Troop 6
Regulations and Policies
Troop
6 is organized and administered by a group of volunteer adults, most of them
parents of boys in the troop, who are approved by the chartering organization
(sponsor). Our chartering organization is Zion Episcopal Church. This
institution is granted a charter annually by the Boy Scouts of America, and
they agree to provide an adequate meeting place, to help in the selection of
the adult leaders who serve as Scoutmaster and Assistant Scoutmasters, and to
adhere to the policies and program of Scouting.
Troop
meetings are planned and conducted by the Patrol Leaders Council (PLC) which is
made up of the elected boy leaders—Senior Patrol Leader (SPL), Assistant Senior
Patrol Leaders (
Troop
meetings take place every Thursday evening at
The
PLC meets on the third Thursday of the month at
Within
the troop, your son will be assigned to a patrol—a group of 6 to 10 boys. His
patrol will be his team for games and contests, his closest buddies in camp,
and his teachers as he works on advancement. Each patrol will meet weekly. A
typical meeting will have the patrol take part in a game, work on Scouting
skills, work on advancement requirements, or plan a future event.
At
troop meetings and by working on his own, your son will have a chance to earn
many merit badges, activity patches, and special awards. He will get his Boy
Scout Badge as soon as he has his first talk with the Scoutmaster. After that,
he will work on skills for advancement through Tenderfoot, Second Class, and
First Class Rank. Our goal is to have each new Scout who joins the troop
achieve the rank of First Class within one year of joining. As he advances past
First Class, he will have to meet more difficult requirements for the Star and
Life Scout ranks, which include earning Merit Badges. Finally, he may continue
up the lofty trail and earn the Eagle Scout award.
Encourage
your son to take his share of the responsibility by taking an active part in
all Patrol/Troop meetings and activities. When the troop conducts an activity,
it is hopefully going to not only stimulate your son’s interest in the program,
but also help to make him more self-reliant. Again, encourage him to
participate, but let him prepare for the activities on his own as much as
possible. He may make some mistakes or forget something, but let him do it;
that’s part of the learning experience in Scouting.
As time goes by, and your son gains experience, he may be selected
to serve as a patrol or troop leader. These leadership roles recognize
him for his achievements in the rank he has earned and the potential he has
demonstrated to the adult leaders. We hope each boy will get the opportunity to
serve in the leadership roles, as it will place him on equal par with other
boys in making the troop work.
Naturally,
you will want your son to get the most out of the Scouting program, so you will
have to keep the dates of troop activities on your calendar as a reminder,
encourage him as he progresses in the advancement program and, perhaps, help
him master the skills of Scouting. But his success in Scouting depends in part
on the success of our troop--if the troop has a strong and active program, your
son will have a much better chance to make the most of his experience as a
Scout. You can help keep the troop strong!
How
you support the troop depends on your talents and available time. If you become
a registered member of the BSA, you may choose to serve on the Troop Committee
or as an Assistant Scoutmaster. The Troop Committee functions as a sort of
board of directors for the Troop. Even if you choose not to become a Committee
Member, we hope that you take the time to come to these meetings and find out
what the troop is doing and what help may be needed to accomplish our program
for the boys. Additionally, you will be called upon to help with
transportation, assist in maintaining troop equipment or serving as a merit
badge counselor in a hobby or career field with which you are familiar.
Scouting
is a family organization and you will be invited to special troop activities,
such as our troop banquets or to a quarterly Court of Honor at which the Scouts
are recognized for their achievements and advancement. Your participation in
these activities and your offers of help when the troop is in need will show
your son that you support him and want him to have the best experiences
possible in Scouting.
As a
concerned and interested parent, the role you play will be vital in determining
just how much effect these Scouting experiences will have on your son’s
development. We hope that through your interest and encouragement, your son
will be one of those Scouts whose efforts lead him along the Trail of the
Eagle.
Definition of an ‘Active’ Scout
All
Scouts should want to, and be, ACTIVE in their unit. Scouts will not, however,
be denied membership based solely upon their level of activity but may or may
not be considered ACTIVE.
The
first requirement for advancement to the rank of Star, Life, and Eagle Scout
states: “Be active in your Troop and Patrol for at least 4 months/6 months/6months
as a First Class/Star/Life Scout.”
To
establish guidelines for Troop 6 which define ACTIVE for the purposes of
advancement in rank and participation in special events (ski trip, high
adventure, etc.), the following shall apply:
·
An ACTIVE Scout
attends no less than 51% of the scheduled Troop meetings, consistently.
·
An ACTIVE Scout
attends no less than 51% of the scheduled Patrol meetings, consistently.
·
An ACTIVE Scout
participates in no less than 51% of the Troop’s scheduled activities.
·
An ACTIVE Scout
participates in no less than 51% of the Troop’s scheduled Good Turns.
·
An ACTIVE Scout
participates in no less than 51% of the Troop’s fundraisers.
Troop 6
enjoys presenting our scouts with patches and other awards for active
participation.
All
activities will have an associated participation patch that will be awarded to
all those who attend. These patches may
be worn as temporary insignia on the right pocket or on a patch vest or may be
sewn to a patch blanket for display at Troop Courts of Honor.
The BSA
attendance award will be presented at the end of each scout year (typically at
the June Court of Honor) to all those scouts who meet the following
requirements:
·
Meets the
definition of ‘active’ scout for all activities, Good Turns, and fundraisers,
·
Misses a maximum
of three (3) troop/patrol meetings within the scout year (Sept-June).
Troop 6
members are required to pay meeting dues of $1.00 per week. These funds are placed in the scout’s account
for use in: re-charter fees and basic
activity fees.
Additionally,
Troop 6 will distribute 80% of all fundraising profits to the scout’s accounts
among the scouts who participated in that fundraising activity. The troop will keep 20% for use on patches,
and other program materials throughout the year.
This
additional money in the scout’s accounts will be used for summer camp and other
activity fees.
Food costs
for camping trips will be taken equally from the scout accounts of those
who are participating.
Scouts who
desire to participate in an activity or camping event but do not have
sufficient funds in their scout account will be provided an opportunity to pay
the balance in advance of the activity.
Parents may
request a copy of their scout’s account statement at any time. Additionally, they will be distributed during
the first quarter of every year.
Our
troop is a uniformed troop. It is not the purpose of the Scout uniform to hide
the differences between boys or to make them feel the same. Rather, the uniform
is there so that whenever a Scout sees another Scout in uniform, he knows that
he is like that person because both have committed themselves to the principles
of the Scout Oath and the Scout Law.
Each
Scout is expected to wear his uniform to all meetings unless otherwise
instructed. Our uniform consists of the Scout shirt (short sleeve is
suggested), neckerchief, belt, and Scout hat. If Scout shorts are worn, then
either the long or short Scout socks may be used. The neckerchief your son will
wear is a special one for our troop. All new Scouts receive the neckerchief
upon induction into Troop 6. If it is lost, a replacement may be purchased
through the Scoutmaster.
The
goal of the troop is to have 100% of our Scouts and leaders in uniform at all
troop and patrol activities. Parent cooperation is once again critical to
assure that a clean uniform is ready when needed. Patches and other items
should be worn correctly. The Scout Handbook and a notebook are part of the uniform
for all regular meetings and should, likewise, be brought unless otherwise
noted.
The
only exception to the ‘official’ uniform is that of the Official Scout pants.
Troop members may substitute non-regulation pants, but they must be a dark,
solid-color pair of pants.
Personal Equipment Requirements
As
your son gets into Scouting activities, he will have
some additional equipment needs. An active troop such as ours will do at least
6 days and nights of camping each year in addition to attending Scout camp in
the summer. Your son will eventually need a good backpack with a hip belt, good
hiking shoes, poncho, personal cooking kit, and sleeping bag. Use your own
judgment when you buy, but check first with the adult leaders. We have a good
idea of what the Scouts use and what is nice to have. One thing to keep in mind
is that buying the less expensive item of equipment is not always the wisest.
The boys can be very rough on gear even during normal use and you may find
yourself replacing things more often.
Troop
6 has purchased and/or had donated several pieces of equipment for the troop,
including enough tents, patrol cooking gear, and lanterns to outfit several
patrols. The money used to purchase these items comes from our annual popcorn
and other fundraisers that the troop sponsors. We have other fund-raising
events throughout the year where your assistance would be very welcome.
Any
time the troop or patrol goes on any activity, a permission slip will come home
with each Scout 1-2 weeks before the event. Please remember that your son
cannot go on the activity unless he has a permission slip signed by you. This
is a policy of the Boy Scouts of America and there will be no
exceptions.
We
require Scouts to make prior commitments for participation in any activity. In case
there is a need to cancel, a Scout may cancel by simply informing his Patrol
Leader, the Scoutmaster, or the Senior Patrol Leader. However, some activities
require that fees be paid or food be bought in advance. If a Scout cancels too
late for recovery of the fees, he will forfeit the fees.
There
must always be two-deep adult leadership at all Scouting
activities. Again, this is a BSA policy.
There
are more than 120 subjects as varied as First Aid, Stamp Collecting, Leather
Crafts, Swimming, Emergency Preparedness, Canoeing, Lifesaving, Environmental
Science, and Personal Fitness in the merit badge field. Your son will work on
merit badges as he progresses in rank under the guidance of a Merit Badge
counselor. Our adult leaders will guide your son in the selection of subjects
and how to make appointments with counselors. The rest is up to your son. You
can help him by looking over the requirements, asking questions, and
encouraging him to work. Remind him to have the Scoutmaster sign a blue Merit
Badge card before he begins to work on a badge. There are a total of 121
merit badges.
A Scout is required to earn 21 merit badges in order to attain the rank of Eagle Scout. The total of 21 must include the following 12 “Eagle Required” merit badges:
Camping
Citizenship in the Community
Citizenship in the Nation
Citizenship in the World
Communications
Emergency Preparedness or Lifesaving*
Environmental Science
Family Life
First Aid
Personal Management
Personal Fitness
Swimming or Cycling or Hiking*
*A Scout must choose
only one of these MB. If he has earned more than one
of the badges listed, only one counts as “Eagle Required”
and the other is applied towards the total of 21
See
your son’s Scout Handbook for details of the merit badges and rank
requirements. An excellent source of information may be found on our website at
www.sac-troop6.org Please review the attached Troop Survey to
let us know what your interests are and for what merit badges you can serve as
a counselor. We are always in need of merit badge counselors.
Our
troop is sponsored by a religious organization. We expect each boy to do his
duty to God as stated in the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Furthermore, we respect
his right to worship God in the manner of his choice.
As a
Scout, your son can work for the particular religious award of your faith. More
information is available in the Scout Handbook or from the Troop Chairman or
Scoutmaster.
Part
of the total Scouting experience is for the boys to have an opportunity to
attend summer camp. This experience is the highlight of the year and gives each
Scout and his patrol a chance to come together to meet the challenge of the
camp and to put into practice those Scouting skills they have learned during
the year. Each year, Troop 6 attends one of several different Scout camps,
either in our own council or outside of council. Our goal is to always visit
different camps each year. For your son to have a real opportunity to be part
of Scouting, summer camp is a must!
Crossing
over from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts is very exciting for your son. To make this
transition complete, we present the new Scout with the basic items he needs to
get started on the right foot. We ask that each parent provide the troop with a
check for $35.00 to cover the costs of the following items:
·
Scout Hat
·
Neckerchief and slide
·
Shoulder Loops
·
Troop Number Patch
·
Scout Handbook
These
items will be presented to your son when he crosses over during the bridging
ceremony at his last Pack meeting. Your checks will be needed three weeks
before the crossing ceremony to give us enough time to purchase everything
needed.
Troop
6 is the newest troop in the Charles Town area.
We work hard to produce the best possible program available so that your
sons can enjoy the scouting experience. Our troop and its members invite you to
become one of us and join the best Scout troop in the Council!!!