A message from your Senior Patrol Leader
Message 2
September 15, 2007
Good evening Gilwell Troop
One.
As I said in a previous
message, time is indeed flying!
I know that you have all been
busy preparing for the second weekend of Wood Badge. You have or are continuing
to have Patrol meetings to plan for your patrol activities. You are
communicating with you Troop Guides about those tickets.
You are probably wondering why I mentioned tickets! Well, just a little
word of advice. The second weekend will be a LOT more enjoyable if you can come
to camp with your tickets written. Have those ticket workbooks
filled out. Or even better, have your tickets completed in the
electronic version (available on the website) and be sure that they are sent to
your troop guide by this weekend.
I say that because many staffers will be arriving back at camp on Tuesday. The
ability to check e-mails is VERY limited from camp so please do not count on
your Troop Guide being able to check their email and approve your ticket
after this weekend. If you complete your ticket electronically, please
bring a hard copy with you to camp. This will be a great help for your troop
guide – especially if there is any editing to be done.
When you come to camp with your tickets written and approved, you will be
able to have a lot more fun and a lot less stress!!!
Sheryl
Message 1
September 15, 2007
Good evening Gilwell Troop
One.
I know that this week has
been busy as you have recovered from last weekend. Hopefully, you have caught
up on those tasks and responsibilities that were postponed so that you could be
at Gilwell.
I would like to remind you
of a very important lesson. Communication.
When I got back to work on
Monday, I was visiting with a patient’s spouse. In the course of the
conversation, he expressed frustration at the seeming lack of communication that
he had experienced during his wife’s early days in intensive care. His comment
to me was that “No news is good news is not good enough. Communication is the
most important thing. All that I would like is to know one way or the other how
things are going.”
I was reminded that at Wood
Badge, communication is also very important. We attempt to start that
communication process about Wood Badge at the pre-course meeting. Many of you
may have even had explanations of what to expect at the course from Scouters in
your home unit before the first weekend occurred.
During the course,
communication occurs with the Troop Guides, with the Troop presentations, and
most importantly, at the Patrol Leaders Council. As each of you saw at the Day
One Patrol Leaders Council, there is a LOT of material presented in that
meeting. The Patrol Leaders have the extremely important role of passing that
communication back to the patrol.
Patrol Leaders, I think you
have heard me say each day of the first weekend that the purpose of the Patrol
Leaders Council is to exchange information and most importantly to TAKE THAT
INFORMATION BACK TO THE PATROLS. Therefore, I want to encourage all of the
Patrol Leaders to be sure to be in close contact with your patrols during this
interim period.
Time goes very quickly and
it is all too easy to postpone those very important tasks – ticket writing,
presentation planning and practicing, etc. until the very last possible minute.
Please do not fall into this trap.
Your Troop Guide is your
resource in the ticket writing process. Use the SMART guidelines. The
electronic version of the ticket should be available on the website soon. You
also have a small, notebook-sized, hard copy version to use as a guide.
When planning your
presentation, there have been several resources presented to you. Your Patrol
Leader Notebook has guidelines for planning the patrol presentation as well as a
short checklist so that you can be certain that key points are covered. Let me
remind you that the patrol projects/exhibits must be “presented in a manner in
which ALL patrol members have substantial participation.” Also, “all Wood Badge
participants are expected to contribute to the success of their patrols during
the development and presentation of projects/exhibits”. These requirements can
be handled very creatively as they have been in the past! I know that you will
all succeed (win).
Finally, the Conservation
project is in the planning phase and communication remains very important. I
have been getting emails that let me know that you are truly planning a very
high quality project that will benefit Camp George Thomas and our youth for a
long time. Thank you and keep up the good work!!!
I am so very excited to be
your Senior Patrol Leader and am looking forward to our time together when we go
“Back to Gilwell.”
Sheryl
Revised:
September 26, 2007
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