I remember my father, Louis Grosenbaugh, as playing many roles: a postman, an artist, a wine maker, a gardener, and just an all round good person. One of his roles in life, though, which helped me grow up as the kind of person he wanted me to be was his role as a Scouter. From the time I joined Cub Scouts until I earned the second leaf on my Eagle badge, he was always there encouraging me and supporting me. A good illustration of that dealt with learning to swim. One summer I went to camp by myself but didn’t even try to learn to swim. The next year Dad went with me to camp and made sure I learned. At the end of that session the camp held what was called an Ice Relay. We chose up on teams, they would throw a 50 pound block of ice into the pool, and the winning team was the one which got the ice out of the pool first. Even though I had learned basic water skills, I was having a lot of problems getting pushed around. Dad later said that he was very close to jumping in the pool to save me but held back to let me do it on my own. Dad also went along with the Scouts as we went to our local campsite in the all kinds of weather. Often my Mom and sister Carol would go with us. It wasn’t just me that benefitted from Scouter Louie. Dad stayed involved in Scouts as a troop leader and district official for many years after I went to college. He earned, and deserved, the Silver Beaver Award, the highest award given to Scout leaders. It was only after his death, and reading the many letters he had saved from former Scouts, that I fully understood the important role this man had played in not only my life but the lives of other young men. That’s just one of the roles I will remember my father playing in many lives on this Father’s Day.
I remember my father, Louis Grosenbaugh, as playing many roles: a postman, an artist, a wine maker, a gardener, and just an all round good person. One of his roles in life, though, which helped me grow up as the kind of person he wanted me to be was his role as a Scouter. From the time I joined Cub Scouts until I earned the second leaf on my Eagle badge, he was always there encouraging me and supporting me. A good illustration of that dealt with learning to swim. One summer I went to camp by myself but didn’t even try to learn to swim. The next year Dad went with me to camp and made sure I learned. At the end of that session the camp held what was called an Ice Relay. We chose up on teams, they would throw a 50 pound block of ice into the pool, and the winning team was the one which got the ice out of the pool first. Even though I had learned basic water skills, I was having a lot of problems getting pushed around. Dad later said that he was very close to jumping in the pool to save me but held back to let me do it on my own. Dad also went along with the Scouts as we went to our local campsite in the all kinds of weather. Often my Mom and sister Carol would go with us. It wasn’t just me that benefitted from Scouter Louie. Dad stayed involved in Scouts as a troop leader and district official for many years after I went to college. He earned, and deserved, the Silver Beaver Award, the highest award given to Scout leaders. It was only after his death, and reading the many letters he had saved from former Scouts, that I fully understood the important role this man had played in not only my life but the lives of other young men. That’s just one of the roles I will remember my father playing in many lives on this Father’s Day.
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