Made 2nd class!

[Golfgar4]

Give your son a large WELL DONE from a retired Scoutmaster. And I'll underscore what Tommu56 said. My son also quit when he was preparing for his Eagle project. No amount of talking (crying, yelling, pleading, threatening, etc., etc.) had an effect. The last thing I recall saying to him was that one day, he would tell me how much he regretted his decision not to finish. Well, that day came at his graduation from Navy basic training. It's amazing what a little involvement with the military will do to a young man's attitude about things, isn't it?

Congratulations to you too. Those boys accomplish a great deal by themselves, but the vast majority is because of the strong support of the parents.

I hope we read about his eagle award in another few years! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

And Rob - Get as active as you can with the Scout Troop that your son joins. Trust me, you'll love every minute of it and before you know it, it's over.

 

[tommu56]

I second the envolvement there wasnt any thing like hiking across MT phillips and we were doing "thornes and roses and buds" and i said that i wanted to bring my granddaughter (even though she wasnt born yet) back when she is 14, when it was my sons turn he said i wasnt aloud to come back with out him.

tom

 

[EddieWalker]

We used to do quite a few campouts. Some we'd backpack in a few miles, others we'd just set up tents by the parking area. After camp was set, we'd always have some time to run around and explore the countryside before it was time for fires and cooking.

One of the funnest things I remember doing was a game we played while hiking the trails. On guy would be up front with one of the adults. He'd be walking along, than stop. After counting to ten out loud, he'd turn around and see who was still visable. All of us following him would jump in the bushes and hide when he stoped. I don't know the name of this game, but it was like hide and seek, except the guy doing the seeking couldn't move, just stop, count and turn around. If he didn't spot anybody, then he' continue down the trail.

Summer camp was another thing that I really enjoyed. It was the best way to get allot of merit badges really fast, but just a great experience overall. I swam a mile, built rope brides, spent the night living off the land, started fires without matches etc....

If you can, make sure to send the troop to camp!!!!

Eddie

 

[Bird]

Eddie, one of the "games" we had the most fun with was making pancakes. We had 3 guys to a team; one had to get a campfire going, one had to mix up pancake batter, and one handled the skillet. At the edge of the camp area there was a rope stretched between two trees about waist high with the "judges" sitting behind the rope. When the scout with the skillet thought his pancake was cooked on one side, he ran to that rope, showed it to the judges by sticking it under the rope, then had to toss it in the air to turn it and catch it back on his side of the rope. Of course if he tossed it a full 360 and it landed back with the cooked side down, he could try again. But if he missed catching it, he had to go back to the campfire and start over with another one. Of course it was a timed event starting when the judges allowed everyone to strike a match to light their fires.

 

[Golfgar4]

My troop always enjoyed cooking related activities (thank goodness! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif). One of our favorites was tin can cooking. Each scout would collect different sized tin cans for weeks before the campout. Once we got camp set up, they begin creating their tin can cooking utensils. Everything they used for cooking had to be made from a tin can, including the frying pans/skillets they cooked with. It was amazing to watch these kids create ovens, fry pans, spatulas, and other common cooking tools out of tin cans.

One of my favorite memories was when we were cooking breakfast one morning. I had found a particularly large tin can somewhere, which was large enough for me to cook 2 eggs, hash browns and bacon all at the same time. I was standing watching what was going on and at the same time keeping an eye on my meal, when a scout next to me was reaching over to move his fry pan. While reaching over, he knocked my entire breakfast in to the camp fire! Without blinking an eye, I reached over and grabbed his fry pan, which had 3 pancakes on it. When he asked me what I was doing, I reminded him that if he was going to ruin anybody's breakfast, it at least shouldn't be the Scoutmaster's! He quickly got the idea and said no more. I do recall that he was one of the first one's finished making his lunch later that day! /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[bmac]

Hi, Eddie.

<font color="blue"> I'm an Eagle Scout myself.
</font>

Now, that doesn't surprise me one bit.

<font color="blue"> I was just about there when I started high school and wanted to quit to play sports and chase girls. </font>

This me reminds me of a saying my son's scoutmaster has. He says the boys really need to get their Eagle requirements done before high school because after that, they get overcome with "fumes". Gas fumes amd perfumes. Made me laugh.

I'm disappointed that my son lost interest in scouting fairly early. He went through Cun Scouts and Weblos. But lost his interest in scouts after he made 2nd Class and quit going to meetings.

I believe those who have earned thier Eagle will have opportunities become available that others will not. I honestly think that, given 2 otherwise equally qualified candidates for a job or whatever, the guy with the Eagle on his resume will be selected almost everytime. I have no data to back that up (but the data may be out there to prove my hypothesis). Goal setting, perserverence, leadership skills, etc are characteristics of the Eagle scout recipients. My hat goes off to you and the other Eagle Scouts on this forum.

 

[EddieWalker]

bmac,

Thanks for the kind words.

I was told all along the exact same thing about how it would help me being an Eagle Scout down the road and even in getting a job.

Not to disagree, but that has never happened. What has happened is when I meet a client or just BS'ing with somebody and scouting comes up, I've made connections and had oportunities arrise from it. Sort of like a brotherhood or fraternity type of thing.

The other thing that I realized years later was it set a patter of finishing things. Neither of my brothers reached Eagle, and both quite at it. They have a habbit of doing the same thing now with their lives when they start something. Make an excuse and quit.

The other thing is not so much being an Eagle Scout, but what Scouting in general tought me, was to just do things. Only those of us in the Boy Scouts went camping and backpacking. We learned winter survival and all the skills they tought us. I still do those exact things today. None of those guys learned these things, they never did these things, and most of them still consider the local bar the highlight of their lives.

I have no doubt that if I hadn't have been in scouting, I could have very easily ended up like those around me. Who knows, it's just one of those periods of life that you make a turn. Go one direction and see what happen, or go the other and end up somewhere else, totally unexpected.

Eddie

 

[bmac]

<font color="blue"> Not to disagree, but that has never happened. </font>

Yet, maybe. But you are still a young man. Could still happen. However, in your case, it may be a little different. I don't know how many "jobs" you've applied for in the past. I only know you as an independent contractor / builder. Your eagle status may not readily translate into contracts. I don't know.



<font color="blue"> I've made connections and had oportunities arrise from it. </font>

So, maybe I should have used the word "opportunities" (I'll have to go back and see exactly what wording I used). Those opportunities may not include a direct link to employment. But, this fraternity relationship is something that can be built upon that may someday translate into income-generating opportunities.

<font color="blue"> The other thing that I realized years later was it set a patter of finishing things. </font>

I think that is a characteristic of someone I would want to hire. A self-motivator who gets the job done. We see this work ethic with every project you share with us on TBN. Now, your Eagle scout experience didn't make you the kind of guy you are. Rather, it is just a symbol of the kind of guy you are. It shows others what you are made of. I think it is a radio personality who used (uses) a term (that I'll try to spell) - stick-to-it-iveness. Staying with the task through completion.

The outdoor stuff (camping, etc) I think is more important than just being able to get along in the woods. It teaches folks how to make do with whatever resources are available and how to improvise when resources are lacking. These skills can be utilized during recreational activities when thigs go sour (hunting, camping, skiing, etc.) but also during times of natural disasters such as hurricanes. I also think that these activities teach more than just survival skills. I think they help develop a mindset of looking for solutions when problems arise instead of just giving up when things don't go as planned. We have watched you do this with your projects. You are not defeated when problems arise. So, I think scouting uses fun activities like camping to teach life /survival skills and to develop a mentality that may be used in different situations.

I think the moral foundation that is established with scouting is also important. I've gathered from your many posts that you are a guy that, when faced with ethical dilemas, would chose to do the "right thing". My guess is that this moral foundation was established by your parents and reinforced by scouting. Again, doesn't mean that one has to have attained the rank of Eagle to possess these qualities, but I think the odds are better with an Eagle scout than with others. Just a hunch on my part.

I touched on leadership skills that are developed in scouting. Teamwork is another skill that is developed with the scout experience. As you can see, despite my failures to achieve the Eagle rank and my son's lack of interest in scouting, I am a big proponent of the scouting experience. And, I think you have probably benefited more from your experience than you might know or admit. And while you may not know of any doors that were opened because of your scouting achievements, maybe somw were (directly or indirectly) or will be.

<font color="blue"> I have no doubt that if I hadn't have been in scouting, I could have very easily ended up like those around me. Who knows, it's just one of those periods of life that you make a turn. </font>

I think this is huge. Boys having the proper role models that scouting provides, activities to keep their minds and bodies occupied with wholesome activities is a benefit of scouting that I think is often undervalued. You could very well have taken a completely different track in life were it not for scouting. We all could have.

Again, despite your disagreement with me about the opportunities that can become available to someone who has earned the Eagle rank, I will hold on to my belief that it can and does help many indivuals attain their goals later in life. Maybe not always, but often. I know I look at Eagle scouts differently than I do others. I make assumptions (maybe incorrectly on occassion) that I am dealing with a high quality person, someone I can trust, someone who will get the job done, etc. And, I find it interesting that, although we have never met and have only occassionally conversed somewhat anonomously on an internet forum, I had these thoughts about you before I ever knew you were an Eagle scout. Had I known you were an Eagle scout from day one, then your achievements and quality character would have been expected. Finding out now just reinforces the conclusions I have made about you over time.

I hope this long post doesn't come across as too sappy. I just don't want you to undervalue your achievements.