Popcorn Sales Troubleshooting
In the next couple days, we will post an article on foreseeable problems in popcorn sales. I do not have the full information available at this moment. Watch this website for the article. It will be posted as soon as I get the information. I apologize for the tease now, but I thought you would want to know.
One example that I have heard is that the new popcorn app will add an order for popcorn to be delivered later if the scout does not mark the popcorn sale as already fulfilled. This will require the Popcorn Kernel to need to verify all future deliveries are correct before submitting the final order to avoid excessive fulfillment.
Camporee Planning
As we all know the Fall Camporee is fast approaching Friday, October 7, 2016 to Sunday, October 9, 2016.
We will have a planning meeting this Sunday, September 18, 2016 at 6:00 pm at St Luke’s United Methodist Church, 100 West 86th, Room N103-104, Indianapolis, IN 46260. Enter by Entry #7, turn left down the first hallway, third door on left. (If Entry #7 is locked, go to Entry #6, and turn left in corridor, then right down last hallway).
This will be our final planning meeting for the Camporee. All units should send a representative and have their event planned with rules and scoring. Remember ideas should have already been submitted to Fall Camporee Chair Brian Crow via email. Priority will go to units having the earliest date stamp, for any duplicated ideas.
Our Winter Camporee is scheduled for January 20-22, 2017. (We will have a new president at noon that Friday. I will let you determine whether that is good or bad.)
Our Spring Camporee is scheduled for April 21-23, 2017 at Ransburg Scout Reservation. There will be a strong emphasis on shooting sports. We will have NRA Instructors onsite to manage rifles and pistol shooting. We will plan on offering archery. Our goal is to have more opportunities to aim at targets that scouts get at summer camp.
These upcoming camporees may be discussed at the Camporee Planning Meeting, but the emphasis will be on the Fall Camporee.
More Tiger Cub Recruitment Chances
This year’s Tiger Cub class is way down in Pike and Washington Townships. (We are steady so far in Zionsville.)
Our new Field Services Director Nate Young has been encouraging the professional staff to recommend “Water Pod Parties.”
This idea consists of having enrolled Tiger Cubs inviting their best friends, who have not joined Cub Scouts yet, to a water rocket launch. The launch would be held as part of a Gathering Time event at the next Tiger Cub Den meeting. The friends would be asked to come for the rocket launch, then stay for the Tiger Cub Den meeting as guests.
The idea is to get the boys engaged in Cub Scouting before making the formal “Ask” to join. Kick the tires before buying.
If you are interested, please contact Con Sullivan, our District Executive, for more information.
NOTE: This can work for other dens, too, such as Lions, but our primary focus is on Tigers right now.
September 2016 Roundtable Resources
The following items and webpages are scheduled to be discussed at the September 2016 Roundtable.
- Budget and planning resources (spreadsheets on pages):
- Packs: http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/CubScouts/Leaders/PackCommitteeResources.aspx.
- Troops: http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/BoyScouts/Planning.aspx
REMINDER: September Roundtable
Reminder that September Roundtable will be at Luke’s Lodge on the campus of St Lukes United Methodist Church, 100 W 86th St, Indianapolis, IN 46260. The meeting begins at 6:30 pm tomorrow Thursday, September 8, 2016.
The topic will be “Popcorn and Financial Management.”
Every unit should make sure to have a member of the unit committee present.
OA/Firecrafter Cook Out at Marrott Park
Arrowmen
Cub Scout Training Continues
This week North Star is focused on Cub Scout Leader Training.
Last night we held a class for Den Leader Training.
Tonight, Wednesday, we will hold another Den Leader Training at Second Presbyterian Church, 7700 N Meridian St, Room 401, Indianapolis, IN 46260. 7:00 pm. We will also hold a Cubmaster Specific and Pack Traininer/Committee Challenge (Pack Trainers are members of the committee, so their training is now committee training) will be held in an adjacent room.
Tomorrow, Thursday, and Friday, we will hold the same trainings at 7:00 pm but at the Scout Center.
You can RSVP on the District Website for training. If you do not RSVP, show up anyway! (RSVPs just help us have peace of mind that we have the right number of chairs.)
YPT Report
As of this morning, North Star District has 53 scouters whose YPT is expired or never taken. We have 187 scouters whose YPT expires before the end of November.
We are not making very good progress in making sure this is done before October 1, 2016.
Please call your Commissioner and find out how to present a YPT training at your meeting.
Remember your Merit Badge Counselors need to have YPT, too, so make sure you know their status, too.
Online Applications and Invites
With the new BSA online recruiting system, newly interested families have a way to apply online to join not just Scouts but your specific unit.
We have a problem right now. Several units have had a bunch of people express interest in joining units. The problem is that no adult in some units have taken ownership of the online responsibilities.
We have families that have applied to scouts and not received timely response back.
Please make sure that your pack, troop, or crew has discussed the online application system at your unit committee meeting and clearly delegated the person responsible for managing the process. Ideally it is a member of the unit Key 3 (i.e., Chartered Organization Representative, chair, or Cubmaster/Scoutmaster/Advisor).
Every day BSA sends reports about languishing applications are sent to the District Commissioner and his staff, the District Executive, and several others. We are hoping to have no North Star units on those emails.
Importance of Den Chiefs
Den Chiefs are a unique role in scouting. They are Boy Scouts who go back to serve a Cub Scout Den. A Den Chief has his feet in both the Boy Scout world and the Cub Scout world.
The Den Chief learns leadership and responsibility. The Den learns about scouting from a scout. The Den Leader gets “professional” help. Maybe it would be better to call it “experienced” help.
The role of a Den Chief is hard. The Den Chief is not often given as much responsibility has he believes he can handle. Yet, leading Cub Scouts is harder than leading Boy Scouts. Leading a Den requires teaching many skills that the Den Chief thinks everybody already knows.
Having a Den Chief in a Den for the first time can be confusing for a new adult Den Leader, too. The Den Leader may just be figuring out the role. Then to be responsible for figuring out how to use a Den Chief can make it harder.
CAC North Star Unofficial Website 
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