Finishing Your Eagle Paperwork Is NOT The Hardest Part!

Over the years of working with Eagle Scout candidates, I have seen many times where finishing the paperwork scares them more than anything.  Because of this, there have been quite a few that have earned all their merit badges, served all their leadership time, and finished their project, then they freeze and don’t want to finish that paperwork and turn it in.  Don’t let this happen to you!

The myth I want to bust today is that the paperwork is hard to finish.  If you are this same point, this is the easiest part to complete, compared to what you have done already.  I wrote another post that covers all the paperwork you need to turn in  here: What Paperwork Needs To Be Turned In For Eagle Rank.

Today I wanted to talk about the last section of the Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook called The Report.  For some reason, this is the number one thing that most scouts do not want to fill out.

This section should only take any candidate one hour to fill out or less!  Most scouts take much less time than that.  This should be the most fun part also, since it is just reporting on how your project went.  You are done with the project!  You should feel excited at this point!  I worked with three candidates that that were at this point in their progress and waited over one year to just finish this part.  Don’t let that happen to you.

All you have to report in this section are the following:

1. Date you started and ended
2. Description of the project and the impact it had
3. What went well and what did not
4. What changes you made during the project
5. What was challenging
6. How did you demonstrate leadership, challenges, rewards and what you learned being the leader
7. Did you have shortages or overages in materials that you planned
8. Hours spent on project by you and others
9. How you paid for the project and how you got the money
10. Pictures
11. Signatures

If you look at this list carefully, it is all the same information that was already collected throughout the Eagle Project process. It is just a matter of gathering it and putting the information in the form.

I hope by reading this you realize that it is not worth stalling and putting this off.  Just get it done and turn it in.  You will be grateful for the rest of your life that you did!

What To Pack For a Winter Overnight Camp

I have written about this subject once before but wanted to also give an actionable packing list you can use to prepare for a winter camp in addition.  Check out the other post I wrote about Preparing for Winter Camp – Backyard Prep

One  of the most important things to remember about going on an overnight winter camp is staying dry.  There are redundant things on this list for that purpose.  If a scout brings more than one of everything, he will not regret being prepared just in case.  I have heard quite a few scouts say that they hate winter camping and I was right there with them until I became more prepared and it was a MUCH better experience.

John Wayne (yes, it is his real name), our scoutmaster, is a master at this and I have learned quite a bit from him on this subject and actually enjoyed my last couple of winter camps.  The most helpful thing I learned from him was to bring a clean pair of wool socks and put them on right before getting into bed. If you wear them all day, then go to bed with them, they have body sweat and oils in them and they are cold.

Here is a list of what I tell my scouts to take:

___ Tent
___ Tarp to put under tent
___ Two sleeping bags (layers are important)
___ Pillow
___ Water bottle (Yes, drinking water while at camp is very important for warmth)
___ 2 pair of socks
___ 1 pair of wool socks (put on clean when going to bed – dry)
___ 2 pair of pants (this way you have a dry pair for the next day)
___ 2 shirts
___ Thermal underwear (put on dry before bed)
___ Boots (possibly two sets)
___ Coat
___ Gloves
___ Jacket for under the coat
___ Beanie hat
___ Toilet paper
___ Flashlight
___ Knife
___ Compass
___ Medications
___ Basic first aid kit
___ Sunscreen (yes, for snow reflection – more boys get burned at winter camp than summer)
___ Camp chair
___ Sun glasses
___ Thick sleeping pad (to keep you off the frozen ground – 3-4 inch thick foam pad is good)
___ Tent light
___ Mess kit
___ Reading material
___ Camera
___ Hand warmers (If boys use these make sure they don’t put them right against their skin at night)
___ Snacks (Don’t store in tent at night)

How To Write The Eagle Statement of Ambitions

A few weeks ago I wrote a blog post Don’t Forget – Most Commonly Skipped Eagle Requirement, which talked a bit about how to write the Eagle Statement of Ambitions.  I want to expound on that requirement a little bit today.

I have served as an District Eagle Coach and have sat on hundreds of boards of review and read the Statements of Ambition for those Eagle candidates over the years.  I can honestly say that all of them are very different.  This is one of the funnest things for board members to read and it gives them insight to what kind of scout and person the candidate is.  It is very obvious that some candidates have spent the minimum amount of time writing and thinking about what they put in that statement.  Some are very thoughtful.

I remember one in particular had a statement that said he wanted to be the President of the United States.  I thought, wow!  What a bold statement from a 17 year-old.  When he came in for the review, we asked him about it. He was very serious and we found out that he had plans to make that happen.

You should think of your board of review like a job interview.  You are trying to show the board that you are the right candidate for the job, which is attaining the rank of Eagle.

Your Statement of Ambitions should be a minimum of two pages. The first page should be a double-spaced typed letter of what you want to do with the rest of your life.  This should be really easy for scouts to write.  I think of the movie “A Christmas Story,” when Ralphie is in school and his teacher tells them they need to write a theme.  They all moan!  Then when she tells them the topic, “What I Want For Christmas,” they all get very excited and want to do the assignment.  Scouts should feel the same way about this “theme.”

I have seen scouts write as little as 2 sentences or as much as 3 pages.  It should be 1-2 pages.  Also, you should use the spell checker on your computer and have your mom, dad, or scout leader proofread it to polish it up to look good before it is turned in with your paperwork.

This first page is where most scouts stop. That is only half of the requirement.  It also says to include a list of any leadership positions you have held over your scouting time in anything.  This includes school, band, church, work, anywhere!

Also, you need to include any awards you received while serving in these leadership roles.  If you earned your Duty to God at church, list it.  If you won high honors in your band at school, list it.  Basically this is a “brag sheet” of all your accomplishments while you were a leader.  Most scouts either forget to add this or don’t feel comfortable bragging about themselves.

In the real world when people are interviewing for jobs, they present a resume to potential employers to show off their skills and list all the great things that they know and have done.  This distinguishes them from all the other job candidates and proves they have the necessary skills to be there and do the job.  An Eagle Board of Review is no different.  You are a candidate for the Eagle Rank at the time of your board.  Present yourself it the best possible light.