Referring to the BSA literature,
primarily the COMMISSIONER FIELD BOOK FOR UNIT SERVICE (#33621C),
YES, you should absolutely wear the ARROWHEAD HONOR emblem directly
under your Commissioner badge on your left sleeve REGARDLESS of the
specific Commissioner position you presently hold. My long
understanding of this particular recognition—worn only in concert
with a Commissioner badge and not with any other position badge—is
that, once earned, it is not required that you earn it a second time
or beyond, and absolutely only one "Arrowhead" is worn. So, if
you're going to work toward either the Commissioner's Key or the
Scouter's Training Award for Commissioners as an ADC, your District
Commissioner should not unreasonably withhold ADC-level "credit" for
your having earned the Arrowhead Honor as a UC (especially if he's
the guy who asked you to take the ADC job!).
Dear Andy,
We have our annual Blue & Gold dinner
coming up. Our Wolf Den wants to do something special (like a "Wolf"
centerpiece) for our table. Any suggestions on how to craft this
project? (Jackie Rostow)
Get your hands on the CS LEADER
HOW-TO BOOK (#LT33832A), at your council's Scout Shop or order it
directly from the BSA National Supply Division at
www.scoutstuff.org or
1-800-323-0732. Its price is about nine dollars or so, and it's well
worth every penny! In it, you'll find a bunch of crafts, activities and
games for both Den and Pack meetings. Also, check the "Program Helps"
section of the SCOUTING Magazine you receive as a registered Cub Scout
leader. These are your very best resources, not only for your upcoming
B&G but throughout the life of your Den!
Hey Andy,
I’m originally from Troop 80, down in
Texas. I got my Eagle many years ago, plus Order of the Arrow and so on.
Now, I'm a writer here in New York. I’ve written an endearing script
about my time at Philmont in New Mexico, and I want to know who to reach
out to for more information involving rights. The script itself renders
like "’Stand By Me’ meets ‘National Geographic’.” (Marshall Mills)
You win the "Off-The-Wall Question Of
The Month" award! Let's see what we can do here. “’Stand By Me’ meets
‘National Geographic’" sounds pretty cool! I'm guessing you're talking
about copyright "rights," and I'm gonna bet your question has to do with
the age-old controversy of "how can I show this to a studio without my
idea getting ripped off." Well, my Scouting friend, ol' Andy here isn't
an attorney, and I think that's who you need to talk to. Thinking about
what you do and where you work, I'm betting you can track down the right
kind of attorney faster than a New York minute!
Hello Andy,
I want to help out with the sheet
music for the Scouter who was asking for the Philmont Hymn. The Boy
Scout Songbook has both songs in it. The Philmont hymn is in sheet
music, but On My Honor is just the words. I have also found pretty much
what I need on the Internet. This site has the song, “On My Honor,” and
you can download the MP3 by Burl Ives. He does a great version of it.
Here’s the URL...
http://www.scoutsongs.com/lyrics/onmyhonor.html
I hope this helps. (Rob Lord, DC,
Clinton Valley Council)
Hey, that's terrific! Thanks, Rob.
Readers—check it out!
Dear Andy,
What’s a Camporee? (Cecily Garnhardt)
Great question and thanks for
asking! "Camporee" is a word literally "invented" by the Scouting
movement, as is the word, Jamboree, which came directly from Scouting's
founder, Lord Robert S.S. Baden-Powell.
A camporee typically refers to an
event, usually over a weekend, when a group of Boy Scout Troops gather
together at a single camping location for friendly competition. The
group is usually from a single district within a Boy Scout Council;
sometimes, the entire Council holds a Camporee.
A Camporee includes competitions in
which Scouts, competing by Patrols, get to use the Scoutcraft skills
they've learned -- the skills are typically limited to what one learns
in the course of completing the requirements for the Tenderfoot, Second
Class, and First Class ranks. Usually, you'll see competitive events
based around First Aid, Orienteering (using a compass and maybe a map,
too), knot-tying, Pioneering (lashing poles together to build
something), Nature (identifying plants by their leaves, or animals by
their tracks, or something else along these lines), and so on.
When several Councils band together
for such an event, it's usually called a Jamboree—sometimes a "SuperCamporee."
But, by whatever name, it's the time for Scouts and their Patrols to
"show their stuff and show what they're made of." Often, there will be
judging for the best Patrol flag, cleanest campsite, most accurately
uniformed Patrol, and so on. There's also usually a campfire on the
Saturday night, with Patrol skits and songs, too!
All of this is done in a
sportsmanlike manner, and goodwill shows loudly and clearly! Camporees
are great fun, and no Scout should miss out on them!
Dear Andy,
Do you know of any Commissioner
awards called the "Wreath of Service" or "Crest of Service"? (Ed Hanke,
ADC, Lake Sands District, Panama City, FL)
Two nationally recognized Commissioner
recognitions that aren’t training-focused, are the Commissioner's
Arrowhead Honor and the Distinguished Commissioner Award. Of course, a
local council can apply to the national council for approval of a
council-level recognition, so the two you mention may be in this
category; that is, council-level and nationally approved. They'd most
likely fall into this category if a special "square knot" emblem were
involved. However, short of this, a council or even a district may have
a special recognition such as these that don't involve an emblem in a
"permanent" position on the uniform. I recall one of my former councils
had a "Commissioner of the Year" recognition, with a special plaque that
hung in the council service center's entryway. I sure like the idea of
a wreath or crest, since only commissioners and service professionals
have emblems containing a wreath—and service is what it stands for!
Hey Andy,
Barry Vavak asked you about the
Deputy District Commissioner position and patch. Unfortunately there’s
no such position, therefore no such patch. How do we change that? I’m
the DC for a district that has 9 Area ADCs, 3 Lifesaving ADCs, a
Training ADC, and a Recruiting ADC. With a district of this size, it
would be great to have a “number-two” person—a Vice- or
Deputy-DC—whatever the title. It would be nice to have someone who’s
prepared to take my place when I’m unable to be at some meeting or
function. Plus, what a great grooming ground for my replacement! This
person could take on other responsibilities that the DC deems necessary
as well. In my case, I might put a V- or D-DC in charge of the
district’s Lifesaving Team. My guess is that I'm not alone in seeing
this need. So, how do we move the mountain? How do we go about getting
this to become part of the national program—including badge, referenced
in training manuals and other literature, and so on? What would you
suggest? (Michael O'Donnell, DC, Greater Saint Louis Area Council, MO)
First, let's look at some definitions
(per Webster's). An "assistant" is one who assists and holds a
subordinate (i.e., lower) position. While a "deputy" is also an
"assistant," a deputy is authorized ("deputized") to "exercise full
authority in the absence of the superior (with) equal authority in
emergencies." In the UK and Canada (to name just two countries—there
are others), "Deputy District Commissioner" is the title used; there are
no ADCs in the Scout organizations of these countries. The BSA used to
have DDCs and not ADCs, but this was changed a couple of decades ago
(don't ask me why—I haven't a clue!). But some councils even today
continue to use the DDC position, in ways very similar to your own and
separate in responsibilities from ADCs, whose job is largely to
supervise and grow their UC corps. One solution without "going to the
mountain" would simply be to appoint a "First ADC," "Second ADC," etc.,
much in the same way as there is a "First ASM" and a "Second ASM" for
Jamboree troops. Of course, it would be nice to have a
position badge that corresponds to the title, but these were phased out
a long time ago! One option would be to seek out patch traders, and see
if they have some old DDC patches kickin' around that they'd sell or
trade. Heresy? Maybe. But I'd rather call it "an experiment." If it
works, then you can bring it to the attention of the head of the Boy
Scout Division at the national office. The other (and maybe easier)
option, of course, is to do exactly what you're doing; that is, to have
an ADC-Training, ADC-Intervention/Lifesaving, ADC-Area 1, ADC-Area 2,
etc. Then you could have a "First ADC" (who's your eventual replacement)
and a "Second ADC" (who is further backup). Although ADC doesn't carry
quite the same implied strength as DDC, this could still work pretty
nicely. A brief case in point... In my own District, we needed a
Commissioner to provide oversight to an area that had four Troops but no
Cub Scout Packs. So, we went on the ‘Net and found one of those old
"Troop Commissioner" patches, bought it, gave it to him for his uniform
(instead of the UC patch), and everything's working just fine!
Baden-Powell began the
Scouting movement as "a jolly experiment." I've never found a reason to
walk away from that fundamental idea!
Hi Andy,
I saw your response to the question
regarding the location of the child protection and risk zone patches for
an adult leader's uniform. If I also have a Safe Swim/Safety Afloat
patch, do they (can they) all go below the right pocket. Is there any
specific order (YP, RZ, then SSD/SA)? Do you just keep adding them
underneath each other, under the right pocket? Do any go side-by-side,
or do they go straight down, centered under the pocket? (Tom Nadblieny)
Neither the RZ or the YP "trained"
patches go BELOW the right pocket—they go ON the right pocket (but not
the flap!). The only badges that for certain go BELOW a uniform shirt
pocket are the Arrow of Light (below a Boy Scout's left pocket)
and Recruiter (below a Cub Scout's or Boy Scout's right pocket).
However, adult Scouters don't wear either one of these two.
I suppose, because they involve
training, a SSD or SA patch could be worn in the "temporary"
position (that is, on the right pocket) of your Scouter's shirt.
However, I'd personally be disinclined to do that. If you check it out,
you'll find that other water skills-related badges (like BSA Aquatics
Instructor, BSA Life Guard, Snorkeling BSA, Mile Swim, and so on) aren't
worn on the uniform at all—they're worn on your swim trunks. There's
even a specification for which side of your swim trunks they each should
be worn! So, I'd be tempted more to put a SSD and/or a SA patch there,
rather than on my uniform.
Related to that, I personally don't
wear every single badge or emblem that I'm technically entitled to
wear—it gets a little cluttered if not "gaudy" after a while. Yes, I
have more than a dozen "square knots," and these I wear. But I think
there's a certain "dignity" to a relatively conservative Scouter's
uniform. In fact, because my Troop (when I was a Scoutmaster) always
went everywhere in uniform, the only badge I wore on the front of my
"camping shirt" was an Eagle square knot. I saved my fully badged
uniform for Troop meetings and Courts of Honor, so that parents would
know that their sons were being led by someone with experience (even
though most of them had no clue as to what the badges stood for).
However, when I changed my SM badge for a Commissioner’s, I decided to
wear a uniform shirt with more badges (Jamboree, OA, Philmont Training
Center, and so on), because I felt it's important for the unit leaders I
served to know that I've walked the talk. So, whatever you should
decide to do, making your uniform fit your personal philosophy as well
as your Scouting job and experience may be something to consider.
Hi Andy,
I'm a
little concerned about having "too many" badges on my shirt, because I
think it takes something away from the notion that the boys earn the
badges, not the parents. On the other hand, I do want to make a
statement to some of the parents, particularly the new ones that could
get some training (YP & RZ, come to mind) so they can pitch in and count
towards the number of approved supervisory adults required during
a trip. So, until we get some of these folks into training, I think I'll
wear all three badges on my right pocket (unlike you, the only other
"extra" badge I have is the "Trained" badge on the left sleeve—so my
shirt is practically empty at the moment). Since we’re planning a Spring
canoe trip and the water will be too cold for swimming, putting SSD/SA
on my swim trunks wouldn't help, so I'll put that one on the right
pocket for now, and transfer it over to my swim trunks when the hot
weather comes. I do like the idea of having 2 shirts (one all decked out
and the other fairly simple), but in my case, that'll have to wait until
I get a few more badges. It would be nice if the BSA developed an
"official" jacket, so that adult leaders have somewhere practical to put
all of their badges. Thanks again. (Tom Nadblieny)
I like your thinking—especially the
part about being an example for other parents who need to be as informed
as possible about how to keep their sons safe! And, I absolutely admire
your own efforts in this. When I was a fairly new Scouter, I did much
the same as you're doing. After a while, you'll find that your shirt
becomes sort of a "magnet," and you'll be making some new decisions.
Meanwhile, keep on keepin' on—and ENJOY!
Hi
(again) Andy,
Since
you seem to be someone fairly high up in the BSA, can I be so bold as to
suggest that someone fairly high up in Scouting (you, for example) push
national to create a policy where whenever an adult leader receives a
patch for some training exercise or whatever, that instructions on where
and when to wear the patch come along with the patch at the same time
the patch is awarded, like, “Congratulations...Here's your patch and
here's the instructions on where to wear it (or not to wear it if the
case may be).” I bring this up because the BSA doesn't need everyone
wearing patches in a willy nilly wherever fashion and there’s a fair
amount of misinformation being circulated on where to wear these
training patches (or at least the story keeps changing). We need to get
everyone on the same page with this one. (Tom Nadbielny)
Oh, don't I wish I were “high up” in
Scouting—Maybe they'd double my pay! You know... Like 2x0 is still
zero! I'm a volunteer, just like you. The only real difference between
us may be I've been doing this a little longer, and got my thumb stuck
in more places than you! But, your suggestion is a terrific one... In
fact, so terrific that I'm gonna figure out some way to get it into the
national office in Irving, Texas!
Dear Andy,
One of the Troops I serve as a Unit
Commissioner has a policy that a Scout coming before a Board of Review
has to be in full and correct uniform or he automatically “fails” the
Board—no exceptions. In BSA literature, where does it say that a Scout
has to do this, and that a Board can flunk him if he doesn’t? Thanks. (J.M.,
UC, Michigan)
This Troop’s advancement folks, and
probably their Scoutmaster, too, should get nominated for the “Hall of
Shame”! There is absolutely no "rule" or "policy" in Scouting that says
a Scout MUST be in full and correct uniform to have a Board of
Review. Period. (And I'll bet you dollars to donuts I could find an
error in that Scoutmaster's uniform that makes this whole thing look
really silly! Adults notoriously put patches in the wrong places and
forget to wear Scout socks!) These people are horribly misguided. Yes,
full and correct uniforming is always encouraged, and should receive
more and more emphasis as a Scout moves up in the ranks. But “fail” a
Scout? Pardon me, but, in Scouting, no Scout EVER “fails.” That’s the
whole darned point!
Dear Andy,
A Scout in my Troop is working on his
Eagle application. I've obtained a pdf file of the application form
(BSA form 58-728) off the national web site, but I'm trying to find a
“WORD” version so it can be filled in electronically. Have you seen
this? Can you direct me to a source? I've checked several Web sites,
but no luck yet! (G.A., SM, New Jersey)
The Grand Canyon Council’s done a
terrific job with just what you’re looking for. Here’s the URL to go
to:
http://www.grandcanyonbsa.org/eagle/eagleappl.xls
