A Scoutmaster's Blog

During lunch today I read an article that was linked in an email to the Boy-Scout-Talk Yahoo group. It was a link to an article written by Rebecca Hagelin titled simply “Boy Scouts”. Here is a small portion of the article:

“Turn on the television for 30 minutes and show me how boys and men are portrayed – you can watch just about any station at any hour and the image will be the same. When sit-coms and commercials contain family groups or interactions between the genders, the man is usually stupid, lazy, and doltish.

If our media culture showed positive male images and if we actually put effort back into teaching boys that real men are also gentlemen, we would get more of the behavior our society needs to survive.

What the nation really needs are more Boy Scouts. And I mean that literally.

As a mother of two Eagle Scouts (now ages 20 and 21), I can personally testify about the tremendous positive impact that Scouting continues to have on their lives.”

I thought the article was very well done and hit some good points.

I have recently been guided to watch a video placed on Youtube by the Middle Tennessee Council – Boy Scouts of America. The council recently held its 17th Annual Patron Luncheon. One of the speakers at that luncheon was Eagle Scout Daniel Wakefield. He gave quite a speech. A very well thought out and motivational speech. I would like to suggest that you watch and listen to it.

If you would like to pass this on to people you know, then pass along this blog post, or pass on the Youtube feed which is http://www.scoutingnews.org/2009/04/13/middle-tennessee-council-boy-scouts-luncheon-2009/

He was a small tenth grader. Many of the eighth graders were as big or bigger then he was. When he received his drivers license at 16 years old he was 5′-2″ and weighed only 88 pounds. He was the weak skinny kid who would get pinned during wrestling in phy ed in less then 15 seconds. He was shy and quiet and would blend into a crowd, trying not to bring attention to himself. He was not physical enough to join a high school sports team so he became the team’s student manager for basketball and baseball.

He was also a Boy Scout. He enjoyed Scouting: the camping, the hiking, and the other activities. Even though he was two or three years older than most of the members of the troop he had found a group in which he could participate and have fun. He served as the senior patrol leader for much of his three and a half years in the troop.

This little twerp finally hit a growth spurt during his high school years was became a skinny 5′-8″ teenager when he graduated from high school. He continued his education at a two year vocational college. He often thought that it would be fun to get involved with a Scout troop once he found a job and settled down. And he did. Within a month of graduating college he had found a troop and became a nineteen year old assistant scoutmaster.

He worked well with the troop. He got along great with the boys. He earned the respect of the parents and committee. Shortly after he turned 21 years old, after spending only one and a half years as the assistant scoutmaster, the committee appointed him as the scoutmaster of the troop. He was very nervous during his first court of honor as an adult leader. His hands were shaking. His voice cracked. But he got through it. Over the years he became more comfortable talking in front of the troop.

During his first decade as a troop leader he took part in nearly every training course offered by the district and council. He was invited to become a staff member for several of the training courses. He even joined the district roundtable staff and began a junior leader roundtable which lasted for a couple of years.

This young man continued with the troop as the decades began to pass him by. He took the Boy Scouts to the High Noll Trail in Virginia and the Charles Sommers Canoe Base in Minnesota. He went backpacking with five crews at Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico. The only years he missed the annual week-long trip to summer camp were the years he was attending a high adventure base.

This small tenth grade Boy Scout who grew up to become the scoutmaster of his hometown troop can celebrate 29 years of being a Scout leader this month. He is a little bigger then he used to be, unfortunately only growing in the direction you don’t want to be growing as you approach your late 40’s.

By the way, if you have not guessed it by now, that twerp of a tenth grader was me.

The Sauk River runs through the city of Melrose, the home of Boy Scout Troop 68. This river nearly cuts the city in half. It is not very large. In fact, A teenager could through a football across most portions of the river. Below the dam in Melrose, in the city park, a person can walk across the river and not even get your chest wet.

The Sauk is an “old” river, with a lot of twists and turns as it flows from Sauk Centre to the Mississippi River in St. Cloud. It is actually a nice river for canoeing. It is quite scenic, and at times you will not see any signs of civilization. But it also has its challanges. There are curves of strong currents, downed trees, and the occassional wire fence stretched acrossed its width.

Yes, you read that correctly. The Sauk River meanders through a lot of farmland and pasture. There are parts of the river in which a farmer owns pasture land on both sides of the river so he stretches a single wire across the river to keep the cattle from “escaping” the pasture. There are many wire fences along the bank of the river. Many of them are electified with enough current to keep the cattle from walking through it.

In 1994, the troop was canoeing down the river for a weekend outing. We had permission from one of the farmers to camp overnight in his pasture. Between the river and the pasture was an electric and barbwire fence. The Scouts were very careful as they moved the gear from the canoes to the campsite. No one wanted to receive an electric shock.

After supper, some of the guys became bored. A couple of them walked up to the fence and decided to see how strong the current was by giving it a quick touch. More boys joined the crowd. They noticed that some guys received a larger shock then other guys due to the soles of the shoes.

They began experimenting. Two guys grabbed hands. One would touch the fence to see if the second would receive a shock. A third joined the line. It did not take long before all the guys had formed one line to see who would get a jolt, and how far the current would travel. After a short period the boys grew tired of this and began looking for other things to do.

The following morning was cool. A heavy dew covered the ground. An 18 year old alumni of the troop who had joined us for the weekend walked out of the tent in his barefeet. He walked across the dew covered campsite and, for some unknown reason, grabbed the electric fence. His yelp was loud enough to alert the whole camp that the current was still flowing through the wire.

As we loaded the gear into the canoes the Scouts were very careful handing the packs and bundles over the fence. No one wanted to experience the same shock that the eighteen year old had received that morning.

View some pictures of the trip at http://melrosetroop68.org/Web%20site%20yearly%20highlights/yh94.html

It is time for the fourth episode of Around The Scouting Campfire, a podcast about Boy Scouting with a bit of fun thrown in for good measure. Scoutmaster Steve and Buttons, the radical Boy Scout, have put together a full show for you.

Show #4 begins with Steve and Buttons talking about the troop’s latest fundraiser, a pancake and sausage breakfast. Steve then tells a story about a campfire skit that did not go as well as the patrol was hoping it would. Next, the Buckskin staff of Many Point Scout Camp sings the Many Point Ballad. During Buttons’ Corner, the radical Scout reads a couple letters he has received before trying to learn the Cub Scout Promise from Michael, the Bear Scout. As the show comes to an end we hear the Scout Leader’s Minute, How To Catch A Monkey.

Steve and Buttons would like to thank everyone who have sent emails about how they have enjoyed the shows. Please leave a comment at the iTunes store or at PTC Media forums.
You can contact Buttons at buttonst68@yahoo.com. You may contact Scoutmaster Steve at stevejb68@yahoo.com. We appreciate your emails and letters.

RSS Feed – http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MelroseScoutingAudioPodcast
Download episode – http://www.melrosetroop68.org/podcastaudio/MSAPE4.mp3

This podcast is found on iTunes at
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=307979159
and has joined the family of Scouting themed podcasts at PTC Media at
http://www.ptcmedia.net/

Last year, during one of our Boy Scout troop meetings, the whole troop ended up in the emergency room of our local hospital. Oh, don’t worry. There were no serious injuries. Our theme for the month was first aid so our committee chairperson set up a tour of the hospital’s emergency room and facilities.

Melrose is a community of 3300 people, but we have a very well staffed hospital. Our emergency room is not as big and chaotic as the one in the television show, or as a big city hospital would be. Our E.R. only has three beds but is fully equipped to handle most emergencies, from heart attacks to car crashes. Luckily for the troop, it was not being used while we were there for our visit.

The nurse was a great tour guide. She was very patient with the Scouts and answered all their questions very professionally. I think there were a couple of times a few of the boys were being grossed out, but you know teenage boys. They like being grossed out.

The nurse began our tour in the entry/garage for the ambulance. Almost immediately, the boys started asking questions. “Has anyone ever died in here?” The nurse told us that sometimes people die on the way to the hospital while being transported by the ambulance, and sometimes they may die in the hospital.

The emergency room was out next stop. The nurse explained the uses for the many pieces of equipment found in the room. The boys were very interested in the “shockers” that are used on some heart attack patients. They were surprised to see the drills and other equipment used to puncture hip and shoulder bones. The various kinds of I.V.’s and fluids also caught their interest.

The nurse lead the troop to the surgery room. Due to the sterile environment needed in there we did not actually get to enter the room, but we were able to look through the door windows into the staff prep room. Once again, the nurse gave a nice but brief summary of the things that happen in the area.

The tour lasted a bit over thirty minutes which was just enough time to give everyone a basic understanding of the E.R. and still have enough time to return to our meeting location (the school gym) and play a game, have a quick patrol meeting, and have our closing.

The troop thanks the staff of the Melrose Centracare Hospital for allowing us to tour their facility.

Eymard Orth, assistant scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 68 in Melrose Minnesota, was recently recognized by the Minnesota House for his twenty years of service to the troop. The local newspaper, the Melrose Beacon Beacon, reports:

“State Rep. Paul Anderson (left), R-Starbuck, presents Eymard Orth, Melrose, with a certificate of recognition for Orth’s 20 years of service to Melrose Boy Scout Troop 68. Orth is assistant scoutmaster of Troop 68 and received the recognition during the recent Stearns County Republican Convention in Melrose.“

Congratulations Eymard!

(Note: The picture is from the Melrose Beacon. The article can be seen HERE.)

I received an email from Todd at http://latterdayscout.blogspot.com asking for a few more details about our troop’s breakfast fundraisers. His troop has been thinking about conducting a breakfast of their own and are looking for some tips and advice. Okay, here are a few more details.

We serve a full meal which includes pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausage (smoked and unsmoked), frosted bread, coffee, milk, and a few condiments. It is an “all you can eat” meal so people know they will get their money’s worth. This “all you can eat” policy has seldom been abused by customers. We also allow people to do take-outs.

Tickets prices are very reasonable. Prices for adults are $6.00 in advance, $6.50 at the door. Children’s tickets (age 5 to 11) are $3.00 when purchased in advance, $3.50 at the door. Children four years old or younger eat for free.

The number of people we serve varies from year to year and season to season (spring or fall). Melrose is a rural community in central Minnesota with a population of 3300 people. We served 372 meals at Sunday’s breakfast which was up about 30 people from last fall, and up about 100 people from last spring. We have served up to 450 people in previous years.

As I stated in the previous post, preselling tickets is a key to having a successful fundraiser. This not only helps to spread the word about the breakfast but you will find people who can not come to the breakfast but will buy a ticket or two as a donation to support the troop. Those sales are one hundred percent profit.

Make sure you advertise the fundraiser. I make up posters to hang around town on my home computer and printer. For more hints about how to advertise for nearly no cost to the troop read my post from a year ago by clicking HERE.

I hope this information is helpful to your troop Todd. If any of you have any more questions please write me.