Troop 34 Finances and Policies

Dues and Fundraising Obligation

It is important to review the reason for fundraising.  Certainly, one obvious reason is to generate money for the troop to cover the costs of assorted troop gear that is essential to the operation of the troop. 

While generating funds for troop needs is important, there is a philosophical issue that is even more important. These fundraisers provide the boys with the opportunity to work to earn their way through Troop 34's program activities - monthly outings, summer camp, and high adventure trips.  Boys enjoy the outings, but that enjoyment is taken to a new level when they have taken ownership for paying the way on the outings.  Of course, Mom & Dad can just write out a check every time there is an outing, but it's not what we would recommend.

Annual dues are $50, cover a calendar year, and are due in January/February (high school seniors owe $25). 

In addition to dues, there is a calendar year $75 obligation for each scout to fulfill, with a request that it be done through fundraising (earning $75 for the troop equates to earning about $140 for his own scouting activities, nearly the cost of summer camp). This $75 fundraising obligation is the portion of profits from a boy's fundraising efforts that go to the troop.  That means a boy would need to sell a sufficient dollar amount of wreaths and/or popcorn (or spend time at car washes, etc.) to generate a profit of $75 to the troop.

This "fundraising obligation" policy is intended to help spread the load for supporting the troop financially.  We have boys who don't participate in fundraising, and we have boys who generate sales at levels high enough to completely pay their way on a high adventure trip.

As mentioned, the fundraising obligation per boy is $75 (again, that's the troop's cut of the profits from what a boy sells).  At the end of the year, the treasurer compares the numbers for each boy and incorporates it into the dues statement generated in the January/February timeframe.  A number of possibilities exist regarding the outcome of their fundraising, as explained below.

As you can see, boys who significantly exceed the $75 fundraising obligation can earn a credit toward the coming year's dues (either $20 or the full $50), a terrific benefit for both scout and parents.