25th Anniversary

Our troop just celebrated its 25th anniversary. Last fall, a scout wanted a leadership position to advance to Life but all the regular spots were assigned by the new SPL.

So, I got to use the "Scoutmaster assigned leadership project" clause in the advancement requirements. This scout took on the task of organizing the anniversary party while working with an adult volunteer. He found the location, ran a contest for the scouts to design a patch, developed an agenda, and organized the food and activities. About 7 months later, the party was a big success!

The scout did a lot of behind-the-scenes work, but he also got to speak in front of the entire troop a few times. I feel it was a great opportunity for the scout to practice planning and organizing before his Eagle project.

We wound up having a simple but fun lunch of sub sandwiches, ice cream in a rented cart from Culver's, soda, and chips.
We rented three inflatable structures - an obstacle course, bouncing cage, and bungee stretch. They were kept busy the entire 3 hours.
Each patrol organized a game or activity.
We invited Webelos too, but the local Packs already had their picnics planned for the same day.
This was a party and all family members as well as past troop members were invited. There was not really much 'scouting' involved. A few demonstrations or competitions of scouting skills would be an area to add next time, I think.

If your troop is coming up on a 5, 10, ... 75, or 100 year anniversary, don't let your troop committee define the celebration - use it as an opportunity for leadership for a scout or two.

Scout On