Letters
Honoring President Ford
I would like to commend the Gerald R. Ford Council for doing a great job on President Ford’s funeral (“Eagle Scouts Welcome Gerald Ford Home,” Scouting, March-April 2007).
Our troop in Norton Shores, Mich., sent six Eagle Scouts to the funeral, and they felt very proud to be there.
Unfortunately, I was not able to be among those Eagle Scouts at the funeral. However, the Ford family asked those who could not attend to wear their Scout uniform or something representing Scouting on their regular clothes. So for two days I wore my National Eagle Scout Association pin on my work uniform (I’m a correction officer for the Michigan Department of Correction).
Many of my fellow officers inquired about the pin, and I explained why I was wearing it and also what it meant to be an Eagle Scout.
I’m also a merit badge counselor for the Citizenship badges, and I plan to take some Scouts to the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, so they can see what the president did for our great nation and can also honor a great Eagle Scout.
David Gregoire
Committee Member, Troop 1053
Muskegon, Mich.
The March-April article is available at www.scoutingmagazine.org/issues/0703/a-ford.html. Also included are exclusive video clips of remarks made about Scouting by President Ford at the 1997 dedication of the Gerald R. Ford Council service center and at a ceremony honoring him on his 90th birthday in 2003.
NAYLE article was impressive
I want to express my appreciation for the March-April article on the National Advanced Youth Leadership Experience (NAYLE) training at Philmont Scout Ranch.
As a member of the task force that wrote the syllabus and who also served as an assistant Scoutmaster during the course, I am not an unbiased observer.
However, I was very impressed by the ability of the article’s author—Scouting magazine executive editor Scott Daniels—to capture what was ultimately important about the course. He managed to communicate, from all of the experiences he observed, how the course transcended its component pieces and served to help Scouts to develop into servant leaders.
Ken King
St. Charles, Ill
Readers can find the article, “Scouts ‘NAYLE’ the Qualities of Leadership,” at www.scoutingmagazine.org/issues/0703/a-scou.html. Also, a NAYLE fact sheet plus information about the 2007 program at Philmont is available at www.scouting.org/boyscouts/nayle/index.html.
Knowledge of flag etiquette lacking
I have noticed in Scouting an ignorance of basic U.S. flag etiquette. For example, you see a Scout with the U.S. flag marching to the left of the unit flag instead of the right, or a color guard posting the colors before the Pledge of Allegiance is recited.
When asked about this, some leaders will say “I didn’t know [the regulations],” or “that’s how I was taught,” or “the Scouts are too young to understand the rules.”
Is it possible for Scouting magazine or Boys’ Life to carry some features on basic flag etiquette?
Billy G. Newkirk Jr.
Committee Chairman, Troop 262
Louisville, Ky.
“Displaying and Caring for the Flag of the United States of America,” at www.scouting.org/media/flag/index.html, includes basic flag etiquette. These rules are adapted from the BSA book Your Flag (BSA No. 33188A), available at your local Scout council service center, Scout shops, or from www.scoutstuff.org.
Knowledge of flag etiquette is also required for Tiger Cub, Cub Scout, Webelos Scout, and Boy Scout advancement. Information for passing the requirements is available in each program’s respective handbook. Also, instructional videos for Tenderfoot Requirement 6 (flag display and handling) and Second Class Requirement 3 (ceremonies) can be downloaded from www.scouting.org/boyscouts/rankvideo/index.html.
Quite a ‘paycheck’
My stepson, Jeremy Carlile, is an Eagle Scout, a Brotherhood member of the Order of the Arrow, a sergeant in the U.S. Army Reserves, and is serving his second tour of duty in Iraq.
When the compound where he works came under attack from mortar fire, a round landed in the compound and a soldier was severely injured by flying shrapnel.
Jeremy saw what had happened, ran to his duty section, grabbed his combat first-responder bag, and went to the soldier’s side to render first aid.
By the time the medics arrived to take over, Jeremy had stopped the bleeding, started an IV, and was treating the soldier for shock.
The medics were amazed, as was his first sergeant. Jeremy later told his mom and me on the phone that he had never in his life been so happy to have had Boy Scout first-aid training.
He says the BSA training gave him the impetus to do something, and the Army first-responder training gave him the tools.
Wow! Talk about a mom’s, a dad’s, and a Scoutmaster’s “paycheck.”
Paul Edwards
Order of the Arrow Chapter Adviser
Kent, Wash.
(Editor’s note: The above originally appeared in the Totem E-Newsletter of the Chief Seattle Council, Seattle, Wash.)
Parents should read column
The March-April 2007 Family Talk column, “Manners Do Matter,” was right on target.
On numerous occasions I have witnessed boys eating in camp dining halls who, when finished with their meals, leave the table in a mess, behavior due basically to poor manners.
I hope more parents will see and read the column—and take its advice seriously.
Marvin Sands
Independence, Mo.
Proud of an Eagle Scout
When my husband and I travel by air, we put “I’m Proud of My Eagle Scouts” bumper stickers on our luggage to make them easier to identify. (Our four sons, and my husband as well, are Eagle Scouts.)
Not only does this make our luggage easier to spot, but we meet many other Scouters when they notice the stickers.
Ginny English
Benton, Pa.
“I’m Proud of My Eagle Scout” (No. D02549) and “I’m Proud of My Eagle Scouts” (No. D32222) bumper stickers are available for purchase at your local Scout council service center, Scout shops, or at www.scoutstuff.org.
May - June 2007 Table of Contents
Copyright © 2007 by the Boy Scouts of America. All rights thereunder reserved; anything appearing in Scouting magazine or on its Web site may not be reprinted either wholly or in part without written permission. Because of freedom given authors, opinions may not reflect official concurrence.