When scout camp goes horribly wrong

[MikeWaters]

I heard last year a ward in my stake made plans to go to summer camp, collected the money, and then right before summer camp announced it was canceled.

And the money that was collected was gone. Disappeared.

I'm not sure that anyone was legally held to account.

Shame was that this was a ward that had not had a scouting program in years despite one of the largest youth populations, it was finally starting to take off, and then this.

Thank God nothing like this has happened under my watch.

[RedHeadGal]

Does summer camp make or break a scout troop? I really don't know.

But sounds like embezzlement to me. And how do you even know about the money "disappearing"?

[MikeWaters]

Well, first off, they have done a fairly good job keeping this quiet in that it happened a year ago.

Embezzlement is not rocket science. No doubt you have incompetent administrators not following guidelines, w/ poor record keeping. This is also likely a ward where I would guess much of the payment was in cash.

Summer camp doesn't necessarily make or break a troop. But theft with no consequence will drain enthusiasm very quickly. I think there is a good argument to disband that ward entirely.

[BlueK]

Originally Posted by RedHeadGal

Does summer camp make or break a scout troop? I really don't know.

But sounds like embezzlement to me. And how do you even know about the money "disappearing"?

Having been a financial clerk several times, something in the story doesn't make sense. What is supposed to happen is the ward collects the money with the tithing and it goes into the "other" account. Then when they have to pay for the camp, the ward writes a check and it's delivered to the council or whoever owns the camp. Whatever gets collected gets deposited like tithingas soon as it's collected, and can only come back out in the form of a check. Then normally whoever gets the food or supplies buys it and then gets reimbursed by the ward from the young mens budget. The ward can also cut a check in advance to pay for the supplies. But at no time is there supposed to be cash collected and just sitting around. The only way this could happen is if the bishop falls asleep at the wheel and allows the scout leaders to collect and hold money instead of collecting it along with the tithing like they're supposed to.

[MikeWaters]

I don't know any details beyond what I mentioned. The person who told me about it is in a position to hear of such things.

When everyone claims ignorance and incompetence, it can be hard to ferret out the wolves from the sheep.

Would you trust your kids to a group of leaders who can't be trusted to safeguard funds for camp?

[BlueK]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

I don't know any details beyond what I mentioned. The person who told me about it is in a position to hear of such things.

When everyone claims ignorance and incompetence, it can be hard to ferret out the wolves from the sheep.

Would you trust your kids to a group of leaders who can't be trusted to safeguard funds for camp?

I guess what I'm saying is the bishop dropped the ball to let this happen.

[MikeWaters]

Originally Posted by BlueK

I guess what I'm saying is the bishop dropped the ball to let this happen.

A bishop can't micromanage everything in the ward. He has to rely on people he has called.

My bishop (and his predecessor) never once has prepared a budget. It's not unusual or surprising for a bishop to let the clerks and youth leaders handle the details after he has given general guidance.

[BlueK]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

A bishop can't micromanage everything in the ward. He has to rely on people he has called.

My bishop (and his predecessor) never once has prepared a budget. It's not unusual or surprising for a bishop to let the clerks and youth leaders handle the details after he has given general guidance.

Nope. No excuse whatsoever for mishandling funds. Sure, the bishop doesn't have to be involved in every detail of running reports and such, but as far as collecting funds is concerned, the rules are extremely clear. The run of the mill member may not realize how clear, but any bishop would know unless he's in his first week of duty or something. You don't let cash sit around like that. You just don't. Any bishop should know that and not allow it. From having been a financial clerk 4 diffferent times in 3 different wards, I can tell you that's about as basic as you can get when it comes to money, and it's especially the bishop's business in this case because he is trained to pay special attention to the young men because of his role as president of the Aaronic priesthood.

[MikeWaters]

It's the clerks job to explain financial procedures to members. Yes, the bishop may have failed in ensuring his called leaders were properly trained. But its not like its going to be the bishop who sits down w/ every leader and explains financial procedures.