Prepper Network

Brandon Reigert asks: “A friend of mine and I were considering starting a prepper network in our local area and for the children of the members developing our own “boy scouts” type training program. Anyone have any suggestions or ideas ?”

A Few Comments:

• Preppers bad mouthing the Boy Scouts? Wow. You don’t like the troop your kids are in find one you do like. As a father of one eagle and my other about to sit for his eagle review, I am proud of both and their troop.
• The core of BSA is still the same. The books that they use are readily available. That could be your base core or modified to fit the group. Fire, water, shelter, food should be the basics. Anything that is more involved i.e. tactical training, concealed movement etc. should be based on the skill levels of those involved.
• Not in favor of communal prepping or in advertising that I’m prepped to my neighbors. Good luck, though.
• Do research and make a plan. Sit and write down all of the things you see happening with the group and its goals. Once you have that figured out then figure out a way to execute it. Mentally I envision it being something like this…
  Goal #1 : Fire Training
  A: Collecting tinder and wood. What types burn best etc..
  B: How to create sparks using different methods.
  C: When to stop for the day and begin gathering firewood.
  D: How to start a fire with a bow.
  Goal #2: Filtering water
  And so on and so on….
  Once you have that figured out then figure out a way to execute it. Learn what the people in your groups strengths’ and weaknesses are so you know what needs to be worked on
• i have been ”training” my son from day one. first back country trip was a snow trip at four months. i have taken probably 20 of his friends camping over the years. i can say that no cookie cutter way is going to work. induvidual as well as group training will need to be done. the guy who said fire building straight out the gate is nutz. sorry bud i had to call you out on that. first and foremost would be from me a lesson on saftey in numbers and looking out for the little ones. in a shtf situation a 12 yr old is no longer a child. that is just hard reality. not every kid is going to be a leader and some well… at 8 they are gonna be more of an asset than their parents. your gonna have to spend alot of free time and fun time with these kids to figure out their strengths and weakness’. then you can start with basic things like fire building staying dry food gathering ect. the biggest obstacle with kids is they are kids.
• Check what merit badges there are that might fit. Emergency Preparedness, First Aid, Wilderness Survival, Sustainability, Rifle Shooting, Archery, Pioneering, Shotgun Shooting, Metalwork, immediately come to mind; however, there may be more. If you build a program around merit badges then scouts could be earning merit badges while they’re learning about prepping.
• Please consult groups like boys and girls clubs or the big brother to see what kind of screening they do for potential predators
• Very good idea. It should be interesting, enjoyable, creative, hands on, and a learning experience. Even though there is controversy with scouts right now their handbooks are great teaching guides. My question why just boys? I learned at a very young age how to build a fire, start one, how to keep if burning, etc!! What state are you thinking to start this?

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