Reduce Reuse Recycle….. #LNT
Today the school that my kids go to went a bit greener. While this is not a Scout thing, I wanted to do a shout out to the School and those who made this happen. When my wife told me the numbers of plastic sporks that were used each year, I was astounded. Congrats to them!
It’s a great GREEN day at Stephenson today! The Green Team rolled out the stainless steel forks and spoons for student lunches! Good-bye plastic sporks – over 20,000 a year! Thanks to Jenny Stout, Lunch Lady Lori, our custodian Fermin, Principal Thu and Stephenson PTA members for making this dream a reality!
Rank Advancement Season
It’s that time again in the world of Cubscouts. On March 17th the Fire Scouts will crossover into a Boyscout Troop. It’s out annual Pack Overnighter at Scouter’s Mtn. It’s our third year doing it. It’s my second time in having the OA come do Crossover. My son’s Tiger year we had them at the Gym. I kinda freaked out since I had NO Clue as to what the OA was or is. I walked into the gym and it was dark and there were dudes in Indian Clothing. Granted I was in a Frat in college so I had an idea, but that was laced with Beer and Sorority Girls!
The Arrow of Light Award will be presented at this ceremony. It’s all about the Fire Scouts.
The Monday before, the Tigers, Bears & Webelos I (Tree Scouts) will all get their Rank Badges. This is really quite early for them. But hey, they worked hard to get there. This will also be the chance for all the Fire Scouts to get all the rest of the Awards, Pins, Patches and everything that they have earned.
I really like this part of the year since the Tigers get their first Rank Badge. They have the Bobcat, but Tiger is the completion of the whole year of working towards a goal. Likewise for the Wolves, Bears and Webelos. But, it’s the first for Tigers.
I am working on a ceremony for the Rank Advancement. Below is a sample of what I am working on. I got some of it from the Boy Scout Trail website. It’s been my go to place for years. I edited it with another ceremony for Tigers that is at the bottom. Just need to get the fake Campfire…;)
(scout names), please come forward with your parents.
You see that I hold here a feather. This is not just any feather, but represents that of an Eagle, the most respected of all creatures. The eagle is most beloved by the Great Spirit because it represents life and how all things are divided into two parts.
The eagle, you see, has only two eggs at a time. Likewise, there is man and woman. People have two hands, two feet, and two eyes. We each have a body and a soul. There is also day and night, light and dark, summer and winter. we see beautiful and distasteful sights. We hear pleasant sounds and dreadful news. We use our hands for good deeds, or bad.
We have before us two paths. Scouting encourages us to follow the way of good – of bravery, service, honor, and brotherhood. We also may choose selfishness, laziness, mean spirit, and deceit. That choice belongs to each of us.
On your journey, you have chosen the Scouting way, and through your work you have earned the _____ rank. Wear the patch you receive proudly. I also present to each of you a feather of your own. When you see it, remember what it represents, that we face choices every day which path we will follow. Stay true, and continue on your trail of the Eagle.
Who are these these Scouts? Who will speak for these Scouts? Who will pronounce them worthy?
(One by one – parents introduce their sons and pronounce them worthy).
Cubmaster asks the pack: How says the pack? (Pack should roar approval.)
Cubmaster administer Cub Scout Promise to the boys, and Parents Promise to adults.
This lends itself to an outdoors ceremony, with a campfire; but it can be equally effective indoors in a darkened room with an artificial council fire, flashlights, etc. Leaders should be wearing Indian regalia.
Parents Promise:
We, the parents of a Cub Scout
Promise to help our boy
To become a better citizen
By helping him to live up to the Scouting ideals
And by helping him with his Cubbing achievements
Trainer’s EDGE
On Saturday Feb 18th, I was finally able to get fully trained in “The Trainer’s EDGE“. I was supposed to have it last year for the 2011 Wood Badge course, but I was with my family in Maui.
With all the training/meetings that I had to get ready to be a Troop Guide for Wood Badge, I was certified for the course. It is also one way that I got to this training this year since I told my wife I missed it due to our vacation.
The training itself is valid for three years. Outside of that, it’s valuable training. I mainly took it because I should have last year. I also took it because as the District Training Chair, I should have it. It’s like being fully Trained to be a ScoutMaster. If your going to be IT, you need the training. Now, I can say that I am fully trained for my position.
The other reason I took it is because I can always use this type of feedback on how I present myself and trainings that I do. It’s not just useful within the Scouting world, but also within my Corporate life.
So, what did I learn. I learned that I need to take the conversation from my head, get it onto paper and practice, practice, practice. Then give it to a group before the main presentation and then reflect, modify and practice. What I think is good, isn’t that good in the end.
I gave two presentations during the training. One was about the Training Area and the second was about patches. The latter I had time before class to think up and produce. The first one was given to us during the training. The five minute talk I gave about this subject was better delivered and given than the one I had time to prepare about. That was a great lesson.
I am including the PPT as a PDF so people can see it. I have a lot to do to refine it down. I am actually taking out the National Outdoor Award info from it. Reason being, I am not in Boy Scouts , but in Cub Scouts and know that program a lot better. I am also going to revise what is said on the screen. Less is more and more is not good.
Overall, Trainer’s EDGE is a valuable course and one that should be taken if you find yourself up in front of people. No matter if they are Scouts or non-Scouts.
#wdyr @WorstDayRide of the Year
Today was the Portland area’s Worst Day of the Year Bike Ride. There is a 16 mile and a 45 mile ride. I opted for the 16. While I have done one other official Bike Ride in Portland, this was one by myself and with my new bike. It’s also the first during my getting healthy kick. I ended up meeting a friend of mine at the end, he did the 45 mile version. That was fun. I did see the SPL & SM from a local Troop. Truth be told, I recognized the SPL, but I could not place him. I ended up saying hello after I realized. It was good to catch-up with them.
The event was great. I got there a tad early. Right when the Die-Hards left. Then came my group. The families and goofy dressed and semi-not-hard-core. The Event is in their 11th year and was organized great. There were 3 rest stations along the way. I did not stop at the first one since I was just getting going. Though the Hot Chai did help. The second one in NE Portland was great. It was a good stop since I needed a break. That was about 8 miles.
Towards the end, my family kept calling me asking me where I was. It ended up that they were waiting for me along the route and held up a banner. That was totally awesome. Very inspiring.
So, while this post has nothing to do about Scouting, it was about getting out and doing something that I normally would not do. Plus it was about fitness.
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Notes from the KYBO
Well, I didn’t have a catchy title and that’s the first thing that came to mind. Don’t worry, I am in the kitchen having coffee and not writing this on an iPad from the KYBO.
The 100 Days of Scouting have started up again. The orginator has started it up again and I really like reading them. Another Scouter Josh Nay is following suit as well. While I am not going to write everyday, since for me that is a lot. I think it’s important to support and read these blog posts. It is one of the reasons that I am on Twitter and have developed friendships with other Scouters to this day. We all wear the purple patch and subscribe the to the same Kool-aid. I learn a lot from my Internet Roundtable. (Check out the list of Scout Blogs I follow on the bottom left hand side of the website for more)
A fellow Scouter Allan Campbell last night during the Pack’s Blue & Gold received his Beads for completing his ticket. It was a great time. Many of the Wood Badge staff and other Wood Badgers were on hand along with several of his patrol mates. Three things happened there that were notable.
First: I had a great insight into how another Pack does Blue & Gold, Rank advancement (A Webelos Badge and the Arrow of Light badges were handed out) happened. Every Pack does it differently.
Second: I got to connect with a Bear Patrol Member who is an Assistant Cubmaster who had questions about his ticket. I gave him ideas about other topics. He is stuck since one needs to be rewritten. Also, invited him to our Pack meetings so he can see how we do it. It’s one of his ticket items to visit other Packs for that very reason. A very smart ticket item.
Finally: I was made aware of another Troop that is in my immediate area that I was not too aware of. They have 8-10 Scouts and are dying. I was invited to come to the Troop and bring the Webelos I & II. The person who invited me is a fellow Wood Badger from the 2012 course and is trying to save it. He and I swapped info and he forwarded me an email from the SM/CC with their info as well. I passed it along to my Webelos II DL.
Finally, one of the members of the Bobwhite Patrol that I am a Troop Guide for is just about done. He forwarded me his last ticket item that deals directly with Training within the Troop and the record keeping/training promotion. It is so good that I am going to swipe it and use it for the District. It basically bugs me to no end, as does him (I take it) that people do not get trained or avail themselves to it. In a very recent blog post from Scoutmaster Jerry, he is up the same tree about JTE. Stay tuned for a post about what I am proposing to do within my District about Training Records.
Barns, the BSA, and Birdhouses – Caterpillar Axle Manufacturing Plant, Part 1
This part one of a three-part series on the Caterpillar Axle Manufacturing Plant built by Gray Construction in Winston-Salem NC. On the future site of the facility, there remained a handful of sheds left over from the land’s past life as a tobacco farm. The material was too weathered to be of any commercial value and we were not able to use it to obtain credits toward LEED certification of the facility. It seemed a shame to ship this material off to the landfill and so we began to look for a way that …
Where worlds meet
For those of you that have followed the blog for any given time, you know that I am a fan of sports. I believe that sports do great things in the lives of youth and I also believe that there is room for sports, scouts, academics, and a normal life for our youth. I actually think that when youth participate in sports and scouts they become better young men and women. This last weekend was spent watching my oldest son wrestle at a tournament with the High School wrestling team. John did real well this …
Great Posting. Hence, I have re-blogged it here.
Training in the District
On Saturday our District held three training classes. Merit Badge Counselor, Charter Org and District Committee Trainings. There was supposed to be the Boy Scout & Cub Scout Position training. However, those the Boy Scout class only had two and the Cub Scout had none. There was only ONE WALK IN for the Boy Scouts!
As Training Chair, I looked at our records and realized that we were not trained as a District. We only needed 95 more people trained to get to 50%. Yuck. (I am waiting to see what Council has for the January timeframe since that will get us the latest version after Re-Charter. Many people will drop & get added.)
So, first up was Merit Badge Counselor Training. Out of the normal Roundtable Crowd, there were four Scouters who I never saw before. One lady was the Merit Badge Coordinator for his Troop. The other was told to come and another knew she needed it. Plus since there were changes to the Guide to Advancement & new Eagle Project Book, she wanted to make sure she got all the new info. The forth was an ASM. We all took it in and got a lot of great information. The course was taught by our Advancement Chair, who is also on the Council Advancement Team. So, great info from the top. So, why was this different? Well, normally this training was done at the Troop level or one on one. Here you had 6 different Troops represented. Basically 6 different ways on how MBC could be handeled. The great thing is through this group learning 6 different Troops came together and learned how each other did it and what their issues were.
Charter Org Rep Training: This was timely as there is a dust-up within our 
District. We had four real Charter Org Reps at the class along with several of the normal Roundtable people. My push for this class was to help the District reach out to the Charter Org Reps and tell them more about Boy Scouts and what everyone is supposed to do. Our Trainer got right to the point and said, it’s about the Kids and that’s who we work for. He pointed out that each COR is on the District Committee. Our 
District Chairman was there as well and did do an invite and how he saw them and the BSA. It was great. We covered the basic syllabus from the BSA and also dived into very meaty topics. Ones you would not get online. Portland Lawsuits, Insurance, Liability…who owned what. We had service clubs and churches represented within the class. Great mix. I was very happy that this class was offered. It will be back.
District Committee Training:
My big push for this was a lot of our Committee is new within the past year or two. With our new Chairman, Commissioner, Program Chair, me and others….we needed this. Our fellow Scouters in the District next to us was in a similar situation. Plus, I knew the District Chair from Wood Badge and as being a Troop Guide together this past year. So, while I had just gotten trained as a MBC, COR, I was really looking forward to this training. I had asked the Scoutmaster from WE1-492-09, who is a Assistant Council Commissioner to come speak. The Trainer worked with her to figure out what needed to be covered.
This was a great training. We went over the basics of what a District is and how it functioned. We did not get into breakouts since we were so small and our committees as a District are not that huge. So, what happened was a lot of discussion between each other. Our counterparts within Wapiti (The Great Herd from the West, as I call them) were great! Both Districts learned from eachother about how the each did business. We learned that we are not that different in the challenges we both face. Membership, Retention, Finance, Programing….you name it we talked about it.
We also learned that the Commissioner Corp is highly valuable. That they needed to be out in the Units so we can get “The Message” out to them. That the Commissioners are there to help tell the District Committee how healthy or unhealthy the District/Units are.
It was a great day for learning at the Unit Level, District Level and Council Level. Both the District Exec’s were there. Each of them had words to share about what they thought was important. Not just about their District, but as a Council.
The Wapiti District Committee: (Not all shown)
The Pioneer District Committee (Not all shown)
Finally, we did celebrate our Training that day. As any Scout function needs to have, is a song. Since it was the 2009 Wood Badge Scoutmaster came and spoke to us, we sang her favorite song. ROOTBEER! Yes, we had fun. If you cannot have fun during training….well…..
Spending Time with your Family
The Boy Scouts of America says this about Cub scouts and Families “Cub Scouting aims to develop youth into participating citizens of good character who are physically, spiritually, and mentally fit. The organization recognizes that it is the responsibility of parents and family to raise their children. The Cub Scout program is a resource that can help families teach their children a wholesome system of values and beliefs while building and strengthening relationships among family members. “
This has been true within my journey in Scouting with my son. I also see some parents able to have this time with their sons as well. Within the Pack I am in, I work to make sure that if siblings are able to go to the Cub Scout events, that I advertise that point. I also tell that to new parents and those who are thinking about joining.
So, why is it a topic today?
Recently I had to tell the Pack Committee that due to my position at work increasing my time away, that I might be missing some Den Meetings and possibly Pack Meetings. I am not stepping down and I am not leaving. I am however kicking up the search for my replacement. I need several Assistant Cub Masters. I am lucky in several ways. First, Pack Meetings are only once a month. My wife can take Elliot to the Den Meetings, which are close to home. A lot of our advancement happens on our outings which are on the weekend and I am home. However, the big issue for me, is time away from my family. My wife understands why. My kids understand that I have a job, but not that it brings home the money for us to live. I have been keenly aware that my being away does greatly affect them and my wife. I now routinely get comments from the kids like “your gone a lot”and ” I’m giving you extra hugs cause I don’t get to during the week”. There are others.
So for awhile, I have been working at doing stuff with them. Building forts, playing non-electronic games (though I will try to win at Wii Games when I can) and spending time with JUST them one on one. It is very important to hang out with your children. Just be with them. Don’t do Scouting unless they bring it up, go biking, do their favorite thing, go bowling, watch the dumb cartoon that they like and you hate. You do not need to go out and spend a lot of money, take them to fancy places, get them huge cool gifts to create memories. You just need to give your time.
Which leads me to this great video. It’s from the Melrose Scout Productions out of Minnesota. First, it’s a great blog. With 30 years as a Scoutmaster in Minnesota, Steve has a lot of great ideas. The video below is about the Adding Machine Tape. When I first saw it, I thought it was great. Now, as I look at it again, it rings even truer. While Steve focuses on Scouting with your Son, it works with Familytime as well.
Thanks to Steve for letting me use this in the post.
Scouting will give you Job Skills
While I am not in the Boy Scout area, yet. I find a lot of the skills that the Scouts could learn very good. Hence, I am glad about this new Merit Badge. Welding. I have actually looked at classes for this. I find it very fascinating. I took shop when I was in 7th & 8th Grade. I also went to the Vo-Tech Center for Graphic Arts. As most of you know I went to Culinary School and worked in the restaurant world for 9-10 years.
So, when the BSA announced Welding, I was very happy. Bryan on Scouting has a great article on it. The American Welding Society also has a note about it.
While I currently as of this writing, do not see requirements yet posted to the BSA Merit Badge section, I think it will be very valuable. However, if you do not want to take my word for it, take it from Mike Rowe. You know, that Dirty Jobs guy who is an Eagle Scout…. It’s a good lesson also on how there is employment, but in fields that many do not consider these days. There are many professions and all require knowledge. Most are not as sexy as being an Astronaut or Rocket Scientist or Heart Surgeon.
So, if you turn a wrench, good for you. You cannot be replaced by a Script. People still need to repair the robots and machines that process all the crappy food we eat and to the things we buy to sweat it off with. You might need a lawyer to sue the guy who made the hot coffee, but that lawyer will need a Printer Repair guy to fix the printer that produces the lawsuit papers and a Desktop Support Guy to install the printer on the computer. So, gain knowledge in any field.
