"A Scout is Brave"
Letter from Kevin Thompson in Iraq

A lot of the Scouts heard my "Scoutmaster's Minute" that Fred allowed me to give on the last Monday that I was on leave. I rambled for a few more than a minute and gave what I thought were some examples of scouts being brave. Bravery and courage are synonyms, that is, they are words that mean the same thing. I talked about Charles Maland and the snow cave, I think that I mentioned Mike Anderson and the skiing trip, and I mentioned that bravery also included doing things that you have said that you would do but in the passage of time you don't want to do now. I want to revisit this minute and see if I can clarify these thoughts.

I would like to tell the story of how I became a Scoutmaster and why I think the way that I do. As most of you know I am an Eagle Scout from Troop 315. I was a patrol leader and the senior patrol leader. I still remember the two young men that where my Assistant Senior Patrol leader and Quartermaster. I was lucky enough to remain friends with the Quartermaster, Oscar Penagos until his death a couple of years ago. Some of the friends that you will make will be friends for life. As with most boys after I earned my eagle I fell out of Scouting. I went to college, joined the army, and generally went on with life. I was surprised that being an Eagle Scout gained me rank in the military. When I returned to Pocatello, I tried to become involved with the troop again but the situation was not right for that to take place. I was asked to be an adviser for another troop and enjoyed that. The time that I spent with the other troop gave me some insights into how difficult it is to run a troop in this area, and the fact that the Scoutmasters in Troop 315 have kept this troop running for the last 40 plus years is nothing short of amazing.

Some Scoutmasters are pressed into service while others embrace the opportunity. I was fortunate that my Scoutmaster is a legend in the scouting community. Jim Martin was the only Scoutmaster that I had as a Scout; he presided over my initiation as a Scout and at my Eagle Court of Honor. In South East Idaho this is an uncommon event. Most Scout Masters remain in the program just long enough for their kids to complete their Eagle and then move on. This gives me and other scouts from Troop 315 a unique view of what a Scoutmaster is all about.

The Scouts in Troop 315 learn that this is their program; the boys plan and participate in the activities. The adults function as a safety buffer and comic relief. This is not the way that all troops operate. This is called the patrol method and it is the technique recommended by BSA. This was the goal of Jim Martin and he realized this goal. The Scoutmasters that have followed him have also kept to this standard.

I am lucky that Fred Davis, the current Scoutmaster, keeps me on the strait and narrow. As the "High Adventure" Assistant Scoutmaster I get the opportunity to take the older boys on whatever adventures that they want to go on. Some times they think that they are invincible.

What does all this rambling about the troop and the leaders have to do with the Scout law? Well mostly it has to do with the frame of mind that the leaders have when events are planned. We (the adult leadership) grew up in a time when the mere fact that you gave your word meant that you where bound to do what you said that you where going to do, that was a contract between you and the person that you gave your word to. As patrol leaders and senior patrol leaders when you plan an event you are saying that you are going to go. Sometimes another boy pushes through an event that you don't want to go on but you should support the boy who wanted the activity. Chances are that there is someone in your patrol that is going on the activity and as a patrol leader you are obligated to go to support the patrol.

One of the forgotten elements of being a patrol leader is that you are the first-line leader; your job includes integrating the new boys into Scouting. What does this really mean? It means that whether a boy has a good or bad experience in Scouting is dependent on you. You as a patrol leader will determine whether a boy will stay in Scouting.

What does this have to do with being brave? To be a patrol leader means that you as a Scout have to step up and be counted. You will stand in front and bear the pressures of leadership. What are these pressures? This is the pressure of having to explain the actions of your patrol, being responsible for the success or failure of the patrol. This takes bravery. You will be laughed at; you will have your butt chewed. You will be expected to be a Scout above Scouts.

So I have talked a lot about how it takes bravery to be a patrol leader. What does this have to do with being a patrol member or a new Scout? Well quite a bit actually. Scouting has changed from its beginnings. There was a time when if you where an astronaut, president, general, doctor, welder, carpenter or any other profession you started out as a Boy Scout. Being a Scout meant that you where a member of something and being an Eagle Scout meant that you finished what you started. Now there are other things to do and other organizations that will pull boys away from the Scouting experience. For a Scout to remain active for the three or more years to achieve Eagle it takes courage on his part. It also takes tenacity. What is tenacity? That is a big word that means "able to stick it out" if you have tenacity you are able to stick to Scouting and achieve the goals that you set for yourself. This takes bravery. It takes courage and it takes tenacity.

So what will all this talk of bravery do for you in the future? Making choices that are difficult now will teach you to make difficult choices through your life. When I first joined the army I had a leader that wrote a letter to me that talked about making the hard right. This didn't mean a right turn in a truck it meant doing the right thing all the time, even when no one is looking. This is the hardest part. When you are alone or not with other Scouts you will be challenged. The most obvious challenge would be drugs. That is a no brainer, most of us cannot turn on the TV with out getting the message that you should stay away from drugs, but what about the ones that are smaller like small "white" lies, swearing, bullying, teasing and overcoming peer pressure. Most of the situations that happen when no one else is around will not be remembered by anyone but you. You will find that if are in the habit of choosing the "hard right" the "hard decisions" are easy.

I told you that 3000 Idahoans are leaving to go to Iraq. None of us want to go; we are going because we gave our word. This is the same word that you as patrol leaders give, and it means the same thing. It is the same word that you give as Scouts when you give your word. It means that we will finish what we started, and that is all that we as adult leaders ask; that you will follow through when asked. Most of my life has been spent in one uniform or another, and with every uniform that I have worn there has been an honor code. This code started in my life with the Scout Oath and part of the Scout Oath is the Scout Law and one of the words in the Scout Law is the word brave.