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October 2005 Roundtable Minutes |
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Topic: Family-Inclusive Pack Meetings
ANNOUNCEMENTSWarren Carson (District Director)- For those units with growth over last year, and present at tonight’s meeting, your unit will be entered into a drawing for a $25 gift certificate to the Scout Shop. This will happen at each Roundtable. (It was later drawn at random and awarded to Pack 150.)
Jerry Montag (Roundtable Commissioner)- Awards and recognition presented to Packs and Leaders
Scott Sullivan (Del-Mi District Popcorn Chairman)- Encouraging popcorn sales
- Mystery house information not yet on the website, but it will be by the end of this week
- Realize that the Trail’s End entry website has changed, taking away the ability to enter in dollar adjustments for each Scout (for things like Show-and-Sells). Nothing can be done this year, other than tracking separately and then making a final sales adjustment before turning in the final
Nat Baker (District Executive)- Thanks for a great recruiting season – only 30 boys away from achieving Quality District by the end of the year
- If your unit performs or has performed community service this year, make sure you log your unit’s community service hours on www.goodturnforamerica.org. Make sure you enter your unit number as a four-digit number when creating a new account. (E.g., 122 would be 0122.) Make sure you log your own unit’s hours, even if you have already given these hours to the District.
Tony Smart (District Chair)- Thanks to Packs 100, 109, 211, and 598 for already signing up for your unit’s Friends of Scouting (FOS) presentation. Please – all other units still need to sign up for FOS presentations.
- March 2, 2006 is the Del-Mi District recognition dinner. Everyone is encouraged to attend and be recognized for their volunteer efforts. It is for the Packs, for your families – a great opportunity
Paul Kempton (Asst Cubmaster, Pack 116)
TONIGHT’S TOPIC: Family-Inclusive Pack Meetings- How do you involve your parents and families in Pack meetings?
- Halloween theme – sibling and adult costume contest alongside the Scouts
- Invite parents with special jobs or interests or skills to share them with the Pack at a Pack Meeting
- Do you use the parent volunteer assessment form that parents should have filled out at School Night? It is a great resource to figure out who can offer what special skills to the Pack
- Hold a carnival night and all siblings get to participate
- Use open heats for siblings (and dads) at your rocket derby, pinewood derby, regatta, etc. to keep family members involved
- Include siblings in gathering activities before Pack meetings
- Hand someone a camera and ask them to take pictures
- If you make family members feel more welcome, might you get more volunteers? If they feel welcome and that things are organized, perhaps they might feel more like stepping up, that the jobs might not be so scary when things are organized.
- One idea is to take the year’s monthly themes, and ask parents to volunteer for a particular month’s theme. That family comes up with the game, craft, snack, activity, achievement/elective for that month’s Den meetings. (This works well for Tigers, Wolves, Bears, but not so much for Webelos due to the need to work on Activity Badges.)
- Do you encourage your Scouts to bring along their friends to meetings and fun activities? Do they keep coming? Do they get excited and register?
- Invite the parents up with the Scout to present awards and rank advancements – recognizing the effort the parents make in helping their sons through Scouting. One group has the Cubmaster give the award to the parent, and then the parent presents the award to the Scout.
TOPIC: Blue & Gold Planning- Have you already secured a site for this year’s B&G Banquet? If not, are you working on it now?
- Camp Kikthawenund is $75.
- Do you have Committees set up for your B&G Banquet? Have you started meeting yet?
- One idea is to have all Dens and Patrols must supply one person to the planning committee.
- There are differing opinions on whether your Pack passes out rank advancements at the B&G, whether they receive them when they earn them, or whether you just do the Webelos Arrow of Light and crossing over ceremony.
- One Pack is doing Webelos crossing ceremony and then having a huge party to celebrate Cub Scouting. Rank advancements are given as earned.
- One comment about families that don’t expect to receive any recognition at B&G is that they might not come (cost, location, different time, etc.).
- Do you use the Order of the Arrow (OA) ceremony for your Webelos crossing ceremony? It can impress the younger Scouts, especially your new Tigers.
- Potential down side to rank advancement at the B&G is that then everyone thinks they are done and “check out” through the end of the year.
- For the younger Scouts, trying to find something more fun for them to do to keep them occupied/interested during the long ceremony.
- Regardless of what you have read, seen, or heard, also rely on what experience you and your leaders and parents have to make your B&G great.
- BadgeMagic is sponsoring a contest in which they will award units some “supply” of BadgeMagic for those units featuring the use of BadgeMagic in their awards ceremony. Details to follow separately…….
- Do you have a B&G budget? Do you meet or exceed it?
- Do you charge for B&G? Charge everyone? Or only for family members?
- Catered? Pitch-in? Pack supplies the meat? Some grocery stores give discounts to Scouts.
- Do you seek donations for your B&G Banquet? Food distributors? Do you wear your uniform? Do you go back and recognize and thank your donors?
- Do you invite distinguished guests? If at a church, do you invite the pastor? School principal? Custodians? Fire department? Police department?
- Do you write thank you’s to everyone? Do you have the boys write the thank you’s?
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Cub Scouts 
