{"id":2560,"date":"2020-01-28T12:51:53","date_gmt":"2020-01-28T17:51:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/?p=2560"},"modified":"2020-01-28T12:51:55","modified_gmt":"2020-01-28T17:51:55","slug":"issue-626-january-28-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/2020\/01\/issue-626-january-28-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Issue 626 \u2013 January 28, 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

________________________________________
\nHi Andy,<\/strong><\/p>\n

In your column last week, you helped an Eagle Scout straighten out the real date of his board of review. I\u2019m also glad to see that the board of review member who was blatantly wrong was taken away. The reality is that a huge proportion of Scouts these days reach Eagle rank at age 17.99. When we then consider the time needed to get the project report written (yes, this is perfectly okay to do after a Scout\u2019s 18th birthday), the Eagle rank application processed, receiving the Scout\u2019s references, and having the district or council advancement representative match his or her schedule with the others who will sit on the board of review often pushes the time of that review beyond three months past the Scout\u2019s 18th birthday. To better manage this, my own council has issued blanket preapproval for three-to-six months past 18. And, as for myself, I\u2019ve honestly never heard of the national office turning down an Eagle board of review request past the six-month mark. (Matt Culbertson, New Birth of Freedom Council, PA)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thanks for your commentary \u2013 It\u2019s always good to hear from you. My own take on your council\u2019s action is that it makes absolute sense.
\n==========
\nHi, Andy,<\/strong><\/p>\n

Last week, you said, \u201c\u2026OA members can and should wear their lodge’s flap patch or the ribbon-and-arrow button-pendant\u2026one or the other but never both\u2026\u201d I have to take issue with that. According to the BSA\u2019s GUIDE TO AWARDS AND INSIGNIA, there\u2019s no prohibition for wearing both. The BSA states that the ribbon \u201cdenotes membership\u201d in the OA and that lodges may create their own \u201cflap\u201d patches. This means there\u2019s no overlap. (Robby Wright, ACC, San Diego-Imperial Council, CA)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thanks for writing! Yup, there\u2019s no “prohibited by law” associated with either the ribbon or the patch or both at the same time… It’s just sorta tacky to wear both when one will suffice (conversely, neither is \u201cmandatory\u201d). So for sure I wasn\u2019t quoting chapter-and-verse. I was, however, providing an insight that helps keep our uniforms clean and sharp (and not redundant).<\/p>\n

Some folks like to wear everything they possibly can, and this sometimes shows up with multiple Scouter\u2019s Key and James E. West Fellow \u201csquare knots.\u201d (Frankly, if I did this I\u2019d be wearing seven identical square knots instead of two for these recognitions). Other folks are a little calmer about that, and I guess these are the ones I was mostly talking to. Thanks for making it clear that my comment was about a practice and not a rule.<\/p>\n

(Meanwhile, I’m still hoping that, some day, folks will read\u2014Yup, this one’s in writing by the BSA\u2014that the “Totin’ Chip” and “Firem’n Chit” flap-style patches aren’t for uniform wear at all!)<\/em>
\n==========
\nHi Andy,<\/strong><\/p>\n

As usual, you provided some great answers last week. I\u2019m glad to know that that council was on the ball and fixed the Eagle’s rank date. That “inconvenienced” advancement guy reminds me of an Assistant District Commissioner who interrupted my short chat with our troop’s newest Eagle after his review\u2026 Mister ADC walked up to us and pointed to the new Eagle’s OA flap patch and said (yeah, he really said this), “You’ll have to take that off now; Eagle Scouts aren\u2019t allowed to be in the Order of the Arrow.” This was the same ADC who ordered me to stop wearing my Wood Badge beads because, since my course was more than three years prior, the beads had \u201cexpired,\u201d and I should also remove my couple of rows of \u201csquare knots\u201d (including the District Award of Merit and Silver Beaver) because they had been issued by my prior council, not the current one I was a member of.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Like smart ducks, we\u2019ve got to let this stuff roll off our backs, because there are just too many jerks-who-think-they-know-it-all out there. (Dean Whinery)<\/strong><\/p>\n

It’s always risky to argue with idiots… They’ll try to drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience!
\n==========
\nHi Andy,<\/strong><\/p>\n

Some years ago, at the Philmont Training Center, one of our fellow Scoutmasters did a sort of \u201cminute\u201d using a quarter…one of the older ones with George Washington on the front and the eagle on the back. He mentioned that this is something he does with all brand-new Scouts at their first conference with him. He\u2019d begin by talking a little bit about Washington\u2026revolutionary general, first US president, and so on. Then he\u2019d flip the quarter over and talk a bit about the eagle\u2026a symbol of strength, the nation\u2019s symbol, and so on. Then he\u2019d mention that the Eagle is also Scouting\u2019s highest rank. He\u2019d suggest to this new Scout that maybe he\u2019d like to strive for that\u2026to be an Eagle, too. He ended by give the Scout that quarter, saying, \u201cKeep this quarter as a reminder, and when you become an Eagle, I\u2019d like my quarter back, because you\u2019ll be done with it.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

On returning from Philmont, I did this for a little while, but I let myself get distracted and it just sort of evaporated.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well just last week, I visited my old troop\u2014the one I\u2019d been Scoutmaster for. It happened to be a court of honor for a brand-new Eagle Scout. After the various presentations to him, it was his turn to speak. Toward the end of his thank you\u2019s, he mentioned that, several years before, he\u2019d been given a quarter as a reminder of the goal he\u2019d reached that evening. He remembered that when he got home from his troop meeting that first night, he\u2019d put that quarter in a box on his desk, so he wouldn’t lose it. He remarked that there were times over the past several years when he\u2019d wanted to quit, but then he\u2019d put the box with that quarter on his nightstand, as a closer reminder. Then he asked me to come up and stand with him. He turned to me. \u201cYou told me that when I made Eagle, you wanted your quarter back. So here it is. It’s the same one you gave me.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

I now have that quarter my shelf with other Scouting memories; it\u2019ll never end up in a parking meter. Scout\u2019s Honor. (Gary Marquard)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thanks for sharing! The greatest “paycheck” a Scoutmaster can ever receive is to be remembered–years later–by a Scout he’d helped along the way.
\n==========
\nHi Andy,<\/strong><\/p>\n

Your Eagle Scout who got his date fixed reminded me of some other stuff that can go wrong at boards of review, that I\u2019ve seen over the years. The one that particularly disturbs me is the notion that a Scout can \u201cfail\u201d a board of review. This got me to thinking that maybe people \u201cfail\u201d Scouts at reviews because they misunderstand the purpose of Scouting\u2019s ranks.<\/strong><\/p>\n

They may think that we\u2019re trying to train and certify young men in skills. We\u2019re not. We\u2019re trying to provide them with experiences that will shape their ethical outlook.<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s great when a Scout remembers how to tie a bowline or identify a plant, but that\u2019s not the point. He may never need to do either for the rest of his life, but the experience of doing these things and more, with good friends and role models, in a Scouting environment, will shape him forever.<\/strong><\/p>\n

So then, a board of review isn\u2019t for verifying what the Scout has learned. It\u2019s for verifying that the Scout is having the right kind of experiences.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The only one who can fail a Board of Review is the Scoutmaster. (Samuel Mize, SM, Circle Ten Council, TX)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Every now and again, I read something and think to myself, I wish I’d said that. This is one of those times. Thanks!<\/p>\n

Happy Scouting!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Andy<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Have a question? Facing a dilemma? Wondering where to find a BSA policy or guideline? Write to askandybsa@yahoo.com. Please include your name and council. (If you\u2019d prefer to be anonymous, if published, let me know and that\u2019s what we\u2019ll do.)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Although these columns are copyrighted, any reader has my permission to quote or reproduce any columns or column parts so long as you attribute authorship: \u201cAsk Andy\u201d by Andy McCommish.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

[No. 626 \u2013 1\/28\/2020 \u2013 Copyright \u00a9 Andy McCommish 2020]<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

________________________________________ Hi Andy, In your column last week, you helped an Eagle Scout straighten out the real date of his board of review. I\u2019m also glad to see that the board of review member who was blatantly wrong was taken away. The reality is that a huge proportion of Scouts these days reach Eagle rank […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2560","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2560","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2560"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2560\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2564,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2560\/revisions\/2564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2560"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2560"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2560"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}