Cub Scouts = Expensive!

[SCQ86]

Here is my take for scouting...since you are involved...I encourage fundraising....raising funds to pay for stuff really helps out. Larger uniform and grow into...great idea....also, go to the second hand store and find something used.

I always ask the parents only to pay the registration fee and if they help with the fundraising the cost to everything will go down. A lot of units don't do fundraising and just have parents eat the cost in the beginning...I've heard of units that pay $600 in the beginning of the year....you know my kid doesn't go there!

If you are not happy with what the unit is doing, I'm sure you can find another unit or join the pack committee and be a voice.

As for the program....I have to say...I have an Eagle scout who has just gone to Japan for a campout and a climb to Mt. Fuji and it's been the cheapest adventure I ever had to pay for and of course an opportunity of a lifetime!

 

[MK2010]

My oldest son is a Webelo this year and my second son just started as a Tiger. We belong to a really small pack (Like maybe 15 boys). Anyway, we have a uniform closet and our dues come out of our Popcorn sales. I think this year dues are $135 per boy if you want to pay out of pocket and $405 if you want to use your popcorn sales. (Our sales get divided into thirds. 30% to the Co. 30% to the Council, and 30% to the boy.) All of the parents chip in for Pack meetings and supplies, but we also have a rule that 1 parent has to be with each child, unless you have more than one kid in the pack and then they recommend you float between the two.More parental involvement seems to help with the financial burden.

 

[clanmcculloch]

I don't have boys so I have no experience with how much Boy Scouts costs. I do have 2 Girl Scouts though. Each girl is expected to have a vest with insignia. This is good for 2 years. I choose to buy the age level books since I'm also a leader for one of my girls. Vests with insignia with books costs me under $50. The books I only have to buy for the older one as they hardly change in 2 years (if they change at all). Without the books, I'm under $30.

Our troops do the candy fall fundraisers and obviously the cookie fundraisers. DD11's troop I'm not sure what they do with the money that's been raised since I'm always asked to pay for activities. I know they pay for earned patches and supplies for meetings, but in a year I likely pay around $50 for activities, plus $2/week for dues which comes out to around $70 for the year. For my troop (DD9), we do charge dues, this year coming to $68. We don't ask families to pay for anything else. The girls are being taught that if they want to do activities then they have to earn the money to do so. Last year we did a sleepover at an aquarium plus we went to Disney on Ice and the only thing we charged families for is if anybody not in the troop (parents, siblings) wanted to join us. The troop wasn't going to pay for non-members. Camping costs like campground fees and food are all supplied by the troop. We get donations from stores for the food. Each girl is expected to have her own sleeping bag (properly rated) and mess kit but we rent an adirondack from our council so no tents are needed. We do have families loan us equipment but nobody has to go buy special stuff.

We also make sure that families know that if they can't afford anything that all they need to do is come talk to us leaders confidentially and we'll help. We can waive dues and we've even bought a vest for one girl out of troop funds (we asked the girls in the troop if they would be willing to donate troop funds to a scholarship program for girls who can't afford scout costs and they said yes; we didn't tell them specifics so they wouldn't start trying to figure out who it was for). Anybody can participate in Girl Scouts regardless of what they can afford.

 

[mamalle]

well I guess we are now paying $10 dues per month. I learned that tonight at the meeting..