By Mike Walton

Iwant to introduce you to indeed a“World Scouter,” one of many withinthe BSA. This particular Scouter is a

former military officer, martial artist,Hollywood stuntman, and proud headcheerleader for the ideals of Scouting andwhat it truly means to live Scouting. He’salso a journalist, which is another reasonwhy I want you to meet him – for wehope you will read a lot of Dan Coberly’sinsight, experiences and knowledge asthis magazine reaches more and moreScouters.

Coberly, the son of a career Army SpecialForces Soldier, started his formalScouting adventure in the Panama CanalZone. Before that, he participated withCubs in Munich, Germany. Years later,he enlisted in the Army, carrying on his

family’s strong military traditionof service and patriotism pre-

dating the AmericanRevolution. He received

an Army officer’s com-mission but retainedhis enlisted rank androse up to becomeone of the Army’sleading public affairsadvisors before retir-

ing after 28 years ofservice.

Not many people can saythat they have lived a World

Scouting adventure in more than30 countries, including places in Europe,the Far East, South America and Africa,or that they have also been a leader in 12BSA councils. For 45 years, Dan Coberlyhas done just that.

Dan’s Scouting adventures began duringthe early 1960s in the jungles of thePanama Canal Zone. An Army brat, hewas a member of Chiriqui Lodge #391until his family returned to Europe in the1970s where he became an Eagle Scoutin Troop 62, Wurzburg Germany. There,he served as a Chapter and Lodge Chief

of Black Eagle Lodge #482. During the1980s, he and the Scout Executiveformed Achapteuny Lodge #498 in

the Far East, and Dan became its firstLodge Advisor, traveling throughoutAsia to revive the Order of the Arrowprogram there. By age 28, he was also aWood Badge Course Director for BoyScout and Cub programs and helped to

re-establish an International Wood Badgecourse and served as Program Directorfor the National Camping School in theAsia-Pacific Region.

During his nearly 30-year career as anaward-winning military journalist, hisarticles on the plight of AmerasianChildren and Child Abuse in the militarywon critical acclaim. He traveled aroundthe world several times, serving overseasand stateside as a Council ExecutiveBoard Member on International CampStaff Selection committees and as anInternational Representative for severalBSA councils. By age 36, he had attainedthe highest Army enlisted rank ofSergeant Major and the rare distinctionof concurrently holding a PresidentialArmy Reserve direct commission as aCaptain. For many years, he was an offi-cial Army representative to the BSA.

As a Scouter, Dan has held nearly everyvolunteer position from Scout toScoutmaster, from acting CouncilPresident to BSAAmbassador and NESARegent. For more than 20 years, heserved as a member of several BSANational and International Committees.He also served on various BSA Westernand Southern Regional Committees. Danis perhaps best known for leading, edit-ing, or advising several national BSApublications such as the JamboreeJournal, Jamboree Today, Leader’sUpdate, three NOAC publications, andthe NESA Eagletter. One of Dan’s arti-cles lives on forever on the internet: “AScouter For All Time” is a moving eulo-gy of the late “Green Bar” Bill Hillcourt.

I first ran across Dan Coberly during anational Scout Jamboree, but I did notknow he was in the military – and in thesame military specialty as myself (publicaffairs) – until several years later whenwe both found ourselves supporting thesame military command in southernEurope. Over a twenty-year period, Danand I have traveled many of the samepaths – the ones with the Army as well asthose within our shared Scouting experi-ences and histories.

It is much of that history of “OverseasCouncils” (see sidebar: “OverseasScouting”) and their Order of the Arrow(OA) Lodges which are getting lost overtime. Efforts – websites and books – are

being produced to put down on paperand in electrons what has been longforgotten in many of those local coun-cils whereby today you’re theScoutmaster of one of the few Troopsthere, next month you’re the LodgeAdvisor or the Council Commissionerbecause that person had to “rotate” or“PCS” (Permanent Change of Station)back to the States or to another foreignlocation. Unfortunately, sometimes theold adage of “if you hear a story oftenenough it must be true” comes intoplay, especially as the various badges,patches and other pieces of Scoutingmemorabilia – items created to supportcouncil and lodge activities way backwhen, and then were presented orstored – now come out from storage,get more interest, and are traded orsold through forums like Yahoo auc-tions and eBay.

To help financially support overseasScouting and to preserve the history,Coberly helped form the OverseasArrowman Association (OAA) morethan 16 years ago. The OAA is com-posed primarily of Order of the Arrowmembers from around the world whohave held Scouting membership with-in an overseas council and/orArrowmen whom are committed tofurther assisting BSA councils, and inparticular overseas Order of the ArrowLodges, in today’s period of reducedmembership and rising expenses. TheOAA is open to thousands ofArrowmen – and their friends whomay not be OA members – askingthem for their remembrances, copies oftheir photos and documents, and foraid in keeping alive the memories ofthose former lodges and the councilsthey belong to.

The opportunity presented itselfrecently to exchange stories, memoriesand experiences with Dan and to askhim some personal questions about hisservice as a true “World Scouter.” Asone of my mentors both in Scouting aswell as in the Army, it was fantastic totalk again with a great Soldier and atrue Scouter.Digest: Why do you continue withScouting after nearly 50 years?

Dan: That’s easy. First, I’ve never meta Scout that I didn’t like. Second,

Scouting is the world’s largest andmost successful peace movement.Think of it. For 100 years, Scoutsaround the world have set the exampleto improve our quality of life. Howmany other organizations have thatkind of positive impact on the world oreven in a local community? Third,Scouting is also the world’s largesteducational institution and we areon the faculty. That’s a rather sacredtrust and a call to duty we cannot shirk.Fourth, Scouting is a great equalizer.Every Scout has the same opportu-nities for advancement. Fifth, thenames of several of my Scoutmastersare on the Vietnam Wall, so I contin-ue their work for them. There aremany other reasons. For example,Scouting keeps us young and is a greatway to spend time with your own children!

Digest: Describe your Scouting expe-rience in Panama, Europe, and theFar East – particularly the impor-tance of the Order of the Arrow as apart of your life.

Dan: It’s always awkward being thenew kid on the block, even more sowhen your neighborhood is in astrange country. One of the best andfastest ways to make new friends andto find your way around was to join alocal Scout unit. Scouts had a lot of funcamping in the jungle, travelingthrough Europe and the Far East, mak-ing friends wherever we went. Ourtroop’s annual trip to Berlin when thewall was still dividing East and Westwas always an adventure. The Arrow’ssignificance as the mark of a leadermade a deep impression that lasts tothis day. We met thousands of draftedsoldiers back then who were membersof the Order.

Digest: We were talking about theimpact of our Eagle Scout serviceprojects. You earned Eagle inGermany. What was your EagleScout service project?

Dan: Eagle Projects are very limitedand difficult to accomplish overseassince we are visitors in a host nation.Add a military setting and there areeven more restrictions. My projectinvolved three months of planning and

leading outdoor work at the 33rd FieldHospital in Wurzburg, Germany.There, we planted more than 1,000trees and shrubs all around the verylarge hospital for the benefit of patientsand cleaned up miles of overgrowncobblestones by converting old fireextinguishers into devices used tospray an environmentally safe weedkiller we made from rock salt andwater. We also helped to inventory andreplace outdated items in a pre-posi-tioned stock of medical supplies. I vis-ited the hospital in late 1999 and thetrees and shrubs are still looking great.

Digest: How was Achpateuny Lodgeformed and how is it pronounced?Share the story of you traveling withthe Scout Executive to resurrect theOA in FEC.

Dan: Lodge #498 has a long an inter-esting history, from Hinode Goya toIkunhkatsi to Achpateuny. When Iarrived in Japan in 1982 to work on theAmerican newspaper, Stars andStripes, the Far East Council wasstruggling in debt and there were onlytwo professionals serving Japan,Korea, Okinawa, Thailand, Taiwanand the Philippines. The ScoutExecutive, Dick Weidman, succeededin doing a remarkable job of bringingthe council out of debt in record time.However, during that time lack offunding and the constant turnover ofpeople had adversely affected lodgememberships. There were no lodgeofficials, and only two or three Vigilsleft in the lodge on our rolls. The lodgehad already failed to re-charter ontime. Dick and I studied the history ofthe lodge and its membership. Dick, asthe Supreme Chief of the Fire, tookaction. I was appointed Lodge Advisorand we in turn temporarily appointedlodge officers to get the lodge goingagain until elections could be held. Thename Hinode Goya meant “RisingSun”, and that name and flap designupset many peace activists and warveterans. The name Ikunhkatsi report-edly meant “a gathering of nations” inTagalog, a language of the Philippines,which did not make people in othercountries happy. We looked through acopy of the English-Lene LenapeDictionary in search of a new lodgename and a new spirit. We found

BIOGRAPHYDAN COBERLY

Senior Science Communication OfficerOffice of Research & Development, U.S.

Environmental Protection AgencyResearch Triangle Park, NC

Dan Coberly is an award-winning publicaffairs officer who previously served theDepartment of Defense for more than thirty years. He is a well-known writer, speaker, workshop facilitator and media consultant.

As public affairs officer for the HuntsvilleCenter, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,Dan supported worldwide projects such asUnexploded Ordnance removals fromformer defense sites, Captured EnemyAmmunition in Iraq, ChemicalDemilitarization, EnvironmentalRestoration, Installation Support andMissile Defense. The Center’s annualbudget was $ 1.5 billion, with more than$6 billion in contracts.

Dan previously served as ExecutiveOfficer at the U.S. Army Space and MissileDefense Command Public Affairs Office.His key military public affairs assignmentsincluded the Centennial Olympic GamesJoint Task Force, Atlanta; the SouthernEuropean Task Force (Airborne), Italy;Supreme Headquarters, Allied PowersEurope, Belgium; 1st Infantry Division(Fwd), Germany; the 21st Theater SupportCommand, Germany, Hungary, andCroatia; Pacific Stars and Stripes dailynewspaper, Tokyo; United NationsCommand, Korea; U. S. Forces Command,Atlanta; U.S. Aviation Center and School,Ft. Rucker, AL; the Military Police &Chemical Schools and the Women’s ArmyCorps Center, Ft. McClellan, AL; and theDOD 50th Anniversary Commemorationsof Aviation & Women in the Military.

He earned a master’s degree in communi-cation from Norwich University and com-pleted advanced public affairs graduatetraining at Oklahoma University. He spent

27 years on active military duty, retiring inApril 2000 as Sgt. Major, Senior PublicAffairs. He was advanced on the retired listto the rank of Captain.

During 1998, Dan was selected U.S. ArmyEurope’s NAACP Roy Wilkens Awardwinner for his work in support of minori-ties; he was named a Baden-Powell Fellowby King Carl Gustav XVI of Sweden forhis support of international Scouting. Inrecognition of his national public relationswork for the Boy Scout of America, hereceived the Silver Antelope Award andwas named a Distinguished Eagle Scout bythe Secretary of the Army. He was recent-ly appointed a BSA Ambassador. His morethan 40 awards for journalism and publicrelations excellence include the SilverAnvil Award, several Thomas Jeffersonand Keith L. Ware Awards, 4th EstateAwards, the Legion of Merit and manyother military decorations.

OVERSEASSCOUTINGHISTORY:

The Rest of the StoriesMike Walton with Dan Coberly

While standing in a line during the recentNational Jamboree, two Scouts in front ofme were interested in the shoulder patch Iwore that day.

I wore a 40th anniversary CSP from theTransatlantic Council (TAC) – one of fourBSA councils currently serving youth out-side the 50 United States. The Scouts werewondering whether my patch was “legit”or not. The taller of the two was in the “ifhe’s wearing it, it must be for real” camp.The other simply thought my patch wasmade up for the Jamboree.

They finally asked me: “Is that for real? Imean, Scout’s honor – is there really a‘Transatlantic Council?’”

I assured them both that Scouting doesindeed have councils overseas. I knowbecause I started my Scouting as a memberof TAC more than 30 years ago. Othercouncils outside the United States current-ly include the Far East Council (FEC), the

Puerto Rico Council (PRC), the AlohaCouncil (AC) and the Virgin IslandsCouncil (VIC). American Scouts livingoverseas are also served through the DirectService program office of the BSA’sInternational Division.

As Paul Harvey would say, “The boyswanted to know the rest of the story.”“Why don’t we know about those coun-cils? Are they at the Jamboree? Do wereally have American Boy Scouts and lead-ers in Europe or the Near East?” I noddedand shared with them how I became a CubScout and later Boy Scout while living inGermany; and how I became an Order ofthe Arrow member as a Lone Scout livingin Luxemburg (at that time, not a part ofTAC, but instead Direct Service).

We finished our conversation and as Imoved forward to get my mug of coffeerefilled, I thought about that factoid – thefact that most kids today (and probablymany adults involved as well!) have noclue as to the fact that “AmericanScouting” exists outside of the borders ofthe grand old US of A. I wrote about it laterthat evening as part of my daily “summa-ry” of my Jamboree day to the Scouts-Lyouth programs discussion group.

I asked longtime volunteer World Scouter

Dan Coberly to assist me with his personalperspectives to answer several questionsdealing with American Scouting overseas.

“What’s the thumbnail history ofScouting overseas?”

Dan Coberly: Depending on your defini-tion of “overseas,” you’ll find that, sincethe 1930s, BSA has a long supportedAmericans overseas via what were thencalled “Extra-Regional” American BoyScout councils in places like Peking,China, the Panama Canal Zone, Europe,the Far East, and in American territoriessuch as Guam, and Saipan. Some peopleview BSA councils in Alaska and Hawaiias being overseas, too. Then there are theLone Scouts and Scouters who are servedby the Direct Service program office of theInternational Division, covering areaswhere there really aren’t enoughAmericans to support a BSA council.

During the late 40s and early 50s, thediplomatic corps, doctors, engineers,multinational executives, and of course,members of the military and their families,brought American Scouting overseas. Eachof the “overseas councils” was formed pri-marily by military officers and civiliancorporate leaders who wanted a Scoutingexperience for their families comparable to

“Achpateuny,” which means EastWind. We wanted a simple design thatincluded a well-known symbol of theFar East Council, so the dragon wasretained as the Lodge Totem. Thename is properly pronounced “awk-pot-teh-un-neh.”

For several months, the Lodge Chiefand I accompanied Dick Weidman toevery District and country in theCouncil to help reestablish the lodgeby conducting OA ceremonies led bythe Lodge Chief. We also presentedSilver Beaver Awards and conductedthe first Vigil ceremonies in manyyears in Districts such as Korea,Taiwan and the Philippines. The factsare all outlined in the lodge newsletterof that time, The Arrow. Under theguidance of the Scout Executive, wedid what any Vigils should do to keepthe spirit of the Order alive. We deliv-ered the program to the members.

Digest: How well does the militarysupport Scouting?

Dan: Despite increasing restrictions,the military supports youth programsextremely well. Nearly every seniorleader I’ve ever met, from Secretariesof Defense to Secretaries of the Armyon through the ranks, was an EagleScout or a former Scout. They werestrong supporters of Scouting becausethey knew that sooner or later, mostyoung men face a fork in the road oflife. In my case, many of my friendswere joining gangs of bad thugs. Ichose to join a good gang of Scouts.Without Scouting as an option, I wouldnot have had a choice to make. Likemany young men, I was lucky to gaina substitute family from Scouting, formy father was often away for years ata time. My Scouting family providedimportant role models I might not haveotherwise had. I learned from the manyfine men and women who led us that ifwe want to our children to be good, wemust offer them good opportunities.

Digest: I remember when you servedas the Army’s public affairs represen-tative to BSA – and in 1997, youreceived the Distinguished EagleScout Award from the HonorableTogo West, at the Worldwide PublicAffairs Symposium. West was at that

time the Secretary of the Army, andlater became the Secretary ofVeterans Affairs. You are still the onlyenlisted soldier in the armed forces toreceive a DESA. How was that expe-rience?

Dan: I’m fortunate to have set theminimum standard for the award! Mr.West was very kind to support theaward and to make the presentation infront of my peers. He is a strong sup-porter of Scouting.

Digest: As a Distinguished EagleScout, what do you think about thecaliber of today’s Eagle?

Dan: One always has to put thingsinto the context of today, rather thanmaking comparisons about yesterday.It’s never been easy to become anEagle Scout. Today’s aspiring youngEagle faces a completely different setcircumstances in life, just as everyEagle in the years before him facedsomething different and unique.Throughout time, Eagle Scoutsdemonstrate leadership by overcomingchallenges. I believe today’s Eagles areevery bit as good or better. I think weshould expect more from Eagles oncewe pin their wings. We should expectthem to be in the forefront more oftenno matter what their age.

This is probably a good place toremind us that we place a lot of empha-sis on being an Eagle Scout. We haveproduced well over a million Eagles,but we have also produced many mil-lions more of simply good Americans.There is no shame in not becoming anEagle Scout if you did your best. Weneed to say that more often.

Digest: If you could be the BSANational President or Chief ScoutExecutive for a day, what would youdo?

Dan: I’d be very proud of the BoyScouts of America, first and foremost.I’d do just as the current Chief andPresident are doing; continue to workhard to resist those who seek to under-mine Scouting and other fineAmerican institutions. And I wouldensure that every adult understandsthat no position or appointment is for-

ever. Aside from being a unit leader, allother positions should be temporaryappointments, not to exceed two years.In fact, I’d make sure that every adultgets a letter of appointment that clear-ly spells that out. I’d make sure that allof our doctrine and training supports aconcept of increasing levels of respon-sibility based on performance. Duringyour second year in a position, we’dstart looking for a new position for youbased on a peer evaluation, and we’drecognize you for your service. Thatway, there is always a steady stream offresh faces and opportunities and weall learn a deeper understanding,appreciation, and respect for how theScouting Program works. If the Chiefand National President can rotateevery few years, you can too.

Digest: You mentioned how outsideforces are seeking to undermineScouting and other institutions.Please elaborate.

Dan: I’ve submitted a draft of a bookon leadership to a publisher. The bookexplains how our society is comprisedof Caretakers, Innovators, andUndertakers. There is also a model outlined called Frustration,Confrontation, Escalation. Americahas long been known for innovations.History teaches us that when we fail tonurture innovation, Undertakers growbolder, and will make their move todestroy a society while the majority ofa population remains in a Caretakerstate. Scouting has always been astrong leader of basic values and inno-vation, and that makes us a fine targetfor people with an axe to grind. If westudy the FCE model, we know thatfrustration leads to confrontation, andif confrontations are not resolved, theywill escalate and the model will repeatitself until something finally relievesthe frustration. If you are observant,you see that happening at work, athome, in your community, in yournation, in the world around us. It takesstrong leaders to stand tall whileweathering such as storm. Scoutingproduces strong leaders. Scouting sur-vives as an institution becauseScouting has always been on the righttrack. For example, parents have aright to determine who will lead and beentrusted with their children … our

those experienced by Scouts and Scoutersin the United States. Most overseas BSAcouncils began unofficially after WWIIand were eventually granted charters. TheBSA granted its first overseas councilcharter to the Peking Council and latergave that council number, 802, to theTransatlantic Council in 1952. Charterswere also granted to the PhilippinesCouncil and the Far East Council (1953),the Canal Zone (1950) and Aloha Council(1961), Kilauea Council in Hilo, Hawaii(1951), Chamorro Council, Guam (1970)Puerto Rico Council (1961), the VirginIslands Council (1963), the Maui CountyCouncil (Maui County Council was found-ed in 1917, and is one of the very fewcouncils that has not undergone a namechange or merger in its entire history), andin 1955 established the Direct ServiceCouncil for youth serving in all other areasof the world. After World War II, in caseswhere host nations had no Scouting pro-gram of their own, BSA allowed some for-eign nationals to temporarily earn theEagle rank until national Scouting pro-grams could be formed.

“Most of us don’t know much aboutAmerican Scouting overseas. What isunique about living and being a Scoutoverseas? Why should we have BSA pro-grams overseas?”

Dan Coberly: Hundreds of thousands ofAmericans live in communities overseasthat are very tightly knit. There is a muchgreater sense of adventure when living in aforeign country, so they offer much greatersupport and emphasis on youth programs.BSA programs overseas help bring a touchof home away from home to young peopleduring very formative years. Imaginechanging schools more than 20 times asyou grow up in various countries. Not a lotof stability or consistency there, but you dogain a more worldly perspective and a tol-erance for other people and beliefs.Scouting skills teach you how to use thoseexperiences in positive ways.

For a young man overseas, BSA councilsalso represent a chance to continue some-thing at the same level no matter whereyou live. You don’t have to start over atTenderfoot; you can keep hiking along thetrail to Eagle. And it is exciting, becausethere are a variety of new experiences inother cultures. Living as a Scout overseasis almost like one continuous international

Camporee. There is always something dif-ferent to do. One day you might be camp-ing in the jungles of Panama or thePhilippines, the next hiking Mount Fuji inJapan or at Camp Kandersteg inSwitzerland, often with Scouts from sever-al host nations.

There are hardships too, such as 24 millionsquare miles of water separating variousdistricts representing 6-7 countries in theFar East Council, or the many miles sepa-rating 10-20 or more countries in theTransatlantic Council in Europe. Thatmakes it difficult to hold a lodge event orsometimes even a Camporee or a round-table. It’s not easy getting permission towork some Life or Eagle projects due tohost nation or military restrictions, lan-guage barriers, or a lack of resources. Yet,because the America Scouting experienceoverseas is so intense, everyone worksharder to make it successful and no oneever forgets that happy taste of success.

Many of the functions which careerScouters do stateside – organization andre-chartering units, raising Friends ofScouting funds, cultivating and developingnew chartered partners – in those far-flungareas are conducted almost entirely by vol-unteers with gentle assistance by profes-sionals. This is because unlike most pro-fessionals stateside, who have severalcounties or part of a metropolitan area tomanage, BSA executives overseas mayhave several countries to travel back andforth between. Therefore, an increasedreliance on volunteers is not only essential,but in most cases a necessity.

As the numbers of Americans living over-seas continues to decline, overseas BSAcouncils face many obstacles to keepScouting alive. Many of the youth andadults registered in one of those councilterritories spend two to four years on anassignment, then return to the UnitedStates. Many volunteers who worked with-in Direct Service, Transatlantic, Aloha orFar East Councils return back home actual-ly missing the way that they have beenable to “do Scouting” in a way they feel theBSA envisioned Scouting being conductedwhile overseas.

Dan Coberly adds: Few people realizethat quite literally, hundreds of thousandsof and Scouters became active in AmericanScouting through membership in overseas

BSA councils during the past 50 years, andthousands of them continue their involve-ment in Scouting today in councilsthroughout the United States. They aremaking a vital difference in the Boy Scoutsof America.

However, because of the nature of militaryassignments, nearly two thirds of an over-seas council’s membership moves everyyear. That’s a huge turnover of experiencefor any council. Not all are military people;many work for U.S. corporations overseas.Unlike in the United States, people don’tleave Scout camps and money in theirwills to overseas councils, so funding pro-grams and operating Scout camps isalways a challenge.

Many Scouters are surprised to learn thatthe BSA programs run as close to, if not anidentical mode as, the way they are operat-ed back in the United States. There areunits, chartered partners, youth and adultleaders, and training courses and opportu-nities for those leaders.

Dan Coberly adds: The Order of theArrow operates overseas just as theywould in any other BSA council. But thereis something unique about having yourOrdeal, Brotherhood or Vigil ceremony onMount Fuji, or in a jungle atmosphere inPanama, or Guatemala, or at CampFreedom in central Germany. For example,I remember a Vigil ceremony in thePhilippines. We slept under the stars inperfect weather. It was near Easter, and allaround us in the distant mountains, theMoro Indians were faintly chanting andbeating drums. Folks thought it was part ofthe ceremony. It wasn’t. But it did add amemorable touch! Similarly, the Kuna/SanBlas Indians in Panama taught us how tomake dug out canoes to race through thePanama Canal. In Europe, we once held alodge event in an old castle.

Because of experiences like those, theOverseas Arrowman Association (OAA)exists to financially support overseaslodges and to maintain an alumni groupthat can keep in contact with one another.

Tell us more about the OAA and how itbenefits the Order of the Arrow andOverseas councils.

Dan Coberly responded: It has been estimated that during the past 50+ years,

nation’s future. Pay attention andyou’ll see that the people who throwthe most rocks at us usually are divert-ing attention from something else.Often, it is something in their ownbehaviors that are contrary to the ScoutOath and Law.

Digest: What is your position on ayoung man who becomes an EagleScout and then proclaims himself tobe an Atheist?

Dan: In my opinion, I’d say he is avery troubled young man. Fortunately,these situations are the exception andnot the rule. When it happens, thefocus should not be on religion but onconcepts of honesty and trustworthi-ness. Focus on the apparent behaviorof publicly professing to believe in aSupreme Being for 3-4 years simply toattain a coveted rank and social status.Focus on being deceitful every timethe Scout Oath and Law were repeated,to include the Eagle Court of Honor.So I’d say that young man never wasan Eagle Scout and never couldbecome a real one. For, being an EagleScout is a lot more than a badge youwear on your chest. It’s a spirit thatyou carry in your heart.

Digest: Why don’t we hear moreabout the early founders of Scouting?

Dan: Enlightened Scouters are wise tolearn from their examples. It seemsthat these days, heroes are rock stars,movie stars and athletes. Americansseem to have an aversion to anythingthat smacks of hero worship of anyoneelse, like a teacher or scientist. Yet weall need real role models and heroes.Baden-Powell was a true hero. Anyonewho studies his life, his work, or hisfamily takes with them a keen appreci-ation of the amazing difference oneperson can make in the world. Anyonewho knew his daughter, the late LadyBetty Clay, would say the same thing.The same is true for the early BSAfounders, Dan Beard and ErnestThompson Seton. They were the lastfrontiersmen. None of them ever gotrich, as some of our patch collectors,because of Scouting. Few among ustoday will ever be considered as self-sufficient and as knowledgeable aboutnature as they proved to be. Imagine

watching one of them today on the TVshow Survivor!

Digest: There seems to be a lot ofoverseas Scouting history being lost.What is happening there?

Dan: Thanks to the internet, there isnow as much history being captured asthere was once thought lost.Organizations like Overseas Brats andMilitary Brats have helped friends toreconnect and provide historical data.There are always dedicated peoplewho keep and preserve enough dataand memorabilia to help shape history.Two recognized historians are KenKittelberger for Black Eagle Lodge,and Bob Cylkowski for Far EastCouncil and related lodges. Chuck andMatt Kirkland, Sheldon Dick and BobZadina (the former longtime ScoutExecutive) have done a great job ofcapturing Transatlantic Councilhistory. The Overseas ArrowmanAssociation newsletter, the DeepWater Traveler, publishes Americanoverseas Scouting history when it canbe verified. We’ve also donatedAmerican Overseas items to variousScouting museums.

Digest: A small cottage industry hasemerged to sell books and other datauseful to collectors of Scouting mem-orabilia. Like a Scout asked at theJamboree, how does one know what’s“legit” from an Overseas Council?

Dan: If every BSA council orderedevery patch from National Supply,things would be much easier to deter-mine, and the BSA program and coun-cils would benefit more from the trans-action. Nonprofit, volunteer organiza-tions don’t usually have resources todevote to keeping track of long-termhistories of memorabilia. I’d go so farto say that today’s collector is often farmore serious and emotional aboutolder items than the boy who actuallyearned them as a Scout. For the mostpart, we rely on memories and pub-lished data, such as newsletters. Still,most of the information publishedregarding an overseas council’s historyrepresents only a snapshot in time.Some are better than others. None are100% complete.

Digest: As a student and collector ofearly Scouting memorabilia, you’veoften been called upon to give adviceto other experts. What advice do youhave for novice collectors?

Dan: A Scout is Helpful, Friendly,Kind, Cheerful and Thrifty. Avoidrabid collectors and self appointedexperts. Remember that Scouting isn’tabout collecting patches and awards,it’s about building character. Seek todemonstrate good character as a collector. You know, there is a normal,predictable phenomenon that occursamong collectors – Most of us couldnot afford a vast collection early inlife, so we do so when we becomemore affluent. However, some peoplebecome obsessed.

There are indeed many credibleexperts, but there are a few with a formof Gold Fever who seek to obtain anddefine a specific type of collectable tothe point where they declare items“official,” “unofficial” or “fake” sim-ply because they don’t have one intheir own collections. Think of it asyou would when dealing with a stock-broker or an investment. Such declara-tions often represent a personal andprofessional conflict of interest,because opinions help determine theultimate value of their own personalcollections and the books they help tosell. Books are fine, yet few peopleseem to realize that “expert” experi-ences and recollections sometimesmerely represent a snapshot in time ina particular lodge or council; so if per-sonal opinions are not expressed inthat context, they should be suspect. Inmy view, if a BSA council didn’t ben-efit from the production and sale of theitem, it probably isn’t “official.” Thatdoesn’t automatically mean an itemisn’t collectible or is less valuable.Scouting has been around a long time,and like all other things in the historyof the world, people discover newthings daily. Fact is, many early items,particularly those from overseas coun-cils, were made by whoever couldafford to make them. People lived andworked in relative isolation, so a per-son in one district or chapter might notknow what was going on in anothermore distant location at a particularmoment in time.

more than 265,000 Scouts andScouters have taken part in AmericanScouting overseas. Of those people, itis estimated that about 75,000 wereArrowmen. That’s not counting draftedsoldiers whom were already members.At its peak enrollment during the1960s, about 500 Arrowmen returnedto the United States each year to makea vital difference in the Order and inScouting. Many of those sameArrowmen remain active in statesidecouncils and lodges today. We recentlyhad a national Vice Chief from anoverseas lodge.

The OAA is an incorporated, privateassociation with about 600 currentmembers whom are also registeredScouters and members of the Order ofthe Arrow. The organization exists pri-marily to support overseas lodges andcouncils via manpower and financialsupport. For example, the OAA pro-vides a number of camperships to var-ious lodges to promote attendance at

overseas summer camps. Occasionally,where there is an OAA chapter, finan-cial support is provided to a Conclavethrough the host lodge. The OAA alsohelps maintain an alumni base so thatmembers can maintain their uniquefellowship. The OAA helps to docu-ment American Scouting history over-seas. The organization has a high num-ber of James West and Baden-PowellFellows who make other contributionsto Scouting. Basic members representabout 20 current or former overseaslodges; however, anyone can join as anAssociate Member.

Several councils have websites withadditional information and back-ground on the history of their localcouncils:

Aloha Council, BSA(http://www.alohacouncilbsa.org)

Maui County Council, BSA(http://mauibsa.org)

Puerto Rico Council, BSA(http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/9920)

Transatlantic Council, BSA(http://www.tac-bsa.org)

Far East Council, BSA(http://www.fareastbsa.org)

Direct Service, BSA(http://www.directservicebsa.org)

(The Virgin Islands Council, BSA doesnot have an active website presently;information on it along with generalinformation about Overseas Scoutingcan be found through Wikipedia(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki)

More information on the OverseasArrowman Association (OAA) isfound by emailing the President of the OAA, Tom Slavicek at tslavicek@aol.com

Most enlightened collectors know thatthe emotional or historical significanceof an item is far more important thanthe intrinsic value. They are moreinterested in making a friend than inmaking a buck.

Digest: If you could improve onething about American Scouting, whatwould it be?

Dan: I would include in all of our vol-unteer training very specific informa-tion that will enhance understandingand support for district and counciloperations. For example, why and howwe must conduct fundraising, and theroles of the volunteer and professional.Clearly, we have too many volunteerswho believe rumor and innuendo andact upon assumptions about how anonprofit organization must operate.Because they don’t have enough facts,they don’t always set the best exam-ples. When that happens, it’s easy toassume that our few paid employeesare glorified Scoutmasters. When thathappens, there is sometimes little or noempathy, understanding or apprecia-tion for the two toughest jobs inScouting: the District Executive andScoutmaster. I was briefly a parapro-

fessional in college, and I observedthat it’s no fun trying to keep yourselfor your spouse happy while you worknights and weekends and holidays,even if your livelihood depends on it.As a Scoutmaster, I learned that wehave some very dedicated field profes-sionals among us who can only beoptimally effective when they areproperly supported by trained andenlightened volunteers. Enlightenedvolunteers are the ones who under-stand that their position exists to sup-port the boy, the program and the unitleader.

Digest: What advice do you have forScouters?

Dan: Scouting has a place at the tablefor everyone. It’s a terrific program,ideally designed for parents to workwith their children as they grow upthrough the program in say, 4-8 years.We will always need good volunteers.Yet, some folks seem to think there aretwo main programs, one for adults andone for youth, with their own separateranks and awards. So I advise everyadult to check their ego at the door. I’mfond of pointing out that being a Scoutleader isn’t a license to exercise your

personality quirks. It’s isn’t about col-lecting a bunch of “hangy-downs” –awards to improve your self-esteem.It’s about what you’ve done lately toimprove the life of a Scout. It’s aboutearning the right to wear whateveraward you have every day. It’s aboutexceeding the minimum standard fordoing what is needed by being alert tothe needs of others. Whether you wearan Eagle Badge or Silver Beaver, noone should have any doubt about howyou earned it or why you wear it, sim-ply from the positive example that youset.

Digest: What’s the best thing you’vegained from Scouting?

Dan: Good friends around the worldand a sense of purpose and cama-raderie. Aside from friendships, thereare the skills we learn as Scouts, suchas teamwork, abilities to lead, plan andto organize. Those skills help many ayoung person build successful adultlives.

Dan Coberly has proven himselfextremely valuable to the programs ofScouting, not only in the United States

but in many other countries around theworld.

Dan holds the Silver Antelope andSilver Beaver Awards and has beenrecognized with the NESADistinguished Service and OAFounder’s Awards. In 1997, he wasnamed a Distinguished Eagle Scoutand a Baden-Powell Fellow. He cur-rently serves as an Executive Boardmember of the Greater AlabamaCouncil and as a BSA InternationalAmbassador.

His military awards include the Legionof Merit and the Bronze Star. He splitshis time between a farm in Alabamaand his job as Senior ScienceCommunication Officer for the U.S.Environmental Protection Agency’sOffice of Research and Developmentin North Carolina.