What merit badges did you earn and why?

[dsteele 20]

I'm at home, on a vacation/packing day and am finishing out my final report to the council -- a lenghty thing. I opened my desk looking for my three hole punch (the 85-100 pages need to be bound) and it wasn't there. So I went upstairs to my wife's den, which I rarely enter) and found, of all things my merit badge sash. I thought it was long gone. I haven't seen it for years, but she had it safely in a drawer.

 

As I looked at it's dim olive green, and looked at the small circles that represent much of my youth scouting career, I could remember something from each badge. I found this interesting since I earned the last one in 1982 or so and my Eagle in 1979. It made me smile and also made me wonder what merit badges you chose to earn as Scouts. Some have been discontinued due to lack of interest, others have spun off much as threads here spin off.

 

Here is my list of merit badges in order of when they were earned (which is how my sash is sewn:)

 

Geology, Architecture, basketry, fishing, gardening, first aid, sports, personal management, camping, leatherwork, emergency preparedness, firemanship, enviornmental science, bookbinding, communications, scholarship, citizenship in the nation, citizenship in the community, safety, citizenship in the world, computers, indian lore, wood carving, personal fitness, athletics, small boat sailing, law.

 

Interesting memories.

 

Please share yours. What was the highlight? Why did you take the first one? Do you recall?

 

For example: I took geology because I was interested in the stuff that stuck to the magnet on my flashlight on my first campout. Turns out there were slivers of iron in the sand on that Lake Michigan dune and an ASM in the right place jumped on the opportunity to educate a young Scout due to his curiosity.

 

DS

[purcelce 11]

Interesting thread. So I'll give it a shot.

 

Basketry, Swimming, Mammals, Pioneering, First Aid, Leatherwork, Safety, Oceanography, Camping Emergency Prep, Indian Lore, Environmental Science, Citizenship in Nation, World, and Community, Reptile Study, Rifle and Shotgun Shooting, Woodcarving, Soil and Water Conservation, Personal Management, Communications, Canoeing.

 

My first was Basketry at my second year at summer camp (first year I just got skill awards). I took it because it was an easy one. I also got Swimming, Mammals and Pioneering that year.

 

My most memorable was Pioneering. Our project was a raft. It was dubbed by staff as the U boat.

[Fuzzy Bear 12]

The numerical order that I give is from the Merit Badge Sash. The latter badges were out of order and overlapped some of the time frames. The divisions roughly correspond to the seasons for summer camp but also I wanted to divide according to the people that helped me; many that I no longer remember with clarity, of course, the noted exceptions are my Dad and Mr. P, I will remember them a lot longer.

 

Begin-The 50th Anniversary of Scouting- I thought they did this every year.

 

2nd Summer Camp- 1. Camping, 2. Swimming- I was afraid of the water and had to get mad at myself and be totally embarrassed to finish the badge. Camping was chosen because that was what I liked about Scouting, still do.

 

Back at home and on to Star Scout- 3. Safety Merit Badge- Counselor, 4. First Aid- Extra Tough Merit Badge Counselor- good story but hard head (this is Mr. P., a man that corrected well for my laziness), 5. Firemanship- Merit Badge Counselor.

 

3rd Summer Camp- 6. Pioneering-fun projects that later multiplied, 7. Canoeing- Funny Story at Summer Camp that was caught on film, 8. Cooking.

 

On to life Scout- 9. Citizenship in the Home-Merit Badge Counselor, 10. Athletics-Counselor/Coach, 11. Personal Fitness-Counselor/Coach.

 

Fourth Year Camper- 12. Life Saving-I almost got into a fight but stood up for myself and got over my fear of swimming. 14. Nature, 17. Basketry.

 

13. Hiking-Scout Planned Summer camp- pre Philmont, same summer, on to the Tooth!

 

15. Soil and Water Conservation-Merit Badge Counselor, 18. Citizenship in the Community-Merit Badge Counselor, 19. Citizenship in the Nation-Merit Badge Counselor, 21. Art-Merit Badge Counselor/Teacher, 22. Wildlife Management-Merit Badge Counselor.

 

1964- 21 Merit Badges to Eagle

 

16.Plumbing-My Dad the Plumber/Counselor, 20. Home Repairs-My Dad the Engineer/Fix it Counselor, 23. Metalworking- My Dad the Sheet metal worker/Counselor. This wasnt all that he taught me. If there would have been merit badges in air conditioning, heating, lawn sprinkling, insulation, digging ditches, tools, and on and on I guess I would have had even more badges. Instead, he instilled the idea of work in me. I still have that one.

 

My next goal was to get nine palms, three each for the red, white, and the blue. A goal that was somehow lost in the shuffle of youthful exuberance. My final objective reached was one extra merit badge each for good effort, good goal but bad follow-through, not as impressive but still a safe landing.

 

FB

 

[EagleInKY 14]

In order of receiving them:

 

Pioneering (I always loved tying knots)

Basketry (defacto first summer camp MB)

Cit in Community

Nature

Forestry (I remember doing this on a winter campout - Brrrr)

Fingerprinting

Dentistry (The one time I enjoyed going to the dentist)

First Aid

Music (My counselor looked and sang like Charlie Rich - FOG, you remember him?)

Swimming

Camping

Cooking

Env. Science

American Heritage

Canoeing

Personal Management

Cit in Nation

Rowing

Communnications

Safety (back when it was Eagle Required)

Emergency Prep

Cit in World

Leatherwork

Home Repairs

Hiking

Wilderness Survival

Personal Fitness (Whew, finally got that last Eagle MB, just before my 17th B-day).

Nice question, thanks for asking.

[Twocubdad 665]

First Aid, fishing, railroading, nature, fingerprinting, basketry, swimming, gardening, hiking, conservation, lifesaving, safety, traffic safety, photography, coin collecting, camping, cooking, cit. community, textiles, cit. nation, scholarship, personal fitness, animal husbandry, metal working, transportation and journalism.

 

Hiking was probably the most memorable. During my first summer in Scouts, someone's mom would drive a bunch our us 10 or 20 miles out in the country, drop us off and we would hike home. We had a blast.

 

The least memorable was animal husbandry. I have absolutely no recollection of getting that one. I'm even wondering if somehow I got a wrong badge (although I know the total of 27 is correct.)

 

The toughest was personal fitness and was the last one I needed for Eagle. I wouldn't have gotten that one if it weren't for my SM kicking my behind across his backyard, running sprints and doing situps.

 

I can honestly say the best merit badges were the required ones. They were the toughest, but also the ones that taught the most. (You guys out there listening?)

[OldGreyEagle 5]

::puffing out chest as much as possible::

 

Why, back in my day you couldn't earn a merit badge until you were First Class. I know I earned 21 (cause I am an Eagle) and at this point, most of my merit badge memories are a blur. I do remember redoing the nature merit badge (Eagle required at the time)and being told that having to redo it only once was rare with THAT counselor. I remember doing the Corn Farming meritbadge (had to grow 3 kinds of corn, I did Sweet, Indian, and Feed, my mother varnished the Indian corn ears and had them for over 30 years, pulled them out every year at Thanksgiving)

 

Due to limited family resources my merit badge selection was limited to the merit badge books at the local libary, which explains the Corn Farming one.

[le Voyageur 72]

 

Listing 91 merit badges would generate one very long post...however...

 

1st mb was Cooking, had to pedal the bike 15 miles one way to meet up with the MBC for the sign off...it was one less ride that I had to do for the Cycling mb.

 

Hiking...finished off the 20 miler is grand style, Rim to Rim on the Bright Angel trail (Grand Canyon)

 

Fruit and Nut Growing...spent a summer with a crew planting 40 acres of orange trees. On weekends would work on my little plot of Yuma cotton for the Cotton Growing mb.

 

Canoeing... great fun, but the little pond at Camp Geronimo did little for adventures with something as wonderful as a canoe. Those adventures would come later...

 

Dairying....talk about getting up early. Learned quickly not to milk with cold hands though...

 

Horsemanship....taught me that I'm better off walking than dealing with those four legged attitudes...