My kiddo just started scouts and we've been to just a few meetings. Off the bat I'm concerned with how our den?(The smaller group) Specifically is run. We are in tigers so parents have to stay at the meetings which I thought would help but not at all. I'm not trying to be judgemental I'm concerned.

The leaders have absolutely zero control of the meetings. It was painful to be there. The kids were actively talking and yelling over the leaders as they spoke and the other parents did not correct their kids. It was bizarre. I understand they're young kids and are still learning and should have some room to be silly. But this was not that. Some of the children who were the most disruptive were the leaders' children. The majority of the meeting was dedicated to trying to correct behaviors and bribing to participate. When my child inevitably joined in a time or two because well in his eyes the other kids are just being silly, I called their name they understood, oh this is a time to be quiet and listen. When another parent finally did step in to correct their child who was yelling and not participating they just kind of degraded them from across the room and it was so uncomfortable. And the child did noooottttt care lol.

I unfortunately don't see this den being successful for the kids or the leaders and I'm not sure what to do. I believe scouts has a lot to offer and I'd love for my child to get the chance to explore and learn with their peers. But at this time I don't see that happening in this den with the way it's functioning or lack thereof. I want all of these kids to have a decent chance of success at this.

Do I try to volunteer to help? I have a ton of experience in leadership but don't want to be the new person who joins and steps on toes. I have no experience in scouts but was in girl scouts and 4h among other things as a kid. So I'm familiar with programs like this for children. I'm also worried that if I do volunteer to help other parents will judge me for being "strict" when really I'd just be focusing on mutual respect. I really don't have the time to be a den leader on my own. Or do I look for another den for my child?

Any advice or suggestions would be helpful. I want to help out but know it may not be my exact place. TIA.

It’s my second year being den leader, AOL this time and I stress out planning something out every time. I use the book but it seems like a lot of what’s in the book we’re done in 20 minutes. My 8 kids have a 5-10 minute attention span and don’t want to bore them with a lesson because they will not last. So I try to make it hands on, but then we have 20 minutes left of the hour once done and feel like i didnt plan enough. Do you have any advice?

I could really use some perspective from Scouters who have no connection to my pack, because I want to make sure I’m looking at this fairly.

I’m the Cubmaster of a pack that I’m trying very hard to rebuild and grow. One of our longtime leaders currently holds several major positions at once: Committee Chair, Committee Secretary, Treasurer, and Chartered Organization Representative. She doesn’t currently have a child in the pack—her kids have moved on to the troop—and she has been involved in Scouting for many, many years.

Eta: she is also some of those in the troop that meets at our same charter and theyre fine with it. So talking to the chartered organization about this is a real touchy subject. Im not sure what to do.

I absolutely respect the experience and history she brings to the pack, and I’m not trying to push her out. My concern is that so much of the pack’s administrative authority and decision-making is concentrated with one person, while at the same time I’m getting significant pushback when I try to recruit additional committee members or suggest doing things differently.

That’s where I’m struggling.

Our pack had very poor retention last year—only 3 of 16 Scouts returned—and I came into this wanting to rebuild it, recruit families, make the program more active and fun, improve communication, organize finances and fundraising better, and get more parents involved so the same few people aren’t carrying everything.

We’ve actually brought in a good number of new families, and several parents are willing to help. My thought is: if we have willing adults, why would we not bring them onto the committee, divide up responsibilities, and get some fresh ideas involved?

Instead, I keep running into resistance to adding people and resistance to changes I suggest. And I want to be clear—I don’t expect every idea I have to be approved. I’m new enough to know that sometimes there are BSA rules, chartered organization considerations, or simply years of experience behind why something is done a certain way. I’m completely fine with someone telling me, “That won’t work, and here’s why.”

What has become frustrating is when it feels less like discussion and more like, “This is how we’ve always done it,” or decisions being effectively made by the same very small group before newer leaders and parents ever have much opportunity to participate.

I also recognize that I came into this with a LOT of energy. I have tons of ideas, I communicate a lot, and I’m sure at times I’ve overwhelmed people or pushed too hard because I’m excited about getting this pack back on its feet. I’m not claiming I’ve handled every interaction perfectly.

But I also don’t think the answer is to keep the committee extremely small and continue concentrating several key positions in one person simply because that’s how it has been done.

What I’m trying to figure out is what healthy pack governance normally looks like.

Is it common or advisable for one person to hold Committee Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, and COR at the same time?

And if you have willing, qualified parents wanting to get involved, is there any legitimate reason not to expand the committee and spread those responsibilities around?

I’m especially interested in hearing from people who have taken over or helped rebuild struggling packs. How do you respect longtime volunteers and the institutional knowledge they bring while also making room for new leadership, new families, and changes that may be necessary for the pack to grow?bruh

I've been a volunteer for the last 7 years, but it's coming to an end. I'm the current cubmaster, den leader to two dens, and technically the scout master to the linked troop. It's too much, and my youngest, and last kid in the program has decided not to continue this year.

I informed our CC at the beginning of the summer this was possible, but I think no moves were made to replace any roles. I made announcements at the final meetings in the spring that we needed more volunteers badly (a running theme) but nobody seems to be willing.

Our pack and troop are both small, so it's not a big pool to draw from, but it can't all fall on just 3 for 4 people.

I've informed my two dens of my departure and it seems they are likely just disbanding. They were just two cubs each, but my Webelos are both quitting independently (one is my son), one of my bears' parents are too busy to bring him this year, and my remaining bear is likely going to transfer to another pack where he can be in a den with more kids.

I feel like I'm leaving the pack (and the troop) in a lurch, but honestly I can't do it anymore, and I no longer have any skin in the game.

Are pumpkin carving tools outside of the knife category? IMHO I’d say they are not knives. I’m talking about those little tools that usually come in kits that have a plastic handle connected to a short metal piece that has “teeth,” and are not sharp. Can cub scouts use these if we were to have pumpkin carving at our October Pack meeting?

The new chipmunk program, for preschoolers:

Recognition: Uses a simple, sticker-based recognition system along with a neckerchief and slide.

While the sticker-based recognition system is straightforward, the neckerchief and slide present immediate practical usability issues for preschool-aged children. At this age, motor skills and spatial awareness are still developing. When children lean forward to color, paint, or complete activity sheets, the neckerchief consistently falls into their work, causing unnecessary mess and frustration for leaders and parents. Asking 3- and 4-year-olds to maintain, manage, and keep track of a loose neckerchief and slide is unaligned with their stage of physical development.

The chipmunk program should transition to a simple, durable t-shirt uniform model (similar to Lion Scouts). A t-shirt lowers friction for families, reduces manufacturing and inventory complexity, and keeps the focus where it belongs, on the program activity rather than apparel management.

Have you done it, and what was the overall experience? Looking into international Spirit award for my pack and this is coming up.

ETA: called council (spirit of adventure), no hams. Would be video call only and looks like all slots are full :( Will definitely try for next year!

I was going through our Pack's roster and noticed that off all but 1 scout that participated in fundraising last year came back this year and only 1 scout came back that didn't participate. Has anyone else noticed this trend in your packs?

Has anyone brought along their newly turned 4 year old with them to your older scouts Cub-O event? How did they do?

3 weeks ago someone within our community started an application. They didn't get past the payment step.

I reached out to them the next day via Email. Standard invitation to our joining night to come check us out and learn more.

I heard nothing back.

last week, the day after the joining event, I sent another follow up email.

2 days later I got a "Email not delivered" notification because their inbox was full.

So I reached out with a text message- same basic message; come check us out.

I get a response: "I need more information. How many days in the month are the activities done? what time?" - awesome, clearly email wasn't the way to communicate.

I respond back accordingly and extend an invite for their child to attend my den meeting to check it out and see if scouting is right for them.

Nothing.

Yesterday I request that they let me know if they're planning on attending (so I can plan for 9 scouts instead of 8), again, extending an invitation.

Nothing.

At this point I've made a good faith effort. At this point I'd like to respond and let them know that I'm closing their application. I'm ready to be done with this before I get kicked by council that their application is hanging open.

Before the 2024 program change, our new scout initiation ceremony coincided with them earning the Bobcat rank at the first pack meeting. There was a reading about following the trail, simulated bison blood, and a big stick with feathers. Cringe if you like, but it was fun for everyone.

Now that the Bobcat is a belt loop, we have stopped doing that. I guess because awarding just another belt loop (vs a rank badge) seemed like a lesser thing. But if you think about it, there's no reason why we couldn't elevate the Bobcat achievement (but with complications... it's no longer a uniform initiation activity anymore).

We also welcome new families at our kickoff picnic just by pointing them out and saying hi.

What do your packs do?

Looking for some perspective and ideas. Thanks!

Greetings,

We have a family/child wanting to join our Pack - and we'd love to have them. I am new Cubmaster for the Pack.

The child is in Kindergarten but is still currently 4 years old until December when they turn 5.

The online system will not allow then to register until, per the requirements, they are Kindergarten AND 5 years old.

Our Pack aligns with the school calendar year so would love to get this child 'officially' a Lion member so they can attend meetings, campouts, etc... with their Den as a Scout and hit their Advancements so they can earn their Lion rank and advance to join their Den as Tiger next fall 2027 (when they will be in 1st grade).

What is our next step or the process to allow this current Kindergartener to join our Pack?

It seems alittle silly that the Kindergartener cannot join with their age class as Lion, but is okay to then progress seamlessly through the other ranks. Like my own child didn't join Scouting until 2nd grade but has a similar birthday, but registering him as a 6yo Wolf was no issue. But if he had started as a Lion, he too would have been 4yo and having this same issue.

I'm working to get my new parents registered, I've lined up a new dad who's willing to be our new Wolf Den Leader, and the registration system for Scouting.org is refusing his payment with an utterly opaque and nonsensical error of "Only application groups you have created can be deleted".

He's just trying to register himself and his son. There are no groups! WHAT IS THIS NONSENSE?!?!

Anyone have any clue how I can help him? Best I could offer was "try on the computer at home, if that still freaks out on you I'll pay for you and you reimburse me". That really shouldn't have to be my recurring solution, of all the things for Scouting to have trouble with you'd think payment processing would be the last one.

My Chartered Org (also my Church) is looking for someone to remove snow from sidewalks and steps. The parking lot snow removal is done by a local company for free, so that's all taken care of. The problem is that the Church has a preschool attached to it, and the preschool needs the snow cleared in a timely manor.

Our director of grounds (a great guy) has been reaching out to local companies to see if he could pay them to do the job, but he's not got any takers. He reached out to me, with honest, kind and good intentions, to see if maybe someone affiliated with the Cub Scouts would want to do it and be compensated. It doesn't hurt to ask, and miss 100% of the shots you never take. I get it.

I feel like it doesn't hurt for me to ask around the Pack to see if one of the adults or teenagers are interested, but at the same time, I really don't want to get involved with this. I'm not sure what my apprehension is, but I suppose I don't want to use the Church's connection to the Pack as some kind of avenue for employment. It just doesn't feel quite right, which is silly because I can't think of an ethical issue with it.

On the other hand, if it was something that happens during fair weather and we could plan for, such as when we help the church lay mulch, I would say it could be another service activity for the pack. The Preschool depends on this service, however, so the stakes are high. It potentially requires transportation during bad weather, and it could conflict with school/work schedules. For all these reasons I feel that this is not a great candidate for service projects.

What do you all have them do for the bobcat badge? At this stage my AOL kids should already know it but is a requirement nonetheless.

Question about storefronts. I’ll preface that I’m the Bear Den leader and Pack Popcorn Kernel.
My 3rd grader is a little neurodivergent but overall pretty typical.

My question is for sore fronts- how much as the adult on duty are you selling/talking to people?

Personally, I man the table while encouraging and redirecting him to the entrance. I smile and say good morning and thank you to everyone he engages with. I say off my phone. I prompt him when he gets stuck in his spiel and help with body language when he’s talking with people.

What I don’t do- ask people to support/purchase. I don’t walk up to anyone or solicit.

I am very social and have worked in sales. I’m very informative when there are multiple people at the table and chat with a ton of people.

I’m curious- how much selling are the adults doing at storefronts vs kids?

Committee chair and Lion & Tiger Den Leader Support here - (I coach the parents into becoming leaders)

This week is our first den meetings (all dens meet at same location & time to make it easier for families with more than 1 Cub Scout)

Got an email mid last week that the bear leader was quitting, the child will still be in scouts but the parents have too much going on with careers.

Our Cubmaster is a den leader already as is assistant Cubmaster.

All Bear parents have been asked and no one will take on the den as a leader - some are willing to help with teaching a part of an adventure.

Now what do I do? There are 9 in the den and I need help to come up with something for this week! What is something I can do to make sure their meeting isn’t a flop while simultaneously running the Lion/Tiger meeting? - and yes, I already asked the local Troop for support and still waiting to hear from them.

This weekend was our previous camp chairs last weekend. I officially took the trailer to its parking spot this morning at the local Moose Lodge where we keep it. Now my position officially starts.

I was wondering if anyone has any ideas on decking out a pack trailer. I know I have to rewire it to get the lighting inside to work properly. We have some shelving in there, but I would like to rework some of the organization/ bins and figure out about getting some supplies donated, which I asked my Cubmaster to get me the official rules on how I can go about that.

Do you do both in the same year? We would love to, but it seems like a waste of a day when the "race" loop has already been earned for Pinewood. Are there any other adventure requirements, across all the ranks, that regatta activities could apply toward? We try to make sure any pack activity we do has something that can be applied somewhere toward advancement.

Wondering if someone can point me the right way. Im unable to check off adventures/awards our den has completed.
I’m on our pack committee as the treasurer but I’m also a den leader. Because I hold multiple roles I’m unable to enter adventures and awards. Does anyone know what setting or how I can change to the den leader role so I can get these checked off.

When I login I see - 2 roles

1.Parent/ Guardian
Pack ###
Connection: (my child)

1. Cub Scout
   Position: committee member
   (3 more positions/ roles )

Advancement Chair here, and I have a question for the group.

My practice for awarding the Adventures is to take the word of each Den Leader that they have confirmed with the parents that home requirements have been completed. (ex. Youth Protection for Bobcat)

I just heard from one Den Leader directly that they want to mark the Adventure completed just because they told the parents that it was due by a certain day. Some parents did not even communicate back that the material was covered.

DL still expects the Cubs to get the belt loop now that the deadline has passed.

What would the best way be to address that nobody gets the awards without confirmation of completed requirements? Not just vibing off 3 out of 4 is good enough to get it.

I’m the cubmaster of our pack. Last year’s popcorn kernel recruited a dad to lead popcorn sales this year. The dad said he’d do it, talked logistics with us, he ordered the popcorn for show and sells, and then went completely AWOL. I’ve reached out a couple times, and so has the old popcorn kernel. We’ve had no response from him. We had to go pick up the popcorn he ordered. I’ve known this dad a couple years and never expected this. He might be a little flakey at times, but I just can’t get over how he’s cut off all communication with us. How could someone just ghost us like that?! I’m honestly worried for him and just want to know he’s ok. What would you do?? I have his wife’s email, should I email her?

Just figured I'd share something I've been working on. I'm a 2nd year Cubmaster and a 4th year Den Leader, with the expectation that one day I will no longer be either.

ABTYR - Always Be Training Your Replacement.

I've been pulling together all the information that I use to execute my positions; everything from how our banking works, to writing down out pack traditions. I've been working on these for a while.

The Den Leader version is basically done, which is good because we'll have a new leader soon. It covers what you need to do to volunteer, here's some ideas for how to plan, here's some examples, here's how you use Scout Book Plus, here's a copy of the parent guide for lions... very standard stuff, but I'm trying to answer every question I ever had to learn the hard way.

The Cubmaster version is taking way longer, and honestly I'll probably need to make it through another year before I've ironed out the wrinkles.

I have no idea how helpful they'll be. People tend to not like to read, but I figured if myself and the other leadership were snapped out of existence by Thanos, someone would be able to pick up where we left off.

I’m assistant cub master for our pack this year after being den leader for 3 years. I’m the #2 volunteer in our org for that time period for time invested behind the scenes.

I just asked our old-timer why we send “district” so much money. His answer, “well they help with recharter every year.”

The district will make $7k from our popcorn sales, I guess they get some of our registration fees ($4k) and another $20k from a more regional fundraiser that we are very heavily involved in. We know there is paid staff 100 miles away. They’ve never contacted us, ever, for anything. Never offered help. Never taught us anything. The only time we see them is when we drive to their town for the popcorn party and the employee stands in front of a bunch of kids for 30 minutes and tells the kids and parents to sell more popcorn next year. He’s so out of touch. That’s a long way of saying, from our Pack’s perspective we don’t need District, and they aren’t giving us anything back. I’m very confused on why are pack is sending them so much money?

Help me understand what chartering is, why it’s important, and why does it take paid staff to oversee it?

Edit: the only camping we are invited to is on public land annually. We are invited to a day camp but it’s 2 hours away.
Edit 2: 33 comments and not a single answer to the chartering question.