Deal visits scouting ceremony
Tuesday’s visit is the latest stop in town for the governor and first lady, who were watching their grandson advance to a Boy Scout from a Webelos Scout.
Growing up deep in the rural landscape of Washington County, Gov. Nathan Deal had his bid for becoming a Boy Scout cut short due to the distance between his childhood home and the scout meeting place. But on Tuesday, Deal was able to watch his grandson walk the Crossover Bridge and become a Boy Scout in Rome’s Troop 113.
Deal’s grandson Ethan Wilder, the son of Carrie and Clint Wilder, was one of eight Webelos Scouts to earn the Arrow of Light Award — the highest rank in Cub Scouting — during a ceremony at Rome First United Methodist Church.
Seated next to his wife, Sandra Deal, the governor held his cellphone before him to capture the moment Troop 113 Assistant Scoutmaster Thad Watters called a symbolization of the boys’ crossing over into manhood.
Despite not being able to work through the scouting ranks under the guidance of an official scout leader, the governor said his own den master, of sorts, was his mother.
And instead of cooking over an open fire or traversing the trails with a backpack, he opted for 4-H and the raising of cows and pigs.
After visiting the Chieftains Herb and Plant Sale, where Carrie Wilder was working April 8, the Deals’ attendance Tuesday night marked at least the second time they’ve been out and about in Rome this month.
The governor said with the conclusion of the 2017 legislative session things have slowed down a bit. But he is still in the bill review stage that is keeping his docket full, he added.
Earlier in the ceremony Den Leader Drew Conrad rattled off the boys’ achievements, including setting up camp by themselves, committing the scout oath to memory and learning how to cook.
And after the elder Webelos committed to the principles of Scout Law with their Arrow of Light badges in hand — the only one from their Cub Scouting days that can be worn on a Boy Scout uniform — their den leaders spoke fondly of them before sending them off. The new scouts will join a troop that has seen more than 170 achieve the rank of Eagle Scout over a 30-year period.
Ethan Wilder was described as creative and organized by his den leaders, with an ability to think deeply on a subject and surprise adults with his mature responses. The governor agreed, speaking of his grandson as “very insightful” and “very mature.”
While Conrad’s final words of the Boy Scout motto — “Be prepared” — still rang in the air, the young Boy Scout Ryan Robinson, who welcomed the new boys into his troop, approached Nathan Deal. Robinson shook the governor’s hand and began an amiable conversation, earning a Citizenship in the Nation badge requirement in the process.