A Scoutmaster's Blog

Before there was the internet, dvd’s, or even vhs tapes, council and district training sessions used filmstrips to assist training adult leaders. I happen to own four filmstrips used by our council in the 1980’s. The council was going to throw them in the trash until I said I would take them. I am not really sure why I took them. I do not have a filmstrip projector, nor do I know of anyone who owns one, other than maybe the school. They have been stored with other old Scouting memorabilia in box in my basement.

When I decided to take a picture of them for this article it was the first time in years that they have even been out of the box. I was surprised to see that they are still in excellent condition. It almost makes me want to find a projector to view them again.

The four filmstrips that are part of my Scouting collection are:
How To Select A Scoutmaster.
Boy Scout Orientation.
Unit Organization.
How Much Is It Worth?
All four were created by the Boy Scouts of America Audiovisual Service. Unfortunately, I do not have the scripts or audio tapes that were used with them.

I am curious. How many of you remember using or seeing these filmstrips in training sessions of years gone by? Do you have any as part of your Scouting memorabilia collection?

A long time ago (1997, to be exact) in a land far, far away (somewhere in the wilds of Wisconsin) a great adventure took place. The Boy Scouts of Melrose Troop 68 visited a location known as Eagle cave. They spent the weekend crawling, exploring, and getting pretty dirty as they found all the tunnels and crevices within the cave. In other words, they had a great time. This video will give you a small sample of the Scouts’ adventure at Eagle Cave.

This is the first of a three part series of the 1997 trip to the cave.

Click here to DOWNLOAD and watch this Podcast
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Last night, Tuesday January 25th, Cub Scout Pack 68 held their Pinewood Derby. Six Cub Scouts competed in the event. Each of the Cub Scouts took home a trophy. Three Boy Scouts of Troop 68 also held  separate races for the fun of it. Everyone seemed to have a good time.

Pictures of the event and each of the cars can be seen by clicking on the picture.

Bryan Wendell, the writer of the Bryan On Scouting blog (formally known as the Cracker Barrel) wrote an article today that I found to be quite interesting. He wrote about Memorabilia Monday. He encouraged readers to send in a picture of something from their Scouting collection along with a short description. I thought it was a great idea. I left him a comment to tell him I was going to steal his idea for my blog.

I have been collecting Scouting memorabilia for over 30 years. The collection includes Boy Scout and Cub Scout handbooks, patches, coffee mugs, novels, and plenty of other things. I thought I had enough stuff to write a Memorabilia Monday article for several weeks, so I sat down to make an outline. I came up with enough “themes” for 45 posts. That would take me through November of this year. Today will be the first post.

One of the highlights of my Scouting career was attending the 2001 National Jamboree as the scoutmaster of Troop 1417. While at the jambo, I began trading jamboree council shoulder patches, also known as csp’s. I came home with a few dozen of them and have been adding to the collection during the last nine years.

The patches are kept in a three ring binder, organized in clear pages that contain from a two to six patches each. Even the larger patches and patch sets are protected by plastic sheet protectors.

Most of the collection is made up of single patch sets, or only one or two patches from a set. I have been lucky enough over the years to add a few complete sets of csp’s from a few council contingents. It would be fun to post a picture of each patch along with this article but there are too many of them. I settled on showing a small portion of the collection. The pictures are thumbnails. Click on any one to see the larger view.

By the way, if you have any patches from the 2001 National Jamboree that you do not want any longer be sure to write me a note. I may be able to help you find a good home for them.

Do not forget to check out “Bryan On Scouting” located at http://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/

I have been doing a lot of thinking about patch blankets since the last blog post. In fact, I took out my two Scouting blankets over the weekend to see if they would work. I received both blankets as gifts, one from my sister for Christmas, the other from a couple of Eagle Scouts at their court of honor.

As I looked at them I thought that if I did start sewing patches on them I would not want to cover up the center logo or the writing on the edge of the design. However, I could put quite a few patches between the logo and border. That could look pretty cool.

The next thought was that I would not want to turn both of them into a patch blanket. The one with the white frills on the edge would have to stay as a throw blanket. So, I would need another one or two if I was to put all my patches onto blankets. I began looking online and found several Scouting themed patterns that could be used as a blanket. However, I did not find the fleece pattern for these blankets any longer. I could just use a red or green surplus army blanket. But this would look much cooler.

The next thought was how would I display it when it was done. I thought a loop sewn into the top of the blanket would allow me to hang the blanket by sliding a closet rod or dowel into it, like I saw in a picture recently. Or maybe just a few small loops instead of one full length one.

My last thought was why am I making this such a tough decision? I still do not know what I should do.

I have collected a lot of patches during thirty years as a Boy Scout leader. The council shoulder patches are alphabetically arranged in a three ring binder. So are the Order of the Arrow lodge patches and the patches from the 2001 National Jamboree.

The patches I have collected from attending Scouts camporees and other functions have found a place stapled to a four foot by four foot sheet of paneling that is hanging on a wall in my basement family room. (This can be seen in one of Buttons’ videos.) I have used this colorful patch filled sheet in displays set up around town for Scout Anniversary Week.

I few years ago I ran out of space on the sheet so the patches have been accumulating in a couple places around the house. I was thinking about starting a few more binders but they do not display as nicely as the paneling. I would like to be able to display them well but yet store them away easily.

It may be time to start a patch blanket, or two, or three. The reason I have not started one in the past is because I do not sew. I have tried sewing a few patches onto my uniform and discovered I am lousy at it, and I do not like doing it. Thus, I am a fan of Badge Magic.

There is a lady in Melrose who lives about three blocks from em who has a small sewing shop in her house. She has sown several patches to my uniform and was very reasonably priced for her service. I do not know what she would charge to sew a hundred patches unto a blanket. It might be a little costly, but I have to do something.

I have a few questions for those of you who read this blog. Where is a good place to find a reasonably priced blanket for this purpose? What kind of blanket should it be? Fleece or wool? What is the best size? I appreciate your suggestions and comments.

I would guess that Capture The Flag has been a popular game among Boy Scouts since the beginning of the Scouting program. I do not recall playing it as a youth so when I discovered the game in a Scouting game book I introduced it to the troop. Since that first game in the 1980’s it has become one of the most popular games to play while we are camping, especially when we go to Camp Watchamagumee.

I am not going to go into all the rules of Capture the Flag, but it involves two teams chasing each other through the woods while trying to find the other team’s flag. It is a great game for getting the boys to burn off some energy.

Being 50 now I prefer to sit in my lawn chair and watch the boys run by, but in my younger days the other adults and I would play with the boys. There is one particular game that I will always remember playing.

The game took place one fine afternoon at Camp Watchamagumee. The side boundaries were formed by a beaver pond on one side and the top of bunker hill on the other. The road into camp was the end of one territory, the stream marked the end of the other. The dividing line was the path from the beaver pond to the campsite on bunker hill. One territory was completed wooded, but the other one had a small swampy pond in the middle of it.

Once the boys had divided into two teams Dave, the assistant scoutmaster, and I joined opposing sides. He joined the team with the swamp pond in its territory.

The game was going well. Everyone was having fun. I ran into the other team’s side once again to find their flag. Suddenly, Dave appeared between me and the safety of my side. He ran toward me, planning to catch me and put me in “jail”. I had no intention of being caught so I took off running, away from my territory and safety. I ran toward the swampy pond.

Dave was not far behind me when I reached the edge of the swamp. I did not have any time to think about it or react. I ran into the swampy pond. I thought that Dave would not follow me into the pond. I also thought that the water would only be about a foot deep.

I was wrong on both accounts!

The water was nearly to my waist after only a dozen steps or so. It was too late to change my mind, especially since Dave had decided to follow me into the swamp. We both ran through the pond, losing speed and energy as we drenched ourselves.

When I reached the other side I noticed that it was uphill to the road, the end of this side. I was getting tired but I summoned another burst of energy and ran up the hill. I planned to get to the road, run along side it for a short distance, then run down the hill on dry land back to my team’s territory, safety, and a quick rest.

Unfortunately, Dave was determined to catch me. He followed me up the hill, along the road, and down the path. Our wet clothes and water filled shoes were weighing us down. But he would not give up!

I was half way back to the safety of my territory when my adrenaline finally gave out. I slowed to a walk. Dave caught up with me about three steps later. He grabbed my arm, and through deep breaths said, “Caught. Caught. Caught.” I was going to jail.

As he was leading me to the tree stump that was the jail he turned to me and said that if I had taken only a few more steps he was going to let me run free. He had also reached the end of his energy.

The Boy Scout and the scoutmaster sit down by the campfire ring for a scoutmaster conference. The sun is shining brightly. The birds are singing. A squirrel watches them from his high perch in a nearby pine tree.

During the conference the scoutmaster asks, “What is the Boy Scout Motto?”

“Be prepared!” the Boy Scout quickly replies.

“Be prepared for what?” the scout leader asks.

The Boy Scout thinks for a moment. Be prepared for next month’s camping trip. For the rain that is bound to happen during a hike. For giving first aid if someone gets hurt. For helping a neighbor when needed. Finally he answers, “Be prepared for everything!”

“That is a good answer.” The scoutmaster smiles. “But everything is a lot to be prepared for. How can you do that?”

The smile vanishes from the Boy Scout’s face as he looks to the ground. He thinks to himself, how can a person be prepared for everything? The scoutmaster is patient as he watches the young man concentrate. Finally, the Boy Scout’s gaze returns to the scoutmaster. “Learn about a lot of stuff?” he asks. “Like first aid, camping skills, knots, and other stuff that we learn in troop meetings?”

“Yes,” the adult leader says. “Anything outside of Scouting?”

The Boy Scout thinks for a second. “Well, school, I guess. My parents. Other adults. Books maybe.”

“Very good.” The scoutmaster smiles again. “Knowledge is a key. Pay attention in class and what people tell you. Learn from them, even if you find the lesson to be boring. You never know when that knowledge will help you later in life.”

The Boy Scout’s smile is reaching from ear to ear. “And always pay attention to what is going on around us. So that we don’t get surprised or caught off guard. Right?”

“That is right”, says the scoutmaster as he pats the boy’s shoulder. “So, if we quickly sum this up…”

The Boy Scout sits up straighter as the sunshine radiates from his face. “To be prepared a Boy Scout should learn about as much as he can about as many things as he can.”

The unseen squirrel nods his approval at the Boy Scout, then turns away. It is time to find a few acorns.