This past weekend at Stone Mountain, I offered a Cubmaster’s Minute at our Friday night campfire.  I talked to the boys about the Scout uniform, and why I like it so much.  We talked about the cool patches and insignias, and how much you can learn about another scout just by looking at his uniform.  I mentioned that I thought the Pack looked especially sharp when we were all in Class A uniforms, but noted that there weren’t many Class As in the crowd.  So, I posed the question: are you only a Scout when you are in uniform?  The resounding answer (thanks, boys!) was “no!”  We talked a little about how you can show the world you are a scout, even when you’re not rockin’ a Class A. Talk is good, but actions are great.  So, I wanted to pass on some of the ways I saw the boys (and their parents) show that they were scouts even in the absence of a uniform:

• Saturday before breakfast, we needed a table cleaned and a parent said, to no one in particular, “can someone clean this table?”  One of our Webelos was the first to respond, and cleaned that table like a champ.
• The bears did an extraordinary job helping with breakfast on Saturday, and I didn’t hear a single “why do we have to do this?”
• At both campfires, many of the boys showed tremendous poise and gumption, standing in front of the crowd to tell a joke or story.  (Parents, we should remember that, at their age, that’s not so easy to do!)
• When I needed some help doing a walk-through to look for trash, I grabbed every boy within 20 feet of me, and had nothing but good help.
• Fishing poles were shared freely.
• During Ranger Hick’s presentation the boys listened intently, raised their hands to speak, and behaved respectfully.
• Parents – you set some great examples, too.  The most repeated phrase of the weekend was, “how can I help?”

I could go on, but this is only a Cubmaster’s corner and not a full city block.  So, Scouts of Pack 39, keep showing the world you are a Scout even when you are not in your uniform. 

Who’s fine?  PACK 39!!!