Patrol Leader

“Without wise leadership, a nation falls; with many counselors, there is safety.” Proverbs 11:14

This Bible verse is talking about being a good leader, but before you can be a good leader you have to be a good follower.  What does it mean to be a good follower?  In Boy Scout this means to follow your leaders or other boys with leadership positions (mostly your Senior Patrol Leader or Patrol Leader).  Scouts is broken up into patrols, each patrol has a Patrol Leader.  The S.P.L. gives orders to the A.S.P.L. and he gives orders to the P.L who gives the orders to everybody in the patrol.  Curently our troop has had an election for Leadership positions, and I was elected to be the Patrol Leader for the Scorpion Patrol.

The Patrol Method is not a way to lead a troop, it is the only way.
Robert Baden-Powell

The only position that we realy vote on, but most of the time only one person volenters for each job.

Camp Cards

If you are in Boy Scouts than you already know that we are selling Camp Cards to help us earn our way to summer camp (which for our troop is Camp Comer).  There are some awesome prizes for this year: for every twenty cards you sell you are entered into two drawings for an $100 bill, or sell 1,000 cards and get (not entered for a drawing) an Ipad 2!  Selling items is better than wasting 2 hours at Wal-Mart begging for money.  You get the feeling of completing something, vs. just standing around not even saying anything, and have people think that you are just a potato couch.

Chickamaga Battlefield

Chickamaga Battlefield has been a tourist attraction for over 100 years.  Just recently my boy scout troop on January 20th through the 22nd took a camping trip to the historic Chickamaga Battlefield.  It was said that a few boys in our troop had seen the ghost of a lady in a wedding dress looking for her husband.  It rained the whole first night (the 20th), and we had to cover up our gear when we set up the tents so that nothing got wet.  The next day it only rained a little bit in the morning, but every thing was muddy.  On the first breakfast our patrol had breakfast burritos, lunch we had BLTs, dinner was chili dogs, and for the second breakfast omelets.  Later we hiked to the visitors center,watched a 30 minute movie on the Chattanooga Champain, looked at the different guns that people used in the Civil War, and looked at the gift shop.  On our hike back to camp we passed a big dirt mound site.  We went back to camp and then some of the boys decided to go back to the dirt site and play capture the flag.  It was so muddy that the mud was 2" deep on our boots.  Later that night me and two of my friends made bug juice, out of sugar ( Gatorade mix) and water.  We put more sugar in it than we ever have before, and everybody's face was stained red because of it.  The next day (Sunday) I lead the Chapel on Psalm 1, then we broke down camp and left.    

Imagine this!

Imagine this senario!  You are stuck in the middle of the woods, it's snowing and you only a few provisons: A tarp, a tobbogan, 10 matches, a knife, and food.  How do you survive?  When I get 10 comments then I will answer.

The Meaning Of The Scout Slogan

What is the Scout Slogan?  Do a good turn daily.  Does that phrase apply to your life?  If you are a boy scout it should.  So what is a good turn?  It could be anything from helping with an Eagle Scout Project to taking care of your little sister when she is hurt.  Yesterday my dad and I went over to my grandparents house and helped rake up leaves.  So be a great person and do a good turn daily.

An Eagle Scout Project

What is an Eagle Scout Project? It's when ever somebody is about to earn Eagle and they have to do a project to help the community.  Lately, I helped a friend of mine move a 12 foot log 1/8 of a mile.  Me and two of my friends had a very important misson: RECIEVE THE PIZZA!  So we rushed to Little Caesers to pick up ten pizzas (4 pepperoni, 4 cheese, 2 susage).  We had to carry them 1/4 mile to the worksite, but it was fun.  We found a rock mound and used rocks from it for the foundation.  After that we lifted the log over the foundation for a bridge.  There was a mud mound, and my friends and I would make mud balls and throw them at trees.  It was hard work, and made a sturdy bridge, and it was dirty(everybody was sliping because it was muddy)    

Tenderfoot Requirements

Dear fellow readers, Tenderfoot is the first rank in Boy Scouts.  That means you have to earn this before any other rank.  Here's the requirements for it.

1. Present yourself to your leader, properly dressed, before going on an overnight camping trip. Show the camping gear you will use. Show the right way to pack and carry it.
2. Spend at least one night on a patrol or troop campout. Sleep in a tent you have helped pitch.
3. On the campout, assist in preparing and cooking one of your patrol’s meals. Tell why it is important for each patrol member to share in meal preparation and cleanup, and explain theimportance of eating together.
4. Demonstrate
• 4a. Demonstrate how to whip and fuse the ends of a rope.
• 4b. Demonstrate that you know how to tie the following knots and tell what their uses are: two half hitches and the taut-line hitch.
• 4c. Using the EDGE method, teach another person how to tie the square knot.
5. Explain the rules of safe hiking, both on the highway and cross- country, during the day and at night. Explain what to do if you are lost.
6. Demonstrate how to display, raise, lower, and fold the American flag.
7. Repeat from memory and explain in your own words the Scout Oath, Law, motto, and slogan.
8. Know your patrol name, give the patrol yell, and describe your patrol flag.
9. Explain the importance of the buddy system as it relates to your personal safety on outings and in your neighborhood. Describe what a bully is and how you should respond to one.
10. Record your best in the following tests:

Current results

Push-ups ________

Pull-ups ________

Sit-ups ________

Standing long jump (______ ft. ______ in.)

1⁄4-mile walk/run _____________

Push-ups ________

Pull-ups ________

Sit-ups ________

Standing long jump (______ ft. ______ in.)

1⁄4-mile walk/run _____________

30 days later

10b. Show improvement in the activities listed in requirement 10a after practicing for 30 days.

11. Identify local poisonous plants; tell how to treat for exposure to them.
12. 12a. Demonstrate how to care for someone who is choking.
    12b. Show first aid for the following:
• Simple cuts and scrapes
• Blisters on the hand and foot
• Minor (thermal/heat) burns or scalds (superficial, or first-degree)
• Bites or stings of insects and ticks
• Venomous snakebite
• Nosebleed
• Frostbite and sunburn
13. Demonstrate Scout spirit by living the Scout Oath (Promise) and Scout Law in your everyday life. Discuss four specific examples of how you have lived the points of the Scout Law in your daily life.
14. Participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
15. Complete your board of review.

Now go and earn Tenderfoot without delay.

Thanks again, Clay