It is very important that the Officers and adult leaders
communicate the goals of the Venturing Crew to the Crew
Members. Every Member of the Crew is responsible for promoting these goals, not only the Officers.
Clear communication helps make the individual
responsibilities of the Crew Members more meaningful. The
overall goals should be clarified at the beginning of the
Venturing program and care taken that these goal become an
integral part of your discussions and meetings.
Members should:
- Communicate their interest throughout the year
- Those planning activities need a clear idea of the
interests of the Crew. Interests may change and
develop over the course of the year, so it is
important that Members talk about their interests on
an ongoing basis.
- Suggest ideas for activities
- Each Member should think about and share possible
ideas for activities. In addition, each Member should
listen to the ideas suggested by others. Suggestions
often begin simply by brainstorming possibilities.
It's important that Members feel free to make
suggestions without worrying about their views being
criticized. When enough suggestions have been made,
then and only then is it time to look carefully at the
ideas that serve the best interests of the Crew.
- Participate regularly in meetings and activities
- If a crew is to become a cohesive group, the group
must meet on a regular basis. Being there is an
important part of commitment, and commitment is what
holds people together and strengthens a group.
- Vote responsibly for the best interests of the Crew
- The most important Crew decisions are made by
majority vote of the membership. Members should attend
meetings and take part in discussions before voting,
listen carefully to the different positions on the
decisions that must be made and speak out before the
actual voting takes place. Once a vote has been taken,
the Members should support the decision voted upon.
- Work with the Officers to achieve the overall and specific goals of the Crew
- Electing good officers is important because they
take the lead in activity planning and Crew business.
All Members should carefully consider which Members
would be good in each office and consider their own
abilities for holding office. Once officers are
elected, Members should do everything they can to
support their officers, offer assistance whenever
possible and take a leadership role for an activity
within the year's program. Every member is responsible
for contributing to the goals of the Crew.
- Serves on activity committees
- An activity committee works out the details of the
Crew program and puts the plan into action. Crew
Members will be asked to serve as Activity Chairs
or committee members. The success of each activity and
the success of the program as a whole depends on
Members taking their responsibility seriously and
doing their best to make each activity meet the
interests and needs of the entire Crew.
- Share the expenses
- All Members are encouraged to give input concerning
the Crew budget and the entire membership votes to
adopt or not adopt a proposed budget. Once a budget is
adopted all the members are expected to contribute
their share, paying dues and working on money-earning
projects.
- Seek the help of the Advisor or other adult leaders
- Any member who has a question or is in doubt about
what to do in any situation is encouraged to talk with
the Advisor of the Crew.
That is what the Advisor
is for - to guide members and give support and
assistance.
- Recruit new members
- The best people to recruit other young people for
the Crew are the Members themselves. Person-to-person
contact is the most effective method of recruiting new
members who can add fresh ideas and enthusiasm to the
Crew.
Source: Venturing Leader Manual, Boy Scouts of America,
2000 Printing. |
