Webelos Twilight Camp - Updated

No, the boys aren't hanging out with Edward and Jacob--as one friend so cheerfully asked. It's cub scout day camp--only it's from 4:30-9pm. I must admit that I was really, really worried about this camp. With the formation of our new stake, we are now in a new scout district and so a new district cub camp. The disorganization in the registration process, the disorganization in the orientation meeting, the disorganization in the here's-what-you-need-to-know process, the seemingly no-fun attitude of the packet of rules and such, and the lack of spirit (or should I say The Spirit) at any of the meetings left me with a worry to the point that I almost just decided to not go this week.

James is the only Webelos in our pack. Two other boys were registered with us. One is technically not a Webelos, but that's another story. He's there at Webelos camp. Whatever. The other boy moved to Iowa, so I don't think he'll be attending. ;-)

It has turned out to be a really good camp. They've had good activities, good leaders at the stations, good projects that are helping the boys to pass off quite a bit of stuff. It's been hot, but there's a lot of shade at this particular park. Most of our activities have been in the shade and those that aren't--well, we've been lucky and had those activities scheduled later in the evening. The only activity, so far, that I could really say was a bad idea was the games on Tuesday. It was supposed to turn into a relay of knot tying. Yeah. They never got to the relay part and spent 45 minutes trying to tie knots. Uh-huh. That was fun. So, overall--I've been happy with this camp. And I still am...but something happened yesterday that has upset a lot of people. I'm blogging about it partly because I just need to kind of work through my thoughts on it.



At the end of the last activity yesterday (so about 8:30pm), we were all held in our stations instead of going to the flagpole for awards and flag retrieval. We heard the siren of the medical 4-wheeler. The games activity yesterday was "sponge wars." Basically, it was a water balloon fight with those spongey balls that you use in pools. The boys had a BLAST! I thought it was a fabulous idea. Apparently they've been doing it for years. I'm sure there have been a fair share of injuries. James bonked heads with someone yesterday and got a little bump over his eye. But...they're boys. It's part of the territory. But I digress...sorry.

We could see the medical 4-wheeler over at the games station. Obviously something was serious if they were holding us. Then they sounded the horn for us to return to the flagpole. As we were walking to the flagpole, we could see an ambulance coming up the road. I'm sure we were all thinking--broken ankle, bad heat exhaustion or dehydration. We were all wrong.

At the flagpole, the camp director spoke in a cracking voice and then turned it over to a sheriff's deputy to tell us what had happened. Apparently, in the course of the fun of sponge wars, the game turned ugly for one scout. Tempers flared (I suppose) and one scout was basically assaulted by a group of other scouts. To the point of having an ambulance called. The deputy said, "The law was broke [sic] here tonight. Some of you scouts are lucky. The mother doesn't want to press charges. But she could. There are some scouts here who owe that boy and his mother an apology."

Wow. I mean just...wow. Never in my life would I have dreamed this would happen at scout camp. Injuries--yes. Arguments--sure. These are 10 yo boys after all. Frustrations and yelling and all that goes with that. But there's also fun and frolic and running around in the woods. But for a group of scouts to gang up on one boy and beat him up basically? Shocking and heartbreaking.

The camp director and all those involved in the camp handled it fabulously. As far as I could tell there was no panic. They followed procedures, stayed calm--most of the boys had no idea anything was amiss other than the siren from the medical truck and the ambulance. So even though I'm really sad that it happened and it would be easy to say, "Well, we're never going back to this camp again," I don't think it was the fault of the camp or the leaders--even the leaders in that particular "walking den." Having already done that station, I can absolutely see how it could happen without being noticed in time. Boys are pretty fast when they want to be. And when they're all running around like ants, it's hard to know when something's wrong right at first. Then again...maybe that's the lack of the spirit again. I don't know.

Today is the last day of camp. I think it will be a bit subdued. But I hope everyone will rally around those who tried to help and those who were only witnesses and help them have a good time. I hope a lesson has been learned. I hope prayers were said for the injured boy and for those involved. And I hope the punishment fits the crime for the perpetrators. But I'm not in charge of any of that except for my own boy and my own walking den. We will smile and have fun today. And we will come home from a week of cub camp with lots of lessons--some expected and some unexpected. Sometimes we learn the most from those unexpected lessons. I hope so.


Update: Turns out the boy who was hurt was a junior volunteer. And yes, the incident happened when the games was boys against leaders. And the volunteer alledgely taunted the boys saying stuff like, "Come on! Come and get me!" Well, they did. And it got out of hand. Does that make it right? Absolutely not. Does that make the injured boy less of a victim? I don't think so. But I'm thinking in all of the lessons learned, maybe the victim learned something too. And he's okay. He was back at camp on Friday.