Preventing Theft at the Jamboree

Thanks goes to Mrs. Seloff for finding the full article here.  Below, I have copied out the section of 10 Things to Prevent Patch Theft.  We will have at least one adult in our campsite each day to keep an eye on our tents and try to prevent such thefts from our campsite.


Unfortunately, theft of Boy Scout patches is nothing new. The sad truth is that as long as people have something that others do not have but want, the theft will continue. But you can help reduce it by employing the following ten strategies when you attend this year’s National Scout Jamboree. Here are some common-sense steps for keeping your items secure.

1. Have a container in your tent that you can lock. Keep your valuables locked up when not in use. Just take out the patches you’re going to trade that day and leave the rest locked up.
2. Be low-key. Don’t brag about the number of patches that you’ve brought or traded for. Likewise, don’t put out too many patches on your trading blanket—not just for security; if another Scout thinks you have a lot of patches, he might expect more for his patches in trade. The more stuff on your blanket the harder it is to keep an eye on things and the more you stand to lose if things are stolen.
3. Trade with only one Scout at a time. Ask Scouts to form a line if necessary. You’ll hear rumors of people who work in groups where some distract and others steal.

Image courtesy of melrosetroop68.org

4. If you’re trading on a blanket consider using notebooks with plastic pages. The plastic pages help keep the patches together until a swap is negotiated.
5. Leave patches that you do not want to trade at home. If a friend or relative gives you some older patches, you should probably keep them rather than trade them. If you do decide you want to trade them, see if you can get an idea of their value on eBay prior to the Jamboree.
6. Prior to the Jamboree, ask your Jamboree troop leadership to lay down the law on stealing. “Now with all the cell phone cameras around, there’s a good chance that misdeeds will be caught on film. Do you really want to risk being sent home, possibly with a criminal record, because of a few patches?” Report any theft you see.
7. Print out a one-page sheet with pictures of your patches – “My OA lodge flap, my council strip, and my council’s Jamboree patch(es); I will trade these one-for-one for ones I do not already have. Make me an offer.” Maybe laminate it so it lasts and doesn’t blow away. Maybe laminate a smaller version for your lanyard. Then you can keep your patches in your backpack/fanny pack where they are more secure and you can bring them out only for a trade.
8. Once you’ve traded for a patch you want to keep, put it away immediately. If you have a fanny pack, put the patches you want to trade that day in ziploc bags (maybe your OA flaps in one ziploc and your JSP’s in another) and put those bags and some empty bags in your fanny pack. When you trade for patches you want to keep, put them in the empty bags to keep them separate.
9. Make sure your name, Jambo troop #, and home address are on your backpack / fanny pack / patch notebooks. If you’re missing something, check Lost & Found. It might be lost and not stolen.
10. Understand that there are no must-have patches. History has shown over and over again that patches that seem so valuable now are much cheaper after the Jamboree, and they can be easily acquired via the Internet.