{"id":59,"date":"2002-10-03T13:41:31","date_gmt":"2002-10-03T17:41:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/?p=59"},"modified":"2011-11-03T13:43:44","modified_gmt":"2011-11-03T17:43:44","slug":"issue-5-october-2002","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/2002\/10\/issue-5-october-2002\/","title":{"rendered":"Issue 5 – October 2002"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dear Andy, We used to have Order of the Arrow elections, but our old Scoutmaster stopped letting those OA guys in. He said those elections are just \u201cpopularity contests.\u201d I\u2019m a new Scoutmaster and don\u2019t know what to do. Can you help me? (E.N., Morris Plains Scoutmaster)<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Sure! Hey, you bet OA elections are popularity contests! And the Scouts that are popular are the ones who show up, show leadership, teach new skills to younger Scouts, and are good, safe campers. So where\u2019s the problem? An OA election is a great way for these Scouts to get recognition from the other Troop members, and the OA will help instill in your elected Scouts the spirit of cheerful service to others. It doesn\u2019t get any better than that! So call Peter Keays, Woapalanne Lodge Chief (973-593-9255) and tell him you\u2019d like an OA election team to visit your Troop right away<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Dear Andy, Our Scoutmaster doesn\u2019t think one of our Scouts should be an Eagle. He signed the Scout\u2019s Eagle Application, but now he\u2019s telling our advancement committee that they shouldn\u2019t \u201cpass\u201d this Scout on his Eagle Board because he really hasn\u2019t \u201cshown Scout Spirit.\u201d What now? (K.T., Vernon Advancement Chair)<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Let me get this straight \u2013 Your Scout-master signed the Scout\u2019s application and now he\u2019s bad-mouthing the kid? Sorry, Mister Scoutmaster — If the application\u2019s signed, the story\u2019s over! I\u2019d urge the advancement committee to absolutely ignore anything that Scoutmaster has to say about this Scout (and maybe counsel the Scout-master on his own \u201cScout Spirit\u201d!).<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Dear Andy, A requirement for a Merit Badge I counsel is \u201cattend a town meeting…\u201dBut in our town, the next meeting is over a month away, and the Scouts would like to complete the badge sooner. Can I substitute a requirement, instead of that one? (O.Y., Garwood MB Counselor)<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, the BSA National Council says specifically that nobody can add to or subtract from a requirement, so I\u2019m guessing the Scouts might have to just wait. But, nothing says the town meeting has to be their<\/span> town! So, a way out of this is to find a town meeting in another town that happens sooner! This way, the requirement remains intact and the Scouts can get their wish! Sounds like a \u201cwin-win\u201d!<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Dear Andy, I have an Eagle Scout candidate who\u2019s completed all his requirements, and now I\u2019m reviewing the letters of recommendation he obtained. His letter from his spiritual advisor is not from his Priest but from his Godmother. This struck me as a little odd, and I haven’t ever run into this before. He\u2019s a confirmed member of his church, so I know he\u2019s gone through CCD with a Priest. Is a Godmother considered an acceptable spiritual advisor? (C.S., Fanwood Advancement Chair)<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Actually, you\u2019ve given me two questions here, and they\u2019re both good ones. The first (although you didn\u2019t ask it directly) is, \u201cWho asks for and obtains the recommendation letters? And the answer is…NOT THE SCOUT! The Scout\u2019s job, here, is to give you, the Advancement Chair, the names and addresses of no less than five people who can recommend him (of the six listed on the application for Eagle, the only optional one is \u201cemployer\u201d). YOU then write to all five or six, explaining your request and asking these people to write to YOU in return \u2013 absolutely not<\/span> the Scout. Now, for the second part: \u201cspiritual\u201d (actually the application says\u201creligious\u201d). Here, an \u201cadvisor\u201d isn\u2019t necessary, although that\u2019s surely a nice idea, nor is even an \u201corganized religion\u201d required. All that\u2019s required is someone who has knowledge of the Scout\u2019 religious beliefs and how he lives these in his daily life. So, Godparent sounds fine!<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Dear Andy, Where can our Pack get the most current copy of the BSA book, Guide to Safe Scouting<\/span>? (Q.D., Morris Plains Cubmaster).<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Go to www.bsa.scouting.org\/pubs\/gss<\/a>or www.usscouts.org\/safety\/g2sspre face.html<\/a>. The first is the “official” BSA version; the second gives the text of the 1999 edition plus updates through 9\/01 and what the differences are! And, Yes, these are in process of becoming hot links on our council Web site: www.ppcbsa.org<\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Dear Andy, A Scout just called me, to work on a Merit Badge I counsel. He told me that he won\u2019t take up much of my time, because he\u2019s completed most of the requirements already. It seems his Scoutmaster (who\u2019s not a counselor for this badge) has been \u201csigning off\u201d on requirements, but the Scout doesn\u2019t even have a \u201cblue card.\u201d What do I do with this? (H.D., Watchung MB Counselor)<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, maybe both the Scout and<\/span>his Scoutmaster need a little \u201ccounseling.\u201d They might want to start by checking out page 187 in the Boy Scout Handbook. That\u2019s where it lists the 3 steps to earning a MB, and working on the requirements is \u2013 you guessed it \u2013 third! But, this doesn\u2019t help the Scout right this minute, and my suggestion is this: YOU are the Counselor and it\u2019s YOUR signature that\u2019s going to be on his card, so if the Scout did the requirement already, it should be a breeze for him to repeat it for you, so that you absolutely know he can do it!<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Happy Scouting<\/span><\/p>\n

Andy<\/p>\n

Have a question? Send it via email to askandybsa@yahoo.com<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

(Issue 5 \u2013 October 2002)<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dear Andy, We used to have Order of the Arrow elections, but our old Scoutmaster stopped letting those OA guys in. He said those elections are just \u201cpopularity contests.\u201d I\u2019m a new Scoutmaster and don\u2019t know what to do. Can you help me? (E.N., Morris Plains Scoutmaster) Sure! Hey, you bet OA elections are popularity […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-59","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-14"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59","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=59"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":61,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59\/revisions\/61"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}