The other day, Mike Bowman, our esteemed Webmaster, was asked an “Ask Andy”-type question that he shared with me, along with his outstanding response – a response definitely worth repeating. So, here it is… Mike – Our Troop seems to have more and more Scouts who are coming back after a year or two of […]

Hi Andy, I need a clarification and some sort of written policy guidelines to back up what you said about owning unit equipment in your October issue (#18)… Back when I went through our local council Commissioner’s College in the early 90’s, the question of ownership of Troop equipment came up but it was answered […]

Dear Andy, I’m in California, and I’ve heard there’s a new “Tri-Challenge Award,” sponsored by the Ventura County Council (California) High Adventure Team. I’ve not been able to find much information on how to qualify for this award. The HAT site at http://www.vccbsa.org/ didn’t list any awards at all. Can you point me to any […]

Bright as a penny, the brand-new Boy Scout, in his crisp new Scout uniform, came to his first Troop meeting. He had just graduated from his Cub Scout Pack, where he had earned his Arrow of Light, now proudly sewn by his mom to the bottom of his left shirt pocket. And he was ready. […]

“THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED” I’m not sure what day it was, or even whether it happened on a single day or not. But, somewhere, somehow, the music died. My “Scouting career” spans more than 50 years – but there’s a “hole” in the middle of more than twenty years between when I joined as […]

Dear Andy, Our Troop Committee and our Scouts would like to nominate our Scoutmaster for the Scoutmaster Award of Merit. But we can’t because even though he meets all of the other requirements to be nominated, he’s not completed any training in Scoutmaster Fundamentals (or equivalent). As Committee Chair, I’ve tried for several years to […]

Hi Andy, I was a Boy Scout, and earned my Eagle a bunch of years ago. Now, my older son’s Boy Scout age, and joined a Troop this past Spring. But he’s not happy in the Troop. The Scoutmaster acts more like “the world’s oldest Patrol Leader” than anything else. There are no “real” Patrols […]

Last month, J.S., an Assistant District Commissioner in Richmond, VA, had a problem: “(Our) district has no clue as how to use commissioner service as it should be…Our District Executive and District Director (are) not happy with the performance of the DC, but they continue to let him bobble along. Our District’s two other ADC’s […]

Last month, my “Scout Trivia” Question was: A boy can become a Boy Scout 3 ways: Be age 11, finish 5th grade, or _________? Here’s the first correct answer…   Hi Andy: The answer to your “quiz” last month is: EARN THE ARROW OF LIGHT AWARD. Scott Hemgren, Assistant District Commissioner, Zimmerman, Princeton, Milaca, MN […]

Andy’s “Scout Trivia” Question: A boy can become a Boy Scout 3 ways: Be age 11, finish 5th grade, or _________? (Send your answer to me at askandybsa@yahoo.com and I’ll publish it next month!) Last month, we had a Safe Swim Defense/Safety Afloat Quiz. A sharp Scouter picked up on one of my points and […]