I like the way you think Sue!

One of our dads fell in the creek during the summer and broke his ankle. He's a huge guy and couldn't get himself out of the creek bed. He was out with his sister and their three kids, catching crawfish to use as fishing bait, something they do all the time. His two kids are in our Beaver Scouts group and wanted to take their lanyards but he told them they didn't need them. They had nothing with them but two cell phones, including the one that took a bath when he fell. He still doesn't get get. He thinks it was a complete fluke. He's an avid angler and hunter and this is his standard o/p.

While training a couple of our new leaders before Winter Camp next weekend, we talked about that accident and did exactly as you suggest. What if they were out of cell range? What if nobody was home when they called and the OPP couldn't find them? ("We're down where Pete split his lip that time" wouldn't be very much help to them.) What if the accident happened at the end of the day instead of the middle of the afternoon? What if it was late summer when the nights get chilly? What if the injury was worse? What if he was alone with the kids? etc.

Our two new leaders got it and we've been thinking about a group discussion with all the parents and kids. Three of us have gone down with major injuries in non-scouting accidents over the past 7 months so we have plenty of personal examples. Lead by that limpy dad, there's a feeling that "we shouldn't scare the kids". I agree that we don't want the kids scared in an emergency but preparing them BEFORE one is essential. They're going to be a lot worse off then, especially if their grown-ups are unprepared. It makes me heard hurt. Thankfully that family isn't coming to camp so I don't have to deal with dad, who thinks we're going overboard on the "Be prepared" motto when we ask everyone to wear a lanyard and bring a backpack with a water bottle when we're out.