Scouts

[WildCelt]

It's hard for a kid to do much in Scouts without good troop leadership and support from home, neither of which I had.

That sounds familiar. I never made it past Webelos. I had some support at home, but my dad never made it past Cub Scouts, either (he didn't like the camping part). I joined the scouts to do cool outdoors stuff, but all we did was play silly games in the front yard and carve soap. Booooo-rrriing. So, I quit and went camping with my family, instead (Dad didn't mind camping in the tent trailer, just not on the ground).

 

[der schneider]

nice thread....


I sew a lot of patches on uniforms and I am not very excited about the latest BSA uniform. the media pocket goes against my idea of scouting, the zippered trouser's are poorly made (zippers will fail and the poly blend will not be very comfortable) the media pocket will make it necessary to change patch placement and the new style pockets will make placing patches more difficult.

I acheived a lot in scouting 23 merit badges and several other awards but I didnt care for paper work
so I didnt get to some of the required badges for eagle.
Scouting made a big difference in my life and helped to make me a well rounded person. I am still trustworthy loyal helpful friendly courtious kind cheerful thrifty brave clean and reverant but a little forgetful

 

[Guttersnipe]

Great thread!!!

fftopic:

In timely coincidence, over Thanksgiving dinner I realized that in my extended family is practically an Eagle Scout convention! There were 4 at the table plus a cousin who just filed his paper work and is awaiting his revue and court of honor (forgive me if I got the lingo wrong).

The two generation proceeding me were Eagle Scouts. (father & grand father). I, alas was a piss-poor scout, however, in a round about way I also benefited from scouting. Some of my fondest memories from childhood are of camping trips with my father who taught me many of the practical skills and life lessons he learned in Scouts.

 

[MPicciotto]

To those who lament not making Eagle. I agree that support from home and good leadership in the troop were essential in my achieving that rank. But irregardless had I left Scouts after only one year as a Cub Scout, I would still be a better person for it. A fellow WW2 reenactor, good friend of mine and public middle school teacher jokes about it but even his short stint had an effect on making him the person he is today. At living history events when it's time to tie knots he always turns to me and says

"Your the Eagle Scout you do it"
My reply: "C'om Mike weren't you a Boy Scout?"
"Only two weeks, then I quit"

Two weeks. And now he teaches public middle school?!? Brave man.

Matt

 

[Feraud]

Last night my son advanced to First Class rank. My wife and I are very proud of him.
I think he is qualified to advance to Star but needs to be First Class for a period of time.

 

[Carlisle Blues]

^
^
Excellent :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[tonyb]

My brothers and I were all members of a Boy Scout drum and bugle corps. We (the entire troop, really) weren't any great shakes as Boy Scouts (the camping, etc., wasn't the emphasis of our troop) and, truth be known, we weren't much of a drum and bugle corps either, although those kids formed the heart of what would be, a few years later (as Explorer Scouts) an international championship winning unit. The organization still exists, but not as the two-unit (the Boy Scout and Explorer corps) it was then. It's still a Boy Scouts affiliated group, as it has been since its founding in 1938, and it still displays the fleur-de-lis.

It was a fine thing to do, although it differed quite a bit from the typical Boy Scout experience.

 

[jamespowers]

Last night my son advanced to First Class rank. My wife and I are very proud of him.
I think he is qualified to advance to Star but needs to be First Class for a period of time.

He probably is. One step at a time though.
I probably had enough merit badges for Eagle when I was Star but you have to move through the ranks and attain a certain amount of leadership positions.
It will teach him patience anyway.
Congratulations to him! Soon Mom will have the mother's eagle pin. :eusa_clap

 

[WW2WaltUSMC]

I never got my Eagle, turned 18 too soon after picking up Life. But Ive been involved in scouting since Tiger Cubs. I am still an assistant scoutmaster at my old troop back in Ipswich, though I rarely make the meetings anymore. I had the honor of presenting my youngest brother, Adam, with his Second Class when I was home in June. He is turning into quite the promising young scout, and my stepmom loves that she can give him all my old camping gear and uniforms! I plan on introducing my future children to scouting, and hopefully they keep in in the family too!

 

[Jennifer Lynn]

This thread has me very nostalgic for my days as a Girl Scout. Made it up to the Junior level (was very close to Senior), and then the troop leader quit and the troop disbanded. Didn't find another troop to get in to after my family moved, so that was it. I miss the comraderie that was had by a group of young gals learning things in and out of doors. Loved the camping and adventures in the mountains (of Colorado), sitting by the fire telling ghost stories under moonlight and roasting marshmallows.

Had the sash, blouse and skirt (shorts or pants, depending on the weather) outfits too before they went the way of the dodo. I recall getting the vest that Lizzie shows a page or so back too. Ended up with many a patch, doing much good for the local community, and learning a lot about the world around me.

 

[Matt Deckard]

I posted more about this beauty on my Tumblr

http://mattdeckardapparel.tumblr.co...-of-the-finds-i-consider-awesome-very-hard-to

 

[Canadian]

I was a Boy Scout (Scouts Canada). The Scouters didn't know much about camping or hiking, so my Dad had to step in once in a while and keep the camping trips safe and sane.

We had three "unofficial" uniforms. Firstly, what I call a "A" uniform. Basically the uniform shirt with any kind of dress slacks. We didn't mandate that you buy the entire uniform, as in my Troop, it would have cost a fortune to buy a new pair of pants every time the knees wore out or you outgrew them. I wore a basic issue shirt for about two years at a time. In the "A" uniform, we also wore the necker, the ceremonial sash and a beret. Almost all of our badges went on the ceremonial sash (we would wear them to meetings, but set them aside for games and activities) and the beret was standard headdress. It was worn differently from a French beret, more like a British Army beret. (That is, the right side pulled down around the ear.).

In the field, most of us wore civilian gear. This is where the "B" and "A" come from. In "B" we would wear civilian long underwear, a wool or fleece sweater, civvy snowpants (bibs) and maybe a nylon windbreaker and overtop, a down parka. Most of our campouts were in extremely cold conditions. It was imperative that we didn't sweat while working, because sweating = freezing. Most of us wore felt-pack boots for a camping trip. In the summer, the "B" uniform consisted of canvas pants, a long sleeved uniform shirt and a beret. Some of us wore Tilley style caps or ballcaps.

Class "C" was basically a civvy tee and jeans. A lot of us didn't own milsurp or technical clothing (I had an advantage, having access to my dad's army kit, but he insisted I not wear combats to camp) so we basically chose rough clothing that was expendable.

The standard backpack for a winter camp was a basic external frame pack with sleeping bag, clothing, and a tent. We also had rule that gear was to be packed at least a km from the parking area (I don't know why, but I suspect this rule was drawn up in the warm months of summer over a few bottles of wine) and so we'd in addition to personal kit, haul in groceries, stoves, fuel, tarps and anything else we thought we needed.

Something interesting is, there used to be a wool sweater issued to Scouts. I suspect this was abandoned because most of us wore military sweaters, or simply wore mufti in the field. If I go back to be a Scoutmaster, I'll be stocking up on wool sweaters from thrift stores and surplus joints for my boys. I had a few brushes with hypothermia while in the field, and luckily my dad was able to intervene and save a large number of us. I'd explained the situation in the Great Outdoors forum, but basically about fifteen of us would have never woken up had he not realized what was going on. Cheap sleeping bags and summer tents don't do in a -40C winter in the mountains.

Tom

 

[Matt Deckard]

Great story and awesome info Tom. I understand about the growing and pants issue. I myself had to wear hand me downs since my siblings were in the troop, two older brothers before me. As they got bigger I got what was considered small to them. I'm keen on the troop being full uniform, yet there is something cool about the look of the troops of the early days that just went with what they had and stuck patched and pins where they could.

 

[Canadian]

I wore most of my badges on my ceremonial sash. The exceptions were the chevrons which (although identical to Army rank insignia) denoted one's progression in the troop and their ability to pass certain combinations of badges, the group flash, the Scouts Canada insignia, and the ropes and cords one was entitled to. For example, having passed 15 challenge badges, I wore a gold chain in the manner similar to a military aide de camp. It was of course brass, and it was fairly corny. However it was a mark of pride. I still have mine somewhere.

The badges were divided into two sections. One dealt with camping, hiking, safety, swimming, canoeing, winter camping, etc. The other badges (Challenge) badges were about hobbies and interests. For example, I got a challenge badge for displaying proficiency with a computer, and also for my interest in camp cookery. They also went on the sash, as the first section did, only lower on the sash. Many of the boys had 10-20 Challenge badges, with the more serious badges being harder to earn. While today, I think nothing about covering 25km in a 10 hour day in the mountains, most of us (as most of our activities took place in sub arctic weather just below the treeline) didn't have the experience needed to obtain a large number of these badges. For example, we camped out for two nights at Senator Buchannan campsite, (where my father saved my life and the lives of many other Scouts) and most of us got badges for winter camping. But we didn't camp out for long periods of time, making it harder for individual scouts to obtain say, a Silver Hiking Badge. Unless you had a serious interest and were able to go on your own on your own time, the troop was run so that even the "low hanging fruit" could participate. When you're dealing with 11yo-14yo kids, you can't just line them up and go on a march. Oddly enough, as an army cadet I commanded a group (mostly 13yos under my command) which did just that, and did so with minimal BS.

About getting handmedowns, the Beaver uniforms were always secondhand. I got mine from a schoolmate, and my brother got mine. The uniform for beavers was simply a boonie cap with a beaver tail, and a brown vest decorated with various badges. Beavers didn't really do badge work, but were just more for fun and games.

As a Cub Scout, we started doing stuff outdoors that could be considered more difficult. We'd go camping in the 3-seasons our equipment was designed for. My dad made sure I was kitted out, and for most of us that meant, clean jeans, a khaki workshirt and a beret. The necker and sash were also important. Strangely enough, when I joined Cubs, my section commander (I forget the Cubs word) wore a grey sweater which had been approved for uniform wear in the past, and was being phased out. It was basically a wooly-pully covered in badges. I was told that because he had bought his while it was uniform wear, he could wear it, but not pass it onto another Cub, without the understanding that it was no longer official uniform.

There were very few places in Lethbridge to buy Scouting gear, except the Scout shop and they were often out of stock. For a long time, a lot of us wore sweatsuits or jeans and a tee, not because we were messy, but because the unforms were unavailable.

The actual field uniform, tended to be a sweater, jeans and a khaki shirt if available. It was a real mess and we only wore official uniforms when it was called for. For example, while attending classes in the field shelters, we would wear mufti, but if it was warm weather, we often wore the necker, shirt, slacks and beret. For bottle drives and community events, the more items you could wear the better. We tended to come to meetings fully dressed, then removed items based on our games or classes.

Something I will never forget is being a cub scout and our pack had gone to a dude ranch. There were girls there and we were all trying to show off for them. I have never seen more peacocks in full uniform (beret, shirt, slacks and necker) just for breakfast or walking around outside. It's amazing what a few girls will do for a unit's decorum. The sash was strictly for ceremony, and wasn't worn into the field. That would be like wearing one's suit to go to a football game, where one is the participant.

In the Fieldbook, almost every layer or item of clothing is shown available with the Scouting crest on it. However, rather than pay the full price for sometimes shoddy gear, many of us simply scavenged from what we owned. In my first real campout as a cub, I saw everything from uniform shirts to cargo pants and a tee, through to clothes the Sally Ann would reject. A lot of parents enroll their kids in Scouts and appendant bodies because it's an inexpensive way to have fun. Same deal with the Cadets (you see, as an army Cadet, the uniforms and most of the equipment are bought by or surplussed off by the regular army. As a Cub, most of the equipment either belonged to leaders or was on loan from the various parents. Nobody is left out if he can't afford to pay for his tent, or doesn't have money for food. I think it costs 50 bucks to join, and the leaders end up shouldering a great deal of the cost of badges, equipment and field gear. I was very lucky that my dad was an army officer, and he understood uniforms and such, but a lot of the boys were less than fortunate. Some of us went barefoot in the field, because the only shoes we owned were either rubber boots or worn out sneakers. I remember one time, we did a particularly long march (maybe 3km, which to boys is a lot) and the march ended at a cantina where the leaders bought us ice cream. Suffice it to say, at 1.50 a bar and twenty of us, the leaders paid a lot of the time out of their own pockets.

Most of the parents in some manner helped out. My mother was a cook's helper and drove in every morning to prepare the day's meals then drove back home. Our favorite campsite as a cub was only about 1/2 hour from town, so it was possible for parents to come in when they could and help.

I remember telling my mom, "Mommy, mommy. The leaders had a party last night. And they had chips. And pop.". I figured they were tired because we all got up at 3AM and went to bed around 10PM the night before. What I didn't realize was there was a lot of whiskey consumed along with the chips and pop. The only leader who wasn't extremely hungover was this English chap who woke at 3:01 and helped us get set up for the day. I remember setting up the campfire and stoking the remaining ashes to produce some flames. He said, "Did you buys use gasoline? How about lighters?". When we said no. He turned to us and said, "Good show. Jolly good show".

Thomas

 

[Ray Krueger]

Was wondering I am getting my son into scouts reenacting and does anyone have suggestions on shoes... thank you

 

[Feraud]

What is scouts reenacting? Is that exactly what it sounds like? Why not join the real thing?

 

[Ray Krueger]

I would

What is scouts reenacting? Is that exactly what it sounds like? Why not join the real thing?

do that in a heart bear with my 12 year old, but baseball and my wife and I work
odd hrs to where it would not work.. So i am putting together a kit for him to portray a Scout back in the early to late 40s , i have already forun the uniform just no luck finding shoes