Cub Scouts today - What's it like and how much of a time commitment is required?

[Brian]

I had started a thread on this prior to the server EMP, and I'm sure that post was worded a bit better than this one is.

I was a cub/boy scout as a child, and really enjoyed it. My son just turned 7 and I'm thinking about looking into it for him. But I hear stories about how big a commitment it is, and lots of people burned out only doing scout stuff on the weekends. I'm not sure if that is just life today, or if it's related to being in the city vs. a very small town, etc.

- How is scouting in the city different from the rural Nebraska scouting I remember as a boy?
- How big a commitment is it? Can he still play kids sports? Can we still have Saturday jeep trips up into the mountains? Will I ever make it to the range again, or will I always be at some scouting thing?
- There were a lot of political/controversy issues in the news for a while, has this calmed down?
- Rumor is there are changes coming soon to the cub scout program. Supposedly some updates to keep it "fresh" - any thoughts?
- There's a LDS scout troop very close to me. Are the LDS-sponsored groups 99% Mormon, or not? Thoughts on a non-Mormon kid joining that group?

Tell me about your experiences, please. Especially those of you with recent experience...

[henpecked]

Scouts are not what they use to be. The scout troop the stepson is in camp at koa's ,jellystone park, ect. I'm not thrilled. They did go to north Dakota to a scout camp.

[SideShow Bob]

Going with a religious group sponsored troop and not being of that faith is not a good thing, it will be predominatly of that religion.
Even though they will say that they are not biased, the few scouts that are not of the faith will be outcasts within the group,not necessarily from the adults, but from the other scouts. Also, their beliefs about celebrating birthdays and Christmas will make your child feel awkward.
Try to find a troop sponsored by a secular group such as a VFW post, Moose lodge or a religion that is in line with your beliefs.

[cstone]

I was very involved in Scouting as a youth. I was also and Asst Cubmaster and Asst Scoutmaster while my boys were young. Most of my adult Scouting was in the suburbs of Washington DC, and my boys are in their mid 20's now, so nothing relevant to what you are looking for.

Like most groups, the dynamics are a function of the members. Bad leaders make for bad packs/troops and good leaders make for great packs/troops.

Your call, but I would not let my children be involved in any group where I was not involved. I was not there to supervise each and every event, but I knew every parent involved and never left my kids with someone I did not know and trust.

Lots of good people in Scouts and a good deal of who I am today comes from things I learned in Scouting.

Be safe.

[Aloha_Shooter]

I have been an Assistant Scoutmaster since 1988. Scouting has changed quite a bit since then, not all for the better, but it's still a good program. They added a Tiger Cub program and extended Webelos into two years. Personally, I think these changes are what causes parent burnout as Cub Scouts tends to be very time-consuming for parents.

I think there's a tendency today toward helicopter parenting on the Cub events -- parents feel like they have to be involved in every minute and every aspect of their boys' involvement and activity. Cub leaders don't mind that as the boys can be a bit of a handful, especially in today's nanny society where parents are being referred to CPS for letting their kids walk to the neighborhood park on their own. I certainly prefer having parents around to help their Cubs when I have to run the BB gun range at our semi-annual Shoot-a-rees but frankly, some boys would be perfectly fine without their parents there.

The good news is that while we don't want to be a babysitting service, parents aren't expected to be as involved when the boys transition to regular Boy Scouts. The SMs/ASMs love as much parent help as they can get but at the same time, we want the boys to grow up and not have mommy/daddy crutches to lean on anymore.

My advice:
1. Pick your unit carefully and find one that fits your personality rather than settle for the one located at your school/church. (This applies for the transition to Boy Scouts as well.)

2. Skip Tiger Cubs unless your boy really, Really, REALLY wants to participate in it. Nothing in Tiger Cubs is essential to long-term Scouting skills or growth and it may well bore him or burn you out.

3. You set your priorities. We have boys in our troop who are on school athletic teams or have outside interests. One set of brothers works at the Renaissance Festival every summer; the troop knows not to expect any of those brothers for any of our summer campouts and knows the brothers will come to summer camp Sunday night when the Festival is done and leave camp Friday night so they can be back at work Saturday morning. I still get to the range, just not as often as I used to (but that's my fault for getting involved in more than just troop activities). Troop activities should cost you one weekend a month and a week a year plus maybe a day or two here or there for various service projects -- plenty of time for other activities. Don't let other parents guilt you into doing only Scout stuff -- do it if you want but don't feel guilty about wanting to do other things.

4. Politics will be with us forever. Certain groups want to destroy Scouting because it stands for a traditional self-reliant Americanism they can't stand. Other groups just want Scouting to endorse (not just tolerate!) their lifestyle choices so will keep pressing their cause no matter what program or membership changes Scouting makes. The most recent membership rules wound was self-inflicted by National but it won't be the last. I have stuck with Scouting despite it (and other irritations) because it's still the best program available for teaching boys to be men.

5. Yes, the Cub program is "evolving" yet again. My understanding is they are adding yet another early layer -- Lion Cubs -- before Tiger Cubs. I guess National won't be satisfied with burning parents out until our matriculation rate is single digit (it was 35% the last time I checked). They are also revamping the beads that replaced skill awards. Again, look at several units and pick one that fits with YOUR philosophies on how to teach the boys and determine what's important. I personally never cared about adding garbage to my uniform but I'm apparently rare in that regard.

6. Regarding the LDS troop -- LDS troops vary like any other troop. One of my former Scouts is a LDS Scoutmaster and he told me he tries to run his troop like I ran mine when he was a boy. That was gratifying to hear personally but it also tells me his particular LDS church (chapter?) gives him a lot of latitude and that they're not all alike. LDS units have some unique aspects, like ending all activities Saturday night so they aren't traveling on Sunday, but they tend to have excellent leadership and superb resources. Go ahead and visit the unit but look at others as well.

7. Regarding city vs. rural Scouting, my observation is that rural boys tend to be more independent and self-reliant. On the other hand, it can be harder to coordinate logistics with people spread so far apart. On the other hand, Scouting is Scouting. The program has evolved over the years -- merit badges are more orientations into skills than building skills these days and Scoutmaster conferences are "kindler and gentler" rather than the skills review I grew up with and implemented most of my years in Scouting.

[StagLefty]

Well said Aloha. I was a Scout as a youth and 20 years as an adult leader. My son was in 10 years and went places and saw things he may not have seen if it wasn't for Scouts.
Great program in my youth but has somewhat diluted over time,some changes have not been for the better. That said I still think it's a good youth program. Unfortunately a lot of boys today don't thing "it's cool" and would rather play video games.

[Rumline]

Scouts are not what they use to be. The scout troop the stepson is in camp at koa's ,jellystone park, ect. I'm not thrilled.
This is best addressed by...

1. Pick your unit carefully and find one that fits your personality rather than settle for the one located at your school/church. (This applies for the transition to Boy Scouts as well.)
...this. I was in a great troop in Virginia and when my family moved to California the troop I joined was the closest one to home, which suffered from many issues. I wish I would have tried to find another troop but by that point I was just interested in finishing my Eagle.

I don't have recent experience with Scouting but what Aloha said rings true to me so just wanted to add a +1.


Most of my adult Scouting was in the suburbs of Washington DC.
I was in troop 1530, Fairfax VA, in the later 90's. What troop(s) were you involved with?

[cstone]

Troop 636 in Glen Burnie, MD. Baltimore Area Council, Four Rivers District. This is where I began as a Cub and eventually earned Eagle Scout. I was in an Explorer post for several years before Venture Scouts existed.

My sons were in Troop 1709 in White Plains, MD, National Capital Region, Zekiah District.

I don't know which summer camps you've been to, but I've camped at Broad Creek, Lil Aaron Strauss, Goshen, and Oattari (Blue Ridge Mountains Council). I had the privilege to travel to Tamaracouta Scout Reserve, Quebec Canada in 1976 and Philmont in 1978.

[Aloha_Shooter]

I was in troop 1530, Fairfax VA, in the later 90's. What troop(s) were you involved with?

Funny, the only two times I've taken breaks from Scouting since 1988 were my 16 months in Korea (nearest troop was 75 miles away at Osan) and 18 months while living in Fairfax. The troops in NoVA tend to be massive with tons of adult volunteers so I felt like I really wasn't needed. The troop down the street from my townhouse had 90 boys and 45 adults active so I definitely wasn't needed there. The one troop council referred me to (they thought the SM could use help as it had lots of immigrant kids) never returned my calls.

I worked with 1010 while I was in MD. Small troop but excellent scoutmaster.

I don't know what you guys thought of Goshen. IMO it was a horrible subpar camp with poorly trained staff and surprisingly mediocre facilities. I liked Broad Creek and Rock Enon a lot more.

[cstone]

No one in 1709, including myself was a fan of Goshen. We took the Webelos there but the Troop regularly went to Ottari, just past Blacksburg, VA.

[Brian]

Wish our friends and family had kids just a little bit older - most are younger and it sounds like it would be great if we could build a pack out of people we know.
Feedback seems to be in line with what I was hearing elsewhere too... I don't hear a lot of overwhelming positive support for modern scouting - seems mixed at best.

[Aloha_Shooter]

Brian, Scouting today is a lot like democracy ... it sucks but it's better than the alternatives. Realize you're hearing opinions from a couple different types of sources: jaundiced old-timers like me that remember when Scouting was more about the outdoors and preparedness or modernists who've been brainwashed to think Scouting sucks or is bigoted/lame/old-fashioned/etc.

Let me cite some of the more positive changes in the past several years:
- new merit badges and activities like mountain boarding, sport archery, ATVs, kayaking, cinematography, etc.
- much better equipment than our old Camp Master knives and Palco aluminum mess kits
- uniforms and active wear made from modern fabrics
- no more sock garters or red tabs

Honestly, the biggest problem with Scouting today are adults. Adults who want to play political games because they're in some kind of hoity-toity position. Adults who can't be bothered to be interested in what their boys are doing. Adults who want to control every aspect of their boys' lives. Adults who have no understanding or appreciation for the history and heritage of Scouting and want to change it to some kind of co-ed social club. Adults who despise anything that smacks of traditional American values (and therefore want to destroy Scouting). Adults who have adopted the worst aspects of the military (document everything little thing or it hasn't happened instead of worrying about whether you're doing the right things) or legalisms of today's society.

Find and join a good pack now, introduce your friends and families so their boys might want to join when they're of age. You'll meet some people you're glad to know and expand your circle of friends.