If you’ve been to a scout camp in the last four years or so, you’ve probably seen kids playing a lot of GaGa Ball. It’s been the hit of our day camp for the past five years, and it seems like the pit at every resident camp I’ve visited is in near constant use. There’s even a … Read more
I’ve been to a lot of Eagle Ceremonies. Probably hundreds. It’s customary for dignitaries to write letters to Eagle Scouts. Eagles get letters of congratulations from current and former US Presidents. They get them from members of Congress, governors, mayors, and state legislators. Mike Rowe’s Eagle Scout Letter is quite popular. But for the most part, they’re pretty … Read more
One of my favorite Scout leaders passed away last month. He could be a little gruff – in a good way. If the troop hadn’t been backpacking in a while, he’d notice that the boy’s discipline on campouts would start to break down a little. They’d take a little longer to get going in the … Read more
Here’s a story that’s not going to make the front page of the paper. It’s not going to lead the evening news. But it says everything about what Scouting produces – character. The Treasure Valley Camp Staff went above and beyond the call of duty to help a young Scout. Troop 159 from Brookfield was attending … Read more
One of the highlights of scout camping is a great campfire. Kids look forward to it all day long, and as well they should. It’s fun, funny, and exciting. It’s one of the highlights of any camping experience, and a great way to wrap up a fun day in the woods. In these days cell … Read more
Summer Camp Essentials So, you’re going to be going to camp for the first time with your scouts. Congratulations, you’re in for a week you’re never going to forget. But, as the Scout motto says, Be Prepared. So here are a few of the things that I’ve found to be summer camp essentials for a unit leader … Read more
Why You Feel Guilty Asking One of the biggest roadblocks to people recruiting volunteers, or raising money is guilt. People are naturally feel guilty asking for things. We’re trained that asking for thing makes us look weak. It also makes us feel vulnerable. We hate hearing the word no. Nobody really likes being told no. … Read more
About a week ago, I posted a piece about “the top 10 reasons to send your kid to camp.” It was read by people all over the world. The biggest concern people had was, “we can get kids to go to camp, but getting adults to go with them is the tough part.” So, … Read more
Camp Songs It’s almost time for summer camp. Cub Day Camps will be starting soon. Scout troops will be going to resident camp. So I figured I’d put out a few of my favorite camp songs. A couple of reasons for this: one, you can never know enough, the old ones will get old, and … Read more
When working with volunteers, thanks is the only payment we can really give them. And there are only so many official awards that can be handed out. Then, once a volunteer has been given all of those, what other ways of thanking leaders are there? This was a question that would come up more often … Read more