Q1. When and where does your Crew meet? A. Crew 27 meets at the Hillsdale United Methodist Church, 36th and Hacienda in San Mateo (one block south of Hillsdale Avenue), on Tuesday nights from 7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (see map)

Q2. How often has your Crew achieved Quality Unit status in the last 5 years? A. Crew 27 has achieved Quality Unit status every year for the past 5 years.

Q3. How old is your Crew? A. Crew 27 was founded in 1999 as an outgrowth of the Troop 27 Instructor Corp. Troop 27 celebrated its 50th anniversary in September 2001. (see the troop history)

Q4. How are new Crew members handled? New members are welcomed to all meetings and are assigned a mentor for the first 6 months when they participate in outings.

Q5. How do new Crew members learn what to do as other experienced Crew members(camping skills, activities, advancement, etc.)? Will they have an experienced youth or adult working with them? A. The new Crew members will learn from the older crew members, their Crew officers, rangers, the leaders, and by reviewing Venturing material. Many requirements are covered in group instruction at Crew meetings and on camping trips.

Q6. How many registered leaders are there? What is their attendance history at regular meetings and on outings? A. Crew 27 has 8 active leaders and works in conjunction with Troop 27 which has over 20 active leaders.

Q7. What is the youth/adult leader ratio at meetings and on outings? A. The Crew is youth led so typically 2 to 4 leaders assist in Crew meetings and outings.

Q8. Do you have an active outdoor program? How often do you camp? A. Crew 27 has outings 12 months of the year: generally hiking, climbing, kayaking, ww rafting, shooting, biking, canoeing, riding, orienteering as well as many service projects.

Q9. Where? A. We have camped at national, international, state or county parks, Scout camps or KOA’s.

Q10. What are the plans for super trips ? A. Each year we do a superactivity involving an extended camping activity for 10 days to 2 weeks. Past trips were : 2000 Iceland, 2001 Shasta, 2002 San Juan Islands, 2003 Australia, 2004 British Columbia , 2005 NorCal-Oregon, 2006 NordJamb Iceland. 2007 Oregon, 2008 Sierra SuperTrip, 2009 Oahu Hawaii

Q11. What is your philosophy on uniforms? A. On the first meeting of the month the youth must wear their class A uniforms. Class A is also required for flag ceremonies at summer camp and other outings, Courts of Honor, Scout Sunday and Memorial Day Grave decoration. For other crew/scout events any crew shirt (class B) may be worn.

Q12. What is your philosophy regarding advancement A. Crew 27 encourages each new member to attend a skills camput (to earn outdoor skills (similar to the Boy Scout First Class rank) during the first year. After that the youth work at their own pace and work towards Bronze, Gold, Silver & Ranger. We have youth that have attained each of these awards. Youth that are dual registered with a Troop (such as T27 or other Girls Scouts Troops) must not let Crew activities interfere with their advancement or duties to the Troop.

Q13. Are your Crew Members able to balance Crew with other activities such as sports, band, church, etc.? A. Yes. Many of our youth have other activities and we understand they are not able to attend all of our functions. But they still can participate in Crew 27.

Q14. Is your Crew “youth-run” or “adult-run?” A. Our Crew is youth run with adult guidance.

Q15. What equipment do you have? Is it in good shape? Do you have enough if many youth join your Crew?
A. Crew 27 has tents, tarps, stoves, cookware, climbing gear, a CPR dummy, first aid kits and a crew resource library. We plan for new youth so we always have enough gear in good shape.

Q16. What kind of fundraising do you have? A. Crew 27 encourages, but does not require, the youth to participate in many fundraising activities to support the monthly outings and Crew Supertrips.

Q17. What are the financial obligations for each Youth for dues, outings and summer camp? A. Dues are $10 each quarter. Camp outs vary from $15 for a simple overnight to $75 for a ski trip. The long supertrips costs from $600 to $2,200 depending on domestic or international. Part of the money from fundraisers goes into each participating youths ’s impound account and can be used to pay for dues or outings.

Q18. Do you pay for or subsidize training for the youth (Youth Leader Training, Advanced Training, etc.)? A. Sometimes if requested.

Q19. How active is your Crew at District and Council events? A. Crew 27 supports the District and Council by participating in appropriate events. We have attended all of the venturing Adventures of Pacific Skyline for the past 4 years. We also participate in venturing Forum. Some of our adult leaders have positions in the District and we always have one or two attending the District meetings.

Q20. How many current leaders are trained in: Youth Protection? venturing Leader Fundamentals? Woodbadge? A. All V27 leaders are trained in Youth Protection. The Venturing Advisor and most AVA's have taken Basic Leader Training and some have Advanced Outdoor Training. Several leaders have their Woodbadge and a few more are working on it. Many leaders also have Red Cross CPR/First Aid certificates and Safe Swim/Safe Boating training. We also have some leaders with certifications in climbing and advanced outdoor First Aid

Q21. What are the expectations/requirements of new adults/parents to this Crew as assistant leaders, committee members, special event chairpersons, event workers, or other counselors? A. Crew 27 does not have parent requirements, but as we operate on volunteer labor we encourage all adults who are able to fill any of the above positions to do so. Once a month we have a meeting to keep parents informed about current and planned troop/Crew activities.

Q22. How often do you have “Courts of Honor”? A. Crew/Troop 27 has two Courts of Honor each year. These are potluck dinners for the whole family where we celebrate the achievements of the last 6 months. Eagle /Ranger Courts of Honor are separately scheduled.

Q23. How do you communicate with scouts and families? A. We issue a monthly newsletter (by mail or email), supplemented by brief email messages as needed. Crew officers call members with reminders as needed. The Troop issues a calendar at the beginning of the year. Parents attend a committee meeting on the first Tuesday of each month, and are welcome at the monthly ASM (Assistant Scoutmaster) meetings. Our Crew Web Site also contains useful information.

Q24. How do you orient new crew members (or their families) to venturing? A. We have a crew introductory packet that is updated periodically. It is given to the yourh shortly after they join Crew 27.

Q25. How do you feel about a potential crew member (and parent) visiting a meeting unannounced? A. That's fine, but if we have a real busy schedule that evening don't be disappointed if we can't spend as much time with you as we'd like.

Q26. Who can I contact for more information? A. Please contact V27’s Venturing Crew Advisor- click here.