and is created by Disney. You know, the Mickey Mouse people. The site, which seems to be less then a few months old, tries to bring Disney and Scouting together. Tries. It is an interesting idea. The site does not have very much on it yet, but knowing Disney it will grow quickly if people begin visiting it.

What brought me to the site of the mouse was my google search. One search entry linked to this site that I have never seen before. It was the forum of the “Scouting with the Mouse” website. Of course, I clicked on the link. To my surprise I discovered that someone had left a message that referred to my blog entry about “Ten Reasons To Be An Adult Leader“. Wow! Someone found my blog worthy of listing on a Disney website!

As Buttons, my alter ego, would say, “Cool dude!”

The second surprise I found today was on another Scouting blog that I enjoy reading. It is called “A Scoutmaster Minute” and is written by Jerry in Oregon. I like reading Jerry’s blog because he is more focused about the ideals of Scouting, where I like to write about things that have happened in my Scouting experience and random Scouting topics.

Today, Jerry wrote another of his top ten lists which are always fun to read. This time the subject was the Top 10 Websites he likes to visit. Okay, I thought as I read the title, let’s see how many websites we both visit. I was shocked when I read what was number two on his list. It was a tie between two Scouting blogs, Lone Star Scouter and A Scoutmaster’s Blog! This blog. My blog. Wow! I made a top 10 list. I was a little stunned, but also found myself smiling at the same time. Thanks Jerry.

As Buttons would say, “Awesome, dude!”

Parker Scout Reservation is the name of our council’s camp. It is located north of Brainard in central Minnesota. It was the council’s summer camp until the late 1970’s when the council ran into financial difficulties. It is now used mainly for training sessions, Boy Scout weekends, and Cub Day activities.

I attended summer camp at Parker three times during the years that I was a Boy Scout of Troop 68 in the mid 1970’s. I have many fond memories of those week-long camps. We ate in the dining hall and always had to sing a song or two before the evening meal would begin. The Friday night campfire programs were great fun and actually gave me a start in performing during campfire programs, something that has carried on through my time as a scoutmaster. I remember earning the pioneering merit badge and having so much fun that I really did not realize I was earning a badge.

I believe the camp closed down in the summer of 1978. In 1980 or 1981 a motorcycle gang tore through the seldom used camp and did major damage to the dining hall and beach area. Many of the windows in the dining hall were broken, and most items inside the hall were damaged or destroyed. Glass bottles were broken and thrown along the beach making it unsafe to use. I arrived for a training weekend shortly after the damage was done and was extremely saddened to see the vandalism done to this place of so many of my Scouting memories.

The was a bright spot to be found after all this vandalizing. The council began to once again invest money into the camp and begin making improvements. When the council began it’s fall popcorn fundraisers it promised to invest the council profits from the sale into the camp.

A lot of camp improvements have been make during the past two decades. The dining hall and been improved and expanded. The kitchen has been modernized. A new freezer and food storage building has been built next to the hall. A large picnic shelter and barbecue grille shelter have been constructed. New shelters have been built at the rifle and archery ranges. Many of the camp buildings have been remodeled and winterized. A logging company has gone through the camp during the last two years and removed thousands of old growth trees thus reducing the risk of wild fires while adding addition funds for future camp improvements.

The are major projects planned for the next few years. The rifle range and the Order of the Arrow ceremony sites will be moved to another part of camp. This will make room for a new castle-shaped building to be used for Cub Scout Day Camps. A few existing buildings will also be receiving makeovers to make them more usable for weekend functions.

Will Parker even again be used as a summer camp? I doubt it. I think it is actually used more now then it ever was during its years as a summer camp. It will be interesting to see what the next decade or two has in store for this camp that was once know as Camp Clyde.

The parents, Cub Scouts, and new members of Cub Pack 68 received a surprise during “School Night to Join Scouting” on Tuesday, September 25, when Buttons, the radical Boy Scout, stopped by for a surprise visit. The boys eyes went wide and the grins reached from ear to ear as Buttons introduced himself to the pack. A few of the Cubs already knew Buttons from watching his videos on Youtube and the troop’s website, but for the other boys it was the first time seeing the radical puppet.

I decided to bring Buttons to the meeting as I was gathering materials to take along to the school night meeting. I was a little nervous about how the puppet would be received by the boys and parents. It is one thing to make a video of the puppet in my home. It is quite different bringing him before a live audience. Would the boys and the families accept Buttons? Or would they ignore him? It was time to find out.

I did not create a “stage show” for Buttons. Instead, I walked around the room with him, going from table to table, talking to the kids, giving high fives, avoiding being punched, and trading a few hugs. Before I knew it there were a dozen kids following Buttons around the room.

Just before the actual meeting began the boys were given the opportunity to have their picture taken with the radical dude. I offered to post the pictures on the troop’s website if the parents were okay with that. They were. The pictures can be seen HERE.

Now that I know Buttons is accepted by the Cub Scouts, I may have to plan another visit or two to the pack during the next year. Who knows. There may even be another video out of that visit.

Speaking of videos, a new video of Buttons has been posted about his trip to the pack meeting. And it is time to announce that the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast can now be found on the PTC Media network! I am honored to be a part of this Scout-related network of podcasts. The Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast has joined The Leader’s Campfire, An Hour A Week?, and Akela’s Adventure. Check out PTC Media HERE.

Download Video Podcast
Watch Video on the troop’s website.
Subscribe through iTunes.

Another annual fall “School Night To Join Scouting” has come and gone but this year was a little different then the past few years. The pack did well with new membership and recruiting new leadership.

The cubmaster and I (the scoutmaster) really tried to get the word out this year, as you may have read about in an earlier blog entry. A dozen new boys joined the pack so I guess the promotion work paid off. If all the previous year’s membership returns the the pack should have a couple dozen members.

The thing that pleasantly surprised us is that all the pack’s leadership and committee positions were filled that night! This is the first time in a few years that this has happened. The trick will be to get these new leaders through Fast Start training and start attending roundtables.

I owe the part of the success of the leadership drive to Mr. Bob of the Akela’s Adventure podcast. On one of his episodes he spoke of a recruitment pitch he used recently that worked very well in his pack. I emailed him for a copy of the scenario and after reading it decided it was worth giving it a try. Little did I know it would work as well as it did.

During the presentation I put the new cubmaster on the spot. He did not know what I had planned until I started sticking a lot of three by five cards onto his shirt listing the various jobs and duties he has within his family, and then added more showing what he does for the troop. I also added a card for every leadership and committee position that needed to be filled. He was a good sport and played along with the presentation. He was quite pleased to have a full committee by the end of the presentation. Especially since he really did not have a committee at the start of the meeting.

While the school night was a success for the Cub Pack it did not go well for Boy Scout recruitment. Not one boy of Boy Scout age (other then a couple of Scouts who were there to help out) showed up at the meeting. Oh well, hopefully the pack will be able to hold on to its members long enough to graduate the boys into Boy Scouting. Then the evening will have been worthwhile for the troop.