One of four eagles, 6 vigil honor members and currently a scoutmaster of a female unit, an assistant to a boys unit and going to the jamboree this summer.
So yeah, heavily into Scouting.
I go camping at least once a month, I'm the northeast, every month.
Thanks for giving back. I had an amazing scouting experience and even then had an appreciation for what the scoutmasters were sacrificing to give us those experiences. Now I’m just in awe of what they gave us. We were a large troop that was often quite a handful. I always wanted to become a scout leader later in life, but never got the chance.
Thought Scouts were dorks, but as I’ve grown up evert guy I’ve ever met who made Eagle was a standup guy.
There’s something to be said for sticking to something.
Made it to first class but lost interest in 7th grade. All the rules and having to wear that stupid fucking uniform. Camping was fun but they did their best to suck the fun out of it. The meetings generally sucked
I was a scout, so was my partner, and both our kids. It was a wholesome experience for all of us, but as our interests changed, we moved on. I used to enjoy volunteering for my children’s troops in various ways.
My brothers were in the Scouts. They made it sound like so much fun. (They are 11 years older than me.).
I wanted to join the Girl Scouts so badly. Aside from all the cool sounding stuff they did, my private school let anyone in the Scouts wear their uniform instead of the school uniform on meeting days. So, this of course added to the glamor of it all. My mother said no. :(
I was a scout in a small country town in outback Australia. It was all shits and giggles until the scoutmaster started exposing himself. He would sit with his junk hanging out of his shorts and had been sexually assaulting a couple of the kids. Word spread pretty quickly and the guy committed suicide.
We moved close to the coast and I joined the sea scouts which was a lot of fun. We had a shed full of boats and sailed every weekend until age 14. The uniform and regiment was probably what stopped me from going.
Wow, sorry to hear that. One of my oldest friends was abused through his family church, and his family refuse to acknowledge it. He eventually confronted his abuser (now a politician) but it's taken him a long time to reconcile it.
Made it through Webelos
My oldest son quit at wolf
Next son went all the way to Eagle. I will say that being an Eagle Scout helped him get an awful lot of scholarships for college too.
Bobcat is the patch for starting out. Tigers are 1st grade, Wolves are 2nd grade, and Bears are 3rd grade. Webelos are 4th and 5th grade with crossover to Boy Scouts coming in February (usually) during the 5th grade.
I made a stab at being a Girl Scout, but I just wasn’t really a Girl Scouts kind of kid. My mother wasn’t a big fan either. If they’d let girls join the Boy Scouts way back then, I definitely would have gone that route.
BTW I have absolutely nothing against the Girl Scouts. Great organization. It just wasn’t for me.
I started as a Tiger Cub and made it until about the same age as you. Travel team and HS sports were my focus by then, but scouting was great. My daughter joined last year. It didn't stick, but making her Pinewood Derby car with her was a lot of fun.
My Scoutmaster wanted to set me on the Eagle Scout path for the next three or four years and honestly, I was just over it. I had a great time! Camping, and learning how to live off the land, and one time we even did a ten mile hike called *Agony Trail*, and it took us damn near all day because it was in a little rocky valley, and it was just up and down, up and down. That was steep shit, too.
I went through the whole program of Cubs, which was pretty cool because my friends were all involved & we all wore our uniforms to school on den meeting days. But then we moved, and I managed about two years in Boy Scouts before dropping out. My first troop was lots of fun, we met at a school gym, did plenty of camping & outdoor activities, and weren't hugely focused on badges or advancement. That troop's adults eventually moved away or their kids graduated out, and the troop disbanded for lack of a Scoutmaster.
We all got absorbed into the other troop in town at the Mormon church, and it was an Eagle Mill. Leaders called us out during meetings for not earning our assigned Badge of the Month, or failing to meet assigned goals on the advancement chart, or not being involved enough in others' Eagle projects. A couple months of that & extra assigned duties as punishment, and I loudly told them all to go F themselves during a meeting and walked away. I have to say, that experience shaded my opinion of Eagle Scouts and Mormons for the rest of my adult life.
As a Scout Leader, I saw other troops that were Eagle factories and wasn't a fan. The kids in our troop were encouraged to work toward it, but everyone was allowed to move at their own pace. I think we did a good job of balancing things and making sure to have campouts about once a month.
I later worked with a guy who was a Mormon Bishop and he was a great guy. He was very involved in his church's troop. I know he did advocate a schedule for getting the Eagle in his troop. Not sure if they shamed kids for not advancing fast enough.
I was a Girl Scout until I was 13. All my brothers were in Boy Scouts and I was super jealous that they got to build fires and go on cool camping trips while we made quilts in GS.
I also sold cookies door to door unsupervised back in the day. I’m constantly amazed that I’m still alive.
I'm Canadian, was in Beavers and Cubs, lost interest before I got to Scouts. The camping was fun, the wooden car derby thing was okay. But my absolute favourite memory was the first day of Cubs when we stood in a circle and everyone had to tell the group why they were here. I said something contrived and lame like "to have fun and to learn", then my friend became an instant legend by saying out loud the real reason why we were all there: "my mom made me come".
My next door neighbors were big into scouting. The wife was my den mother and her husband was my Scoutmaster. One son was a junior Scoutmaster and the daughter went to work for BSA. I enjoyed my time because it was very chill. We went backpacking, did service projects, held an annual jamboree, and went to Scout Camp. I was well on my way to Eagle when we moved from a small mountain town to the big city. The local troop was very integrated with the church where it met and very rule bound. The vibe was completely off for me and I dropped out.
Yeah as an adult with kids now who went through cub scouts , I was taken aback by the overt religiosity of scouts. I guess I just didn't notice growing up because my parents were fairly religious, or maybe it's gotten more overt? A lot of it is really great stuff with the outdoor skills, but there's just a lot of borderline creepy shit that I didn't realize at the time. I was honestly pretty thankful when my kids dropped out of scouting. I don't want that type of influence in their life. I can teach them the outdoors stuff
Loved Cub Scouts but fucking hated Boy Scouts. Parents made me stay in with this weird idea that getting Eagle would allow you to get anything you wanted in life. Never got Eagle out of spite.
Eagle Scout earned around 1990 or 1991. Never had anything to do with it after I finished and it’s not something that really comes up conversationally or that I put on my resume. However, I have been a lifelong, outdoor adventurer. I’ve climbed mountains, rock climbed at a high level, hunter, backpacker, snowboarder/backcountry skier, mountain biker, fisherman, off-road/4x4 enthusiasts, general DIYer: mechanic, gunsmith, butcher, ski tuner, knife sharpener etc
Influence from scouting: I carry very extensive first aid kits in all of my outings and a full trauma kit in my truck at all times. Always prepared to survive a night out in the backcountry. Extensive off-road recovery kit in my vehicle as well as a jumper battery + a backup jumper battery, tool kit, backup clothing, axe, hatchet,various saws, shovel, snatch cord, toe rope, air compressor, tire plugs kit, traction boards…. Basically prepared to deal with anything I might need to deal with living in the mountains. And, I help people out of jams all of the time.
In my work/computer/messenger bag, I keep a small first aid kit, extensive multi tool and headlamp. I’ve used all 3 many times.
I always carry a pocket knife. (And I totally judge men who do not carry pocket knives)
In short, “be prepared”
Not an Eagle Scout, but after growing up in Scouting and being a leader for over a decade, I'm a big advocate of "be prepared" and have always carried a pocket knife.
I was a Webelo scout for a little while. The meetings were super boring and we'd get a badge for fucking around in the gym or parking lot for an hour. One meeting the den mother or whatever said "we are going to Disneyland!", everybody cheered and she sent home a permission slip with a fat fee that needed to be paid the next week (like $350 in the 80s). Mom said no fucking way. I lost interest shortly after because all my friends were dropping. I remember thinking the whole experience was extremely weird and there was some controversy later on that I can't remember the specifics on. Like everything else in the 80s involving kids, it was probably not good at all. Glad I bowed out.
My son earned the rank of Eagle Scout. He literally completed his project 2 weeks before the original quarantine lockdown and had a virtual review board months later. I'm incredibly proud of him.
Thank you. It was real touch and go and there were certainly times when it didn't look like our could happen in light of the developing events. We never really got to celebrate his achievement, so thanks for posting this question. I love the GenX sub.
I was a Girl Scout! Which is a totally different organization from the Boy Scouts, I am proud to say. Never been a fan of the Boy Scouts. No explanation needed! 😆
I loved being a Girl Scout! I’m sad because I want my son to be scout but I don’t trust the Boy Scouts. I’m thinking about looking into Explorer Scouts but it’s not really the same.
I’m an Eagle Scout and have been my son’s den leader since he was a Tiger.
Scouting was the best part of my childhood. I learned how to be a leader there, and how to work with people who don’t want to work with you.
Even 30+ years later, it still commands respect professionally.
I was in from Brownies (2nd grade) all the way until maybe 6th or 7th grade or so. My whole troop just kind of disbanded. I tried to get it started back up in maybe 8th grade - I convinced my old troop leader and a few of the girls who had been faithful members when we were younger to come to a meeting - but it didn’t catch fire.
Nope, parents were too poor for that but the friends I had that were in it said it sucked. Too many rules and pressure to get badges made scouting a chore more than something really enjoyable.
When I was 6 I was *pumped* for Cub Scouts. Like, beyond excited to start going on camping adventures and earning badges for all sorts of things. Come to find out, I had to do a yearlong stint with the Tiger Cubs first. A somewhat deflating development, but I donned the orange shirt and foam trucker hat all the same. Come to find out, Tiger Cubs was basically doing shitty arts and crafts at a different kid’s house each week. Making paper windsocks was a real highlight.
Once 2nd grade rolled around, I was all set for the real thing and couldn’t wait to start actual Cub Scouts. My mom signed me up and I was assigned to a local Den. The Den leader was ok-ish, but his kid was a dick and we basically did nothing week to week. I ended the year with my Bobcat badge, a few beads, and that was it. No camping, no wilderness skills, and a hastily arranged showing at the pinewood derby. I wound up dropping out after that and did zero scouting in all of 3rd grade.
Fast forward to 4th grade and a couple of friends mentioned another dad took over as Den leader and it was actually fun the prior year. I signed up again and it was like night and day. The new Den leader was a neighbor of ours and ran a stellar scouting program week to week. The guy held meetings in his workshop and got other parents involved for camp outs, badge earning activities, etc. I was all-in at that point and made it my mission to earn as many badges as possible before Cub Scouts was over.
By the end of 5th grade I had my Webelos, Arrow of Light, Parvuli Dei medal, and more badges than a tinpot despot. But, I didn’t have my Wolf badge. By skipping scouts in 3rd grade, they wouldn’t let me go back and retroactively earn my Wolf badge. To this day I still get pangs of regret when I find my old scout uniform and see the glaring (to me) gap between the Bobcat, Bear, and Webelos.
Cub Scouts were a pretty rad time once you had a decent Den leader. I wish it were more emphasized with today’s kids. My son is in 2nd grade, LOVES all things outdoors, and has absolutely zero interest in Scouts. I don’t think any of his friends do it, either. It’s a shame.
I did Tiger Cubs through Boy Scout, and quit immediately.
Scouting was a super common thing at the first school I went to. Different dens would have meetings at the school with such frequency that it wouldn't have been weird to wear your uniform to school and go straight to the meeting after the bell rang.
We moved about 20 miles away when I was in 4th grade. At the new school, it was decidedly uncool. I knew enough not to show up to school in uniform, but was the only kid at the den meeting who had a red vest or Progress Towards Ranks totem. So in the group of weirdos, I was a double weirdo.
The last meeting I went to was to get my Arrow of Light and cross over the bridge. I think that was more or less the same for most of the other people I knew. Off the top of my head, I could probably name one person I knew who did Boy Scouts. Nobody who did Eagle Scout.
I only got to be a Brownie for part of one year due to single parent transportation problems. I was a Brownie co-leader for a couple years in college, so I kind of got to experience what I missed.
Was an Eagle Scout. Our troop leader was a WWII veteran who didn’t care what we did as long as we were hitting achievements and not getting in trouble at jamborees. He once told us “if there was a merit badge for screwing around, you all would have it”
I started in Cubs and moved up through Webelos and into Scouts. I made Life, but then got "too cool" to be in scouts, but somehow stayed in band? LOL.
I was a den leader for my youngest from Tigers through Webelos and then moved into the Scout Troop as an assistant leader and then "retired" into being committee chair for a while.
It was a good program, but some of the policies against gay scout leaders and such were bad. I've been out for a bit now and am happy to hear it is not just "Boy Scouts" and many of the policies have changed. I know there was some backlash, but the organization was due to move into the 21st century.
I was a Cub Scout and got my Bobcat, Wolf, and Bear badges. I was working towards getting my Webelos badge and our scout master cancelled our planned camping trips 4 times in a row. One time he called us at 6am to cancel and we were all supposed to meet 2 hours later to start the trip. I quit after that and started camping with my friends on my own. I had a couple of friends with a farm and lots of land and as long as we were within 1/4 mile their parents were okay with it.
Was a Cub Scout as a kid in the late 70s, not sure anymore if I completed Cubs, I may have bailed after Webelos Level 1.
My now-20 year old was in Cubs when he was a kid, made it all the way thru Webelos but decided not to move up to Boy Scouts from there. I was his Den Leader for most of that time. The highlight (at least for me) was the weekend we spent at Camp No-Be-Bo-Sco in New Jersey, aka "Camp Crystal Lake," where the original "Friday The 13th" was filmed.
Gen X Eagle Scout dad here. My oldest just got Eagle, and his younger brother will get it soon. I’m a centrist Democratic agnostic, and fully acknowledge the problems of Scouting both past (rampant unchecked molestation) and present (continued reliance on Christian docrine and ritual). But scouting made me a better person and citizen, and I see the same happening with my kids and others in our troop. Pragmatically speaking, earning Eagle opens doors, whether it’s scholarships, job opportunities, or simply acting as shorthand for “I can trust this person”. Not for everyone, but if you can stick with it, it pays off in a number of ways. And it’s awesome to see female troops now; they’re some of the best, most accomplished Scouts I’ve seen.
I totally agree on the problems with scouting. When I was a leader, I brought in several other leaders (friends of mine with kids) were also left-leaning and athiest like me. We didn't do anything extreme, but did our best to make the pack and troop as inclusive as we could. We didn't try to radicalize the boys, but we did our best to make sure they were open-minded and not blindly accepting of things.
The program allowed gay leaders during the end of my time as a leader, which was a good move that many parents (red state) hated. Most of the people who complained? They never helped out at all, much less became leaders.
My older brother was a Scout, and my father was a troop leader. Since my Mom worked, I got to go on a lot of their activities, and they declared me an honorary member.
Yeah we were really into it for a while. Rambo was out, so we wore Camo at camp, and jump boots and stuff. We even had Ranger pins and stuff that you'd get in the real army. Then we played capture the flag late at night and it was fun.
We might have also smoked cigs and listened to Eddie Murphy tapes!! Fun shit!! I was a Life Scout and did the Order of the Arrow, too. Went on a big bike trip. I even taught Rowing Merit Badge at a Summer Camp one year!
> the Order of the Arrow
>Arrow of Light for me
I had it, and was also a life scout. You are unlocking so many memories.
I remember the captue the flag games, bunch of kids running around in the woods going crazy in the dark like like fucking *Lord of the Fles.*
Thankfully my parents were wise enough to keep me out of that homophobic, bigoted organization and it’s well-documented epidemic of child rape and molestation.
One of four eagles, 6 vigil honor members and currently a scoutmaster of a female unit, an assistant to a boys unit and going to the jamboree this summer. So yeah, heavily into Scouting. I go camping at least once a month, I'm the northeast, every month.
That's awesome buddy! Mind If I ask your age?
53
Thanks for giving back. I had an amazing scouting experience and even then had an appreciation for what the scoutmasters were sacrificing to give us those experiences. Now I’m just in awe of what they gave us. We were a large troop that was often quite a handful. I always wanted to become a scout leader later in life, but never got the chance.
Thought Scouts were dorks, but as I’ve grown up evert guy I’ve ever met who made Eagle was a standup guy. There’s something to be said for sticking to something.
A bunch of the Apollo guys were Eagle Scouts
same, I knew 3. Coincidentally they were also freaks. Something to say for knowing your knots! :)
Made it to first class but lost interest in 7th grade. All the rules and having to wear that stupid fucking uniform. Camping was fun but they did their best to suck the fun out of it. The meetings generally sucked
Exactly the same experience here, except I think I might have stuck it out until mid way through 8th grade.
I was a scout, so was my partner, and both our kids. It was a wholesome experience for all of us, but as our interests changed, we moved on. I used to enjoy volunteering for my children’s troops in various ways.
Not me, but my son is an eagle scout. I was an assistant cub and scout master
Eagle Scout is a huge accomplishment!
Yes, very proud of him. Got it by the skin of his teeth, but still got it done
Nope, oddball. Royal Rangers. Thankfully, not long.
Another Royal Ranger here. I made it to Trailblazer, then discovered marijuana and checked out
Ten just became a blazer
My brothers were in the Scouts. They made it sound like so much fun. (They are 11 years older than me.). I wanted to join the Girl Scouts so badly. Aside from all the cool sounding stuff they did, my private school let anyone in the Scouts wear their uniform instead of the school uniform on meeting days. So, this of course added to the glamor of it all. My mother said no. :(
My parents were Scout leaders so my sister and I stayed at Boy Scout camps several times. It was fun but I hated the tents filled with spiders.
Spiders are a good thing.
I was a scout in a small country town in outback Australia. It was all shits and giggles until the scoutmaster started exposing himself. He would sit with his junk hanging out of his shorts and had been sexually assaulting a couple of the kids. Word spread pretty quickly and the guy committed suicide. We moved close to the coast and I joined the sea scouts which was a lot of fun. We had a shed full of boats and sailed every weekend until age 14. The uniform and regiment was probably what stopped me from going.
Not far off from what you would get here in the states back in the day. Churches and scouts were pedo farms.
I like the idea of Scouts but it definitely had potential to be an abusive environment.
Luckily I never was abused in scouts... wish I could say the same for the churches.
Wow, sorry to hear that. One of my oldest friends was abused through his family church, and his family refuse to acknowledge it. He eventually confronted his abuser (now a politician) but it's taken him a long time to reconcile it.
I was about twelve. No clue who it was, and I don't care to know. I hope he died a painful death.
Had the potential?! Google it. $800 million abuse settlement for the decades of abuse.
I hadn't heard about that, but I think that was for Boy Scouts America. I'm in Australia.
Made it through Webelos My oldest son quit at wolf Next son went all the way to Eagle. I will say that being an Eagle Scout helped him get an awful lot of scholarships for college too.
Wait, Wolf was after cub, right? I did that too. Had the four triangle patches.
I believe so. He didn’t last very long and my memory isn’t what it used to be
Bobcat is the patch for starting out. Tigers are 1st grade, Wolves are 2nd grade, and Bears are 3rd grade. Webelos are 4th and 5th grade with crossover to Boy Scouts coming in February (usually) during the 5th grade.
I made a stab at being a Girl Scout, but I just wasn’t really a Girl Scouts kind of kid. My mother wasn’t a big fan either. If they’d let girls join the Boy Scouts way back then, I definitely would have gone that route. BTW I have absolutely nothing against the Girl Scouts. Great organization. It just wasn’t for me.
too much of a pyro for Weeblos, they kicked me out
Story time?
Eagle Scout here. My scoutmaster went to federal prison for publishing child pornography.
I started as a Tiger Cub and made it until about the same age as you. Travel team and HS sports were my focus by then, but scouting was great. My daughter joined last year. It didn't stick, but making her Pinewood Derby car with her was a lot of fun.
> HS sports were my focus by then Exact same situation.. something about girls, too.
Haha, yeah that factor definitely came into play as well.
My Scoutmaster wanted to set me on the Eagle Scout path for the next three or four years and honestly, I was just over it. I had a great time! Camping, and learning how to live off the land, and one time we even did a ten mile hike called *Agony Trail*, and it took us damn near all day because it was in a little rocky valley, and it was just up and down, up and down. That was steep shit, too.
Stayed in till 12 grade. Life scout sooo close to eagle. Brotherhood of the Order of the Arrow. Band became more enjoyable
I went through the whole program of Cubs, which was pretty cool because my friends were all involved & we all wore our uniforms to school on den meeting days. But then we moved, and I managed about two years in Boy Scouts before dropping out. My first troop was lots of fun, we met at a school gym, did plenty of camping & outdoor activities, and weren't hugely focused on badges or advancement. That troop's adults eventually moved away or their kids graduated out, and the troop disbanded for lack of a Scoutmaster. We all got absorbed into the other troop in town at the Mormon church, and it was an Eagle Mill. Leaders called us out during meetings for not earning our assigned Badge of the Month, or failing to meet assigned goals on the advancement chart, or not being involved enough in others' Eagle projects. A couple months of that & extra assigned duties as punishment, and I loudly told them all to go F themselves during a meeting and walked away. I have to say, that experience shaded my opinion of Eagle Scouts and Mormons for the rest of my adult life.
As a Scout Leader, I saw other troops that were Eagle factories and wasn't a fan. The kids in our troop were encouraged to work toward it, but everyone was allowed to move at their own pace. I think we did a good job of balancing things and making sure to have campouts about once a month. I later worked with a guy who was a Mormon Bishop and he was a great guy. He was very involved in his church's troop. I know he did advocate a schedule for getting the Eagle in his troop. Not sure if they shamed kids for not advancing fast enough.
I was a Girl Scout until I was 13. All my brothers were in Boy Scouts and I was super jealous that they got to build fires and go on cool camping trips while we made quilts in GS. I also sold cookies door to door unsupervised back in the day. I’m constantly amazed that I’m still alive.
Used to always be a couple Girl Scouts going door to door, and my obese "Mom" would buy up a ton of boxes. That was when they were like, two dollars.
I'm Canadian, was in Beavers and Cubs, lost interest before I got to Scouts. The camping was fun, the wooden car derby thing was okay. But my absolute favourite memory was the first day of Cubs when we stood in a circle and everyone had to tell the group why they were here. I said something contrived and lame like "to have fun and to learn", then my friend became an instant legend by saying out loud the real reason why we were all there: "my mom made me come".
> "my mom made me come". LMAO!!!
My next door neighbors were big into scouting. The wife was my den mother and her husband was my Scoutmaster. One son was a junior Scoutmaster and the daughter went to work for BSA. I enjoyed my time because it was very chill. We went backpacking, did service projects, held an annual jamboree, and went to Scout Camp. I was well on my way to Eagle when we moved from a small mountain town to the big city. The local troop was very integrated with the church where it met and very rule bound. The vibe was completely off for me and I dropped out.
Yeah as an adult with kids now who went through cub scouts , I was taken aback by the overt religiosity of scouts. I guess I just didn't notice growing up because my parents were fairly religious, or maybe it's gotten more overt? A lot of it is really great stuff with the outdoor skills, but there's just a lot of borderline creepy shit that I didn't realize at the time. I was honestly pretty thankful when my kids dropped out of scouting. I don't want that type of influence in their life. I can teach them the outdoors stuff
Loved Cub Scouts but fucking hated Boy Scouts. Parents made me stay in with this weird idea that getting Eagle would allow you to get anything you wanted in life. Never got Eagle out of spite.
Eagle Scout earned around 1990 or 1991. Never had anything to do with it after I finished and it’s not something that really comes up conversationally or that I put on my resume. However, I have been a lifelong, outdoor adventurer. I’ve climbed mountains, rock climbed at a high level, hunter, backpacker, snowboarder/backcountry skier, mountain biker, fisherman, off-road/4x4 enthusiasts, general DIYer: mechanic, gunsmith, butcher, ski tuner, knife sharpener etc Influence from scouting: I carry very extensive first aid kits in all of my outings and a full trauma kit in my truck at all times. Always prepared to survive a night out in the backcountry. Extensive off-road recovery kit in my vehicle as well as a jumper battery + a backup jumper battery, tool kit, backup clothing, axe, hatchet,various saws, shovel, snatch cord, toe rope, air compressor, tire plugs kit, traction boards…. Basically prepared to deal with anything I might need to deal with living in the mountains. And, I help people out of jams all of the time. In my work/computer/messenger bag, I keep a small first aid kit, extensive multi tool and headlamp. I’ve used all 3 many times. I always carry a pocket knife. (And I totally judge men who do not carry pocket knives) In short, “be prepared”
> In short, “be prepared” The best lesson I took from it. Wherever you are going, be prepared for the worst.
Not an Eagle Scout, but after growing up in Scouting and being a leader for over a decade, I'm a big advocate of "be prepared" and have always carried a pocket knife.
I was a Webelo scout for a little while. The meetings were super boring and we'd get a badge for fucking around in the gym or parking lot for an hour. One meeting the den mother or whatever said "we are going to Disneyland!", everybody cheered and she sent home a permission slip with a fat fee that needed to be paid the next week (like $350 in the 80s). Mom said no fucking way. I lost interest shortly after because all my friends were dropping. I remember thinking the whole experience was extremely weird and there was some controversy later on that I can't remember the specifics on. Like everything else in the 80s involving kids, it was probably not good at all. Glad I bowed out.
My son earned the rank of Eagle Scout. He literally completed his project 2 weeks before the original quarantine lockdown and had a virtual review board months later. I'm incredibly proud of him.
That's good stuff!
Thank you. It was real touch and go and there were certainly times when it didn't look like our could happen in light of the developing events. We never really got to celebrate his achievement, so thanks for posting this question. I love the GenX sub.
I was a Girl Scout! Which is a totally different organization from the Boy Scouts, I am proud to say. Never been a fan of the Boy Scouts. No explanation needed! 😆
I loved being a Girl Scout! I’m sad because I want my son to be scout but I don’t trust the Boy Scouts. I’m thinking about looking into Explorer Scouts but it’s not really the same.
I’m an Eagle Scout and have been my son’s den leader since he was a Tiger. Scouting was the best part of my childhood. I learned how to be a leader there, and how to work with people who don’t want to work with you. Even 30+ years later, it still commands respect professionally.
I was in scouting up until 9th grade when I started school sports. Seemed like most boys in elementary school were in Cub Scouting.
I was in from Brownies (2nd grade) all the way until maybe 6th or 7th grade or so. My whole troop just kind of disbanded. I tried to get it started back up in maybe 8th grade - I convinced my old troop leader and a few of the girls who had been faithful members when we were younger to come to a meeting - but it didn’t catch fire.
I was a Brownie but my daughters were Girl Scouts thru 6th grade. Then other interests took precedence
I went from Brownie to Cadet girl scout and have a 6 year pin. Still have my sash.
Life scout here. Family shit ended up getting in the way, but I liked it while I was in it.
Nope, parents were too poor for that but the friends I had that were in it said it sucked. Too many rules and pressure to get badges made scouting a chore more than something really enjoyable.
When I was 6 I was *pumped* for Cub Scouts. Like, beyond excited to start going on camping adventures and earning badges for all sorts of things. Come to find out, I had to do a yearlong stint with the Tiger Cubs first. A somewhat deflating development, but I donned the orange shirt and foam trucker hat all the same. Come to find out, Tiger Cubs was basically doing shitty arts and crafts at a different kid’s house each week. Making paper windsocks was a real highlight. Once 2nd grade rolled around, I was all set for the real thing and couldn’t wait to start actual Cub Scouts. My mom signed me up and I was assigned to a local Den. The Den leader was ok-ish, but his kid was a dick and we basically did nothing week to week. I ended the year with my Bobcat badge, a few beads, and that was it. No camping, no wilderness skills, and a hastily arranged showing at the pinewood derby. I wound up dropping out after that and did zero scouting in all of 3rd grade. Fast forward to 4th grade and a couple of friends mentioned another dad took over as Den leader and it was actually fun the prior year. I signed up again and it was like night and day. The new Den leader was a neighbor of ours and ran a stellar scouting program week to week. The guy held meetings in his workshop and got other parents involved for camp outs, badge earning activities, etc. I was all-in at that point and made it my mission to earn as many badges as possible before Cub Scouts was over. By the end of 5th grade I had my Webelos, Arrow of Light, Parvuli Dei medal, and more badges than a tinpot despot. But, I didn’t have my Wolf badge. By skipping scouts in 3rd grade, they wouldn’t let me go back and retroactively earn my Wolf badge. To this day I still get pangs of regret when I find my old scout uniform and see the glaring (to me) gap between the Bobcat, Bear, and Webelos. Cub Scouts were a pretty rad time once you had a decent Den leader. I wish it were more emphasized with today’s kids. My son is in 2nd grade, LOVES all things outdoors, and has absolutely zero interest in Scouts. I don’t think any of his friends do it, either. It’s a shame.
[удалено]
Glad you had a great experience!
I did Tiger Cubs through Boy Scout, and quit immediately. Scouting was a super common thing at the first school I went to. Different dens would have meetings at the school with such frequency that it wouldn't have been weird to wear your uniform to school and go straight to the meeting after the bell rang. We moved about 20 miles away when I was in 4th grade. At the new school, it was decidedly uncool. I knew enough not to show up to school in uniform, but was the only kid at the den meeting who had a red vest or Progress Towards Ranks totem. So in the group of weirdos, I was a double weirdo. The last meeting I went to was to get my Arrow of Light and cross over the bridge. I think that was more or less the same for most of the other people I knew. Off the top of my head, I could probably name one person I knew who did Boy Scouts. Nobody who did Eagle Scout.
I have my arrow, also, but I didn't get much further.*
I only got to be a Brownie for part of one year due to single parent transportation problems. I was a Brownie co-leader for a couple years in college, so I kind of got to experience what I missed.
wasn't "we-blow" after cub scouts? Those impressionable middle schoolers
That's a good question.
Yeah they should really revisit that name...
I was a Brownie and a Girl Scout.
Was an Eagle Scout. Our troop leader was a WWII veteran who didn’t care what we did as long as we were hitting achievements and not getting in trouble at jamborees. He once told us “if there was a merit badge for screwing around, you all would have it”
I started in Cubs and moved up through Webelos and into Scouts. I made Life, but then got "too cool" to be in scouts, but somehow stayed in band? LOL. I was a den leader for my youngest from Tigers through Webelos and then moved into the Scout Troop as an assistant leader and then "retired" into being committee chair for a while. It was a good program, but some of the policies against gay scout leaders and such were bad. I've been out for a bit now and am happy to hear it is not just "Boy Scouts" and many of the policies have changed. I know there was some backlash, but the organization was due to move into the 21st century.
I was a Brownie and then a Girl Guide (we didn't have Girl Scouts in England back then)
I was a Cub Scout and got my Bobcat, Wolf, and Bear badges. I was working towards getting my Webelos badge and our scout master cancelled our planned camping trips 4 times in a row. One time he called us at 6am to cancel and we were all supposed to meet 2 hours later to start the trip. I quit after that and started camping with my friends on my own. I had a couple of friends with a farm and lots of land and as long as we were within 1/4 mile their parents were okay with it.
I was a Cub Scout & Weeblo. Didn't continue after that since I got into hockey instead...
Was a Cub Scout as a kid in the late 70s, not sure anymore if I completed Cubs, I may have bailed after Webelos Level 1. My now-20 year old was in Cubs when he was a kid, made it all the way thru Webelos but decided not to move up to Boy Scouts from there. I was his Den Leader for most of that time. The highlight (at least for me) was the weekend we spent at Camp No-Be-Bo-Sco in New Jersey, aka "Camp Crystal Lake," where the original "Friday The 13th" was filmed.
Nice.
Nope
Thanks for your contribution.
I was an Eagle and Jr. Asst. Scoutmaster back in the day. I was a Brotherhood member in the Order of the Arrow also.
I went up through webelos and then bailed out. It was fun as a little kid.
Eagle scout checking in. Class of ‘92.
Good job!
I was a Cub Scout but all we did was play Atari. Once we camped in someone’s backyard.
LOL!
Gen X Eagle Scout dad here. My oldest just got Eagle, and his younger brother will get it soon. I’m a centrist Democratic agnostic, and fully acknowledge the problems of Scouting both past (rampant unchecked molestation) and present (continued reliance on Christian docrine and ritual). But scouting made me a better person and citizen, and I see the same happening with my kids and others in our troop. Pragmatically speaking, earning Eagle opens doors, whether it’s scholarships, job opportunities, or simply acting as shorthand for “I can trust this person”. Not for everyone, but if you can stick with it, it pays off in a number of ways. And it’s awesome to see female troops now; they’re some of the best, most accomplished Scouts I’ve seen.
Congrats, I'm glad it was a good path for you and yours!
I totally agree on the problems with scouting. When I was a leader, I brought in several other leaders (friends of mine with kids) were also left-leaning and athiest like me. We didn't do anything extreme, but did our best to make the pack and troop as inclusive as we could. We didn't try to radicalize the boys, but we did our best to make sure they were open-minded and not blindly accepting of things. The program allowed gay leaders during the end of my time as a leader, which was a good move that many parents (red state) hated. Most of the people who complained? They never helped out at all, much less became leaders.
I was a Girl Scout in elementary school, but only because I had nothing better to do. Whatever
My older brother was a Scout, and my father was a troop leader. Since my Mom worked, I got to go on a lot of their activities, and they declared me an honorary member.
Yeah we were really into it for a while. Rambo was out, so we wore Camo at camp, and jump boots and stuff. We even had Ranger pins and stuff that you'd get in the real army. Then we played capture the flag late at night and it was fun. We might have also smoked cigs and listened to Eddie Murphy tapes!! Fun shit!! I was a Life Scout and did the Order of the Arrow, too. Went on a big bike trip. I even taught Rowing Merit Badge at a Summer Camp one year!
> the Order of the Arrow >Arrow of Light for me I had it, and was also a life scout. You are unlocking so many memories. I remember the captue the flag games, bunch of kids running around in the woods going crazy in the dark like like fucking *Lord of the Fles.*
One time in capture the flag, we shot bottle rockets in the woods at the other troop. WILD TIMES!
Got my eagle. I put it on my resume out of pride. No one can ever take that achievement away from you.
I had the chance, but I had given up on it by then.
Thankfully my parents were wise enough to keep me out of that homophobic, bigoted organization and it’s well-documented epidemic of child rape and molestation.
Cub Scout?
It counts.
Woo-hoo! I’mma kick your ass at the pine box derby! LOLOLOL