Blessed by the Boy Scouts

 


 

Yesterday I received an email congratulating me on the anniversary of my having received the Eagle Scout award - turns out, it was the 50th anniversary. I was a few months shy of my 14th birthday when I passed the board of review.

As a young boy, growing up without a Dad and in a house filled with females (4 sisters and our Mom), I desperately needed male influence. Boy Scouts proved to be a crucial part of my youth. I developed a lot of needed self-confidence through the programs. I was deeply influenced by good men, father-figures for me who sacrificed their personal and family time to serve, and showed how much they cared. Men like Carl Marvin, Edgar Dodd, and Joe Lynn Spencer made deep, life-changing impressions in my young life. It was my quest in my own adult years to return some of those blessings.

And not only that, but the love of hiking and camping, outdoor skills of all kinds, that were planted in my heart during those years have never left! Those youthful interests and hobbies have become life-long passions.

I #GiveThanks for the blessing in my life of the Boy Scouts of America, and for the men who helped #LightTheWorld as they served faithfully in the program.

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