People Took A Chance On Us So We Can Invest In Others
February in Montana – it’s beautiful out there, don’t you think?
Speaking of beauty, it is the week of Valentine’s Day and a chance to stop and admire our loved ones. Trust me when I tell you, we all need to do just that.
I travel a ton in the first quarter of the year – 3,100 miles in the last two weeks to be exact – and it becomes easy to get “wrapped up” in work.
I’d suggest the same thing happens for many of the volunteers and staff throughout our great council. Great volunteers and staff are far too busy to add more to their plates. Yet, that is exactly what they do.
Having just attended the Eagle Scout Report to the State this past weekend in Helena, the Eagle Scouts present heard from Washington Companies President/CEO and Distinguished Eagle Scout Larry Simkins.
Larry reminded those Scouts that they were all surrounded by investors – folks like you that took a chance on them. Larry reminded us all that we owe it to those who believed in us to make a return on their investment, to give back to Scouting and bring the next generations along the Scouting trail.
Council President, Chuck Eubank showed how we are building for future generations, how we invest today to ensure success in their tomorrow, and Distinguished Eagle Scout Jack Sherick issued them all the Eagle Scout Challenge.
So you see, Scouting is more than something to kill time or make us feel good. It is an obligation, a flame that burns inside, something we just know that we need to do.
I remember the first time I asked Angi, my wife to come join the troop committee. Mind you, this is long before our children were in the program and she wondered why on earth I was dedicating so much time to meetings, trainings and camping.
She responded by saying, “I think Scouting gets enough of our time, don’t you?”
She didn’t understand what the driver was that pushed me to all those Scouting things. That was twenty-three years ago.
Fast forward to 2011. I had just come home from work and my wife told me (out of the blue) that she was going to Wood Badge. Imagine my surprise – I said, “why?”
She told me that if Scouting was to be my career, maybe she needed to understand more about it. Since, she has been a Wood Badge Staff Member, Troop Committee Member and Den Leader.
She is beautiful inside and out. In fact, I am rather fond of her.
To all of Scouting’s Spouses, Happy Valentine’s Day. To all the Scouters that pound the pavement and grease Scouting’s engines, God Bless You. Take a day off and let your spouse know just how much you appreciate them.
Without them, what we do would not be possible.
Jory A. Dellinger
Interim Scout Executive
P.S. Angi – I love you!
