Posted on 11/28/2010 2:13:18 PM PST by NYer
"On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country, to obey the scout law, to help other people at all times, and to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight."
These are the words of the Boy Scout oath. Recited at scout meetings across the nation, every week for the past 100 years, this is an important moment when boys aged 10 to 13 raise their right hands and promise to serve both God and country. I was a scout myself and believe that the Boy Scouts is the only place where young men can practice becoming adults.
The Boy Scouts of America teach independence, self-reliance, and teamwork -- all while having fun. If a young man chooses to do so, he can rise up through the ranks, along the way learning principles that he can apply throughout his life. He may not be good enough to play in a sport (beyond sitting on the bench), but as a scout he is part of a team, and he contributes to everyone's success.
The first time I brushed my teeth without being told to do so by my mother was at scout camp. I was eleven years old. The senior patrol leader was Richie Crocco, a big 16-year-old guy who shaved. Everyone knew you didn't mess with Richie. He woke the whole troop up at 6:30 a.m. to march us down to the latrine so we could wash up, brush our teeth, and comb our hair in time to return for morning flag raising 15 minutes later. Everybody went to latrine, no questions asked. When I saw Richie drag a kid out of his bunk and leave him in the middle of the campsite, I felt the fear of God.
God bless Richie Crocco. After six days, I had learned the routine, and when I returned home from camp, my mother was amazed at my new habits. She never had to tell me again to brush my teeth.
There aren't many places where good character is ingrained in a young man. In addition to the scout oath, which we said at every meeting, we also recited the scout law: "A scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent."
Once during a motivational talk to a crowd of about 250, I was asked, "What do you look for in a salesman?" Without realizing it, I started to say, "I look for a person who is trustworthy, loyal, helpful . . ." Some wise guy in the front row cracked, "What are you looking for? A Boy Scout?" I looked at him squarely and replied, "Why would you settle for anyone else to represent your company?"
We should all aspire to keep the promises made in the scout oath. Having salespeople who exemplify these qualities would bring any business owner peace of mind because those in sales are the face of the company. They are out in the field day after day representing the organization.
Another great thing happens in Boy Scouts. Before a youth advances in rank -- completing the qualifications to move up from Tenderfoot to Second Class, then First Class, Star, Life, and Eagle -- he has to sit down with the head of the troop committee and the scout master or assistant scout master and have what used to be called a Board of Review. (Today it's known as a Personal Growth and Development Conference, but I prefer "Board of Review" because it sounds less intimidating.) The benefit of this evaluation is that the boy is asked, "Since the last time you advanced, how have you lived up to the scout oath and all the principles in the scout law?" He actually has to reflect upon the promises he has made week after week as a scout and then evaluate whether he has lived up to those promises.
The demand of such self-examination at so young an age is rare in this culture. Nowadays, no one is told he has failed; no one is asked to look in the mirror and find himself wanting. Success in the Boy Scouts means that, at every step along the way to the rank of Eagle Scout, a young man has to answer the question, "Am I doing the job?"
Three cheers and congratulations to the Boy Scouts of America on 100 years of helping to raise our young men into adulthood. And thanks, too, to the countless good men who dedicate their time and resources to help train the future fathers and leaders of America.
APO?
I did when I got out of high school, and my dad served for 30 years...
I was a military brat at the time...:)
LOL, those glasses I had to wear my whole life (until I could buy my own) made it pretty darn easy to stay “morally straight”, at least when it came to the girls...:)
Cheltenham, MD...about a mile from Andrews AFB at NAVCOMMSTA Washington, DC.
Now, it is a Department of Homeland Security CounterTerrorism Facility.
Very cool. For Scouts to have a Freeper as an assistant Scoutmaster can only be a positive thing! I’ll bet you have a great troop...
He’s not the only one.
Sadly my troop has folded up and blown away. Just not enough kids to keep it running.
That, and the latest changes to the program up there did it in.
Sorry to hear that. I know that even back then, we spent a fair amount of time fundraising, and now...I can only imagine how much money and time it must take to run a troop.
Not to mention changes to the program that make it even harder.
The boys were great. The higher ups had all these progressive ideas.
The board actually voted to leave the last year I worked with them, we had 100 percent support from the families and from the kids.
The consequences meant that we were severed from the rest of the pipeline, and we knew it meant that when the last were finished, that was it for the program.
But they did have a blast that last year. So I still think it was worth it. The choice wasn’t whether it would live or die, but how you would go out.
I was a Scout for 5 years. I gained a lot from the experience too even if things didn’t end well.
Bears repeating, my FRiend...bears repeating. Sounds like you can look in the mirror every day...
Eh, that year was the most epic scouting year we ever had. So I have no regrets.
The entire city now only has one troop, and even that troop has maybe 5 kids. They used to have close to a thousand kids back in my day, and I’m not that old. It was a shocker. I know all the leaders, who were old friends of mine, but they chose to tow the line.
They asked me if I was interested in taking up the stick again, and I asked them about the regulations. They apparently have turned the dial up to 11.
Their argument is that “kids have more options than they did”. Blind as blind can be. Sure, there are fewer kids now, but the demand is still there.
We weren’t angels or model kids. But we got a gift from scouting that might have been invisible to us at the time, but I bet most, like me, see it now.
It is the gift of knowing how to accomplish things. Whether it is building a fire in the rain, teaming up with a bunch of guys to design a travois to carry all your gear several miles to the campsite, or doing a mile swim, you learned that you COULD accomplish something if you tried and gave it your best shot.
You didn’t always succeed. When we made our travois, it was a darned disaster. The wood was too heavy and already somewhat rotted, and as we dragged, over time, it just wore down and disintegrated. But we tried...it was a requirement for a jamboree we went to, and we didn’t know in advance what the challenge was going to be. So, we had to put our heads together, think of the best way to do it, and execute it. In this case we failed. But I know for a fact that if I were in a position today to have to do something like that, I could do it successfully because I failed at it once before, using my own ideas and those of others as part of a team.
(Interestingly, I saw a television program on the selection process for special forces training, and they had them do the same kind of thing, though much more advanced and a LOT harder. They gave them a full 55 gallon drum, and their team objective was to use the tools given to design (as a team) a way to transport that drum to the destination fifteen miles away in a specified time frame...their task was a LOT harder than ours, but the concept was similar. We only had to go a few miles, maybe two or three)
Proud Mom of two Eagle Scouts. The best thing I ever did for them was support them in Scouts. Loved being part of watching them and the other boys in the Troop grow into fine young men with their heads on straight.
I attended my first Eagle Scout Court of Honor yesterday. I have two boys in Scouts - one is a Wolf and the other a second year Webelo. They assisted in the ceremony with the honor guard as well as lighting of candles during the Spirit of Scouting Ceremony. I was honored that we were invited and that my boys were asked to participate. Scouting has been a wonderful asset to our family.
There always seems to be more options for succeeding generations, but I do believe that the basics don't change. Self-reliance is an option that will never go out of style.
Congratulations to you… when you look at the list of successful men who were Eagle Scouts, you have to believe that it is a valuable contribution to the growth of your son.
My oldest has wanted Eagle ever since he started Scouting in first grade. Yesterday’s ceremony affirmed his determination. My husband and I both do all we can to support our boys in Scouts. Congratulations on raising two fine men!
That’s my thought as well.
But you have to experiment and stick with the experiment, no matter what happens. That’s after all the scientific method. ;)
It couldn’t be that the wise ones had something *right*.
I know troops that will make your son an Eagle in 30 months. They have merit badge workshops each month where every boy earns the same badge as a group activity. They have 14 year old Eagles serving as Assistant Patrol Leaders because they are so top-heavy.
A troop like yours that matures a boy as he rises in rank is a good troop. In the Eagle Factories, a boy that makes Eagle at age 17 is rare because the 17 year olds have been Eagles for a long time.
If you talk to the Scoutmasters of these troops, they are very proud of “their” accomplishment but it is pretty obvious that Eagle is just a participation trophy to these guys, and the parents are happy because to them, Eagle is just another ticket to be punched on the way to declaring their son’s well-ordered childhood a success.
Amen......
Eagle factories produce inferior products. There is little quality control that can stand the wrath of an irate pushy mother
The resume is all that matters, not the quality of the entries
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