Distinguished Eagle Scout Tom Kavaler acceptance comments at the NYC Eagle Scout Hall of Fame, Yale Club, New York City, March 2016

1. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
FIRST, I WANT TO DISPEL ANY CONCERN YOU MIGHT HAVE. ALTHOUGH
I AM STANDING UP HERE BEHIND A MICROPHONE IN FRONT OF A ROOM FULL
OF POTENTIALLY ELIGIBLE VOTERS, I AM, IN FACT, NOT RUNNING FOR
PRESIDENT. I HAVE NEVER RUN FOR PRESIDENT, AND WILL NEVER RUN FOR
PRESIDENT. APPARENTLY IF YOU WIN, YOU HAVE TO LIVE IN D.C.
NEXT I WANT TO RECOGNIZE TWO GROUPS OF PEOPLE. FIRST, MY
BELOVED FAMILY. MY EAGLE SON, MATT, IS HERE TONIGHT, AS IS HIS
MOTHER LORETTA, THE COUNCIL’S FIRST OFFICIAL EAGLE MOM. MATT’S
SISTER AND UNOFFICIAL “EAGLE DAUGHTER AND EAGLE SISTER”, KATHERINE,
SENDS HER REGARDS FROM INDIA.
SECOND, A WARM WELCOME TO SEVERAL OF MY FELLOW EAGLES
FROM TROOP 780. SAM, EVAN, ARNOLD AND DAVID, AS WELL AS SOME OF
OUR SCOUTING NEIGHBORS FROM THE OLD HOOD – S.D., PAULETTER AND
JIM.
AND FINALLY, THE SCOUT EXECUTIVE OF MY YOUTH, DAN GASPARO,
AND HIS CHARMING WIFE PAULETTE, WHO JOIN US TODAY FROM DALLAS,
TEXAS. IT IS MY REGRET THAT THE SCOUT EXECUTIVE OF MY MIDDLE AGE,
THE LATE CHARLIE ROSSER, CANNOT BE WITH US TODAY, BUT I AM SURE HE
IS AT THAT GREAT SCOUT RANCH IN THE SKY, WATCHING US. ETHAN, I
GUESS THAT MAKES YOU THE SCOUT EXECUTIVE OF MY OLD AGE.

2. IT IS A TRITE AND HACKNEYED CONVENTION FOR RECIPIENTS OF
AWARDS SUCH AS THIS TO SAY THAT THEY GRATEFULLY RECEIVED THE
AWARD NOT ON THEIR OWN BEHALF, BUT ON BEHALF OF SOME IDENTIFIED
OR UNIDENTIFIED GROUP OF OTHERS.
I DON’T PROPOSE TO GO DOWN THAT PRECISE ROAD, BUT RATHER A
SIMILAR ROAD.
I AM HONORED TO RECEIVE THIS AWARD BECAUSE OF OTHERS.
BEING A CHILD OF THE 60’S - - AND I SEE FROM LOOKING AT THE MANY GRAY
AND BALD HEADS IN THE AUDIENCE THAT SEVERAL OF YOU ARE AS WELL - - I
OF COURSE REMEMBER THAT ANTHEM OF OUR YOUTH BY DION, SINGING THE
PRAISES OF ABRAHAM, MARTIN AND JOHN. I NOTE THAT, BEING POLITICALLY
CORRECT, DION WAS CAREFUL TO INCLUDE A DEMOCRAT, A REPUBLICAN,
AND AN INDEPENDENT.
I AM NOT DION, AND THESE [POINTING] CERTAINLY ARE NO BELMONTS,
BUT TONIGHT I WANT TO SING THE PRAISES OF 3 OTHER DEPARTED HEROS:
GEORGE, ED AND MIKE.
____________ MENTIONED IN HIS MOST GENEROUS INTRODUCTION THE
LENGTH OF MY SCOUTING CAREER. PUTTING ASIDE MY TIME IN THE CUB
SCOUTS (IN A DEN HEADED UP MY MRS. MELTZER, WHO OBVIOUSLY WAS
SOMEBODY’S MOM) MY SCOUTING CAREER BEGAN AT THE AGE OF 11 AND
WAS SHAPED - - AS HAS BEEN THE ENTIRE REST OF MY LIFE TO DATE - - BY 3
MEN. NONE OF THEM IS FAMOUS, EXCEPT TO ME, AND NONE OF THEM IS

3. REMEMBERED BY HISTORY, BUT NONE OF THEM WILL EVER BY FORGOTTEN
BY ME.
THE FIRST WAS MY SCOUTMASTER, GEORGE BORKOW. IT IS NOT AN
OVER-STATEMENT TO SAY THAT HE WAS THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT
FORMATIVE INFLUENCE IN MY YOUTH. FOR VARIOUS REASONS, THAT WAS
NOT A ROLE THAT EITHER OF MY PARENTS WAS ABLE TO PLAY. GEORGE
BORKOW STEPPED IN, AS HE DID FOR MANY OTHER BOYS IN THE
NEIGHBORHOOD, BY BEING THE SCOUTMASTER, TEACHER, MENTOR, GUIDE
AND , MOST IMPORTANTLY, A ROLE MODEL FOR A GENERATION OF
WASHINGTON HEIGHTS BOYS SCOUTS.
HE WAS THE FATHER OF 2 BOYS IN THE TROOP, EVAN AND SAM
BORKOW, BOTH OF WHOM CAME TO BE EAGLE SCOUTS, AND BOTH OF WHOM
ARE HERE TONIGHT. I AM SURE THAT THE FACT THAT HIS SONS WERE OR
WERE TO BE IN THE TROOP, PLAYED A ROLE IN HIS DECISION TO STEP
FORWARD AND BE THE SCOUTMASTER, BUT IT TRANSCENDED THAT.
GEORGE BORKOW SAW THE NEED TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP, MORAL
GROUNDING, AND A RICH SCOUTING EXPERIENCE TO BOYS IN WASHINGTON
HEIGHTS AND HE STEPPED FORWARD TO PROVIDE IT.
FOR YEARS, HE GAVE SELFLESSLYOF HIS TIME, ENERGY, AND
STRENGTH. HE WAS PRESENT AT EVERY SCOUT MEETING - - NOTE THAT I
DIDN’T SAY THAT HE PRESIDED; HE LEFT THAT TO THE BOY LEADERSHIP, AS
IS SCOUTING DOCTRINE – BUT HE WAS ALWAYS THERE, IN HIS SCOUT

4. UNIFORM, OFF TO THE SIDE, PROVIDING GUIDANCE, SUPPORT, WISDOM,
COMFORT, AND INSPIRATION.
DURING THE WEEK, NOT A NIGHT WENT BY THAT HE DIDN’T HAVE A
MEETING OF SOME GROUP OF BOYS IN HIS APARTMENT. IT WAS EITHER THE
PATROL LEADERS, THE JUNIOR LEADER STAFF, THE ASSISTANT
SCOUTMASTERS, SOME BOY WITH A PROBLEM, SOME BOY PURSUING A MERIT
BADGE OR OTHER ADVANCEMENT, OR SOME OTHER DELEGATION FROM THE
TROOP SEEKING HIS GUIDANCE AND WISDOM. I REMEMBER INNUMERABLE
EVENINGS OF MY CHILDHOOD SPENT AT HIS KITCHEN TABLE, SOAKING UP HIS
WISDOM AND HIS GUIDANCE AND HIS UNCONDITIONAL LOVE.
WE ALL KNEW HE HAD A DAY JOB, AS WELL AS HIS OWN FAMILY, AS
WELL AS OTHER INTERESTS AND ACTIVITIES, BUT HE NEVER SAID “NO” TO
ANY OF US. THERE WAS NEVER A TIME WHEN A BOY WANTED TO MEET WITH
HIM THAT HE WASN’T AVAILABLE. THERE WAS NEVER A TIME WHEN A BOY
ASKED FOR HELP THAT HE DIDN’T GIVE IT. THERE WAS NEVER A TIME WHEN
A BOY, WHETHER EXPLICITLY OR IMPLICILY, SOUGHT GUIDANCE AND WISDOM
AND FAILED TO RECEIVE IT FROM HIM.
I OCCASIONALLY RUN ACROSS SOME OF THE MEN WHO WERE MY
FELLOW BOYS BACK IN THOSE DAYS IN THE TROOP. INVARIABLY THE
CONVERSATION TURNS TO GEORGE BORKOW. INVARIABLY EVERYONE SAYS
THE SAME THING. HE WAS A FORMATIVE INFLUENCE IN ALL OF OUR LIVES.

5. BUT GEORGE BORKOW WAS NOT THE ONLY FORMATIVE INFLUENCE IN
OUR LIVES. ALTHOUGH HE WAS ACTIVE IN THE SCOUTING PROGRAM
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, AND LED US ON MANY WEEKEND CAMPING TRIPS
TO ALPINE AND OTHER THEN-EXTANT COUNCIL CAMPS, HE WAS UNABLE TO
SPEND MULTIPLE WEEKS AT TEN MILE RIVER WITH US IN THE SUMMER. THAT
TASK DEVLOVED UPON ED BROCKWAY.
ED BROCKWAY WAS THE SCOUTMASTER OF A NEARBY TROOP. HIS JOB
ALLOWED HIM TO SPEND LENGHTHY PERIODS OF TIME AT TEN MILE RIVER IN
THE SUMMER WITH HIS BOYS. GENEROUSLY, ED BROCKWAY AGREED TO
TAKE SCOUTS FROM OUR TROOP WITH HIM AND HIS TROOP TO TEN MILE
RIVER. WE INVARIABLY WENT TO RONDACK. THERE, UNDER ED BROCKWAY’S
FIRM BYT GENTLE GUIDANCE, WE HAD THE ENTIRE QUINTESSENTIAL SCOUT
SUMMER CAMP EXPERIENCE. LIKE GEORGE BORKOW, ED BROCKWAY WAS
WISE, KIND, GENTLE, AND HAD A GREAT SENSE OF HUMOR. HIS TROOP HAD
TRADITIONS DIFFERENT FROM OUR TROOP, AND WE LEARNED THOSE AS
WELL. WE MADE FRIENDS WITH THE SCOUTS IN HIS TROOP AND MAINTAINED
THOSE FRIENDSHIPS WHEN WE RETURNED FROM CAMP.
BUT WHAT I REMEMBER MOST ARE THE NIGHTS THAT WE SPENT AT TEN
MILE RIVER SITTING AROUND THE CAMPFIRE, LISTENING TO ED BROCKWAY
PROVIDE GUIDANCE AND WISDOM IN AN OUTDOOR SETTING WHERE ALL THE
THINGS THAT WE HAD LEARNED DURING THE YEAR AT TROOP MEETINGS AND
ON WEEKEND CAMPING TRIPS WERE PUT INTO PRACTICE ON A 24/7 BASIS.
THOSE HAPPY SCOUTING SUMMERS ARE INDELIBLY ETCHED IN MY MEMORY

6. AND IT IS IMPPOSIBLE FOR ME TO CONJURE A SINGLE SCENE AT CAMP THAT
DOESN’T INCLUDE ED BROCKWAY. JUST AS GEORGE BORKOW WAS OUR
YEAR-ROUND SCOUT MASTER, ED BROCKWAY WAS OUR SUMMER
SCOUTMASTER. WITHOUT HIM, MY ENTIRE SCOUTING EXPERIENCE WOULD
HAVE BEEN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT.
AND THEN THERE WAS MIKE PLAUT. HE WAS A SCHOOL-TEACHER WHO
HAD BEEN A SCOUT HIMSELF AS A BOY. AS A RESULT OF HIS OCCUPATION,
HE HAD SUBSTANTIAL BLOCKS OF TIME AVAILABLE IN THE AFTERNOONS TO
WORK WITH THE BOYS IN THE TROOP WHLE GEORGE BORKOW WAS AT
WORK. MIKE PLAUT WAS AN ASSISTANT SCOUTMASTER AND A DEDICATED
SCOUTER HIS ENTIRE LIFE. HE HAD A MASTERS DEGREE IN CAMPING
EDUCATION AND HE BROUGHT HIS VAST KNOWLEDGE OF SCOUTING,
CAMPING, AND YOUTH LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TO BEAR ON THE LIVES
OF ALL THE BOYS IN THE TROOP. FRONM HIM, WE LEARNED LIFE-LONG
SKILLS OF ORGANIZATION, PLANNING, PREPARATION, AND EXECUTION. IF A
BOY LEADER HAD TO MAKE A PRESENTATION OR LEAD AN ACTIVITY AT A
FRIDAY NIGHT SCOUT MEETING, MIKE PLAUT WAS AVAILABLE MONDAY
AFTERNOON OR TUESDAY AFTERNOON OR WEDNESDAYAFTERNOON OR
THURSDAY AFTERNOON - - OR ALL OF THEM - - TO REHEARSE THAT
PRESENTATION OR ACTIVITY WITH THAT BOY LEADER, MAKE SUGGESTIONS,
HELP IMPROVE AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS, AND GENERALLY ASSURE THAT THE
BOY WOULD HAVE THE NECESSARY CONFIDENCE AND TRAINING TO EXCEL AT
THE ULTIMATE ACTIVITY AT THE SCOUT MEETING. INDEED, PARENTS IN

7. ATTENDANCE AT THOSE MEETINGS OFTEN MARVELED AT THE SEEMINGLY
EFFORTLESS WAYS IN WHICH THE BOYS BROUGHT OFF THESE VARIOUS
ACTIVITIES. AND ONLY THE BOYS AND MIKE PLAUT KNEW HOW MANY HOURS
HAD BEEN SPENT IN PREPARATION AND REHEARSAL TO ACHIEVE THAT
APPEARANCE OF SPONTANEITY AND PERFECTION.
MIKE PLAUT TOO, IN HIS TURN, GAVE UP MOST OF HIS SUMMERS TO
TAKE THE TROOP TO CAMP. WE REGULARLY WENT TO TEN MILE RIVER FOR
MULTIPLE WEEKS (OFTEN AS MANY AS 6) AND THEN, INSTEAD OF SPENDING
THE LAST 2 WEEKS OF THE SUMMER AT TEN MILE RIVER, WE WENT ON
VARIOUS HIGH ADVENTURES. FOR MANY YEARS WE WENT TO LAKE GEORGE
FOR 2 WEEKS AFTER 6 WEEKS AT TEN MILE RIVER. THERE, WE CAMPED ON
AN ISLAND IN THE MIDDLE OF THE LAKE WHICH WE REACHED BY CANOE.
EVERY DAY SOME OF US WOULD CANOE BACK TO THE MAINLAND OR TO ONE
OF THE LARGER ISLANDS TO BUY SUPPLIES AND THEN CANOE BACK OUT TO
THE ISLAND WHERE WERE CAMPED. MIKE PLAUT WAS ALWAYS PRESENT ON
THE ISLAND AND HIS PRESENCE MADE OUR TRIPS POSSIBLE. EACH YEAR HE
WOULD RECRUIT A SECOND ADULT TO COME ALONG, BUT ALMOST NOBODY
REPEATED EVERY YEAR.
SO I STAND BEFORE YOU TONIGHT, THE PRODUCT OF A LIFE-LONG
SCOUTING BACKGROUND, BUT MORE SPECIFICALLY THE PRODUCT OF THE
EFFORTS - AND EFFORTS THEY WERE - - OF THESE 3 MEN – GEORGE, ED AND
MIKE - - MY OWN ABRAHAM, MARTIN AND JOHN.

8. WE HAVE ALL SEEN THE COVER OF THE CLASSIC EDITION OF THE
SCOUTMASTERS HANDBOOK WHICH SHOWS THE SCOUTMASTER STANDING
NEXT TO THE FIRE PIT IN A DARKENED CAMPSITE AS THE BOYS ARE ASLEEP
IN THE TENTS AROUND HIM. HE IS KEEPING A WATCHFUL EYE OVER THINGS
TO BE SURE EVERYTHING IS ALL RIGHT. WHEN I LOOK BACK UPON MY
CHILDHOOD, I SEE GEORGE BORKOW, ED BROCKWAY AND MIKE PLAUT
KEEPING A WATCHFUL EYE OVER THINGS TO BE SURE EVERYTHING IS ALL
RIGHT.
HAD THEY NOT DONE SO I WOULD NOT BE HERE TODAY.
THANK YOU.