Well, this isn't kilt, Scots, or X-marks related, but here is my story...

I live in the house that used to belong to my grandparents (dad's parents), who lived here for 30 years and developed a close friendship with their next door neighbors. About a year after I moved in here, the son of my grandparent's neighbors moved in next door (returning home to the house he grew up in), following the death of his father (Mr. K). His mother passed a couple of years later (about 5 years ago). So, he and I have been neighbors for about 8-9 years now, though our families have known each other a lot longer.

Now, as some of you know, and as my handle alludes to, I am an Eagle Scout. My next-door neighbor also happens to be an Eagle Scout, and his father (Mr. K) - my grandparents' neighbor - was a long-time volunteer Scout leader, holding a variety of positions at the unit, district and council level. Mr. K had accumulated a lot of Scouting memorabilia in his 15 or so years as a volunteer and upon his death it all got passed on to my neighbor (being the only son). My neighbor has three sons, but none of them were involved in Scouting, so they consequently weren't all that interested in any of their grandad's "Scout stuff". My neighbor also has two nephews, and neither of them were interested in any of Grandad's "Scout stuff" either. Coincidentally both of them are also Eagle Scouts. (One just finished his degree, and the other didn't grow up around here, so didn't want the local patches and things anyway.)

So, since none of the grandkids were interested, and knowing that I am a brother Eagle and still an active Scout leader, my neighbor offered it all to me - with the exception of a couple of items that have special significance. I accepted, and have found myself in custodianship* of a largish collection of Scouting memorabilia: some 80 coffee mugs with various Scout-related images/logos, a patch blanket (the oldest patch is about 39 years old, the newest about 25), a couple of posters, and several OLD handbooks (a 1945 reprint of the 2-volume Third Edition of the Scoutmaster's Handbook, an Air Scout(!) Manual, a Sea Scout Manual, a reprint of the original 1911 Handbook for Boys, among others). They're not worth a whole lot, in general, except to a collector, but it means a lot to me since I knew Mr. K and I knew he was glad/proud to see I became an Eagle Scout.

As far as 'paying it forward' goes, I'm a volunteer Scout leader, even though I have no children of my own (and at this rate probably never will). I'm just trying to give back to the program and pass on the knowledge and experience that I gained as a youth.


*I say 'custodianship' because I've told all of the boys that if they ever change their minds (and they may now that a couple of them have boys of their own), they can have anything of their grandad's that they want.