The 2010 Scouting Displays

Last week I wrote about the displays I planned to place around town for Scouting Week. Three of the four were set up. I have not got around to the fourth one yet. I thought you may enjoy seeing pictures of the exhibits so here they are: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevejb68/sets/72157623361768222/

Let me know what you think about them.

Planning The Displays

February 8, 2010, marks the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America. This year is also the 30th anniversary of Melrose Boy Scout Troop 68, of which I am the scoutmaster. We usually set up displays around town during Scout week so I have some serious work to do in the next couple of days.

Four local businesses have given us permission to place exhibits about Scouting in their lobbies: Central Minnesota Credit Union, Freeport State Bank, US Bank, and the City of Melrose. Each display is designed to fit on an eight foot long table. The displays include literature, books, patches, memorabilia, and photographs.

During the last patrol leader council, we discussed themes for each of the four exhibits. We wanted a different one for each place so people would get to discover more about Scouting. Besides, I do not have enough stuff to do four displays of the same theme. This year's themes are:

High Adventure - This will highlight the BSA's high adventure bases but will concentrate on Philmont Scout Ranch. It will include mugs, plaques, posters, and photo albums.

National Jamboree - Since this is the year of the National Jamboree we added this as a theme for one location. I attended the 2001 Jamboree as the scoutmaster for Central Minnesota Troop 1417 so most of the display will feature items from that trip, including the uniform and tee shirt, photo albums, patch collection, and a new shadow box with various memorabilia.

Scouting History - I have collected quite a bit of Scouting memorabilia during the last thirty years and some of it will find its way into this display, including a 1932 Boy Scout handbook and fictional novels from 1911. Last night I put together a shadowbox featuring Boy Scout rank patches from the 1980's, the current patches, and the special 2010 anniversary rank patches. (See the picture above.)

Boy Scout Troop 68 - This will probably be the largest of the exhibits since I have collected the most on this subject. The hardest part will be deciding which of the thirty photo albums will be a part of the arrangement.

The displays will be set up this Friday and Saturday. Each of the businesses is allowing the exhibits to be in place for two weeks. I have been told that past displays have been popular, especially the photo albums. I will take photos of each of the displays and post them online for you to see. Check back to this blog for an update with the link.

Buttons vs Barney?

Wow. I just saw the scathing review of Around The Scouting Campfire that was left on iTunes. Plus, the reviewer left a one star (out of five) rating. It seems he does not like Buttons and finds him distracting. He also does not think the show contains much useful information.

I know the show does not contain much "hardcore" Boy Scouting information. It was never meant to be that type of show. Jerry and the others do a great job of creating those types of Scouting podcasts. I always thought of ATSC as more of an entertaining podcast with a Scouting theme. I began it because some people wanted an audio version of some of the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast videos, and more of Buttons.

I realize that ATSC is a small time homegrown podcast and will never be very popular. In fact, only two of the shows ever reached 1000 hits within the first month. (#4 and #5) I never expect to be on par with Chris' An Hour A Week podcast. I do not plan to produce a weekly podcast like he does.

My podcasts do not generate much feedback so I guess this hit closer to home than it probably should. But… Is there too much of Buttons in the podcast? Should I concentrate more on the serious Scouting subjects? Is it time to retire the podcast? I guess I am now looking for some ideas as to the direction I should go.

Commemorative Rifles by Henry

Mike, a former member of Troop 68, recently posted a quick note of our troop's forum about something I thought was awesome, but mothers may not appreciate. Boy Scouts like guns. Every summer camp has rifle and shotgun ranges. Many Boy Scouts hunt for game when they are old enough. It seems one company has decided to do something a little special for those Scouts during the 100th anniversary celebration. Henry Rifles has created a couple of special commemorative rifle to celebrate not only the Boy Scouts of America, but also Eagle Scouts.


The first rifle (quoted from the website)- The Boy Scouts of America celebrate their 100th Anniversary in 2010. To commemorate this occasion, Henry Repeating Arms announces the release of its Henry Golden Boy “Boy Scouts of America® Centennial Edition” licensed rifle. To mark this milestone, this special rifle features the Scouts Oath, Scouts Law, scrollwork and traditional Boy Scouts of America logo embellishing the receiver, as well as a 100 Years of Scouting logo and Centennial Edition gold filled etchings in the buttstock and forearm.
http://www.henry-guns.com/press_bsa100.cfm  


The second rifle (again from the website) - The gleaming nickel-plated receiver is adorned with spectacular engraving hand cut by Henry engraver Rob Bunting. The right side is highlighted by the image of a majestic bald eagle accented by distinctive American scrollwork and a banner proclaiming the proud sentiment of all Eagle Scouts: Once an Eagle, Always an Eagle. The left side bears the image of the famous Eagle Scout™ medal and banners reading Eagle Scout and Boy Scouts of America. The engraved images on both sides and the winged leaf border are selectively plated with brilliant 24-karat gold.
http://www.henryrepeating.com/h004es_eaglescout.cfm


Check the links for pictures of these guns. They are gorgeous. I wish I had a couple of thousand dollars laying around to buy them, but unfortunately, I am saving to replace my car this summer. Besides, I don't think I could ever bring myself to actually fire one. Have any of you purchased one of these rifles? 

MSPP #80: Questions For Buttons

It has been nearly a year since Buttons, the radical Boy Scout, has been featured in a new video. He has been pretty busy with school, Scouting, and his podcast, Around The Scouting Campfire. He recently began to work on his Cinematography merit badge and decided to make a video in which he answers several questions sent to him by some Wolf Cub Scouts from California. Even the sister of one of the Scouts gets to ask a question. The kids ask Buttons about the Scout Promise, leadership, den chiefs, grapes, and more.

Click here to DOWNLOAD this Podcast
Subscribe to Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast through iTunes.
or at the RSS feed: http://feeds2.feedburner.com/melrosescoutingproductions
Check out other great Scouting podcasts at PTC Media, including The Leader's Campfire and Around The Scouting Campfire.