I have a ton of questions, who should I ask?

We’ve all been new scouts and parents in Troop 48 at one point, so don’t worry about feeling a bit overwhelmed at first.  Many parents are involved in the Troop, so we have plenty of people to help get you acclimated.  It is hard to find a single parent in Troop 48 that is not involved in one way or another.

For new Scouts, they should first direct their questions toward older Scouts, especially their Patrol Leader.  As the next section on Troop Organization describes, Troop 48 is very sincere in its commitment to a Scout-Led troop. For a new parent, this is a big change from Cub Scouts. Coach your child on coming to Troop meetings with questions for the older scouts, as this will help them get used to working with the older Scouts.

For the adults, you may want to come to the meeting and talk to an adult to ask the question your Scout is asking to the older scout so you have some background when your child comes back to you with the answer they received at the meeting. You can direct questions to any of the adult leaders if your question pertains to a certain topic (e.g., a money question would be guided to our Troop Treasurer). For more general questions, each patrol has both an advisor (an Assistant Scoutmaster who works directly with the scouts) and a family who has been in the troop for a few years:

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Troop Organization

A Scout troop is structured on the principles of a “Scout Led Troop” and “The Patrol Method”, and Troop 48 is committed to having its scouts learn leadership, teamwork, cooperation, and achievement using these principles.  A Scout-elected or leader-appointed leadership position gives the scout an opportunity to develop self-confidence and a sense of responsibility to his Troop and to his Patrol.  

“Scout Led” means that a scout who is elected Senior Patrol Leader is in charge of the running of the Troop.  He appoints Scouts to the other leadership positions, and with the guidance from the adult leadership, these Scouts form a Patrol Leaders Council and plan and conduct the Troop activities for a six month period.

“The Patrol Method” is used by the Troop, as it is organized into multiple Patrols. Each Patrol elects its Patrol Leader for a six-month term, and the patrol works as a unit, to plan and provide assigned parts of troop meetings or special troop activities. A Patrol plans its campout meals and manages its troop responsibilities.

Newly elected and appointed Scout leaders attend Troop Leadership Training sessions that are planned and provided by Scout leaders and adult leaders. All prospective Scout leaders are provided a written description of their leader position prior to election or appointment, and they are expected to commit their best effort to the troop for their six-month term. Leaders will complete a Leader Position Review evaluation with an adult leader at the mid-point and conclusion of their leader position term.

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What do Scouts do, in Troop 48?

Troop 48 holds weekly Troop Meetings, on Wednesday evenings from 7:15 pm to 8:30 pm. The troop meets at Vaughan Hall (Tabernacle Road & Powhatan Trail) from mid-March through mid-October, and at Memorial Hall (100 Stokes Road, part of the Cathedral of the Woods, Protestant Community Church in Medford Lakes) from mid-October to mid-March.

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Troop Meetings have a variety of Scout-led, Scout-planned activities, including preparation for weekend camping, hiking trips, and other troop activities. Parents may drop off their Scouts and pick them up at the conclusion of the troop meeting but are encouraged to stay and participate in troop Support roles. Due to the limited activity space and extraneous distractions, siblings are not encouraged to attend troop meetings. However, sometimes, in order for a Scout to attend, parents must sometimes also bring a scout’s siblings to a troop meeting. Siblings should bring something to keep quietly busy, and not interrupt the troop’s activity.

Patrols might schedule and conduct Patrol Meetings separate from the Troop Meetings, with patrol-centered activities and campout planning. These Patrol Meetings are usually held at a patrol member’s home. Patrol Meetings are encouraged, and a necessity if a patrol seeks to earn the “National Honor Patrol Award”.

Troop 48 conducts either a weekend Campout or another outdoor activity, such as a Day Hike or Bike Ride, every month. Most Campouts are within a two-hour driving distance. Camping Scouts usually leave on Friday evenings and return by mid-day on Sunday.  Parents are encouraged to go camping and tent-camp with troop-furnished tents, or bring their own tent (but multi-room cabin tents are not encouraged). Parents can participate and mentor Scouts along with the troop’s uniformed adult leaders.

Troop 48 conducts and participates in community-related Service Projects throughout the year, such as the Medford Lakes Memorial Day Parade, the Burlington County Farm Fair, the Medford Historical Society’s Apple Festival, and Scouting for Food. The Troop also helps local Cub Scout Packs, with participation such as helping with Pinewood Derbies and pack campouts. 

Troop 48 attends a one-week long Summer Camp every summer. This summer the Troop will attend summer camp at Resica Falls Scout Reservation in East Stroudsburg, PA.  Attending summer camp is crucial to your child's advancement and development within scouting, so please mark these dates in your calendar. To provide a variety of summer camp experiences, the Troop tries to rotate summer camps. The Troop attended Forestburg Scout Reservation (Forestburg, NY) in 2017,  Ockanickon Scout Reservation (Pipersville PA) in 2016, Hawk Mountain Scout Reservation (Schuylkill Haven, PA) in 2015, and Horseshoe Scout Reservation (Rising Sun, MD) in 2014.

Older Scouts may also attend summer High Adventure Camps, as a part of a backpacking trek at Philmont Scout Ranch in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains near Cimarron, New Mexico (www.philmont.org); or Florida Keys sailing, sea fishing, snorkeling, and SCUBA diving with a scout crew at Florida Sea Base in Islamorada, Florida (www.bsaseabase.org); or with a canoeing trek at Northern Tier High Adventure Base in Ely, Minnesota (www.ntier.org); or rafting, climbing, and mountain biking at Summit Bechtel Reserve in West Virginia.  The Troop typically offers a different High Adventure trip every summer and plans these several years in advance so scouts can plan and also raise their own funds to pay for these trips.  During a Scout’s career, he/she will have a chance to do several high adventure trips if so chooses.

 In 2016, Troop 48 sent two crews (15 scouts and six adults) to Philmont, backpacking 110 miles.  In 2017, two crews went sailing in the Caribbean via the Florida Sea Base. The Philmont trip is considered by many Scouts to be the capstone of their Scouting experience. Over the past decade, about 90% of the Troop 48 Scouts who attended Philmont achieved the rank of Eagle.

There are also other World of Scouting opportunities, such as the National Jamboree, held every four years at Summit Bechtel Reserve as well as the World Jamboree, last held in West Virginia in 2019 and will be next held in 2023 in South Korea!

Because regular attendance is important for a scout's enjoyment in a total Scouting experience, attendance at all troop activities is encouraged, and there are minimum attendance standards for scouts in leader positions. Troop 48 has Scouts who are very involved in school sports, band and other extracurricular activities, so perfect attendance is not a realistic expectation. It is hoped that the scout and his parents keep perspective, and recognize that because Scouting values will likely have a significant, positive impact on a youth’s personal growth, they will provide a fair balance between Scouting and other activities when conflicts arise.

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Advancement      

Rank advancement in Scouts BSA and in Troop 48 depends on the scout's motivation and perseverance. Troop 48 actively encourages advancement through the seven ranks, from the Scout rank to the Eagle Scout rank. Advancement is usually a key to a scout's continued growth and interest in Scouting. Adult Leaders and youth leaders seek to provide immediate and positive recognition for a scout’s advancement efforts.  The Ranks in Scouts BSA are Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star, Life, and Eagle.

Advancement from Scout to First Class ranks is earned by learning from others and from reading the Scout Handbook, and then demonstrating a “scout skill” to an older Troop 48 scout who’s at a rank of Star or higher. These scout skills build the foundation of knowledge, and give a scout the confidence to participate in camping trips, service projects and other fun troop activities.

New scouts should obtain their Scout Handbook, review and become familiar with the Scout Rank requirements; and they should review “How to Protect Your Children from Child Abuse: A Parent’s Guide” with their Parent (who signs off this Scout Rank requirement upon completion). New scouts will meet with the Scoutmaster during some of their first troop meetings, and will work on their Scout Rank requirements. As they become comfortable in the troop and working with the older scouts, young scouts will seek out older scouts at troop meetings or campouts, for advancement review. After earning the Scout Rank, young scouts may work on any Tenderfoot, Second Class or First Class requirement in any order. The ranks are earned in sequence, and at a scout’s own pace. Troop 48 conducts periodic advancement reviews, several times a year during troop meetings, for scouts to assess their own progress and personal advancement goals.

 Work towards Star, Life and Eagle ranks includes earning Merit Badges, by studying and completing prerequisite requirements, and then demonstrating proficiency to an adult merit badge counselor who’s either from the Troop; or from the Garden State Council’s list of council-approved merit badge counselors; or a staff counselor at Summer Camp. Troop 48 adult leaders may introduce merit badges during troop meetings several times a year, after which the interested scouts may follow up and complete the merit badge at their own initiative.

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Scouting Expenses

Troop 48 re-charters annually during November and pays dues to Garden State Council.  These dues are $95 for youth and $45 for adults, per year. These dues cover the costs for a "Class B" Troop 48 t-shirt, troop equipment, scout advancement awards, National BSA registration, troop insurance, training, Boys Life magazine, etc.  New scouts will also pay these dues when they join the troop. 

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Monthly Campouts generally cost about $30 (for patrol food, transportation, and campsite or activity costs), and sometimes more, depending on the campout activity and travel distance. Some troop activities like Day Hikes are ‘No Cost’ activities.

Troop 48 conducts limited troop-dedicated fundraising activities during the year that help fund our troop expenses (for example: Troop equipment like Tents, Patrol Boxes and cooking equipment).

Some scouts can pay for almost all of their scouting expenses and personal scouting equipment, due to their active involvement with the Garden State Council’s Popcorn Sale, and the Troop’s annual Pancake Breakfast. The troop receives no income from the Popcorn Sale--all net profit goes to the selling scout’s “Scout Account”. And after Pancake Breakfast event expenses, which we seek to minimize with donated goods from troop-solicited area merchants, almost all of a scout’s pre-event ticket sales from the Pancake Breakfast is credited to the Scout’s individual Scout Account. The Scout Account is managed by the troop’s Treasurer (a vital volunteer task provided by a scout’s parent). The scout can choose where to spend his accrued funds, such as on personal scout equipment, or towards his cost to attend any scouting activity.

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