Scoutmaster's minute
Mark Arend (arend@PEOPLES.NET)
Fri, 6 Dec 1996 07:32:03 -0600
More Presidential quotes:
In a speech in 1960 President Eisenhower related an incident from his son's
Scouting career. At the time there was a "14-mile solo hike" requirement
which John attempted over the objections of his mother.
"Well, he...came in in fine shape. And I found this: the tremendous
pride that boy had in making sure--getting the self confidence that he could
do a thing by himself, that some of his doting parents did not think he
could do.
And moreover, it occured to me that possibly we are doing a little
bit too much of the paternalistic care about our young, and we don't give
them an opportunity to develop self-dependence. And when I saw the pride
that boy exhibited--he was a different boy.
[Whenever he meets Scouts] I try to get a word to see what they are
thinking about, and what their morale is. And it is always at the top.
They get this morale, why? Because they are trained or they are
taught that they can render a service. Because the way these boys are
growing up is to believe there is an honor and a satisfaction in doing a
service for others. To my mind, that is the great thing about Scouting. It
doesn't make any difference whether they wrap up their bed-rolls just right,
or pitch their tent exactly right, or whether they do their cookout and burn
the eggs and the bacon not fit to eat. As long as they have that feeling
and that development--if they get the same feeling that we did when we read
in our Bibles the Parable of the Good Samaritan and then as time comes
along, if they individually and collectively begin to think of their nation
in part as a "good Samaritan", doing the decent thing in this world, then I
will tell you: Scouting is indeed doing something for all of us that is not
only necessary but I would say vital to our vigor as a nation based upon a
religious concept, but is ready to take on its own shoulders its duty with
respect to itself, with respect to those that are less fortunate. Only in
this way, in my opinion, is America going to be able to lead the way to that
goal that mankind has sought so long, and so far so futilely, a peace with
honor and with justice."
This is from a speech commemorating the 50th anniversary of the BSA.
BTW, in the Presidential Scouting thread someone posted that they thought
that Pres. Eisenhower had been elected to the Order of the Arrow as an
adult. The Eisenhower Library has no information on this. Can anyone out
there confirm this story?
Mark W. Arend
Beaver Dam Community Library
311 N. Spring St. Outside of a dog, a book is
Beaver Dam, Wisc. 53916 man's best friend. Inside of
(414) 887-4631 (fax 887-4633) a dog it's too dark to read.
--Groucho Marx
www.peoples.net/~bdlib/
Scoutmaster, Troop 736
mailto:arend@peoples.net
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