Well now was my time to leave, it wasn't a very big deal my son's den was him and him alone. Yes I could have driven the 10 miles back to the unit, but the 10 miles normally takes 25 minutes to drive in the evening. We decided to switch units and I am still very happy we did. It gave me a view into an established unit and how things "should" run. I still remain close to the Unit Commish. She rebuilt the unit again that year as the only returning den was the Webelos 1. My wife and I split duties and She helped during round-up and I helped witht hte first Pack meeting. Hoping this would give them a good solid footing for the future.
Last night I was picking up 2 patrol boxes for our WEB-O-REE from a troop in my area. I ran into the Unit Commishes. My Unit Commish is the Advancement chair and the Previous pack's Unit Commish aka Grandma also has a position in the troop. I am always interested in the how the old Pack is doing. We talked and the big den of twelve has exploded and the leaders aren't involved anymore. She's back to rebuilding. So I'm throwing another Iron in the fire and trying to help her get the unit into the next year and a new district. I know she wants to see them succeed, but I could hear both relief and anguish in her voice as she stated that they were going to be in another district.
5 years of building one unit, I have to give it to her that commish is dedicated to getting the unit running. I know another "super unit" that's the same age and maturing quite well. With what I would call an established program. What's the difference other than 15 miles? When do you give up? I think I'll always be fond of that unit, but I'm not sure it will survive the redistricting.
They say that nothing in the units will change by redistricting. For my unit, it won't. We are strong We are established. We get to keep all of our resources, other than the Current DE team. I'm opening my eyes to a possiblly ugly truth, for some units the redistricting could mean death. I'm sure the district they go into has dedicated, supportive, volunteers that hate to see anything go wrong or close up shop. But I'm not sure the new district will see how much they need in time.
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I agree that districts can have an enormous impact on a unit. It doesn't make sense to me from an objective standpoint. The unit is strong or it isn't. However, it seems like the interaction with the district personnel end up having a direct effect on the unit. My old Cub Scout pack went downhill after a couple of families moved on. Now I'm back in and I've got a third of the pack membership with my 3 kid Tiger den. Units just 4 miles away in another district tend to be much bigger, much more involved, and have just as much drama as ours. So, why does it work for one and not another? I think some district personnel just get involved more than others. Simple things like calling up to ask how things are going and showing up to meetings to observe make the unit feel like it is connected to the district and make parents feel like their unit is strong which in turn encourages them to help more. I don't know if that makes sense, but it's how I've come to view things.
I'm chairman of my troop and den leader in my pack. In both instances I can see the impact of the district we are in versus the one we are not. But it all comes down to personal responsibility in the end. We have to take control of our units and that's how things work or don't.
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