December 7th Speaker
After an introduction to Boy Scouts of America with a brief history of the origin of Scouting in England in 1908, Club President James Hill (familiarly known as “Tink”), a fifth-generation Austinite, told us how began his Scouting experience with the Cub Scouts in a segregated troop in East Austin. When the family accompanied his father, on active duty with the U.S. Army, during an assignment in France, he became very active in Scouting and learned values and skills that have shaped his personal life, his professional education and career path, and his deep commitment to Scouting. All the training in Scouting eventually led him to administrative responsibility in Central Texas, and then enriched his leadership of the Great Troop 8, which is sponsored by our NxNE Rotary Club. In less than six years it has produced several Eagle Scouts, attended all three Boy Scout national leadership training camps, and changed the lives of many young men. Many of the achievements, the service projects, and the successful fundraising activities were listed, proving without a doubt that our Troop 8 is truly great. A personal video illustrating the growth and development of a chick eaglet into an Eagle Scout provided a dramatic conclusion to Scout Hill’s presentation. To quote: “This told my son Rich’s story, but it is every Eagle Scout’s story.” With his usual mastery of words and humor, our own Tink Hill provided us all with a quite informative program. Thanks, President Tink!