Tell me about Cub Scouts...

[momtoTnT]

My DS (6) really really really wants to join cub scouts. My DH was never in any extra-curricular activity and has no idea as to what scouting is. I was in girl scouts from age 5-16 (although starting at about age 12, we didn't do much in the way of "girl scouts" - it was all about the cookies -- my general, uninformed opinion is that cub scouts is probably like girl scouts, but with popcorn instead of cookies.

I've read/heard things about the Boy Scouts organization that make me a bit...uneasy. However, I don't want these things to cloud my judgement when I in fact, have no idea if what I've read/heard is even true - especially at our local level (we live in a very progressive city - I can't imagine that some of what I've heard would be tolerated by our community as a whole - but I don't really know!)


As an aside - his sister (5) also wants to join girl scouts - which I will allow her to do because I was one and know what it's all about. I don't think it's necessarily fair to tell him he can't be a boy scout (based on these things I've heard) but that she can be a girl scout - but at the same time.....


So.....what has your experience with scouts been? What is it all about? What can we expect if we allow him to sign up?

[MtBikeLover]

I can not say enough good things about it! Like you, I really was concerned because of the things I had heard. It was the last think I wanted my son to get involved in. but now that he has, I love it! The nice thing about it, is that siblings can be just as involved as the cub scout. My DD goes to everything with us. I ended up becoming a den leader because our group needed some organization. That has been a blast too!

If you do it, get involved by volunteering for something. That makes all the difference.

Some of the activities that we do with the scouts are things that I NEVER would have done on my own. We help set up beds for the homeless at a PADS shelter, we do elderly home sings/gifts at Christmas, we do environmental stuff, and we do lots of fun stuff (bike rides, camp outs, roller skating, skiing, pinewood derby builds, etc).

The camping has been the best! My son literally cried leaving our last campout because he didn't want to go home. He had so much fun running around in the rain and the dark with a bunch of boys playing games, fishing, gathering firewood, etc.

And it is really cheap. They make most of their money during popcorn time and then it is used to help fund all the activities that the pack does.

Every pack is different so find one that fits your values and what you are looking for. Ours is really small and that makes a difference because every opinion counts and is heard.

[Vermillion]

My experience has been pretty much the same as MtBikeLover’s.

I don’t have a ton of time right now but I did want to add really quickly that before we signed up I had these preconceived notions about how cub scouts was going to be because of what I have read. I was so hesitant to even check it out but my son was SO in need of making some friends that I just went for it, and I was pleasantly surprised that it was just about the opposite of what I had heard.

Both my husband and I are very involved as leaders now and we have a really great pack. That’s what it comes down to really. All packs are different so you’ve got to find a good fit, you know?

Bottom line is that Scouting has been a very positive thing for my whole family, with none of the issues I was expecting in the beginning.

[Marsupialmom]

Boy or Girl Scout troops are what you make of them. If you don't get involve then it might not be a good experience. If you can get be involved and do not like the troop, get a new one! Shop around for a fit.

[ChetMC]

Positive

I am only familiar with the program in Canada. I was involved with the guiding program from age 6 to 10 and it was an extremely positive experience for me. A good friend continued with Guiding and got to travel and do a lot of great things as a teen and young adult. My dad was a cub and scout leader, and my brother went all through the program, and again, it was a very positive experience.

[momtoTnT]

TY everyone! I just received some additional info from the pack leader (I think that is the correct term....) and it sounds great. I'm excited for DS.

[abeliamama]

It is a great confidence builder for my son. He loves getting the belt loops and badges.

It gets you more involved in the community, encourages physical activity, helps him gain empathy for older people or those less fortunate--as far as extracurricular activities go, scouts is very well-rounded!

The camping was the highlight of his fall last year.

[zebra15]

Does anyone have an older kid start scouts (like 10)??

[MusicianDad]

Different troops do things differently, but The Boy Scouts Of America have a very specific policy regarding certain beliefs and "lifestyles" that they are allowed to maintain because they are a private, religious organization.

There are also other alternatives to the Scouts that have much the same idea behind them but have, as a larger group, a more inclusive policy.

[Cavy]

HI Zebra -- (gosh, that used to be my usual posting name!! ).
DS (almost 11) may be about to start Air-Scouts -- is boy scouts with an aeronautical emphasis (don't have 'em in the USA). At least he went to one session and loved it, but he usually feels hopelessly bored by the end of the 2nd session of anything.

There is a militaristic side to scouts which doesn't sit so well with me (I come from a Peace Activist background, but DS is fine about it) and a religious tone (which both DS & I could struggle with). A lot seems to depend on the attitude of each particular scout group; I told DS he can attend church services (mandatory in this troop) honoring war veterans because it honors their sacrifices, not because he believes any of the religious bumpf. He felt fine about that.

Unfortunately all of the alternative groups to scouts around here don't appeal to DS or are too far a drive to be practical for us.

[lucyem]

I agree that I am not happy with the Boy Scouts of America's stance on certain issues. I avoided it because of this. This year friends of my son asked him to join. I personally know both dads who run their pack. There are only 8 boys in their pack and we know them all. We signed up. We will see how it goes.

I had a friend in another state who signed up both her sons. One had a great pack and a great experience. The other had a not so great pack and a not so great experience. It totally depends on who is involved locally.

[mama1803]

My ds has been involved with the cub scouts for one year now and he loves it. I can't say enough about how great of an experience it has been for us (lots of family wide activities--not just the boys and dads). Dh enjoys it as well-so much so that he is volunteering to be a leader this year.

[zebra15]

Just a quick question, I emailed our local chapter? of boy scouts, it seems all the meetings (groups) are held at 'chruches'... Please forgive my ignorance... are the boy scouts tied to religion? Maybe I am handicapped on the website but it seems to be lacking tons of info. scouting.org whatever seems to have general info and tons of fluff but nothing specific to it.

[coop_mom]

I'm really glad you started this thread momtoTnT, I was *just* talking to DH yesterday about this, and raising the same concerns!

It sounds like the people who are involved really like it, I'll have to investigate further!

zebra, if you go to wikipedia and search for Boy Scouts of America membership controversies, you will find some info on religion and the organization

--k

[Tigerchild]

It makes me very very sad, because I always wanted my boys to join scouts. But we have made a family decision that we will never join an organization that would not welcome members of our chosen family who are gay and would discriminate against them and their children.

I really hoped that things would change by now. I really like the people in the local troop, and I know that the vast majority of them do not agree with the BSA's stance on leaders who are gay and older scouts who are gay. However, they still pay dues to the organization who is very outspoken about their discriminatory policy (I contacted the national group to see if the policy had changed). I cannot in good conscience financially support any group that is adamantly discriminatory in that fashion.

It is hard. My boys want to join. I feel sad at having to deny them. But at the same time, whenever I have been tempted to join, I think about my dear friends, loving people who have worked with kids for ages, and how they are not even given the option to participate in scouting with their sons because they are lesbians. I cannot in any way shape or form be party to that.

Should the BSA ever reverse its stance, and merely require that all adults pass a background check and operate with a safety policy, I will be first in line to allow my boys to participate. Until then, no. It goes against the very fabric of the morality we try to teach our children. Fun and sweet people does not, for us, take away the evil of blatant, unrepentant, unyielding discrimination based on sexual orientation.

I had thought that perhaps it would be good to join, and then "fight from within" as it were. But...I don't think that is the path I can ask my children to walk. Maybe when they are older to understand the consequences of fighting the leadership, they can join and seek change from within with my blessing. Until then, though, I feel ethically and morally bound to protect them.

[eclipse]

Originally Posted by Tigerchild

It makes me very very sad, because I always wanted my boys to join scouts. But we have made a family decision that we will never join an organization that would not welcome members of our chosen family who are gay and would discriminate against them and their children.

I really hoped that things would change by now. I really like the people in the local troop, and I know that the vast majority of them do not agree with the BSA's stance on leaders who are gay and older scouts who are gay. However, they still pay dues to the organization who is very outspoken about their discriminatory policy (I contacted the national group to see if the policy had changed). I cannot in good conscience financially support any group that is adamantly discriminatory in that fashion.

It is hard. My boys want to join. I feel sad at having to deny them. But at the same time, whenever I have been tempted to join, I think about my dear friends, loving people who have worked with kids for ages, and how they are not even given the option to participate in scouting with their sons because they are lesbians. I cannot in any way shape or form be party to that.

Should the BSA ever reverse its stance, and merely require that all adults pass a background check and operate with a safety policy, I will be first in line to allow my boys to participate. Until then, no. It goes against the very fabric of the morality we try to teach our children. Fun and sweet people does not, for us, take away the evil of blatant, unrepentant, unyielding discrimination based on sexual orientation.

I had thought that perhaps it would be good to join, and then "fight from within" as it were. But...I don't think that is the path I can ask my children to walk. Maybe when they are older to understand the consequences of fighting the leadership, they can join and seek change from within with my blessing. Until then, though, I feel ethically and morally bound to protect them.

I feel the same way. I just can't support an organization that promotes discrimination, even if it could be of great value to my kids in other ways. It's hard to explain to my youngest why he can't be a boy scout when his sister can be a girl scout, because he can't understand why being gay or not believing in god could be such a big deal to anyone that they would treat them differently because of it.

[Tigerchild]

Originally Posted by eclipse

I feel the same way. I just can't support an organization that promotes discrimination, even if it could be of great value to my kids in other ways. It's hard to explain to my youngest why he can't be a boy scout when his sister can be a girl scout, because he can't understand why being gay or not believing in god could be such a big deal to anyone that they would treat them differently because of it.

It's certainly been a great conversation starter in our home about how to put our religious values into practice and how it's not always fun and it doesn't always feel good to live them out. On the other hand, our minister is a woman married to a woman and raising children, the kids' best preschool friends had two moms, the first wedding they ever attended was for some good friends who are of the same gender, and they've grown up in a church that speaks openly about the experience of discrimination (whether it's against people who aren't heterosexual, homeless people, ect) so it is 'normal' to talk about it I guess.

It's also led to some rather uncomfortable discussions with friends, which I could have done without--but really nothing bad happened, certainly no lost friendships.

I respect that we all make different choices for our families--and you need to prioritize that. For some people, esp. if the local group isn't led by a Fred Phelpsian figure or anything, or if there's not a variety of other activities--I can see why they might join. But in our area we do have choices, and it's a really really high family priority just due to the nature of our chosen family. When I thought about it, I thought that long term I'd be more betraying what we've taught our kids to join, than the kids would get out of it at the moment.

When they are older, they can make their own choice.

[serenbat]

It's hard to explain to my youngest why he can't be a boy scout when his sister can be a girl scout, because he can't understand why being gay or not believing in god could be such a big deal to anyone that they would treat them differently because of it.

exactly!!

I did not have any trouble explaining GS--when I was in there were several gays and my DS knows who they are so it was easy to explain. If it was run like BS so many I know would never have been able to enjoy the many pluses of GS!!

[Literate]

I have gay friends and believe in equal rights, so I won't buy their popcorn, much less join their organization. In fact, it's all I can do not to say something rude when I see them selling. But that wouldn't be nice, so I just keep walking. The kids aren't at fault for the larger group's decisions, but money talks, so no popcorn for us.

[SubliminalDarkness]

My son also expressed interest in joining. But like others in this thread, we do not affiliate with or support organizations that discriminate, especially so openly.

We explained to DS1 that the group does not allow gays or atheists to be open about who they are, so we do not support them.

I told him I will explore other scouting groups for him.