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DENISON, Iowa — The award for becoming an Eagle Scout is conferred during a ceremony that lasts about an hour, but the benefits of the rank are long-lasting.
Dr. Dennis Crabb, a 19-year veteran Scoutmaster, points to multiple Eagle Scouts formerly under his tutelage that received jobs and served in the military and their communities.
“That's what becoming an Eagle Scout is primarily about — learning leadership,” Crabb said.
At an Honor Court on Sunday, Crabb will award six Scouts their Eagle badges.
Over the years, 52 boys have achieved the Eagle rank under Crabb's guidance, although, he insists, “This whole thing is really not about me, it's about the kids.”
Crabb began his involvement with Scouting as a Cub and Boy Scout in Denison in the late 1950s; he served as a summer camp staff member in 1962 at Camp Wakonda near Griswold.
Yet Crabb never earned the Eagle Scout rank, a disappointment he uses to motivate current Scouts to attain the honor.
“I keep telling them, ‘You guys have got to do this now, because you can't do it later,'” Crabb said.
Crabb and his wife, Jane, have three sons. Jane was a Cub Scout leader before Dennis' involvement with the Boy Scouts, which began when their oldest son graduated from Cub Scouts in the summer of 1990. The boys, now 30, 28, and 25, all became Eagle Scouts.
When his son joined the troop, only five Scouts were members, and there were two adult leaders. The troop had no uniforms, did not observe flag ceremonies and had few planned activities.
“I try to teach these kids ... to take care of themselves, take care of other people and be good citizens,” as per the Scout Motto.
To become an Eagle Scout, a Boy Scout must earn at least 21 merit badges, lead a community service project, complete an application to the national organization and be approved by a board of review.
These requirements must be completed before a Scout turns 18 and after he has achieved the Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star and Life ranks.
The project requirement, Crabb said, is something they think of, plan, work out the details, and then lead a crew to complete: “It's not something a kid does, it's something he supervises.”
Boy Scouts begin the journey at age 11.
Crabb said that within the first year many boys achieve the First Class rank. Yet, Crabb said, only about 2 percent of Scouts nationally achieve the Eagle honor. In Denison, he estimated the number to be closer to 30 percent.
“The reason, partly, that I have so many Eagles is because I didn't get mine, so I really kick these kids in the butt to get it done,” Crabb said.
He credited a network of parents, teachers, assistant leaders and adult volunteers with aiding him in the effort.
“The more help I get, the easier the whole job becomes,” Crabb stated. “I'm lucky to have many people help me, and our troop is growing.”
Crabb and the assistant scoutmasters work to provide adequate activities to keep the boys busy so they are motivated to remain in Scouts.
“If I get them to stay in the program, there'll be a lot of Eagles,” Crabb said.
Currently, seven of the 30 Scouts in Crabb's troop have attained the rank, and 14 are Life Scouts, well on their way to the Eagle Scout accomplishment.
The boys' favorite activity is camping, said Crabb, who noted that the word “outing” is three-fourths of “Scouting.”
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