Eagle Scout Challenge
This week I attended the Keystone Area Council’s 34th Annual Eagle Scout Recognition Dinner. At this dinner the 2008 Eagle Scouts are recognized and given a challenge by an honoree. This year the chairperson for the event was Andrew Samuel (CEO of Graystone Bank) and the honoree was Robert Dietz (President/COO of Gannett Fleming). As many people know, I am a very proud Eagle Scout and watching these young men receive this recognition is so moving. I also love Eagle Scout challenges (here is one from Mike Rowe of the hit TV show Dirty Jobs).
Mr. Dietz did an excellent job with his challenge. He stated that as Eagles they have to:
1. Show a willingness to take ownership and go the extra mile
2. Lead by example
3. Leave everything you touch better then how you found it.
He mentioned that these are the exact values that employers are looking for when hiring. He also challenged the young men to follow the great words of his friend Cliff Jones who also said:
1. Be for something and not against something.
2. Make new friends younger then yourself, as this will keep you young yourself.
In closing, he suggested this celebration is a victory. However (as he paraphrased the words of Barack Obama) this victory alone is not the change you seek. It is only the chance for you to make that change. Less than 2% of boys that join Boy Scouts attain the Eagle Scout rank and these young men are now equipped with many tools to change our world for the better.
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