CROSSING OVER
How many troops should cub scouts visit before making a choice? All troops are not the same and this is a great thing. Scouts are not the same either. What is a good fit for one boy in a den might be a horrible fit for another. A den should not aim to cross as a collected group unless it just works out that they all have identical interests; which is rare. Scouts should always visit at least 4 or 5 troops, making notes on each visit immediately after. Once they finish visiting, they can pick their favorites and visit a second (or third) time to make sure they are sure which one they want to join. If after they join, it turns out they aren’t happy there, go and revisit the other favorites. It’s more important that they stay in scouting than staying with their first choice for a troop.
What does the troop do for the Crossing Over Ceremony? It is considered an honor for us to be chosen as a troop. Once invited, we come with leaders and scouts, a book, neckerchief, and slide for the new boy scout(s) at the pack’s Crossing Over Ceremony. For any cub scouts crossing over into Troop 483, we ask that the family let us know as soon as possible so that we can schedule to be there. We always make it to the event, but we want to be sure that if there is more than one in an evening, we have adequate representation at each.
