Cub Scouts and Me

The Journey a Father and Son Take

When I was a child I joined the Cub Scouts of America. It seemed fun and all my friends from school did it. At home, however, my father seemed to love the idea and this was the man who, jokingly, tried to get me signed up for military duty along with my eighteen-year old brother (I was six years old at the time). So I joined the Cub Scouts of America and got myself ready to become a man using their program to learn and prosper. That did not happen though, after just a few short months in the program for one reason or another my father stopped taking me to meetings and my dream of being a Boy Scout or an Eagle Scout was over. Then about three years ago I got a second chance, my own son. He brought home a flyer from school, which is so frequently these days, and it mentioned Scouting.

We went to the School Scout Night meeting and joined on the spot. My son, because of his age and grade level, was a Tiger Cub. You call tell the difference because in the United States the Tiger Cubs were orange neckerchiefs. There wasn't the best leadership in place and I found myself as Den Leader. I was unofficial, however I ran with it. The most important thing in the program was them boys. We went to the St. Louis Science Center and experienced the Titanic Exhibit there that was only a limited engagement. Without a lot of money, we visited Parks and achieved our accomplishments, went Christmas Caroling at a local nursing home and took everyone home-made Christmas ornaments and bought presents for a couple residents without family to visit them during the holiday season. Doing our Good Deeds. We took visits to the Police Station, Radio Station J-98 (The Boot), and lots and lots of camping. Before much longer was our Pinewood Derby, then our Camping Trips, and soon another School Year came.