It is the year 2005, and I am 48 years old. It has been a long time since I was a Boy Scout. So, do I remember anything about Scouting, and about Troop 102? Yes, I do, and quite clearly. My bother was briefly a member of another troop, but did not take to scouting, and soon dropped out. Not knowing anything about local scouting, but enthusiastic about what I'd read about the organization, I joined the troop that my brother had belonged to on their very first meeting after my 11th birthday. I was severely disappointed to know that they only did one or two camping trips on a good year. I wanted to camp. I was told to look into Troop 102. Their reputation had spread, and they were known as "that camping troop". This, I figured, was for me, and I soon went to my first troop meeting at Emily United Methodist Church. I was welcomed with open arms. My father was concerned: I have very thick glasses and poor night vision. How would I do on camping trips? (Remember: I was 11 then, and certain that I was immortal. I was not happy with my father for bringing this topic up.) No worries, the leaders promised to take care of me as if I were their son, and they did, too. I camped every single month with the troop, and never experienced a single problem because of darkness. Incidently, I would like to take this opportunity to clear up a point about that situation. In spite of a persistent rumor, I never bumped into a tree at night and said: "Excuse me, sir!" In spite of what these people might tell you, this never happened. I am Jewish, and I was the first Jewish potential Scout that Troop 102 had ever encountered. Now, I was not religious back then. I still never have attended synagogue, been Bar Mitvaed or learned Hebrew. I have since been baptized and confirmed in the Church (Episcopalian) and became a licensed lay eucheristic minister, but that's another story. I still don't keep kosher, and I (obviously) did not do so then, either. So, what was 102's reaction to their first Jewish scout? Even though I assured them that I loved ham and cheese sandwiches, they made sure that there was food that "Henry could eat" on all camping trips from then on until I got them to relax about the subject. But they were concerned that I feel welcomed and comfortable, even though they did not yet know me! They were accustomed to holding a brief worship service on Sundays. I assured them that I would be happy to attend and that mention of Jesus Christ would not bother me in the slightest (all true) but no, they insisted upon making their worship services inclusive, and they took care not to offend any person or group. And yet, these brief services were very moving to me; they did not lack substance or sincerity. They were not "plastic", and seeing these people model their faith in an inclusive way certainly helped my own long (and continuing) spiritual journey in later years. But this was not the only way they helped me to grow. It was made clear to me that I got no breaks because of my vision, and I worked just as hard as anyone else. I came in to the troop a shy, insecure skinny little kid, but I made it to Life Scout as a confident boy who is to this day unafraid to camp. In any weather. Did I mention that 102 camped in any weather? We hiked the Batona Trail in weather so hot that buzzards were circling us overhead for most of the last part of that hike before we finally made camp. It was there that I learned just how cold a mountain fed lake can be, no matter how hot you are before you jump in. I was told that I was starting to turn a lovely shade of blue by the time I struggled out of the water (with help) but I learned to test the water before I jumped in, and that lesson has served me well throughout the years. We camped on the grounds of the Willow Grove Naval Air Station in weather so cold that running water from a large pipe froze solid in a picturesque waterfall. We camped, many times, on weekends when the rain did not let up for long. We did not cancel our trips. We camped. And we enjoyed ourselves. And I learned that rain, even constant rain, will not hurt you, and you do not get sick from camping in the rain -- and that you can still have a good time -- if you plan ahead and do it properly. I learned to plan ahead. And to tie knots, and I still remember my knots, even after all these years. I learned marksmanship and cooking, fire safety and first aid. I learned to row a rowboat, to shoot white water rapids in an aluminum canoe and, that when participating in the latter activity, if your canoe gets through the rapids just fine, but a scout leader's canoe wraps itself around a rock, they are not amused by humorous songs, chants, or skits about the incident. Yes, I did learn respect, and I had fun doing it. I did learn that sometimes funny songs can hurt other peoples' feelings, but mostly I learned respect because it was shown to me. After graduation from Tenderfoot to Second Class, I learned that respect is earned, not handed out. I earned my "Century Club" hundred mile patch by hiking along the Appalachian Trail. And I set the world's record -- no kidding! -- for the mile swim. Unfortunately, it was the record for the world's slowest mile swim ever. It took me 2 hours and 2 minutes to swim that mile using a unique stroke known as the Boston Crawl, wherein the swimmer flaps about in the water, hoping to be propelled in the correct direction by the wake of the swimmers ahead of him. But I swam that mile, and I had both leaders and fellow scouts cheering me on every single inch of the way, and they would not let me give up. I learned that encouragement works better than coercion. These people did not talk about not letting a child fail; they simply would not give up on you -- no matter what -- as long as you were still willing to hang in there and run (or swim) the race. I never made it to Eagle Scout. I made it to Life, and then discovered girls. But, before I did, I attended camporees and a jamboree and was inducted into the Order of the Arrow and have had more adventures and memories than I can possibly detail here. I have camped all night on the ground of Rockanickon and those memories are still as sharp now as those rocks were then. I came into that troop a shy, skinny kid, an underconfident child of overprotective parents, and emerged strong and fit and with a sense of self confidence and self possession that I still have to this day. These attributes have helped me to be more successful in business, and in life, than I had ever dreamed I could be. Unfortunately, I'm anything but skinny now. But the moral guidance I got from my years in Troop 102 taught me lessons about good citizenship that I have never forgotten. I was taught by example; I was not lectured, I was not coerced, and I was not preached at. No, I was no angel, and it was not all sweetness and light. But it was good. I sincerely believe that every single moment I spent in Troop 102 was good. Chronologically, I am a man, and that's easy to do by just living on this planet for 21 years. But Troop 102 taught me to be a good citizen, and I believe that is the more important lesson. They taught me to be kind, and to respect the feelings and beliefs of others as they respected mine. They taught me to survive out of doors in situations that many people consider inhospitable. They taught me about teamwork. They taught me that it might be OK to be a smart aleck, but that I had better be prepared to accept the consequences. In this way, they taught me to think a little bit before I spoke, a lesson that I submit would do many people of any age an awful lot of good. They taught me to love nature and to leave the places I hiked and camped in cleaner than they were before I visited. Another lesson applicable in a lot of circumstances. So, yes: I remember an awful lot about Troop 102, because they taught me values, habits, and moral lessons that I carry with me every single day and that I apply to my work, my family and to my civic life. And I had an awful lot of fun learning those lessons. I am grateful to the leaders and to my fellow Scouts of Troop 102. For a brief few years they were my family. It was a darn good family, I was very lucky to have them, and the world is to this day a better place because this family is still around.

Henry W. Farkas