Scout Stories: Steven W. Hodges

This story is about the summit of Mount Baldy at Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico.

There was not a hint of dawn as we scrambled across the slag field near the base. With purpose and trusting the one in front, we moved in line through the dark to a steeper pitch.

Hand over hand with brave legs, the air began to thin as we moved past the tree line. Breaching the summit, still bathed in the night’s black grip, we could feel the expanse.

Slowly, with great reverence, an orange glow began to define the eastern horizon. And then, as though you were opening your eyes for the very first time, light emerged and defined the world in a dawn that would shape our lives.

Shaping us with the strength and values found in Scouting. I earned my Eagle Scout with Troop 61 in Sedalia in 1988. I firmly believe that experiences in Scouting helped me mature and gave me a foundation of honor and morality defined best in the Scout law and Scout oath.

Editor’s note: Steven Hodges in an emergency physician at Lake Forest Hospital in Chicago. He is the son of Bill and Rosemary Hodges, of Sedalia.