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Thus, what chance did I have to avoid becoming my green uniform, shouldered my 1950’s Scout
a member as well? None. September of 1962 backpack and ate out of the aluminum mess kit
found me with mother and father in the school and cup on my first camp out. But it was the

auditorium for the great rally and sign-up night. snazzy greens, with my Tenderfoot badge, my
Before the end of the evening, I was a member Arrow-of-Light badge, and my three-year service
of Pack 607, Den 3 (Who are we? Den 3, yessiree!) pin of which I was proud. I had a “winter” and a
With Mrs. Elmer (Esther) Jorgensen, Den “summer” uniform shirt as well as long pants and

Mother and Jimmie Houghton, Den Chief as our shorts with the knee-high socks and the garters
leaders. Our lively den of eight members earned with the green flashes. However, the weekly
our Bobcat badge and six of us lasted until we
became Webelos under Mr. Jorgensen in 1965.

Four of the six made Eagle Scout, thus 50% of the
original den by our high school years, although
by then in different parts of the state and troops.
In the old, old program, one could not become

a Boy Scout until you were 11 years old. I was
the last of the den to cross over from Cubs to
Scouts in August 1965, just in time to begin the
new Scouting year in Troop 604, Mustang Patrol,

Gary Harris Patrol Leader, Jimmie Houghton
as our Senior Patrol Leader, and Mr. Harris as
Scoutmaster. My father, then a Chief Hospital
Corpsman in the Navy, was given so much Scout

equipment and uniform parts by fellow medical
staff that I did not need to purchase anything. My
first uniform, “experienced” by another Scout,
with older red piped pants pockets and metal

buttons with the Scout sign and BSA on them
took me through my first year. I proudly wore

VOICES! | MARCH 2022 29