Reply to Annoying Girl Scout Family--what to do?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]She was not the only one who drank on that trip (I did not and I am a pretty regular drinker...but I just follow that rule very strictly for GS trips).  A group of moms went and bought wine from the hotel lobby and drank it.  Most of the moms didn't have more than a glass but I think Suzie's mom had been drinking her own supply all evening or is a total lightweight.

We did another trip about a year later and I told all of the moms not to drink (Suzie's mom was not on that trip, nor was Suzie).  I know at least one other mom snuck in a bottle of wine.  Against the rules but as long as nobody is impaired I'm not going to get tooooo upset about it.  I will just remind everyone again...[/quote]

OP--I'm 13:47 and totally on your team re: Suzie but this post is troubling. Are you NOT having chaperones sign the GS "chaperone guidelines and agreement" document they're supposed to sign before a trip? It says "Adults who have been consuming alcohol cannot be responsible for girls." Not "adults who are impaired" but adults who are consuming, at all, are no longer chaperones. That means if moms have been downing their wine and there's an emergency in the night, you just lost your chaperones and don't have the required number of adult chaperones for the group. Those adult to child ratios really are there for the girls' safety. It's much clearer to use that document and say that no alcohol, even in your own room at night, is allowed. I've had to wake up and get girls out the door of a hotel during a blaring fire alarm, and needed all chaperones on deck immediately to help. Please reconsider the idea that a parent would need to be "impaired" before it's a problem. To GS a chaperone who has had any alcohol can't be a chaperone. And there are real liability issues involved. [/quote]
DP.. what they sign and what they actually adhere to are two different things.[/quote]

If they cannot take a signed agreement with a clear list of simple rules seriously, they should not be chaperones.

If they cannot enjoy parent socializing in the evenings without alcohol, they should not be chaperones.

If they think GS rules are silly and don't apply to them, they should not be involved in GS as parents.[/quote]

True...but what can I do, really?  They are the parents I've got for the troop I've got.  I've asked them not to drink and it seems like some of them don't want to adhere to that on overnight trips but short of a major confrontation about this I  don't know how to force them to stop.[/quote]

Hold a parents' meeting in advance of the trip (which is often done before events, and can cover everything, not just drinking!). hand out the form and say you're giving them a minute to read it. Then feel free to throw the GS organization under the bus, OP: "Girl Scouts' national organization has emphasized that we have to ensure chaperones don't drink at all, including at night while on an overnight trip. As the form in front of you says, any adult who has [i]consumed[/i] alcohol can't be responsible for girls. Lately GS has been cracking down on this and telling troop leaders we should be clear that no alcohol is allowed on trips even 'after hours.' This is a larger GS rule, not just my own, but I agree with it and want the troop to stay in good standing so I'd appreciate it if there's no alcohol at all. Thanks." Then move on.

You...do agree with the rule, don't you, OP? I'm not quite sure. I get that you don't want a confrontation and I don't think one is needed. But they should hear from you, as the person in authority, that the rule is what it is, and you expect them as adults to adhere to it since they're signing off on a form. A form which, by the way, GS could ask you to hand over if anything went really awry on an outing and GS had questions.

You can't police adults every second if they're inside hotel rooms, nor should you, of course! At some point if they're going to break the rule, they're going to break it, but that doesn't mean you should soft-pedal telling them in advance that it does apply to them. I get a sense here of moms who maybe have gotten a bit used to thinking of GS overnight events as chances to catch up--which they are, but with rules attached. I don't mean to sound rigid but there's a reason GS tends to have a lot of forms and rules about safety, ratios and adults. While it can all be a real pain (I know from a dozen years' experience as a leader), it does mean GS has had few issues with adult chaperones overall, as far as I know.[/quote]

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