[MarMema]

We pay dues of $60 yearly, with two Scouts, and summer camp is only $170 here.

Winter camp is great, and only $55.

My youngest son and oldest daughter (in a Venture crew) sold popcorn like crazy this year, however, and because of how well they did ($740 in sales) one of our Scouts has his dues, winter camp, and summer camp paid for this coming year.

Scouting can be affordable if you work at it. And it is so worth it!!

[AFA-Michigan]

And the Cub Scouts have had female "den mothers" forever.

The one sponsored by my conservative Baptist church did back in the mid-60's, so that's nothing new. Female Scoutmaster, that's a different thing altogether. The guys in Scouting age need strong male role models.

[Myrddin]

My #2 son was anxious to join scouts. The troop at our LDS ward was too small. He joined a nice, big troop at the local Catholic church. It struck me as being "just right" with around 40 boys in a range of ages and with a range of ranks and skills. My son flourished and rapidly advanced to First Class. He advanced so fast that his first Court of Honor included Tenderfoot/Second Class/First Class awards at once. The Scoutmaster said he should "slow down" so he can "mature". Wrong advice. All stop. 100% time redirected to band and school. 4.33 GPA and scores of '5' on every AP exam. He could have made Eagle easily.

There was a second, more troublesome issue with that troop. The parents were constantly in "raising money" mode and the troop was off to very expensive outings every month. Nice people with a champagne budget and tastes in activities. It was an order of magnitude beyond anything I ever experienced in my own PTA sponsored troop.