The Boy Scouts of America has a well established process for starting new “Units.” Most familiar are Cub Scout “Packs” for youth in kindergarten through fifth grade crossover, and Scout “Troops” based on age, starting at ten or eleven, until the participant’s eighteenth birthday. [1-7]
Two weeks ago, Troop 439 held its first meeting as another among the more recent additions to this 109-year legacy. That Monday, February 4, largely passed without fanfare or note. [8]
Who can think of a reason it should have been otherwise?
True to their “Be Prepared” motto, adult leadership for the unit is provided by Scoutmaster Tammy Mayrend, who established herself in the same role with longstanding Saline Troop 446. Moreover, Troop 439 is chartered by Tri-County Sportsmen’s League, which also provides meeting space. For many years, this facility has been a preferred for Huron Trails District program events, and excells in its training for the safe use of firearms. [9-14]
That said, it’s quite common for a new unit to show signs of tentative moves through Scouting processes, evidencing frays around the edges.
Not so with Scouts BSA Troop 439 when Saline Journal was there for a first look during their regular Monday meeting this evening. The schedule called for a 7:00pm opening and 7:00pm it was, everyone in position. Those who remember Troop 446 when James Fuller was Scoutmaster would be hard pressed to differentiate form or discipline at this Tri-County muster. [15,16]
Additionally, it was refreshing to see these Scouts wearing their sharply appointed uniforms with the tidiness and respect appropriate to the vital role they serve as key method. Far too often we see just the opposite seemingly passed as acceptable elsewhere, even in parade and popcorn sale appearances (though not in Saline, thank goodness). [17,18]
Notwithstanding its lack of having turned even one month to the next on their calendar, the 439 agenda tonight was focused on preparations for their first campout — this weekend, at Camp Teetonkah. With a complement of eight Scouts around a table, Scoutmaster Mayrend thoroughly layed out expectations at a pace approaching verbal sprint. Touching on all the important must-address issues, she covered shopping budgets to food alergies. [19]
While obviously cognizant of her role as coach and mentor, she wasn’t here to dictate any decision appropriately (safely) left to the Scouts. However, she did advocate for including apples in the menu. “You can’t go wrong bringing apples on a campout,” she advised. Twice.
And with that, she retreated to elsewhere in the meeting space, for the better part of an hour.
That was when the Scouts themselves took over at their table. All contributed throughout in working up to the point of putting a solid plan on paper, although three or four voices were heard most often, and one Scout tended to lead. On the periphery, Saline Journal took notes for our own reference as they went along and thus can independently verify for our readers here that they did an outstanding job with the task.
To the question implied by our headline above, the only difference we could spot so far in our look at Scouts BSA Troop 439 tonight was that all youth members were female.
Opportunity form troops in which all youth are women openned with the Boy Scouts of America on February 1 of this year, and Huron Trails Unit Service Executive Kevin Zelazny confirmed to Saline Journal that there two such units now in Washtenaw County Michigan. This is in no way affiliated with the Girl Scouts, which remains a completely separate and distinct organization. [20-22]
With public school snow days continuing to accumulate and ice in the latest forecast before temperatures bop up a bit before heading back down below freezing for the weekend to come, this is hardly the time to ease into camping for a nascent Michigan troop. Otherwise not any different from what most other area troops are doing this month. [23]
References
- “BSA’s Organization Name Not Changing, and Other Facts to Know and Share” (May 3, 2018) Scouting Wire.
- “The New-Unit Organization Process” Scouting Wire.
- “Strategic Plan: Start a Unit” Scouting Wire.
- “Cub Scouting” Boy Scouts of America.
- “What is the Arrow of Light?” (June 5, 2017) Boy Scouts of America.
- “Scouts BSA” Boy Scouts of America.
- “Frequently Asked Questions: What is the age range for joining Scouts BSA?” Boy Scouts of America.
- Tri-County Scouts BSA Troop 439 (Facebook Page).
- “Be Prepared: The origin story behind the Scout motto” Bryan Wendell (May 8, 2017) Scouting Magazine.
- Troop 446, Saline MI (Facebook Page).
- “Chartered Organizations” Boy Scouts of America.
- Tri-County Sportsmen’s League (home page).
- “Southern Shores Field Service” Boy Scouts of America: Michigan Crossroads Council.
- “Education” Tri-County Sportsmen’s League.
- James Fuller was additionally called upon frequently to help Scouts prepare for to meet the highest standards of performance when serving at members of the “Governor’s Honor Guard” through Troop 168 each summer on Mackinac Island.
- “Saline Boy Scouts Are on Mackinac Island Today Serving in Governor’s Honor Troop” Dell Deaton (June 27, 2011) Saline Journal.
- “Aims and Methods” Boy Scouts of America.
- “Why Uniforms? (An Essay)” Dan Kurtenbach (June 22, 2014) Scouting Magazine.
- “Camp Teetonkah” Boy Scouts of America: Michigan Crossroads Council.
- “Welcoming Girls, Boy Scouts Program Is Now Scouts BSA” Katie Blackey (February 1, 2019) NPR.
- “Boy Scouts will allow girls for first time in 109 years” (February 1, 2019) New York Post.
- Girl Scouts (home page).
- “Mid-Michigan school districts rearrange calendars as snow days pile up” Roberto Acosta and Bob Johnson (February 11, 2019) mLive.
