Scouting, Volume 71, Number 4, September 1983 Page: 14
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T
he Lifesaving Team says
a healthy unit is one that
participates in local council
activities, has trained leaders,
and encourages rank
advancement.
(Top) District
Commissioners Dick
Penkaty and Bill
Terrinoni visit
Cubmaster Larry
Wheelen and some Pack
196 Cub Scouts, St.
Peter's Lutheran Church.
(Above) Unit
Commissioner Bill
Tennant displays the
Lifesaver award he got
for rescuing Pack 197.
14
"If we need to reorganize a unit,
the team organizes an open house,
setting the date and inviting boys,
parents, and key people from the
chartered organization. Even if we
just get two boys on the first night,
we'll do it again and again and
again until we have a unit assem-
bled," says Penkaty.
"If we need a leader, we'll work
with the chartered group until we
find exactly the right person -not
the first one who comes along," he
emphasizes. "We always say the
pack or troop is already there. It just needs
organizing," he adds with a chuckle. The trick is to
find out what is left of a unit.
From there, the Lifesaving Team can build. It
investigates to see what has caused the problems
and then works to correct them, taking whatever
steps are necessary. Sometimes, the situation isn't
resolved for months. The team members meet
with parents, leaders, members of the chartered
organization, and anyone else they think might
have insights into the difficulties.
One Cub pack had four different groups of
leaders in only a couple of years. For some reason,
the parents just didn't get involved. The Lifesaving
Team, the chartered organization, and the unit
commissioner kept pounding away until they
found some active leaders who could rally the
support of all the boys' parents. Now, the pack is
off the priority list and well on its way to an honor
unit status.
Six months after the district made a pact that it
wouldn't lose another unit, one Scoutmaster
walked into the council headquarters, dumped all
the troop records on the table, and said, "I have
four boys left and no adults." He turned and
walked out. "That was our first blast, our first
challenge." Penkaty recalls.
For months, he and Terrinoni ran the meetings,
recruited boys, talked with prospective leaders,
arranged for a chartered organization, helped with
training, and generally acted as nursemaids for the
ailing troop. Their work paid off. Today, there are
23 boys involved and a strong core of adults are
helping out. Penkaty and Terrinoni are still wiping
the sweat from their brows after that close call.
In an investigation of a sick unit, the commis-
sioners and Lifesaving Team study the Commis-
sioner Work Sheets and advancement indicators.
"If no one is moving ahead in the unit, it needs
assistance from activities and program personnel,"
says Penkaty. "A good indicator of trouble is when
no one in a Scout unit is taking training, advancing
in rank, or participating in district and council
events."
Under the Pathfinder priority team plan, the 17
unit commissioners who (continued on page 52)
September 1983 Scouting
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Boy Scouts of America. Scouting, Volume 71, Number 4, September 1983, periodical, September 1983; Irving, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth353630/m1/14/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Boy Scouts of America National Scouting Museum.