· Separate friends – it is critical that as you set up different family units you do everything you can to separate close friends; as much as they would like to be together, the problem that will arise is that they have a difficult if not impossible time bonding with the other members of the family and one of the main goals of Pioneer Trek should be to help foster unity among Ward and Stake members, rather than simply reinforcing existing friendships
· Each family member gets a new nickname – some Stakes don’t do this but we found that it was very helpful and got things off to a good start; the nickname should be something positive or fun and you should let the individual come up with their own name if they can rather than let others assign the name; if the individual can’t come up with something then it is ok for others to suggest something positive or fun
· Each family should get its own name – the family will bond better if it has its own name, even if it is just something fun like the “Clampetts” – also you might want to consider letting each family create their own banner and letting each person write their nickname and/or real name on the banner
· Candy, food and electronics – I can’t caution you enough what a disaster these things can be, particularly for the youth who already have a tendency to be rebellious or outcasts; you should schedule a very well-organized shake-down at the very beginning of the trek and train the ma’s and pa’s on how to go through everything the kids have, including each item of clothing and each bag, and place any “contraband” in a separate bag assigned to each family to be returned at the end of the trek
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