Fall 2012 - National Eagle Scout Association

www.NESA.org
FALL 2012
|
Vol. 38, No. 3
Homes
for theBrave
How One Eagle Scout Has
Reimagined the Housing
Needs of Wounded Warriors
Also In This Issue
Profile: An Athlete’s Incredible Heart, Page 5
Revealing the Almost-First Eagle, Page 10
Lonnie Poole: Driven to Give, Page 14
News From the Trailhead
From the President
From the Director
In May, your National Eagle Scout Association helped make the
BSA’s National Annual Meeting in Orlando, Fla., one for the record
books. So much so, many attendees acclaimed the NESAsponsored Americanism Breakfast as the best in recent memory.
Mike Rowe, host of Discovery Channel’s Dirty Jobs, served as
keynote speaker for the event. And after receiving the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from National President Wayne Perry
and Chief Scout Executive Robert Mazzuca, Rowe mesmerized the
crowd with stories about the positive impact Scouting had on him
and his family. His parents, John and Peggy Rowe, as well as his
brother and sister-in-law, Scott and Margie Rowe, were present and
listened as the star related the time Scott, a Star Scout, saved a
drowning person’s life.
Another highlight: We unveiled the new Eagle Scout portrait, 100
Years of Eagle Scouts by Joseph Csatari. Purchase your own giclée
or print and watch a video on the making of the artwork at NESA.org.
As I mentioned in my last column, in 2011 NESA launched a
search for the first Eagle Scout Argonaut to join an exciting
expedition to the Black Sea with the crew of oceanographer Dr.
Robert Ballard during the summer of 2012. Finalists were required
to shoot a video in which they tell why they should be selected as
the Argonaut. NESA recognized this winner, Eagle Scout Alex
Overman of Hamilton, Va., during the Americanism Breakfast. Read
journal entries from Alex, as well as the group of argonauts he
traveled with, at bit.ly/NESAargonaut.
What’s next? The NESA affinity group task force—under the
leadership of NESA Committee member Marshall Hollis—will
announce an affinity group partnership with the California
Professional Firefighters. Lou Paulson, president of the organization, helped create an opportunity for Eagle Scout firefighters to
reconnect with Scouting. Under way since last year, this effort will
provide a template for other affinity groups to establish a mutually
beneficial relationship with NESA and Scouting. If you have an
interest in establishing an affinity group, please reach out to NESA
via e-mail at nesa@scouting.org.
The National Order of the Arrow Conference (NOAC) held every
three years, took place July 29 through Aug. 4 on the campus of
Michigan State University in Lansing, Mich. And because Aug. 1
was the 100th anniversary of the Eagle Scout award, it was a
perfect time to celebrate among thousands of present and future
Eagle Scouts.
At the NESA-sponsored show on Aug. 1—drawing 7,000
attendees—OA National Vice Chief Preston Marquis interviewed a
panel of five young Eagle Scouts. Among the five were Olympic gold
medalist Steven Holcomb, who led America’s four-man bobsled
team to gold in the 2010 Winter Olympics; brothers Drew and Derek
Konzelman, who won NBC’s reality show Escape Routes earlier this
year; Clay Courts, board member of the world-famous Nantahala
Outdoor Center; and Buey Tut, who journeyed to America as a
refugee at age 11 and whose nonprofit organization digs wells in his
homeland, South Sudan. All of these young Eagle Scouts said very
positive things about what being an Eagle Scout has meant to them.
On Thursday night, NESA held an outdoor event featuring
notable Eagle Scouts including the Konzelmans, Tut, explorer Dr.
Michael Manyak, who specializes in expedition medicine, and
author Alvin Townley (Legacy of Honor and Spirit of Adventure). If
any young Eagle Scouts came to NOAC having never heard of
NESA, they certainly knew about it when they left.
More than 800 people attended the final NESA-sponsored
dinner on Friday night. Keynote speakers included Townley and Dr.
Manyak, who credits Scouting with giving him his direction in life.
That evening, I challenged the OA to continue its partnership with
NESA as we begin a new focus on mentoring Scouts and helping
boys become Eagle Scouts. Presently, just 4 percent of Boy Scouts
earn Eagle. Therefore, I asked the OA to help us increase that
number to 8 percent over the next few years. In fact, I asked, “Why
not 50 percent?”
Looking forward, don’t forget: The 2013 NESA scholarship season
began on Oct. 1; applications are available only on NESA.org.
Submissions must be postmarked no later than Dec. 31, 2012.
From the Eagle Trail,
Yours in Scouting,
Glenn A. Adams
President
2 | Eagle Scout Magazine
FALL 2012
C. William Steele
Director
Eagle Scout Magazine
ISSN 0890-4995
BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
President of the United States Barack Obama,
Honorary President of the Boy Scouts of America
Wayne Perry, National President
Tico Perez, National Commissioner
Wayne Brock, Chief Scout Executive
NATIONAL EAGLE SCOUT ASSOCIATION
Glenn A. Adams, President
C. William “Bill” Steele, Director
NESA Committee:
Rick Bragga, Dr. David Briscoe, Clark W. Fetridge,
Jonathan Hillis, Marshall Hollis, Dr. Ken King, Michael
Manyak, M.D., Todd R. Plotner, Joseph Porter, John Rehm,
Congressman Pete Sessions, Frank Tsuru
Regents consist of more than 600 life members of
NESA who also are recipients of the Distinguished
Eagle Scout Award.
EAGLE Scout Magazine
J. Warren Young
Publisher
J. D. Owen
Editor in Chief
Magazine Division
John R. Clark
Managing Editor
Bryan Wendell
Senior Editor
Gretchen Sparling
Associate Editor
Scott Feaster
Design Director
Elizabeth Hardaway
Morgan
Senior Art Director
W. Garth Dowling
Director of Photography
Edna J. Lemons
Photo Editor
Bryan Wursten
Online Editor
Linda Lawrence
Assistant to the
Managing Editor
Bob Wiemers
Operations Director
Lenore Bonno
Print Production
Control Specialist
Lisa Hott
Advertising
Production Manager
Marcie Rodriguez
Imaging Artist
John W. Ingram
Circulation Director
Judy Bramlett
Customer Relations
Manager
Special Contributors
C. William “Bill” Steele
Jeff Laughlin
Keith Courson
Lois Albertus
Teresa Brown
Address all correspondence to NESA, S322
Boy Scouts of America, 1325 West Walnut Hill Lane,
P.O. Box 152079, Irving, TX 75015-2079
www.NESA.org, eaglescoutmag@scouting.org
04 Have You Heard?
What do the National Key 3 have in common? They’re all Eagles.
Learn more about the newest members, Chief Scout Executive
Wayne Brock and National President Wayne Perry. Plus, you’ll
be inspired by one Eagle’s success at helping a friend with
cerebral palsy cross the finish line of several triathlons.
06 Homes for the Brave
Casey Nolan, a real estate executive, helped construct two
specially designed homes for wounded active-duty soldiers
living at Fort Belvoir, Va. Learn more about the Wounded
Warrior Home Project and the planning behind these impressive structures that help soldiers recover and thrive.
10 A Historic ‘Technicality’
Who is Roy Young? This article reveals how Young was on track
to claim his spot as the first Eagle Scout—until a bureaucratic
blunder left him on the sidelines of history. After the error, his
Scouting journey was far from over.
12 Two for the Road
Combining hobbies with philanthropy is a way of life for Lonnie
C. Poole Jr., an Eagle Scout and volunteer who does more than
simply raise money for Scouting. Read more about how Poole
merged his love for restoring vintage cars with his passion for
giving back to the movement.
Circulation this issue: 125,000
NESA accepts all articles from members for submission, but
because of space limitations and dated material, we are not
always able to use all materials. We cannot return articles or photographs submitted for consideration. For detailed submission
guidelines, go to www.nesa.org. Please send address changes to
eaglechanges@netbsa.org. Include your name, new and old
addresses, birth date, and the number printed above your name
on the address label.
FALL 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 3
ROGER MORGAN/bsa file
Collecting the Whole Set
A New Key for the Front Office
Thirty years after becoming a district Scout executive, Eagle Scout
Wayne Brock (above, right) has become the 12th Chief Scout
Executive in the BSA’s history. Previously serving as deputy Chief
Scout Executive and chief operating officer, Brock took over for
Robert Mazzuca at the end of his five-year term on Sept. 1.
“I am honored,” Brock said. “We will build upon the great vision
and strategic direction put forth by Bob Mazzuca to strengthen our
organization as we continue to serve our mission, instilling the
values of character and integrity in America’s youth.”
Brock learned these values as a Scout growing up in North
Carolina. After becoming a professional Scouter in New Bern, N.C.,
he then served on staff in Knoxville, Tenn.; as Scout executive in
Athens, Ga.; as area director; as Scout executive in Orlando, Fla.; as
Southern Region director; and as assistant Chief Scout Executive.
Also new to the BSA’s top leadership team is Seattle Mariners
co-owner and Eagle Scout Wayne Perry (above, center), who
became the BSA’s 34th president (the organization’s top volunteer
post). Perry began his adult tenure as a Cubmaster with Pack 601
in Bellevue, Wash., and has filled a variety of positions since then.
The pair join National Commissioner Tico Perez, the top volunteer
in charge of program quality, to form the BSA’s National Key 3. The
trio make up the highest level of leadership at the national level. As
with the previous Key 3, all three members are Eagle Scouts.
4 | Eagle Scout Magazine
FALL 2012
For most Scouts, earning the Eagle Scout Award is a crowning
achievement. Not for Shane Hughes. After becoming an Eagle
Scout in November 2010, the Memphis-area Scout went on to
earn the Venturing Silver Award in June 2011 and the Sea Scout
Quartermaster Award in February of this year. Four months later,
he received all three awards—the highest awards in Boy
Scouting, Venturing, and Sea Scouting—at a special court of
honor/bridge of honor ceremony. It was the first such triple
ceremony in the Chickasaw Area Council’s 96-year history.
Badges are just part of Shane’s Scouting story, though. He
attended the 2007 World Scout Jamboree, the 2009 National
Order of the Arrow Conference, and the 2010 National Scout
Jamboree. He’s served on staff at
National Youth Leadership
Training. And he’s a Vigil Honor
member of the Order of the
Arrow and vice chief of
administration for the
Ahoalan-Nachpikin Lodge.
A sophomore at Southwest
Community College, he plans a
career in biomedical engineering.
He works at the Memphis Scout
Shop, where he can easily
answer customers’
questions about
badges—seeing
as he’s earned
most of them.
file
Eagle Scout Pro
NESA Committee Spotlight
Laurel Highlands Council, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Spencer Zimmer
man
GIlbert, ARiz.
Claim to Fame (So Far): This spring, Spencer Zimmerman
received the American Spirit Award from the Congressional
Medal of Honor Foundation. The award is presented each year to
someone who “demonstrated extraordinary leadership and
skill, the courage of their convictions, and a commitment to high
standards of excellence in a challenging situation.”
How He Earned the Award: As a 13-year-old Scout in 2010,
Spencer competed in a triathlon with his friend, Dayton
Hayward, who has cerebral palsy and needs a wheelchair to
get around. Spencer swam 500 meters, pedaled 12 miles, and
ran 3.2 miles, pushing or pulling Dayton every stroke, pedal,
and step of the way. Despite the extra burden—which was
really no burden to Spencer—the pair finished 82nd out of
more than 400 competitors and placed first in the relay
division. “It was really cool for Dayton and I to look up the times
and figure that out,” he says. “That was really exciting.”
Being Prepared: Although Spencer competed in at least 10
triathlons before, he wasn’t sure how well he and Dayton would
do. So he practiced with his 7-year-old twin siblings, pulling
them in a boat as he swam around Saguaro Lake (near Phoenix).
Being Resourceful: For the swim portion of the triathlon,
Dayton rode in a two-man lifeboat. For the bike portion, he rode
in a bike trailer that his dad, Wes Hayward, modified so Spencer
could quickly convert it into a jogging stroller.
Encore, Encore: Spencer and Dayton have now competed in
two more triathlons. When he turns 18, Spencer hopes to
compete in his first Ironman triathlon in New Zealand.
A Hero Among Heroes: Spencer received the American Spirit
Award at Arlington National Cemetery along with this year’s
recipients of the Citizen Service Before Self Honors.
Future Plans: In addition to triathlon, Spencer has high goals
for his career. “I’d really like to get into the medical field,” he
says. “I’ve been taking classes to be a heart surgeon.”
History and Organization
For more than six decades, the Pittsburgh council has held an Eagle Scout
recognition dinner that matches new Eagle Scouts with informal mentors.
Last year, one of those mentors, Joe Salvucci, the CEO of Peak Technical
Staffing, approached Scout Executive Mike Surbaugh to find out what else
the council was doing to organize and cultivate Eagle Scout alumni.
When he learned that the council didn’t have a formal Eagle alumni
engagement strategy, Salvucci volunteered to head the council’s NESA
committee, dubbed NESA Pittsburgh. Today, about 100 Eagle Scouts are
active, more than a third of whom had not been involved in the council before.
Mission
The committee is charged with promoting Scouting in southwestern
Pennsylvania and helping the council create more Eagle Scouts. The pitch,
according to staff advisor Matt Mallin, is simple: “Wouldn’t southwestern
Pennsylvania be a better place if there were another 2,000 to 3,000 Eagle
Scouts walking the streets?”
To accomplish that goal, the group has become involved with a
councilwide effort to build a Cub World facility at Heritage Reservation in
Farmington, Pa. “Eagle Scouts like to accomplish things for the community,” Salvucci says. The committee also offers five or six small service
opportunities with low barriers of entry throughout the year. Last spring, for
example, about 20 Eagle Scouts built fishing piers.
The Patrol Method
To reach more Eagle Scouts, the committee has recruited “patrol leaders”
for each age range—twentysomethings, thirtysomethings, etc. These
patrol leaders reach out by phone to about 2,900 men identified in recent
nationwide Eagle Scout searches commissioned by NESA. “In organizing
our membership outreach by age ranges, we hope to draw a broad
spectrum of members across generations,” says Eric Newman, the group’s
communications officer.
Membership Benefits
Besides serving the council, the committee wants to serve Eagle Scouts.
“In addition to asking our region’s Eagle Scouts to contribute their time,
talent, and treasure to the organization,” Newman says, “we want to add
value to their experience and give something back to them.” Benefits
include a job board on the NESA Pittsburgh Web site, a long-term career
mentoring program, and a series of industry-specific networking events.
Future plans include a directory of Eagle-owned or Eagle-run businesses in
the area with accessibility to the public.
On the Web
Learn more at nesa-pgh.org or bit.ly/pittsburghNESA.
FALL 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 5
Clark Realty Capital LLC
HomeS
FOR the
Brave
How one Eagle Scout is
reimagining the housing needs
of wounded warriors.
By Mark Ray
6 | Eagle Scout Magazine
Fall 2012
A
s of Memorial Day 2012, 48,253 U.S. service members
had been injured in America’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. And their battles aren’t over. Unlike their fallen
comrades—6,467 of them—these wounded warriors must
learn to walk again on prosthetic legs, live with traumatic brain
injury (TBI), learn to overcome hidden injuries such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or find jobs that don’t rely on
physical ability.
Perhaps surprisingly, many of them will find new jobs in the
military. Of the injured soldiers assigned to the Army’s 29
warrior transition units, more than half will return to military
service. Helping some of them in their return to duty is Eagle
Scout Casey Nolan, the driving force behind the Wounded
Warrior Home Project that is creating cutting-edge accessible
housing at Fort Belvoir, Va.
Nolan’s project has received favorable coverage from Time
magazine, The Washington Post, NPR, and a score of trade
publications. But he didn’t start out thinking about building
accessible housing for wounded warriors. Instead, Nolan
started with a more mundane—and perhaps more overwhelming—task: overhauling the D.C.-area Army base’s 2,100
single-family homes.
Beyond Grab Bars
As part of the military’s program to privatize base housing, Clark Realty
Capital LLC, where Nolan works, entered a 50-year partnership with the
Army to manage housing at Fort Belvoir. This housing included
everything from trailers to poorly maintained two-bedroom homes—90
percent of it needed to be replaced or extensively renovated. Only 35
or so homes were accessible, and even those offered little more than
basic adherence to Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards.
In 2003, the company went to work, overhauling whole neighborhoods and integrating accessible housing in each of them. Nolan
believed the new homes were a dramatic improvement. But then he
started talking to residents (not only wounded warriors, but also
spouses and children with disabilities). “You’d hear, ‘This is nice, but
here are all the things that don’t work for me,’” he says.
The main problem, he discovered, is that accessibility standards
focus on physical disabilities. Wider hallways and grab bars in the
bathroom are great, but they don’t address the range of challenges
wounded warriors face, including specific problems such as having
enough electrical outlets to recharge prosthetic limbs. “They may have
a dozen prosthetic limbs for different needs and uses. You walk in their
house, and they’ve got a power strip in the living room with four legs
plugged in,” Nolan says. “If you’re a 10-year-old and you have your
buddies come over to play Xbox, it’s just not the best environment.”
Moreover, not all wounds are physical. “There’s a lot of people that
are walking on two feet who may have been affected by something
very traumatic that happened in Iraq or Afghanistan. They need more
natural light in the house. They need to be able to see from one room
to another. You hear stories about people sleeping in closets because
they don’t feel safe,” Nolan says.
Nolan didn’t have to hear many of those stories before he realized
that Clark Realty needed to do more than make incremental changes.
And so the Wounded Warrior Home Project was born.
Housing Reimagined
In May 2010, Nolan hired IDEO, a global design and innovation firm, to
interview and observe 10 civilians and 20 soldiers with a variety of
injuries, meet with their loved ones, and get input from disabilities
experts and advocates. Out of that process came a better under-
The Seven Dualities
IDEO, the design firm behind these houses, identified seven
contrasts that affect service members with disabilities:
Well Defined, Undefined Spaces: People need well-defined
rooms with open-ended uses.
Mobile Roots: Service members live nomadic lives but need to
be able to call a house a home.
Inside Out, Outside In: Residents should be able to access
the healing power of nature through easy access to the outdoors
and a home design that brings the outdoors in.
Visible and Invisible Security: People with PTSD feel more
secure in homes that combine concealment and reduced
exposure with visibility and control over the environment.
Social Privacy: The house should include space for both
solitude and social interaction.
Uniquely Normal: Despite its special features, an accessible
house should look and feel normal.
Old Self, New Self: The house should encourage recovery and
a successful transition to a “new normal.”
standing of the features an accessible home should include. IDEO also
defined seven dualities that characterize wounded warriors, apparent
paradoxes such as “social privacy” and “uniquely normal” (see
sidebar above).
Armed with that information, Nolan launched a nationwide design
competition in November 2010 to imagine two prototype homes for
Fort Belvoir’s Woodlawn Village neighborhood. He ultimately selected
Michael Graves and Associates for the job. Graves, who was personally
involved in the project, offered special insight. In addition to being a
world-renowned architect, he had been stricken by a viral infection in
2003 that left him paralyzed from the waist down.
A year later, on Nov. 30, 2011, dignitaries (at left and also in the
photo on Page 8) cut the ribbons on the two prototype homes, dubbed
“Patriot” and “Freedom.” The four-bedroom, 3,000-square-foot homes
vary in style and layout but share many common features, perhaps
the most important of which is that they don’t look institutional. “I don’t
even think you would notice some of the modifications that were made
specifically for disabilities,” says retired Army Capt. Alvin Shell, a
consultant on the project who suffered severe burns in Iraq (see
“Words From a Wounded Warrior” on Page 8). “When my kids were in
the house, they didn’t say, ‘Oh, wow, I can understand how a handi-
“My hope is that others are inspired to take these
lessons learned so that we have hundreds and
hundreds—if not thousands—of homes that go over
and above the bare-minimum code requirements.”
—Casey Nolan
h
rt
Ga
W.
ing
wl
Do
Military representatives and family members join Eagle Scout Casey Nolan (fourth
from right), director of the Wounded Warrior Home Project, in Fort Belvoir, Va., to
celebrate the opening of two houses—named “Patriot” and “Freedom”—designed to
give wounded active-duty soldiers a place to call home.
FAll 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 7
capped person would use this or that.’ They
were like, ‘Oh, wow, you just hit a button and
the door opens.’ Or ‘Cool, the countertops go
up and down.’”
Innovation Has Its Cost
As Capt. Shell’s kids discovered, the Wounded
Warrior homes include plenty of innovative
technologies. Kitchen countertops and sinks
move up and down to accommodate different
users. Automatic doors make entry easier for
people, like Capt. Shell, who can’t easily turn
doorknobs. A rehab room that doubles as a
spare bedroom is configured for videoconfer-
encing to allow for remote therapy. Sensors
track whether windows are open, reducing the
need to move around the house to check them.
But technology is only part of the story. The
homes have open floor plans that minimize
turns and offer clear sightlines. The hardsurface floors have contrasting borders to
enhance visibility. The garages are extra wide
to accommodate specialty vans. Low window
thresholds merge inside and outside space,
providing natural light, views of nature, and
enhanced security. The master bathrooms
feature roll-in curbless showers with
adjustable, handheld showerheads and
Words From a Wounded Warrior
Near Baghdad on Aug. 31, 2004, Army Capt. Alvin Shell rushed to the aid
of Platoon Sgt. Wesley Spaid, whose convoy had been attacked and who
was engulfed in flames. Shell suffered third-degree burns over a third of
his body, burns so severe that he lost major muscle groups and was
burned to the bone in several places. He spent 18 months in the hospital
and underwent 30 surgeries, including many agonizing skin grafts.
Six years later, Shell was one of the wounded warriors IDEO staffers
interviewed. They toured his house, talked with him and his wife, and
took away a laundry list of ideas. Among them: easy-to-open door
latches, good visibility to the outdoors, an isolated therapy room, and
separate climate zones. A major issue with burn patients is their
reduced ability to regulate body temperature.
Shell didn’t think most of his ideas would come to fruition, but he
was pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong. “It was a lot better than I
thought it would be,” he says.
To Shell, the Wounded Warrior homes are more than structures;
they’re statements. They send wounded soldiers the message that
the Army is “not only going to let me stay in, but they’re going to treat
me well. They actually care about me,” he says. “And that makes you
care a little more about the job.”
8 | Eagle Scout Magazine
Fall 2012
stylish towel bars that double as grab bars.
And there are plenty of outlets in the closets
to plug in those prosthetic legs.
Of course, all these features come at a cost
(although residents pay the same rent, which
is based on their military housing allowance).
Nolan says the prototypes cost about $200
per square foot, which is $50 to $75 more per
square foot than what his company has spent
on other houses. While $600,000 for a single
house is a lot of money, he points out that the
extra cost could easily be absorbed in a $500
million project. “It’s not as big of a premium as
some may think,” he says.
A big part of the increased cost stems from
the necessary shift from two stories to one in
an accessible house. “It has a larger foundation system. It has a larger footprint because
you have to have larger bathrooms and a
larger kitchen. Literally, the house expands
because of even the minimum code
requirements,” he says.
Beyond that, each Wounded Warrior home
must meet the needs of every potential
resident. For example, the first person to move
into the “Freedom” house was Marine Staff Sgt.
Travis Green, a double-amputee with four kids.
But the next resident might have a blind
spouse or might herself suffer from PTSD.
Moreover, Nolan says, the $600,000 price
Having been injured fairly early in the Iraq War, Shell didn’t hear that
message himself. He had to fight for permission to stay in the Army
before he decided to retire in 2006. He joined the Department of
Homeland Security, where he’s now a branch chief for force protection.
Shell credits Nolan with the success of the Wounded Warrior Home
Project. “He was informed not because he was the smartest guy in the
room, but because he was the best guy in the room,” Shell says. “He
listened to those subject-matter experts, he listened to those people
that felt they’d poured their heart and soul into this project, and he
learned from those guys. He just naturally led this project.”
Nolan was so committed to the project that Shell sometimes
wondered why. “Is he going to roll his pant leg up and have a prosthetic?” he wondered. “Or will he tell some story about how he’d served
20 years in the military?”
In reality, Nolan’s only military connections are his father, who
served in Vietnam, and his grandfather, who served in World War II and
is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. But Shell doesn’t care that
Nolan never served in the military.
“He’s just as patriotic as anybody that ever put on the uniform,” he
says. High praise indeed from someone who earned the Purple Heart
and the Bronze Star with Valor.
Clark Realty Capital LLC (10)
The first two homes built by the Wounded Warrior Home
Project (above) are just the beginning of the expanding
initiative, which aims to build similar homes at several
additional military bases. Open living spaces, adjustableheight countertops, curbless showers, and much more
help soldiers adapt to life back home with their families.
was for a prototype. “We’re re-evaluating our
plans and looking to trim out $20 to $40 per
square foot so the next batch is more
efficient,” he says.
Design for the Future
Nolan’s company is in the process of building
19 additional Wounded Warrior homes in
Woodlawn Village. But those homes are just
the beginning. Nolan has consulted with Clark
Realty colleagues who are planning 30 homes
at Fort Benning near Columbus, Ga., and 10
homes at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Fla.
“My hope is that others are inspired to take
these lessons learned so that we have
hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands, of
homes that go over and above the bareminimum code requirements,” he says.
The Wounded Warrior Home Project may
some day even help those who never set foot
(or roll wheelchair) onto a military base. The
same universal design principles that
inspired these houses could help the
estimated 70 million baby boomers that will
be over the age of 75 by 2030 and may need
accessible homes.
For now, though, the focus is on wounded
warriors. Nolan adds, “I can’t think of a subset
of folks that deserve it more than those who
have been injured serving our country.”
On the Web
For more information on the Wounded Warrior
Home Project, visit woundedwarriorhome.org.
FAll 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 9
A Historic
‘Technicality’
How a bureaucratic
blunder cost a
Minnesota Scout the
honor of becoming the
first Eagle.
that their Scouts submit similarly
complete and precise papers with all
their applications for merit badges.”
By Dave Kenney
T
Uncommon Determination
Roy Young was born on Oct. 4, 1893, in
Washington, D.C. His father, Ernest W. Young,
was a federal government employee
specializing in military pension benefits. In
10 | Eagle Scout Magazine
Fall 2012
Roy Young
1901, the government reassigned Ernest
Young to a field office in St. Paul. The Young
family settled into a small house on Alden
Avenue and joined a neighborhood church, St.
Anthony Park Methodist Episcopal.
St. Anthony Park Methodist (opposite, at
top) was one of the first churches in St. Paul
to sponsor a Boy Scout troop, and Roy Young
was one of its first members. In 1911, he set
about earning his merit badges with
determination.
The reports he submitted to the Court of
Honor of the St. Paul council (then known as
Ramsey Council No. 1) were so thorough that
the Pioneer Press printed two of them as
examples for other Scouts to follow. “The
Court of Honor was so pleased with their
style, completeness, and precision,” the
newspaper reported, “[that it] expressed the
hope that all Scoutmasters would see to it
Courtesy of phyllis dana
he headline that appeared in the St.
Paul Pioneer Press on Sunday, March
10, 1912, put the history-making
accomplishment in matter-of-fact terms: “One
St. Paul Scout Earns 23 Merit Badges and Will
Be Honored As First ‘Eagle Scout.’” The article
(opposite, at right) identified the newsworthy
Scout as Roy Young, a member of Troop 35 in
St. Paul’s St. Anthony Park neighborhood.
“It is probable that he is the first ‘Eagle
Scout’ in the country,” the article explained,
“for no report has been received at the St. Paul
headquarters of any other boy who has won
that great honor.”
Actually, there was no doubt about it:
Young was, in fact, the first American Scout to
qualify for Eagle rank. Unfortunately for him,
that accomplishment was not enough to
secure his place in Scouting history as the
first Eagle Scout. For the rest of his life, Young
would remain a footnote of sorts, a couldhave-been historical figure who quickly faded
into obscurity.
This is his story.
The 25-Cent Rule
Young almost certainly would have
received recognition as the nation’s
first Eagle Scout if not for a simple
bureaucratic misunderstanding. The
problem was rooted in money. During
the 1910s, Scouts had to pay 25
cents for each merit badge they
received. But for many boys, 25
cents (which would be worth nearly
$6 today) was a steep price for a
single merit badge. For an accomplished Scout like Young, the cost
was nearly insurmountable.
Although Young submitted all his
paperwork for his 23 merit badges by
March 1912, he didn’t pay the
25-cent-per-badge fee that supposedly was
required for each application. And officials
with Ramsey Council No. 1 didn’t know they
could still send his applications to the
national office of the Boy Scouts of America.
That, as it turned out, was a big mistake.
“It has been learned that the money [for
merit badges] does not need to accompany
the application,” the Pioneer Press reported
in a story detailing Young’s misfortune.
“Certification that a Scout has passed his
tests for merit badges can be sent to the
national headquarters, and the Scout can
send for the badges any time he has the
money to pay for them.” During the six
months that the local council mistakenly
held onto Young’s merit badge applications,
two other Scouts (Arthur Eldred of Rockville
Centre, N.Y., and Earl Marx of Jacksonville,
Fla.) qualified for the Eagle rank, leaving
Young to win recognition as Eagle Scout No.
3. As the secretary of the BSA’s National
Court of Honor later explained in a column for
Boys’ Life, Young failed to receive his proper
due “through a technicality beyond our
control.”
Life After Eagle
It appears Young shook off his denial of
first-Eagle status with admirable aplomb.
Shortly after earning his Eagle badge, he left
St. Paul to attend prep school at Mount
Pleasant Military Academy in New York. He
then returned to Minnesota to enroll at
Carleton College in Northfield, where he
graduated in 1917.
The years that followed were a whirlwind of
activity for Roy Young. The summer after he
graduated from Carleton, he married a
classmate, Faye Estella Holmes, and started
a family. By the time their first child was born
in 1918, the United States was at war, and
Young felt compelled to serve. He trained as
an electrician at the Naval Station Great
Lakes, but poor eyesight disqualified him
from combat duty and kept him stateside.
After the war ended, Young began a career
with the Boy Scouts of America. For five
years, he served as a Scout executive—first
in Evansville, Ind., and later in Grand Forks,
N.D. But personal tragedy marred what might
otherwise have been one of the most
rewarding times of his life. In 1922 his wife
died, leaving him to raise two young children
on his own. His struggles as a single parent
ended a year and a half later
when he married Faye’s
sister, Vera. For whatever
reason, Young gave up his
career with the Boy Scouts
soon after marrying Vera. For
the rest of the 1920s he
directed youth programs at
churches in New York City,
Indianapolis, Minneapolis,
and Chattanooga, Tenn.
make drastic cuts in their budgets, and youth
programs were among the first to go. Young
had to find work, and he quickly hit on an
ingenious idea. A few years earlier, he had the
chance to experiment with a new piece of
photographic equipment—a circuit camera—
capable of taking panoramic portraits of large
groups of people.
Over the next two decades, Young built a
national reputation as one of the country’s
only circuit-camera photographers. He
traveled the United States—10,000 miles a
year—in a mobile photo studio fashioned
from an old truck. His clients included high
schools, colleges, and church conventions,
as well as any type of organization that
wanted a large group portrait.
Young spent the rest of his life taking his
wide-angle portraits until he died of a heart
attack in 1959.
A Common Theme
If there was one theme that ran through Roy
Young’s life, it was the enjoyment he got from
working with young people. It was almost as if
his experiences as a Boy Scout set him on a
path from which he rarely saw need to detour.
From his work with the YMCA during World War
I, to his years as a Scout executive and a
church youth leader, to his long career as a
photographer whose subjects were usually
much younger than himself, Young made
young people his life’s work. Even when he
wasn’t working, he was spending time with
youth, especially Scouts.
In the early 1950s he received his 40-year
Veteran Scout Award. Yet he never received the
credit he deserved for being the first Boy
Scout to qualify for Eagle rank. But the work he
did later in life speaks of his devotion to values
learned, at least in part, through Scouting.
DAVE KENNEY of the Northern Star Council
in St. Paul is the author of Honor Bright: A
Century of Scouting in Northern Star Council.
The Honor Roll published by the BSA’s Secretary
National Court of Honor, below left, describes Young as
“a typical wide-awake Scout, alive to every opportunity,
prepared for any emergency.”
On the Photo Circuit
Young probably would have
continued with his youth work
had it not been for the Great
Depression. Churches, like
almost every institution across
the country, were forced to
FAll 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 11
Two Road
for
the
Distinguished
Eagle Scout Lonnie
Poole tells why he
restores vintage
cars for a vintage
movement.
By Randy Johnson
Photographs by Randy Piland
T
here’s something appropriate about a
successful waste-management
entrepreneur who gets a kick out of
restoring cars. But Lonnie C. Poole Jr., who
earned his Eagle Scout Award in 1951 and
founded Waste Industries in 1970, reinvigorates more than old cars. Poole auctions off
the vehicles and donates the proceeds to his
local Scout councils in North Carolina and
Florida. It’s a way of recycling both autos and
the positive impact Scouting has had on him.
Poole recently attended the Raleigh Classic
2012 car auction with Scouts and officials of
North Carolina’s Occoneechee Council. His
goal was to auction a like-new 1967
Volkswagen Bug. As auctioneers rattled off
their mile-a-minute pitch, local Scouts
painstakingly buffed the Beetle. When the
gavel cracked down, the council was nearly
$9,000 better funded.
That’s just the latest car in a five-vehicle
string of auto auctions that have generated
more than $240,000 for Scouting—and
publicity that would be priceless if it were for
sale. But Poole will tell you he does it because
he likes to connect the passions in his life. “I
used to fly airplanes, then I got into the
aircraft-leasing business, then aircraft
charter,” he says. “Somehow or other, I get
hobbies connected up to business. The Boy
Scouts are a big hobby for me.”
He adds, “Raising money for Scouts or any
charity is a difficult thing to do. Auctioning
these cars is a foolproof way to make people
not regret giving you money.”
Though Poole recognizes that
having fun is great, he long ago
learned that it’s about more
than that. It’s about
building character, and
that, he says, is at
the core of his
auctions and other
efforts for Scouts.
“People don’t get into
Scouts to build
character. They do it
“People don’t get into Scouts to
build character. They do it for
fun. But the character-building
comes through.” —Lonnie Poole
12 | Eagle Scout Magazine
FALL 2012
for fun. But the character-building comes
through. I’ve been affiliated with other youth
organizations. None quite conveys values like
Scouting,” he says.
The Beginning
The 75-year-old Poole grew up “in the
boondocks” of southeastern Wake County,
N.C., where his father owned a general store
and grew up on a small farm. “The house I was
born in didn’t have indoor plumbing,” he
remembers. He encountered Scouting on a
visit to his grandmother in nearby Garner. He
couldn’t make the commute by himself, so he
found five boys near him and formed the
Skunk Patrol. “True, [that’s] our real name,”
Poole says. “Living in the country, it was just
easier to get some merit badges. I got Animal
Husbandry, Poultry, Gardening, Forestry. And
I’d been swimmin’ in farm ponds forever when
it was time to get the Swimming merit badge.”
Poole’s Camping merit badge was harder
than it needed to be, though. “I don’t know
how I got it into my head that I had to camp
out 40 nights consecutively, but I did. I slept
out in my backyard woods so long I had
chickens laying eggs in my tent,” he
chuckles.
When he finally told his Scoutmaster he’d
met the requirement, the leader said, “‘I don’t
know why you’re doing it that way. You’ve
already been to Camp Durant, and you have
way over 40 days already.’ I made something
very difficult out of it.”
The Return
Poole graduated from North Carolina State
University with a Bachelor of Science degree
in civil engineering in 1959 and went into the
Army as a first lieutenant aviator. During a stint
in Germany flying L-19 observation aircraft, he
suddenly found himself back in Scouting.
One day his commanding officer called
him in and said, “‘Poole, I see here that you
are an Eagle Scout.’ I said, ‘Yes, sir, I am,’ and
he asked me if I knew there was a Scout troop
on the base. I told him no, I didn’t. Then he
said, ‘Well, then you also don’t know we need
a Scoutmaster. Sounds like something you’d
be perfect for.’ I said, ‘I’ll definitely give that
some consideration.’ Then he looked at me
and said, ‘Poole, I don’t think you understand.
You have just volunteered to be Scoutmaster.’
I ended up hiking all over Germany with 100
Boy Scouts.”
After that year in Germany’s Transatlantic
Council, he came home to earn a master’s
degree in business administration at the
University of North Carolina and then founded
Waste Industries. Dramatic growth followed,
earning Poole a handful of industry accolades.
By then Poole was back in Scouting as an
Occoneechee Council Scoutmaster from the
late ’70s to late ’80s. “Being a Scoutmaster is
the hardest volunteer job anybody can do,”
he says. “Being a council president is
nowhere near as difficult.”
Poole knows about that. After his business
went public in the ’90s, a decade of amazing
growth, he served as council president and
vice president, as well as on the board of
directors while orchestrating a major
fundraising effort that turned the council’s
Camp Durant into a world-class facility.
John Akerman, scout executive for the
16,000-Scout Occoneechee Council, says
the 2,400-acre camp has restrooms and
shower facilities at all 14 campsites, which is
The 1967 Volkswagen Beetle, above, is the latest of
five vintage cars restored and auctioned by Poole,
who donates the earnings to his local councils in North
Carolina and Florida.
“virtually unheard of in Boy Scout camps.
Lonnie was the catalyst who kicked off that
achievement during his term as president.”
Poole recruited assistance on the council’s
Capital Development Campaign from O.
Temple Sloan Jr., who’s been involved in the
Occoneechee Council and has served as a
member of the BSA’s national executive
board. Sloan and Poole, combined, made the
lead gift of $1 million. After raising $7 million,
the 22,000-square-foot Grand Lodge Dining
Hall, trading post, and grill opened in 2009.
That first phase of fundraising led to the
current Capstone Campaign, scheduled to
complete the camp with an $8.7 million total
investment in spring 2013 when 1,200
Scouts attend the Order of the Arrow Conclave
for Section 7B.
Raising money for the camp is where the
vintage cars came in.
The Cars
When the recession hit in 2008, a custom-car
restoration TV program based at a Florida
public television station lost two of six
owners. Poole and Jim Cook, close friends in
FAll 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 13
The 1953 Chevy pickup, above, sold in
2011 for $72,000—the highest amount
Poole has received for the charity cars
and trucks, so far at least. More recently,
a 1957 Chevy Bel Air, right, sold for
$30,800.
co-host Megan Clementi is a former
Miss Florida and cheerleader with
the Orlando Magic. She graduated
from the University of Central Florida
with a B.S. in Engineering, which is
“one reason why she’s a natural
discussing cars,” Poole says.
The auctions exemplify of the power of
Scouting, Poole says. “I can’t tell you how
many times people come up to you to say
how glad they are to win or even just bid on a
car that supports such a good cause.”
A good example: the Raleigh Classic car
auction. Poole’s latest car, the ’67 VW, went for
$7,750—and when buyer Ken Gaub of
Yakima, Wash., came up to claim it, he
confessed he’d bought the car solely to
support Scouts. “I’m big on Scouts,” he said. “I
believe in them.”
Poole was hoping to get $10,000,
and thanks to another friend of
Scouting, he came closer. Earlier,
someone had bid on and bought a
classic jukebox. When the new owner
learned the Bug would benefit the Boy
Scouts, he donated the jukebox, which
sold for $1,000—$400 more than its
original winning bid—and the Scouts
took home $8,750.
The Honors
Poole’s influence reaches beyond his
efforts on behalf of Scouting. Recently,
he found himself at North Carolina State
University to witness the naming of The
Poole College of Management. In his
remarks, Poole said, “Ethical behavior is
14 | Eagle Scout Magazine
Fall 2012
Courtesy of lonnie poole (2)
North Carolina who both made the transition to
new residences in Florida, suddenly found
themselves co-owners of the show Muscle Car
Workout, co-hosted by Alan Goldstein, owner
of a restoration garage called Fender Mender.
“Everybody had cooking shows,” Cook
says, “so restoring cars was a great idea.
[Fender Mender] provided the labor and
location, along with help from Daytona State
College students, but the question was, what
happens to the cars? That’s where we had the
idea to auction them off for charity.”
The series—which will air again this fall—
featured Poole’s charity cars that were rebuilt
on the show and auctioned later to benefit
the Occoneechee Council in Raleigh and the
Central Florida Council in Orlando.
Poole’s cars have raised nearly a quartermillion dollars, and four of them were
auctioned at the famous Barrett-Jackson
auctions, in Scottsdale, Ariz., and Palm Beach,
Fla. His second car, a ’67 Chevy pickup with a
camper top and “100 Years of Scouting”
emblazoned on the side, was auctioned there
in 2010 during the BSA’s 100th anniversary.
Luckily, the car’s charitable status received
nearly 10 minutes of national TV time on
Barrett-Jackson during the auction. “The
Scouts told me that kind of publicity was
worth more than the car,” Poole says.
The ’67pickup brought in $51,000, and
every penny went to Scouting.
Scouts also appeared in the show’s second
year and loved it. “Of course they didn’t mind at
all hanging out with Megan,” Poole adds. Show
a problem for too many business people, and
business schools don’t spend enough time
teaching ethics.”
Not surprisingly, Poole credits the Boy
Scouts with giving him a literal compass for
his pocket and a moral compass for his mind.
And in 2011, the BSA honored Poole for his
achievements and contributions to Scouting
with the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award.
“Quite an honor,” he says. “To get that, here
[in Raleigh] where I made my career, in front
of all those people—it doesn’t get any better.
“I’ve had to change my demeanor, become
distinguished. Totally out of character!” he
says with a laugh.
The Future
Poole and his partners just completed
filming the second season of Muscle Car
Workout, which will be distributed by a PBS
affiliate. In this season, Poole continues his
mission of auctioning charity classic cars as
a means of fundraising for Scouting.
What’s next? You can bet Poole’s efforts
for Scouts won’t be slowing down. Like the
cars he restores, this country boy turned
engineer and successful entrepreneur
turned philanthropist is something of a
classic himself.
North Carolina author RANDY JOHNSON is
the travel editor of nationalparkstraveler.com.
From the campground to the corner
oFFice, eagle ScoutS lead the way.
thanks to our corporate alliances, they have plenty of examples to follow.
www.scouting.org/sponsors
Awards
and Recognitions
Eagle Scouts shine, even after reaching the top honor in Scouting. They continue to strive for new heights,
and accolades naturally seem to follow.
Patrick F. Sears, Michael V. Riscica, Maximillian Canon Johnson, Robert C. Carrozzo, AND Damien Kyle Quinn
Troop 71 of Plandome, N.Y., welcomed five new Eagle Scouts in June—shown above at their Eagle Court of Honor—bringing the troop’s total number
of Eagle Scouts to 101 in the centennial year of the award. Recognize your Scout’s awards by sending a photo and information to
eaglescoutmagazine@scouting.org.
Dr. John G. Benitez
Nashville, Tenn.
Recipient of the 2012 Society
of Toxicology Translational
Impact Award recognizing his
outstanding contributions to
human and public health related to
toxicology. He is associate professor of
clinical medicine and emergency medicine at
Vanderbilt University.
Eric Franklin Bush
Rockville, Md.
Admitted to the United States
Supreme Court Bar on June
18, 2012. He took the oath in
a non-argument session
before the justices, including retired Justice
Sandra Day O’Connor.
Joshua A. Castle, Ph.D.
Clarksville, Tenn.
Received his doctorate in
pharmacy from the University
of Charleston in Charleston,
W.Va., and a Bachelor of
Science in biology from Marshall University in
Huntington, W.Va.
16 | Eagle Scout Magazine
FALL 2012
Dennis C. Chen, Ph.D.
Nashville, Tenn.
Received his doctorate in
business administration from
the University of Kentucky in
June 2012. He is currently an
assistant professor of management and
international business at Belmont University
in Nashville.
Robert S. Eaton
Atlanta, Ga.
Selected as the new deputy
chief of the branch of fire
management, U.S. Fish &
Wildlife Service. He was
serving as the Chief of Region 4, Division of
Fire Management in Atlanta, Ga. He has served
28 years in federal service, including 15 years
with the U.S. Forest Service.
Charles H. Dankworth
New Albany, Ohio
As senior vice president of
investments at UBS Financial
Services Inc., he has been
named to Barron’s Top 1,000
Financial Advisors List nationally and is
ranked No. 8 in Ohio.
Collin M. Edge
Morehead City, N.C.
Named a U.S. Coast Guard top
five national finalist for
Operation Homefront’s Military
Child of the Year in 2012.
Father William F.
Dotson
St. Louis, Mo.
Graduated with a Master of
Theology degree from
Kenrick-Glennon Seminary and
was ordained a Catholic priest for the
Archdiocese of St. Louis.
Christopher Michael
Gordon
San Antonio, Tex.
Received his Bachelor of
Science in computer
information systems from the
University of the Incarnate Word, San Antonio.
Presented with the Alpha Alpha Rho Chapter of
Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity chapter’s
Distinguished Service Award.
Kirby Evers Haugland
El Paso, Tex.
Graduated magna cum laude
with a Bachelor of Arts in
music and mathematics from
Harvard University, Cambridge,
Mass. He’s a graduate student at the Royal
College of Music in London, England.
Samuel David Inman
Homer Glen, Ill.
Received his bachelor’s
degree, earning a double
major in Japanese and
international business from
North Central College, Naperville, Ill. He will
serve in the Japanese Exchange and
Teaching Programme.
Jon Kowalski, Ph.D.
Commerce Township, Mich.
Graduated from Carnegie
Mellon University in Pittsburgh,
Pa., with a doctorate in
engineering and public policy. Travis Stuart Krew
Canton, Ohio
Graduated magna cum laude
with a Bachelor of Science in
chemistry with honors from
Case Western Reserve
University, Cleveland, Ohio. Attending medical
school at the University of Cincinnati School of
Medicine.
Stephen G. Lippy
Lutherville, Md.
Recently retired from the
Baltimore County Bureau of
Solid Waste Management after
40 years, and received the 2012
Stanley E. Kappe award from the American
Academy of Environmental Engineers.
Michael Kevin Miller
Paducah, Ky.
Received a master’s degree in
music performance from the
Florida State University College
of Music in Tallahassee, Fla.
Shane A. Moravsik
Morris Plains, N.J.
Received his Bachelor of
Science in mechanical
engineering from Rowan
University in Glassboro, N.J.
Richard W. Morgan
Rincon, Ga.
Graduated cum laude from the
University of Georgia with a
Bachelor of Fine Arts in graphic
design.
Mark Harrison Nanney
Bradenton, Fla.
Serves as lead engineer and
designer of the Formula One in
Schools Unitus Racing Team.
Nanney is majoring in
mechanical engineering and ocean
engineering at Florida Institute of Technology.
Evan Obrock
Indianapolis, Ind.
Received a bachelor’s degree in
management information
systems and international
business from Butler
University. He is a systems analyst with
Liberty Mutual Insurance in Indianapolis.
Sean C. Pegado
Buffalo, N.Y.
Graduated magna cum laude
from Williams College, earning a
Bachelor of Arts in English and
mathematics. Works in New
York City as an analyst for Cornerstone
Research.
Andrew M. Rein
Buffalo, N.Y.
Graduated from Villanova
University School of Law with a
joint Juris Doctorate and Master
of Public Administration.
Received the Dorothy Day Award for pro bono
service, and was inducted into Pi Alpha Alpha.
Scot Mitchel Rogers
Louisburg, Kan.
Received his master’s degree
in public history from Colorado
State University in Fort Collins,
Colo. Rogers was also selected
as a Presidential Management Fellows for
2012 and will be working for the U.S.
Department of Forestry in Phoenix, Ariz.
Edward B. Ruth
Lancaster, Pa.
As a retiree of the Milton
Hershey School, Ruth was
admitted to the Hall of Fame for
Cross Country Coaching and
Honorary Alumnus to the Milton Hershey School
Alumni Association presented in 2011.
Salvatore Sodano
Lake Worth, Fla.
Received a Bachelor of Science
in computer engineering from
Villanova University. He is a
member of IEEE ETA Kappa Nu
Engineering Honor Society, and is employed as
a software engineer in Princeton, N.J.
Alexander Storton
Palm Desert, Calif.
Graduated from Cal State San
Marcos with a Bachelor of Arts
in political science and Bachelor
of Arts in communication. He
also graduated with an honor from the Tukwut
Leadership Circle.
Antonios J.
Tsompanidis, D.O.
Holmdel, N.J.
Received his designation as a
Fellow of the American College
of Osteopathic Family
Physicians during its annual conclave of
Fellows award ceremony in Kissimmee, Fla.
Alexander N. Watson
Hilliard, Ohio
Graduated from The Ohio State
University with a Bachelor of
Science in industrial and
systems engineering and
minor in business.
FALL 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 17
For
God and Country
Many young men exchange their Scout uniforms for fatigues, dress blues, or battle dress uniforms.
The National Eagle Scout Association salutes Eagle Scouts who are currently serving in our nation’s armed forces.
SPECIALIST Matthew G.
Allen
U.S. Army
STAFF SGT. Ryan R. Aplanalp
U.S. Air Force
Col. Russell H. Bittle Jr.
U.S. Army
Serving as an Aircrew Flight
Equipment Specialist in
Southwest Asia supporting
aircrew members with
inspections, maintenance, and
adjustments of survival and
lifesaving gear.
Promoted to Colonel and is
serving at the Pentagon as the
Liaison Officer for U.S. Army
Forces Command. He is a 1986
graduate of the U.S. Military
Academy at West Point.
Graduated from the U.S. Air Force
Academy with a Bachelor of
Science degree in computer
engineering. Is currently in
undergraduate pilot training.
SECOND Lt. Jameson T. Clem
U.S. Marine Corps
Ensign Stephen J. Conlin III
U.S. Navy
Vice Adm. Dirk Debbink
U.S. Navy
Lt. Col. Robert DeSousa
National Guard
Graduated from the U.S. Naval
Academy in Annapolis and was
commissioned as an officer. He
is continuing his studies in
national security at Georgetown
University in Washington, D.C.,
with a concentration in terrorism
and sub-state violence.
Graduated from Worcester
Polytechnic Institute, Worcester,
Mass., with a Bachelor of Science
in management engineering. He
will report to Pensacola, Fla., for
naval aviation training.
Serving as Chief of Navy Reserve
and Commander of Navy Reserve
Force in Washington, D.C.
Awarded the Meritorious Service
Medal for his work in setting up
the first-ever trial Defense
Service in the National Guard.
DeSousa is a Pennsylvania
Guardsmen and serves as State
Director for U.S. Senator Pat
Toomey. Capt. Christopher D.
Glass Sr.
U.S. Navy
Ensign Christopher D.
Glass II
U.S. Navy
Lt. Col. John W. Haefner
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
SECOND Lt. Zachary D.
Kennedy
U.S. Army
Awarded the Defense Meritorious
Service Medal from the Office of
the Secretary of Defense,
Defense Technology Security.
Chris (right) graduated from the
U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at
Kings Point with a Bachelor of
Science in marine transportation.
Serving as a Naval Strategic
Sealift Officer and licensed U.S.
Merchant Marine 3rd Mate.
Currently serving in
Afghanistan with
the 82nd Airborne.
18 | Eagle Scout Magazine
FALL 2012
Completed three years of
command of Fort A.P. Hill, where
he served as the garrison
commander during the 2010
National Scout Jamboree. He will
attend the U.S. Army War College
at Carlisle Barracks, Pa.
SECOND Lt. Christopher R.
Chorney
U.S. Air Force
Graduated from the U.S. Military
Academy at West Point with a
bachelor’s degree in comparative
politics.
Thomas Kolditz, Ph.D.
New Athens, Ill.
specialist Derek McElroy
U.S. Army
Promoted to Brigadier General at
the U.S. Military Academy at
West Point, where he retired as a
department head of behavioral
sciences. Now, he will head the
Leadership Development
Program at Yale University.
Designed and built a veteran’s
memorial in his hometown of
Franklin, Wis., as his Eagle
project. He is now serving in
Charlie Company, 172 Infantry
Brigade, Afghanistan.
SECOND LT. Thomas C. Risi
U.S. Army
Graduated from Purdue
University with a Bachelor of
Science in industrial engineering.
Assigned to the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers. Currently attending
the engineer officer basic course
at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.
SECOND Lt. John Patrick
Murtha
U.S. Air Force
Ret. Cmdr. Doyle
Quisenberry
U.S. Navy
Graduated from the Air Force
Academy with a Bachelor of
Science. He is attending
intelligence school at Goodfellow
AFB in San Angelo, Tex.
Received a Department of
Defense award for his
outstanding service as a member
of the Employer Support of the
Guard and Reserve (ESGR).
Lt. Benton Seccombe and
CapT. Christopher Pace
U.S. Navy; U.S. Air Force
Col. Paul M. Sherman
U.S. Air Force
Seccombe is now a Naval Flight Officer (NFO) on
the E-2 Hawkeye and attached to the Tigertails
squadron on board the aircraft carrier USS Carl
Vinson. Pace is a pilot in the B-1 Lancer bomber,
currently serving his first deployment, and is
stationed at the Al Udeid AFB in Qatar,
Afghanistan.
Promoted to Colonel after
serving as the program director
of the San Antonio Uniformed
Services Health Education
Consortium Radiology Residency
in San Antonio, Tex. Serving at
Lackland AFB in the Radiology
Squadron, 59th Medical Wing.
Read the Digital Edition
Ensign Patrick D. Wier
U.S. Navy
Lt. Col. Dennis E. Yost
U.S. Army Retired
Received a Navy Commendation
Medal while serving on the USS
Gravely DDG 107.
Awarded the Gold Order of Saint
Philip Neri for his
accomplishments in the U.S.
Army Special Forces. This is the
highest award given by the
Special Forces, and he is only the
19th recipient.
Do you prefer to read Eagle Scout Magazine in a
digital format on your computer, iPad, or smartphone? You can receive the quarterly magazine
in your inbox by simply sending an e-mail to
nesa@scouting.org using “Digital Edition” in the
subject line.
FALL 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 19
Eagle Scouting is a Family Affair
Scouting’s highest honor is best shared with fathers, sons, brothers, and other family members.
Adams/Elwonger Family Sundance, Wyo.
Anders Family
Niceville, Fla.
Greg Anders (1979), Matthew Anders (2011),
and Bill Anders (1946).
Bailey Family
Baker Family
Grantville, Pa.
Wesley B. Baker (1979), Douglas E. Baker
(1980), Evan M. Baker (2012), and George R.
Baker (1959).
Barker Family
Lincoln, Ill.
Kevin Barker (2012) and Matthew Barker
(2009).
Carter Family
Cline Family
Collierville, Tenn.
David Cline (1969), Dakota Cline (2012), Wade
Cline (2010), and Dr. Charles Cline (1974).
Davis Family
Tucson, Ariz.
Chester Fennell Jr. (1954), Ryan Davis (2011),
Steven Davis (2009), and Charles “Chad” Davis
(1983).
Davis Family
California, Md.
John Davis (2005) and Andrew Davis (2011).
Fulford Family
Goodacre/Wilson Family
Media, Pa.
Cousins Bobby Goodacre (2006), Brian
Goodacre (2006), Andrew Wilson (2012), and
Ray Wilson (1980).
Heidel Family
Steven Elwonger (1965), Chris Adams (2006),
Waldo Elwonger (SM 1957-1976), and Jeremy
Adams (2012).
Moyock, N.C.
Jeremiah T. Fulford (2012), Sterling J. Fulford
(2010), and Joshua M. Fulford (2012).
20 | Eagle Scout Magazine
FALL 2012
Miami Springs, Fla.
Mark S. Bailey (1976), Peyton S. Bailey (2011),
and Stephen M. Bailey (1948).
San Ramon, Calif.
Spencer Carter (2009) and Trevor Carter
(2011).
Knoxville, Tenn.
Joshua Heidel (2008), Eric A. Heidel (1987),
and Luke Heidel (2011).
Inman Family
Homer Glen, Ill.
Kevin Alan Inman (2011) and Samuel David
Inman (2006).
Jones Family
Brookhaven, Miss.
Tim Jones (1977), Drew Jones (2011), and Bill
Jones (1946).
Klein Family
Kopischke Family
Morgan, Minn.
Logan James David Kopischke (2009) and
Dylan Andrew Kopischke (2011).
Lee/Thate Family
Malakoff, Tex.
Logan C. Lee (2010), Larry C. Lee (1977), Leo
C. Lee (1944), Jacob W. Thate (2011), Monty A.
Lee (1976), and Jeffrey E. Thate (1978).
Lugbauer Family
Malnar/Quattlebaum FamilY
Merolli Family
Mendon, Mass.
Tom Merolli (2008), Mike Merolli (1981), and
Chris Merolli (2012).
Nanney Family
Bradenton, Fla.
Margi Nanney, Mark Nanney (2009), Pat
Nanney (1973), and James Nanney (2005).
Overland
Park, Kan.
Damian Malnar (2009), Parker Quattlebaum
(2010), Spencer Quattlebaum (2011), and
Dominic Malnar (2009).
Newbrander Family
Hopkinton, Mass.
William Newbrander (1995), Capt. Andrew
Newbrander (1997), Rev. Douglas Remer
(1963), Dan Newbrander (2003), and Jonathan
Newbrander (2011).
Miller Place, N.Y.
Warren Klein (1978), Daniel Klein (2012), and
Andrew Klein (2007).
Princeton, Mass.
Nicholas John Lugbauer (2011), John Peter
Lugbauer (1985), and Thomas John Lugbauer
(2012).
Phillips Family
Federalsburg, M.D.
John W. Phillips Jr. (1979), John W. Phillips Sr., Joshua L. Phillips (2011), Daniel A.
Phillips (1980), D. Scott Phillips, and Todd W. Phillips (Webelos Scout, front).
FALL 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 21
Eagle Scouting is a Family Affair
Scouting’s highest honor is best shared with other generations of family members.
Pocsatko Family
Crestview Hills, Ky.
Sherry L. Pocsatko, David J. Pocsatko (1972),
Zachary R. Pocsatko (2010), and Patrick D.
Pocsatko (2006).
Quigley Family
Highland Mills, N.Y.
Gerard David Ciccone (1966) and David
Gerard Ciccone Quigley (2009).
Roberts Family
Nicholasville, Ky.
James K. Roberts (1973), J. Frank Roberts
(2006), John T. Roberts (2012), Adam L.
Roberts (2009), and grandfather Joe F.
Roberts.
Sanders Family
Wilmington, N.C.
Colin D. Sanders (2003), Dr. John W. Sanders
(1970), and William W. Sanders (2009).
Sanderson Family
Seven Family
Aldie, Va.
Tobin Seven (1969) and Christopher Seven
(2012).
Tanner Family Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.
Townsend Family
John Tanner Sr. (1944), John Tanner (2010),
and Teresa Tanner.
Varble Family
Ogden, Utah
Deely Varble (2002; back right), Tennik Varble (2011), Nevele Varble
(2012), Jershon Varble (2008), Kilo Varble (2002), Kevin Varble Jr. (1996;
front right), Father Kevin Varble Sr., mother Janet Varble, and Elon Varble
(1996).
22 | Eagle Scout Magazine
FALL 2012
Wales Family
Renyhart Family
Cape Coral, Fla.
John Renyhart (1957), Jared Renyhart (2011),
and Charles Renyhart.
El Paso, Tex.
David Sanderson (2008) and Tanner Sanderson
(2011).
Oak Hill, Va.
John Townsend (2012), Col. James B.
Townsend (1958), Andrew Townsend (2008),
and Christopher Townsend (2010).
Binghampton, N.Y.
John R. Wales (1960), Thomas D. Wales (2000) holding
picture of his grandfather Thomas D. Wales (1925), Charles
A. Wales (1955), Roger Wales (1955), and Darwin R. Wales
(sitting and holding Distinguished Citizens Award).
GONE HOME
Robert S.S. Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting, taught Scout trailblazers to make a simple trail sign,
a circle with a dot in the middle, to indicate that they had gone home. The following Eagle Scouts blazed
many trails for us to follow, and now they, too, have gone home.
Christopher Paul
Arnett, 41
Athens, Tenn.
Eagle: 1987
Bradford C.
Bacon, 41
University Park, Md.
Eagle: 1987
SECOND Lt. Matthew
Blount, 30
U.S. Army; Pelham, Ala.
Eagle: 1997
Passed: Nov. 27, 2011
Passed: March 31, 2011
Passed: March 10, 2012
Adam Herman
Briesemeister, 25
Minneapolis, Minn.
Eagle: 2001
Frederik Burr
Christensen, 82
Aiken, S.C.
Eagle: 1944
Roger B. Cole, 61
Vancouver, Wash.
Eagle: 1965
Passed: March 21, 2012
Passed: March 15, 2012
Ret. CMDR. Thomas
Wayne Davis, 57
California, Md.
Eagle: 1970
Nick Boddie, 84
Rocky Mountain, N.C.
Eagle: 1945
Passed: Dec. 2, 2011
Passed: March 3, 2012
Micah Cox, 17
Signal Mountain, Tenn.
Eagle: Posthumous
Award 2012
David Allen
Dawes, 42
Aurora, Colo.
Eagle: 1968
Douglas E.
Devore, 65
Davison, Mich.
Eagle: 1961
Christopher J.
Duboc, 55
Kansas City, Mo.
Eagle: 1971
Passed: Jan. 29, 2012
Passed: Dec. 18, 1998
Passed: April 4, 2012
Passed: Oct. 18, 2011
Brent Collins
Hastings, 39
Atlanta, Ga.
Eagle: 1990
Dr. Wayne M.
Lednar, 62
Rochester, N.Y.
Eagle: 1962
Ernest
Manierre, 94
Maitland, Fla.
Eagle: 1931
Charles W.
Minton, 79
Oklahoma City, Okla.
Eagle: 1946
Passed: Jan. 29, 2012
Passed: April 6, 2012
Passed: Feb. 3, 2012
Passed: March 27, 2012
David A. Reis, 25
(shown with
sister Karen)
U.S. Naval Aviator
Bakersfield, Calif.
Eagle: 2004
Jack Roberts, 59
Boulder, Colo.
Eagle: 1968
George C.
Schempp III, 94
Melbourne, Fla.
Eagle: 1933
William A.
Schempp, 62
Ithaca, N.Y.
Eagle: 1962
Passed: Sept. 25, 2011
Passed: Feb. 11, 2011
Passed: Jan. 15, 2012
Passed: March 21, 2012
Passed: Jan. 1, 2012
Herbert T.
Schumacher, 87
Visalia, Calif.
Eagle: 1941
Glenn Weiss
Stouder, 99
Nocona, Tex.
Eagle: 1928
Robert F.
Thomson, 81
North Wildwood, N.J.
Eagle: 1944
Dr. Ralph Eugene
Tomkiewicz, 80
Racine, Wis.
Eagle: 1946
Passed: Nov. 6, 2011
Passed: June 6, 2012
Passed: March 13, 2012
Passed: June 27, 2011
Sanford “Sandy”
Weinberg, 61
Sandy Springs, Ga.
Eagle: 1965
CapT. Nicholas
Schade
Whitlock, 29
U.S. Air Force
Destin, Fla.
Eagle: 1999
Living Memorial
IN MEMORY OF GREEN BERET STAFF SERGEANT
ANDREW T. BRITTON-MIHALO, 25
Simi Valley, Calif.
Eagle: 2004
Passed: April 25, 2012 in Afghanistan
From: His second family: Travis JH Mathias (2001),
Jared C. Mathias (2009), Craig R. Mathias (1978), Danette,
Makayla, and Juleen
IN MEMORY OF CARL W. SCHNEIDER, 35
Leetsdale, Pa.
Eagle: 1992
Passed: Oct. 1, 2010
From: Susan and Michael Behme
Passed: Oct. 8, 2011
Passed: Feb. 18, 2012
The National Eagle Scout Scholarship Endowment accepts
tax‑deductible contributions in memory of deceased Eagle
Scouts or in tribute to Eagle Scout achievers.
Contributions may be sent to:
NESA Director, S322, Boy Scouts of America
1325 W. Walnut Hill Lane, P.O. Box 152079
Irving, TX 75015‑2079
Please mark the envelope “personal and confidential.”
Make the check payable to NESA and mark the check:
“In memory of (name of person)” or “In tribute to
(name of person).”
FAll 2012
Eagle Scout Magazine | 23
NONPROFIT ORG
U.S. POSTAGE
Boy Scouts of America
National Eagle Scout Association
1325 West Walnut Hill Lane
P.O. Box 152079
Irving, TX 75015-2079
www.NESA.org
PAID
BOY SCOUTS
OF AMERICA
Change Service Requested
NEWS
IN BRIEF
Keeping NESA Members Informed
Telling the Story
Of the ‘Ph.D. of Boyhood’
As the 100th anniversary of the Eagle Scout
Award approached, Michael S. Malone,
veteran journalist and Eagle Scout, realized
that nobody beyond NESA seemed to be
talking about the occasion. So he set out to
write Four Percent: The Story of
Uncommon Youth in a Century of
American Life, a new e-book from
WindRush Publishers about what he calls
“the Ph.D. of boyhood.”
“Every once in a while, you uncover another corner of history that
no one’s written about,” Malone said. “I think I’ve managed to do that
with Eagle Scouts.”
Available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Apple’s iBookstore,
Four Percent traces the history of the badge by telling the stories of
the men who’ve worn it, from the first Eagle Scout, Arthur Eldred, to
the two millionth, Anthony Thomas. Many of his subjects are
household names, including Neil Armstrong, Gerald Ford, and Steven
Spielberg. Others are not so well known—at least not yet—such as
Alex Griffith, winner of the first Glenn A. and Melinda W. Adams
National Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year Award.
But the book is more than biographies. It also traces the history of
NESA and its predecessor organization, the Knights of Dunamis.
That’s a story Malone knows especially well. A former chapter
commander in the Knights, Malone had the unenviable task of
announcing the Knights’ demise at the 1973 National Scout
Jamboree, where he served on staff.
Few people today have even heard of the Knights of Dunamis, but
that’s quickly changing. After Malone appeared in the Wall Street
Journal and on Fox News talking about his book, it quickly became
an Amazon bestseller. While he’s gratified that people beyond
Scouting are interested in the book, he thinks Scouts and Scouters
need to hear the story of the Eagle badge as well. “In Scouting, we
tend to be local and anecdotal,” he said. “We know what’s going on in
the troop, we maybe know what’s going on in the council, but the
big-picture stuff we don’t really know that much about.”
For more information on Four Percent, see fourpercentbook.com.
Patches and Pi
Amid growing awareness that America is
falling behind in math and science education,
the BSA introduced the Nova and Supernova
awards, a series of badges designed to promote
science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)
achievement among Scouts. The hope is that the awards
will stimulate interest in STEM-related careers.
Scouting’s Nova awards are designed to whet
Scouts’ appetite for STEM. There are four Nova awards
for each program level (Cub Scouting, Boy Scouting,
and Venturing), with each award covering one STEM
component. When Scouts earn their first award, they
receive a distinctive uniform patch. For each
subsequent award, they receive a separate pi (π) pin-on
device that attaches to that patch.
Meanwhile, the Supernova awards (right) recognize more
in-depth, advanced achievement in STEM-related activities. Named
for important STEM figures past and present, including the Wright
Brothers and astronaut Sally Ride, these awards can be thought of as
STEM counterparts to the venerable Hornaday Awards.
Find more info on these awards at scouting.org/stem.aspx.