Who can say if I’ve been

Changed for the better?

I do believe I have been

Changed for the better

And because I knew you…

Because I knew you…

Because I knew you…

I have been changed for good.

—Wicked

Today is my last day as a Cub Scout leader. Tonight, I’ll be attending our monthly Pack meeting, presiding over it for the last time. At the end of the meeting, I’ll be officially handing over the reins to my replacement. I’ll come home and for the last time take off my Cub Scout Leader neckerchief.

This isn’t the end for me in Scouts by any means. My son bridged up to Boy Scouts in March, and I’ve already been active in his troop, where I will continue to serve as Assistant Scoutmaster. I’ll be able to continue to camp with him and watch him grow and hopefully someday in the next few years stand proudly by him as he receives his Eagle rank.

But while being a Boy Scout leader is fun, it’s not the same as being a Cub Scout leader. Our Cub Scout Pack currently has an Assistant Cubmaster who doesn’t have a son. Like me, he’s an Eagle Scout, and someone who just really enjoys Scouting and believes in what it has to offer, and so he volunteers his time for us. I’ve often wondered over the years I’ve known him why he volunteers at the Cub Scout level instead of with the older boys, and he’s told me that he enjoys Cub Scouts more. With the younger boys, leaders simply have more to do. I accepted that, but until now, faced with the prospect of not having that connection anymore, I’ve never truly understood it.

I’ve been a leader since my son, who turns 11 later this month, first joined Cub Scouts as a Tiger Cub at age 6 in first grade. I’ve been an Assistant Den Leader, Den Leader and Cubmaster. Throughout that time, I’ve also served as the Pack’s advancement chair and have held several positions at higher levels outside the Pack as well.

“My kid loves Scouts, and I love my kid.”

Why do I do it? Why do I spend a lot of my time and a not inconsiderable amount of money to hang out with elementary school kids? A former Cubmaster of ours I think said it nicely one time when he was asked. “My kid loves Scouts, and I love my kid.” That’s certainly a lot of it. I’ve done lots of volunteer things over the years, but this is the only one that I get to do with my kid.

But my son has moved on to Boy Scouts, and yet I’m still sad about leaving Cubs. So it’s not just the time with him. There is indeed something special about Cubs. Boy Scouts is, by design, a boy-led organization. The adults are there to help and guide and of course keep everyone safe, but in an ideal world the boys should be running things. And that’s possible when the boys in question are 14 or 15 or 16. But of course we can’t expect first- and second-graders to take on leadership positions. So there’s simply more to do for leaders in Cubs than in Boy Scouts. And that is definitely part of it.

But more than that, Cub Scouts provides a chance to watch these boys grow up. I remember when my son first joined. Seeing him as this tiny little kid, with these older, seemingly so much more mature, and certainly taller Webelos Scouts. And then in a blink of an eye, he was one of those Webelos, and a whole new crop of tiny Tigers are there, ready to continue the tradition.

But as Chaucer said, all good things must come to an end. And so it’s time to move on. But as I do, I need to say thanks. Thanks to the parents who have trusted me with their kids over the years. Who brought them to meetings, sometimes against their will. Who kept them focused and progressing through the ranks. Thanks for recognizing the importance of a program like Scouting and for getting your son involved.

Thanks as well to my fellow leaders. Thanks for volunteering to come on this adventure with me. Thanks for stepping up and helping out. And most of all, thanks for the friendship.

But most of all, thanks to the boys. They are truly an awesome group. They are funny, they are adorable, they are even on occasion clean. And they are the reason why we all do what we do.

I do move on knowing that I am leaving the Pack in great hands. And yet, as I look back on it, I wonder if I’ll ever again have the chance to do something so incredibly meaningful. Something that really has the opportunity to shape a future generation. My guess is not. And that’s OK in a way. At least I got to do it.

“How lucky I am to have known someone and something that saying goodbye is so … awful.”

– The Other Side of the Mountain

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