Troop 7
Troop 7
Council
by Elmer Gillette, former Scoutmaster (17th Scoutmaster)
Twenty-five years ago, we redesigned the troop neckerchief. Since I had some influence over the artist designing the patch (my son is David Gillette), I requested that our new Jayhawk wear boots.
It is my fault and this is why.
Many years before when I was scoutmaster of Troop 162 in Leavenworth, we were cutting saplings for our first Ferris wheel. Kenny McGraw, our senior patrol leader and as excellent a forester as Paul Bunion, was attempting to thin out a group of hickory saplings with a very sharp axe. As he focused on one sapling, he took his stroke not noticing another sapling close by. The axe struck another sapling and diverted the blade into Kenny’s right big toe. Now he had two smaller toes. As we carried him to the car to be transported to the doctor’s office, he kept muttering how embarrassed he was. Eagle scouts don’t cut their toenails with an axe. When he arrived at the doctor’s office, the doctor stated, “I suppose you’re my boy’s patrol leader.” The doctor’s son was on the campout. Kenny said, “I am the senior patrol leader again quite embarrassed. Doctor Graham later told me that if Kenny had not been wearing heavy military boots, chances are he would have been crippled for life. From that moment on, I made it a rule for our troop to always wear boots on any scout outing, that no one could use a knife or axe without boots on.
Some time after this experience, I can’t remember when or who, one of my scout troops was at summer camp and of course wearing their boots. Some scout from another troop pointed and said to some of his friends, “Look at those characters, they are all wearing boots,” and laughed. One of our members took up the challenge and started saying we were the “boot troop”. Then the rest of the boys started chanting “boot troop, boot troop”. It stuck. When the boys of Troop 747 in Independence, Missouri designed their neckerchief, it was a boot with wings. Others might laugh when we wear boots, but parents, doctors and nurses don’t.
Roland Williams (18th Scoutmaster)
In my opinion, the best thing you can do for your children is to spend time with them and become involved in the things they are interested in doing. By doing this, it benefited my son, but also gave me many enjoyable hours with a large number of other young men. In fact, after my son received his Eagle Scout award and became interested and involved in many other things, I continued to serve as Scoutmaster and then as a Commissioner.
One of the things that stands out in my memory of the many things we did while I was involved with Troop 7 was a trip to Colorado. I don’t recall the exact number of boys involved, but I believe we had two bus loads, including several fathers. We always had great participation by the fathers, which contributed greatly to the success of the Troop.
On this particular trip, we camped out on the grounds of the Air Force Academy and ate in their mess hall. I am sure this impressed the boys a great deal. Also, we went to Fort Carson, Colorado, and spent a day. We went to the Royal Gorge and made some other side trips, including an old mining town, etc. In addition to being educational and interesting for the boys, I believe this trip gave them a chance to become closer to each other. Our monthly campouts and summer camps at Camp Jayhawk also gave these boys a chance to grow and learn many things that wouldn’t have been available to them except through scouting.
Memories
by Tom McMahon (19th Scoutmaster)
Roland Willians was scoutmaster just ahead of me and finally persuaded me to accept the position. During the nearly four years I was scoutmaster, we did a great deal of hiking. We hiked the following tails:
Harry S. Truman Trail (medal)
Indian Mound Trail
Lewis & Clark Trail (medal)
Log Cabin Trail
Santa Fe Trail
Fort Riley Trail
Lone Jack Civil War Trail (medal)
Baffle of Westport Historical Trail (medal)
Fort Leavenworth Heritage Trail
Curtis Trail
Kansas Capitols Trail
All hikers that completed the trail received a patch. They also received a medal for completing the four trails so indicated. Many of the awards the scouts and scouters earned can still be earned by completing the requirements. I was scoutmaster during the Bicentennial year. There were three different patches celebrating our nations Bicentennial the scouts were encouraged to earn between 1975 and 1977.
The highlight for me of my time as scoutmaster was our trip to Philmont in 1975. Nineteen scouts and five scouters made the trip in two 12 passenger rented vans. We spent Saturday night in route at Laiunta, Colorado, where we saw the Koshare Indian Dancers perform. Since Philmont had a limit of 12 people in a contingent, we split up the morning we started on the trail One contingent was led by Al Milner and Paul Helus, the other group was led by Mel Roepke Jim Rasmussen and me.
We had several projects that gave the scouts an opportunity to make money to pay for their scout activities. They sold Kathryn Beich candy and collected tons of newspapers, which sold for $60 a ton when the project started.