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Troop
1197 Eagle Scouts
Luis Gonzales joined Boy Scout Troop 1197 in January of 1991 at
the age of 14. We had a high-adventure trip to Colorado planned
for that summer, but our requirements were that a Scout had to
achieve the rank of First Class to attend such a trip. Luis and
four more of his fellow Scouts earned their First Class in just 5
months! This incredible pace revealed the abundance of Scout
Spirit these new immigrants had to offer. That 1991 trip was one
of 5 high-adventure trips Luis took with the troop on his way
toward Eagle.
For his Eagle project, Luis and the other Scouts replaced a small
dilapidated barn that the Westminster Weekday Schools use in their
playground. The fun part, destroying the old barn, came first.
Then, in the summer of 1994, Luis and the other Scouts assembled
the walls and tied them to the top of the troop's van, and then
took them to the site. With the help from some church volunteers
he recruited for the job, Luis poured a reinforced concrete
foundation and bolted the walls to it, adding the roof last. The
barn is still in use, and will be for years to come.
The Eagle Award was bestowed upon Luis in a huge ceremony
following a lasagna dinner at the church in October, 1994. That
Sunday marked the beginning of a terrible flood in which the
Trinity River actually caught fire!
The rank of Eagle was not the end of Luis's Scouting trail. The
following year, he designed and held one of the first troop
committee training courses for Spanish-speaking leaders. 21
leaders completed his course and went on to form three successful
troops sponsored by LDS churches in our area. Having proved his
leadership ability, he was hired by the Sam Houston Area Council
to start and lead new Cub Scout units in the Guflton Area.
Luis still visits us now and then. He and his wife have 2 children
and still live in the area. He paints cars for the local Ford
dealership.
Manuel (Max) Lopez came with his mother to Houston and moved
into the house next door to our Scoutmaster. Max would see the
Scouts sometimes when they packed the trailer and van for a
camping trip. Finally, Max got up the courage to ask about
joining Scouts. Three weeks later, he attended his first
meeting. Like Luis, Max was already 14 years old.
A year later, Max took what was then a brand new merit badge--
Computers-- which was offered at summer camp. He developed a
passion for computers, nurturing a hobby which pointed toward a
career. He worked for a time at Compaq just before
Hewlett-Packard bought them out.
Max and the Scouts built the large cabinets in the room
Westminster calls "The Hideout." Like the majority of
teenage boys and computer whiz kids, Max liked to cut things
close. They were still working on finishing the project on the
night before his 18th birthday!
Faith was an important component of Max's character, so he
hardly ever missed worship services on Sunday. One day this
proved very fortunate. One of the girls in Westminster's youth
program accidentally put her hand though a window pane, severing
the muscles and the artery in her wrist. Max applied the first
aid skills he learned in Scouting: keeping her calm, applying a
dressing, and holding the injured arm above her heart. When
paramedics arrived, they credited Max with saving her life, for
which the National Boy Scouts of America honored him with the
Medal of Merit.
Troop 1197 proudly presented Max our second Eagle Scout award in
a ceremony at Westminster in October of 2000, almost exactly 4
years after Luis' Eagle ceremony. Just like Luis, Max picked
lasagna for the banquet.
Max is currently serving our country in the Navy.
Unlike Luis and Max, Paul Turk joined Boy Scout Troop 1197 while
he was still 10 years old. He was the first Webelos Scout ever
to be inducted into our troop at an Arrow of Light ceremony.
Two things stand out about Paul Turk: He has a heart of gold,
and he never quits. And we do mean never! Paul's first campout
ended up being a high-adventure trip to Colorado. We all
remember him in the snow, trying to drag a duffel bag that
weighed more than he did up to the cabin. At Karankawa's Winter
Camp one year, he and another of our Scouts had a never-ending
argument that ended up being the mock trial for the Law Merit
Badge. The argument may never get settled, but the two will
always be friends!
Paul participated in nearly everything Troop 1197 did during the
next eight years, including church activities. He stayed active
in Scouts even while playing on the Lamar High School football
team. He accompanied us on 4 high-adventure trips.
For his Eagle project, Paul recruited friends, Scouts, and
people from Westminster to help him remove all of the dead
landscaping from Westminster's parking lot islands and replace
each with an arrangement of Indian hawthorne surrounding a crepe
myrtle tree. A ring of monkey grass keeps the decorative mulch
from leaving the islands. Part of the project involved repairing
the automatic sprinklers, so the plants continue to grow.
Troop 1197 proudly presented Paul Turk the Eagle Scout award in
an elaborate, elegant ceremony. It was a long time coming--
2005-- and had to be rescheduled because of Hurricane Rita.
Paul's relatives helped create an especially meaningful
ceremony, with catered food and guest speakers.
Paul is also serving our country in the Navy. He is stationed in
Japan.
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