Scoutmaster Podcast 175

This edition of the Scout National Podcast is brought to you by the folks at Conahoe Creek Outfitters. They know camping and they know scouts. They are scouts And they know how to get you great gear and great prizes for all your camping adventures.

So go visit them at conahoecreakcom, at conohocreakcom. And now to your Scoutmaster. It's that time of year again. Summer camp is right around the corner, and I have learned- I have learned, folks- the secret of summer camp. Summer camp is the art of learning how to be miserable and liking it.

We're all going to be uncomfortable at one point or another in our lives, So we better be learned to be cheerful in miserable conditions at summer camp. That's a great place to do it, isn't it?

Yes, sir, This is podcast number 175.. Welcome back to the Scoutmaster Podcast. This is Clarke Green. Let's take a look at the mail bag Got a couple of people wrote in this week. Hey, we heard from Michael Harrington and he had this to say about our last podcast where we talked with our friend Arlam Ward and we got an update on his new troop out there in Colorado. Michael said this podcast just addressed in a nutshell all of our troop experiences and all of our challenges during patrol leaders council meetings and troop meetings and camp outs and all of the adult involvement.

We're in Massachusetts, yet if you remove the names and places, I would have bet my bottom dollar you were talking about our troop. It's amazing, isn't it? We all go through the same stuff.

That's why it's so much fun, right? That's why sometimes this whole conversation and the podcast and the blog and things like that is useful, because we're all doing the same thing, We all run into the same difficulties, We all celebrate the same achievements, and it's just what makes the world go round, isn't it? Daniel Desjardins wrote in to say: my two sons are in a new troop because we moved At this time. Most of the troop is run by adults. The Scoutmaster, although, is retiring in October and I will have the pleasure to take over the position. Congratulations, Daniel.

Jump into the volcano. It's fine. I've been scouting for a long time, but this will be the first time I attempt being a Scoutmaster. I have been listening and reading everything you've done and one thing that I will put in place will be a patrol leader's council, and we're going to have the scouts be in charge just like they ought to do. Keep on scouting. People like you make a difference.

Well, thank you, Daniel. Thank you for your kind words of encouragement. There You're going to have the opportunity to go ahead and give this stuff a go and see how it works- and it works. It works, Trust me. It won't look like it's working at first, but it will work for you. It's summertime.

We're still keeping busy at ScoutMasterCGcom. I posted a video this past week about an axe and a knife and a sharpening stone that you would want to take a look at.

So go to our YouTube channel, ScoutMasterCG. On YouTube and, you know, check out the review of those items on the blog.

They came from our friends at ConahoeCreekcom, So you want to make sure to check those out. I think they're well worth your attention.

Well, on this Scoutmaster podcast and Scoutmaster ship, in seven minutes or less. It's never, ever seven minutes And it's certainly not less than that.

But you know, oh well, we're going to talk about summer camp, because that's where we're all headed. I have some advice for you about that and we've got an email question to answer, and that's going to do it for this podcast.

So let's get started, shall we?

Scoutmaster ship in seven minutes or less. It won't be too long before we're all packed up and ready to take our big crowd of Scouts to summer camp. I am looking forward to it, as I do every summer. This will be summer number 29, or maybe 29..

Yeah, I think summer number 29.. A lot of those summers my role at summer camp was being on staff instead of being the Scoutmaster for our troop. I did that for about a dozen years in different senior positions and a couple of those were as the camp director. That many years of working at camp and the couple of years being a camp director and keeping up with our current staff- And I can tell you something: things haven't changed a great deal.

The program, oh, that changes a little bit and you know different people come, but the same issues are the perennial issues, that kind of make or break your week at summer camp. We've attended the same summer camp since the troop was first chartered in the 1940s.

Some of you like to go to different camps every year, try out different things, you know, and that's all good. I don't think there's a right or a wrong way to do it.

The right thing is getting out for a week at summer camp After all those years on staff and having spent a long time as a Scoutmaster at camp and watching you know literally thousands of Scout leaders and tens of thousands of Scouts go through a summer camp week. I can tell you- I believe authoritatively- that these are the most important things for you to be thinking about as an adult who's going to spend a week at camp. The number one thing is: don't overdo it and kind of make yourself into a time bomb.

Okay, If you get hungry or hot and tired and thirsty, you need to pay attention to that and you need to get cool and rested and fed and hydrated. I know I get pretty cranky if I don't look after myself, and years of observation prove that many of my fellow Scouts share the same problem. When you're going to spend a week at camp with a group of Scouts, the temptation is going to be to try to keep up with them.

Now, more power to you if you can do that and not feel any effects. But most of us aren't 16 anymore, right?

So we have to look after ourselves and looking after yourself. Most importantly, that you get hydrated and rested is really, really important, because if you turn yourself into this kind of ticking time bomb so that by the end of the week you have no patience left and you're getting a little touchy and you're getting kind of cranky. It's going to make everybody's life miserable.

So that's probably that's the number one thing and that's why it's at the top of the list. Number two: I can tell you that the camp staff is totally dedicated to making your stay at camp worthwhile.

I can tell you that I know that I've been to National Camp School- I think I went to five different years of that- and I know people from camps all over the country and I know that they put their heart into it. None of them are in it for the money- The money is not good- but they're there because they want to make this a great experience for the scouts and, in turn, for the adults that are accompanying the scouts there. One of the great experiences at a summer camp are the younger people who are on the staff of the camp. They're learning and growing, just like your scouts are, and you need to be considerate and supportive of them. That is a really important way to make life better while you're at camp: to be considerate and supportive of the staff, because that's what they're trying to do for you. Number three: no matter how much you think they deserve it, never berate or criticize or argue with or yell at a staff member, a youth leader or a fellow adult leader in the presence of your scouts.

If it really needs to happen, a quiet talk at an appropriate distance, out of earshot from scouts, will usually solve the problem and a lot of times- if you're like me, you're going to find out- the problem might be yours. Number four is not to pull rank. You should understand what that means. Let's say you're a Scoutmaster and you go down to camp with your troop.

Well, you're a Scoutmaster, You're not a general or an admiral or the president. So there really isn't any rank for you to pull, is there? Most people instantly respect the position that adults occupy at camp. The staff respects it and the scouts respect it.

So don't make a big giant deal out of it. Don't ask for special privileges or try to impress staff members with yourself importance or your encyclopedic knowledge of the things that they are doing. They're very proud of what they are doing.

They're working hard to do it and you going in there and telling them everything you know about it is not necessarily going to be very welcome. I'm in a situation where I used to be the camp director at the camp and I used to be on staff. I've been going there longer than any staff member has right at this point, but I don't expect to be treated much differently than any other scout leader. It's important that I keep that attitude and that I play the game and I go by the rules and I don't expect any special favors. Number five is: join in the program and encourage your scouts to join in too. If you travel around, if you go to a different camp every year, you're going to hit a program that you don't like- It's almost inevitable- and you're going to hit a program that maybe, in your humble opinion, isn't all that great and a staff that's not all that great.

Well, I got to tell you from the staff side of things: a lively, appreciative, supportive audience does more than anything to enliven and energize a camp staff. Just being nice, You know, Even when things are going wrong, even when you think things are not great and maybe even that you're being mistreated, it doesn't cost much to be nice. There is a nominal kind of customer relationship, right, You plunk down money and your scouts plunk down money to go to camp and you expect a certain level of service and accommodation and things like that.

Well, you know, let's remember, a scout camp is not club med and a scout camp is not necessarily going to be a highly polished professional atmosphere of, you know, absolute excellence. Camp staffs go through cycles. They have down years and they have up years and camps go through cycles like that.

You know, the whole idea in all of this that I am saying is being a little humble and being cooperative and not complaining and grousing and being kind of that disgruntled customer. If you have a very bad experience, you'll want to talk to somebody. But I got to tell you the 15-year-old staff member, the guys that are working at camp, they're not the ones that are going to be able to change things. You want to get in touch with somebody at the council office. You want to talk to the camp director. Maybe, like I said, your attitude is going to have a great deal to do with the quality of your experience.

Number six is to participate in ceremonies and traditions and practices of the camp, even if they're not very familiar to you. And you know, I'll say again, even if you really don't care for them all that much. A camp staff is very proud of its traditions. Imposing your way of doing things on a camp staff, imposing your traditions on them, is really kind of rude. It's like going into somebody else's house rearranging the furniture. Play along.

There's going to be a specific way that a camp- take you know, has a retreat ceremony and that's going to be a tradition that they've had and developed over a number of years and it's what people are used to and you know it. May there may be little details of it that rub you the wrong way, but listen, play along, Have a good time.

You know the way that they do a campfire and the way things are done in the dining hall, the way that merit badge sessions are set up. Go along with it and do your best to encourage your scouts to do the same. Number seven: you want to keep an eye on any kind of inner troop rivalries that may develop.

You know, for the most part, your scouts are going to be out and about pretty much independently during the day and they're going to be running into other scouts and you have absolutely no control over what other scouts are going to do and you have, you know, only a little bit of control over what your scouts are going to do or say. And boys are boys and they get real competitive and sometimes that can lead to things that aren't very productive.

So you want to watch out. I'm not saying that any of this is necessarily negative, but often with scout age boys, the idea of sportsmanship is not necessarily always foremost in their mind.

So you want to talk about that and you want to check in on that and make sure that your scouts, at least that, are very sportsman-like and fair-minded and courteous. Number eight is something that we say all the time: give your youth leaders all the responsibility for success.

See that they understand what needs to be done at camp, how and why it needs to be done, and then let them at it and observe from a distance. Check in with them every evening, check in with them every afternoon, ask lots of questions, make sure that they are familiar with the program. If somebody comes down to our campsite and they're looking for somebody in charge, I send them to the senior patrol leader and the senior patrol leader works with the patrol leaders and they have a great time at it, because summer camp is a great patrol building time. You can really make something out of that opportunity if you give the youth leaders the full responsibility for making their week a success. Number nine is: be proud of your scouts. Encourage them and congratulate them and admire them, but don't try to be one of them.

Remember you're the coach, you're not a player. Don't get on the field, don't try and join in the youth activities. Let the scouts enjoy them. Every once in a while the opportunity to jump in at the scout level may present itself, but don't interfere. And I have seen that type of thing happen a great deal at camp.

You know it's exciting and it's fun and the scouts are having a great time, that they want to do the same type of thing and it doesn't work really well. So keep an eye on that. Number ten is be patient with yourself. Be patient with your scouts, be patient with the camp staff. Don't sacrifice the perfectly good for the perfect. There's this kind of thing that happens when a scouter goes to camp and he's very closely identified with his scouts and the troop and everything like that and every little thing seems to matter.

They always walk around camp. What they do at a retreat ceremony, the way that they act in the dining hall and things like that is some kind of personal reflection back on the scouter and scouts can get a little testy about that and they get defensive about it. It really tends to color the whole way that they're approaching the camp experience. The camp is there for the scouts. They'll take care of you, they'll help you. They'll probably even have some activities scouters to do.

In the end you've got to be patient, you've got to roll with the punches and don't take yourself all that seriously. So those are ten things that, from my experience as a Scoutmaster and as a camp director, I hope will help you have a great week at summer camp. You're my favorite all time boy scout. You're my favorite all time boy scout. He's my favorite all time boy scout.

Oh yes, we had it tough, but that's the way it was and by golly we like to taste. Our hiking and camping was accomplished in the face of deprivations. You can only imagine, wow, that would be hard. For example, is that when we wanted pudding, we had to assemble it from its constituent ingredients and labored long and hard to enjoy the result. Wow, we could only dream of popping the top off a can and enjoying prepared pudding. Jeez, was an impossible, crazy dream in the hazy, distant future.

I'm glad I don't have to do that. You can cut your finger on those lips. We had to work hard for what we wanted. Nothing was handed to us on a silver platter, I can tell you. We knew how to delay gratification in my day.

Can you imagine that when we wanted to communicate with one another, we used the agency of something called the telephone? It was an instrument attached to a wire and it had to be laboriously dialed to initiate a connection? Jeez, not only that, we had to share this device with our entire family, as individual connections for each of us would have constituted a prohibitive expense. Wow, your whole family, really.

Wow, that would be horrible, yes, but we knew no different and so lived in a state of relative happiness. Unlike you lads today who demand so much and are willing to suffer little, my generation was able to apply themselves more stringently to the everyday challenges life required of us.

Hey, Mr M, I think that's your cell phone. Um, yes, pardon me. Yes, yes, that's right. Yes, we're in campsite number 24. Rest assured, I will be prepared for your arrival.

Jeez, Mr M, who was that? Um, nothing, really. No one of any consequence. Perhaps it's time you, lads initiated preparations for your dinner. Yeah, yeah, you're right. See you later.

Come on, guys. Hi, is this campsite number 24? Yes, indeed, please moderate your voice not to disturb the rare day sleeping nut hatch that nests nearby. All right, uh, yeah, whatever.

Well, here you are, my fine fellow 2495. The difference between the stated price and these bills is yours to keep.

Well, thanks, buddy, enjoy your pe-. Please. I'm sorry, the nut hatch, enjoy your pizza. Time is again for another exciting episode in the career of mason Scoutmaster. Gary courier is with troop 15 in charlotte, north carolina, and he wrote in to say: I love your website. It's very informative, like your feedback on the patrol leaders council with regards to who books the reservations for camping trips and events and things.

We do an annual planning meeting where the scouts select the activities for the next year, and then we have uh, uh, and then we have an adult volunteer make the reservations for the activities. Should the scouts be doing that, or is that too much to ask?

I think an adult needs to do this. It may involve things that a scout can't handle, like signing contracts or making payments.

What are your thoughts on this? Well, jerry, thanks for getting in touch. I'm glad you're finding the information at scoutmastercgcom useful. My rule of thumb is this: don't do anything a scout can do. That's not an original thought by any means. That's been around scouting for a long time and you've really got to kind of apply this on a case by case basis.

Some senior patrol leaders, some patrol leaders, councils, may have the capacity to call and make reservations and some won't. Okay, it really depends on their ability and their familiarity with doing it.

It may be a good opportunity to teach them how to do stuff like that and communicate with other adults and things. I would never make it a hard and fast rule. I like the rule of thumb: don't do something a scout can do. I've had senior patrol leaders who are way, way far ahead of me. They've made reservations and they've found out about places to go and they get the driving instructions and things like that, and that's great. And I've had ones that are a little less experienced and need a lot of help making those things happen.

And, as you said, there are some things that adults have to do. It's going to be down to somebody from the committee or something like that doing they're going to have to file tour plans, they're going to have to write checks and sign contracts.

So I think it's very right in principle that there are situations where scouts can do this and others where it really needs an adult. In my experience, it depends on the capability of the scout, the type of arrangements being made and the complexity of the situation that you're in.

I think it's a great idea if it's possible for scouts to go ahead and do this and have the guidance to do it, because they're learning yet another skill. Thanks, Jerry, for sending that question in. If you have a question for me, you can get in touch and I'll tell you how to do that in just a moment.