Posts Tagged ‘Scout’


Here is a little puzzle for you and your Cub Scout. This Christmas tree contains the four latest Hallmark Beagle Scout Snoopy ornaments. Enlarge the picture by clicking on it, and then try to find them. One features Snoopy and his troop canoeing. Another shows them camping. One is the troop hiking. And the last has them roasting marshmallows over a campfire. Can your Cub Scout find all four of them in under thirty seconds?

Up until now, Buttons, the radical Boy Scout, has always been about the Boy Scouting program. He has talked about the Scout Oath and Law, being physically fit, how to tell when you know you are a Boy Scout, and has interviewed a Cub Scout and an assistant scoutmaster. Today, he begins to expand his Scouting knowledge into something he has never talked about before – Girl Scouting!

In the United States, boys and girls have separate Scouting programs (except for Exploring). Boy Scouting and Girl Scouting are very different programs even though they share many of the same goals. In both programs the members may chose to earn the highest award available to them. In Boy Scouting that would be the rank of Eagle Scout. In Girl Scouting it is the Gold Award.

I recently had the honor of attending the Gold Award ceremony of my niece and two other Girl Scouts. It was very impressive, and I learned a few things about Girl Scouting that I did not know. I video recorded the ceremony at the request of my sister, and we plan to broadcast it over our local community television station.

After the ceremony, I had the chance to congratulate each of the girls, and ask them if they would be willing to be interviewed by Buttons, the radical Scout. They had all seen a Buttons video or two so they knew what I was asking. To my pleasant surprise, they all said yes to the idea.

This video posting to the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast is the first of these videos. Ali Kociemba, one of the Gold Award recipients, is the first Girl Scout to be interviewed by Buttons. They discuss the different age groups of Girl Scouting, what some of the awards are, service projects, what Ali did for her Gold award, and what her favorite troop activities were. It turned out to be a nice introduction to Girl Scouting.

You are invited to leave a comment using the link below, or at the iTunes Music Store, or at the PTC Media forums. Drop me an email at webmaster@melrosetroop68.org. It really is great to hear what you think about the podcast videos.

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Did you know that the great American actor John Wayne was a Boy Scout in his youth? It seems that even in his adult life he never forgot his time in Scouting. In fact, even as Mr. Wayne was dying of cancer, he attended a benefit dinner to raise money for a new Scout camp. President Gerald Ford, who also attended the dinner, said of Mr. Wayne, “It occurs to me that John Wayne, like so many other great Americans, has never lost the sense that there is a higher good, something outside the individual, which each of us should seek to achieve.”

When the time came for Mr. Wayne to speak to the crowd he surprised everyone when he recited the Scout Law. Then he added, “”Trouble is, we learn them (the points of the Law) so young we sometimes don’t get all the understanding that goes with them. I take care of that in my family. As each boy reaches Scout age, I make sure he learns the Scout Law. Then I break it down for him, with a few things I have picked up in more than half a century since I learned it.” He then went on to break it down for the audience.

I am not going to print the whole thing Mr. Wayne said in this blog because you can read it at Boy Scout Trail or the USSP site. It is a great explanation about the meaning of the Scout Law so I do encourage you to check it out. I have wanted to use this a couple of times at a court of honor, but for some reason I always seem to forget to put it in my briefcase.

I am always amazed with the number of well known people who were involved with Boy Scouting in their youth, and how they fondly remember their days as a Boy Scout. I wish more people would come forward and tell the public about what Scouting has meant to them.

I used to have a copy of a video that I think was called “On My Honor”. It was a BSA promotional video which featured narration by former President Gerald Ford. It was several minutes long, and a very well done film. It was one of my favorite BSA videos. Unfortunately, somehow, somewhere, part of my copy was taped over. I tried calling my local council to see if they still had a copy of it. Unfortunately, they did not. I was a little upset when I discovered it was lost to me.

So, I went to the internet to see if I could discover a copy of it somewhere. So far, I have not had any luck. If any of you who read this blog have a copy, I would be willing to trade a dvd of 15 various BSA promotional films and commercials for it. Contact me through this web site.

As I was searching the internet, I discovered a site that had a speech given by President Gerald Ford in 1974 when he received the Scouter of the Year Award honoring him for being the first Eagle Scout to become the president of the United States. It is a great speech and I thought you might like to read it also, if you have not already read it. Just follow this link:
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=4601

I sometimes wonder what the “Great Master of All Scouts” had to say when this Eagle Scout President arrived at the Pearly Gates. I bet both of them had an ear to ear grin when they met!

Former President Gerald Ford, at age 93, has passed away. It was news that saddened me. He was the first president that I, as a teenager, really started paying attention to. I thought he was cool.

President Ford was our first and only president that was not elected to the office. He did not seek the position, but it found him. He accepted the duties and responsibilities and brought dignity back to the White House.

Some people have called him the accidental president, and in a way he was. Some called him the clumsy president. Every time he stumbled or fell we were able to see it on the evening news. Chevy Chase became a star on Saturday Night Live by mocking this former star college football player’s mishaps. President Ford was the lucky president, surviving two assassination attempts.

President Ford was also the healing president. After the lies and scandals of the Nixon presidency, Ford brought openness, dignity, and honesty back to the office. He was well liked by both Republicans and Democrats. During his brief term he helped the country put Watergate and the Vietnam War behind us and began to move this great country forward once again.

A lesser known and sometimes forgotten fact is that President Ford was a Boy Scout in his youth. In fact, he was an Eagle Scout, the only one to ever serve as President of the United States. When he became the president he brought his Scouting values with him to the office – trustworthy, loyal, kind, cheerful, and brave. He did his duty to God and country. He kept himself physically strong, stayed mentally awake, and was always morally straight.

Unfortunately, President Ford did not win the next election to remain president. Fortunately, he did not forget his Scouting roots. He narrated a video supporting Boy Scouting, its ideal, and values. I wish I still had a copy of the video. It would be great to see it again.

With the passing of President Ford not only has the country lost a great leader, but Scouting has lost a great role model, supporter, and friend.

“May the Great Master of all Scouts be with us until we meet again.” I hope the Great Master has accepted this great Scout into his great kingdom with open arms. I hope to meet him myself one day and share Scouting stories.