下面的故事是24岁的迈克尔·加布里埃尔(Michael Gabriel)为他的新闻课写的. 蕾切尔•艾伦.

by 迈克尔·加布里埃尔24岁

这是一个周五的晚上，八点过了几分钟，在湾岭的迪米特里奥斯和乔治亚·卡洛伊迪斯教区学校的体育馆, 十大网堵平台. 当幼童军们被父母赶出体育馆时，男童子军们正鱼贯而入. 童子军, dressed in their uniforms, 接着，他们把外套和麻绳袋扔到舞台上，并立即冲过去抢一个令人垂涎的篮球，因为保管员忘记放好了.

在舞台上, 坐在学校自助餐厅的一张折叠桌上，那是几个童子军搭起来的, 那张桌子旁坐着 James Vavas, 93年, the 童子军团长 of Holy Cross 十大网堵平台’s Troop 715. He watches the clock knowing that it’s already past eight, the actual starting time of the meeting, 但他决定再等几分钟，让球探们继续玩.

Talking with a couple of good friends, I, the Senior Patrol Leader (highest ranking scout) of Troop 715, 我被告知. 瓦瓦斯找我. 我看了看他，他迅速用手指指着天花板做了一个圆圈运动. 我回头一看，立刻把侦察标志(一种手势)举了起来, signaling that it is time to start the meeting. Mr. Vavas rises from his chair and puts the scout sign up too. The Scouts slowly realize one by one, 把他们的篮球丢在地上, and finally put the scout sign up as well. 我等着最后一个篮球停止弹跳，环顾四周，大喊“集合”!” It is time for the meeting to begin.

715部队被租借到海湾岭的圣十字希腊东正教教堂, 1969年的十大网堵平台, 从那时起，它的发展势头就一直很强劲，到目前为止，它已经拥有了113名雄鹰童子军(童子军中的最后一个级别). But like all Boy Scout troops across the nation, 715部队依靠成年志愿者来帮助维持和运行. There are various volunteer positions, 但是，在童子军的生活中，没有比童军团长更重要的角色了.

As stated on the Boy Scouts of America website, 童军团长是负责直接与童军合作并提供指导的成年人, 训练, 和支持.” Today, that responsibility falls on the shoulders of Mr. Vavas, but it hasn’t always because like many of the Troop’s volunteers, he too was once a Boy Scout in Troop 715.

It was his very first Boy Scout meeting, and Vavas was assigned to the Wolf Patrol, one of multiple smaller groups within the greater Troop. When the scouts would fall in (get in line), each patrol would line up in the designated spot in the gym, and the Wolf Patrol was at the very front, directly facing the Troop’s 童子军团长, Mr. 吉姆.

Mr. 吉姆, 越战老兵, 作为715部队的童子军团长，他保留了一种老派的军事领导风格, which meant a lot of yelling and a key focus on discipline. For what felt like the entire meeting, Mr. 吉姆 was standing right in front of Vavas, 小六年级学生, looking right over his head, and yelling at the rest of the Scouts. All Vavas could see was Mr. 吉姆’s uniform, rising and lowering with each breath.

“准备好”

“When my father picked me up, he said, ‘What did you learn today? What did you learn tonight at Scouts?’我说，‘嗯，我不太记得了，但我了解到. 吉姆的纽扣上写着 做好准备 on them,’ because that’s all I could remember from the meeting!” Vavas recalled with a chuckle.

今天它说 做好准备 on Vavas’s buttons as well.

At a young age Vavas already showed the signs of a leader. “我很有条理，但我小时候没有意识到这是一种领导能力. I just thought that was me being me. As I came through scouting, 我开始意识到，那些我相当擅长的事情帮助了我，让我在童军项目中进步得更快.”

晋升, Vavas would continue to refine his leadership skills, and success would soon follow. He became the Patrol Leader of the Wolf Patrol, and after weeks of patrol meetings and preparation, Vavas and his Wolves would win the Camporee, a competition between many different Troops, testing a patrols’ teamwork and Boy Scout skills. 在他胜利之后, Vavas was chosen to be the Senior Patrol Leader of the Troop, where he would be in charge of not just one patrol, 而是整个部队.

瓦瓦斯说:“我当时的工作是确保巡逻队长做好准备。. and they were having meetings, and I couldn’t hold all their meetings, 但“我必须确保他们对自己的会议负责, 他们做到了.”

在瓦瓦斯的带领下，715部队横扫了竞争对手，再次赢得了坎波里. 再加上他作为巡逻队长的胜利，为他的简历奠定了良好的基础, 当他最终获得鹰级的时候, he had a lot to look back on.

At his Eagle Scout Court of Honor, the formal ceremony for rising to the rank of Eagle, he gave a speech to reflect on his journey in Boy Scouts. “那是我生命中最重要的时刻，我突然意识到球探给了我这么多. 我有义务回馈社会，这样其他球探就能从中受益.” To be 童子军团长 though, was not considered.

“I guess in my mind’s eye, Mr. 吉姆 would be the scoutmaster forever.”

Mr. 吉姆从1971年起一直担任童子军团长，直到2014年由于健康问题不得不退休. He would pass away not too long after that. “你知道，作为一个孩子，你不会考虑死亡、人们变老和死亡. 我想如果先生. 吉姆很健康，他在75岁的时候仍然是童子军团长，”瓦瓦斯说. Needless to say, the passing of Mr. 吉姆 left a large hole in the Troop’s soul.

Mr. 弗兰克·帕纳加科斯(Frank Panagakos)是该部队已经成立的一名成年志愿者，他最终将接替奥巴马. 吉姆’s responsibilities for the next two years, 但由于他自己的健康问题以及这些问题会如何阻碍他有效领导的能力, 他也会退休, leaving the position open yet again.

“So I had to find a replacement, and I thought hard about who would be a good replacement, who would be a good fit to take over Troop 715, and the number one name on my list was Mr. 瓦瓦斯，”帕纳加科斯说.

在与部队委员会成员讨论了情况后，他们都达成了一致意见. 帕纳加科斯找到瓦瓦斯，问他是否愿意担任715部队的童子军团长.

“When I was asked to be the 童子军团长, it was extremely humbling, 这是一个非常谦卑的经历，因为我看到了我必须填补的位置. Frankly those shoes are tremendous shoes for me to fill. I don’t think I fill them. I think everybody has to create their own shoes, and make their own footprints and imprints on the Troop,瓦瓦斯说.

瓦瓦斯接受了这个邀请，并在2017年秋天担任了童子军团长. As a leader, he follows in the footsteps of Mr. 吉姆, but he does it in his own shoes.

 “你可能会认为领导者是站在一群人面前发号施令的人. There’s a place for that kind of leadership, but Scouting focuses more on servant leadership, which simply means choosing to lead, giving more than you receive, and making a difference”(Pg 32, 童子军手册). 

“我认为，作为一个社会，我们有义务奉献我们的时间, 人才与财富,瓦瓦斯说. Treasure meaning financial support. “当我还是个孩子的时候，有人把他们的时间、才华和财富奉献给了童军项目. 那是先生. 吉姆. 这就是我的父亲……人们回馈社会是因为他们看到了这些东西的价值.”

Vavas takes the time to run the meetings every Friday night, organize the camping trips, help the scouts rise the ranks to Eagle Scout, 还有更多. At almost every Eagle Scout Project, a community service requirement for Eagle, 你会看到他戴着蓝色的太阳镜在打扫棚子, 粉刷栅栏, digging a hole —; whatever he could do to help. 

“When I first joined scouts… we were on a camping trip, 我不能正确地系鞋带，因为它们是靴子, 他帮助了我. 这是别人不会对你做的事. It’s something that someone would say ‘look on YouTube’,詹姆斯·赞恩说, 他是1月份加入童子军的近40名童子军中的一员, 2023. 从那些侦察兵中, 一个是瓦瓦斯的儿子, 丹尼, 瓦瓦斯认为是谁促使他加入部队的.      

“现在丹尼已经获得了鹰级童军勋章，我的工作还没有完成，因为我现在离开了——我从童军中得到了我需要的东西, because my son benefited from scouting —, 会很自私, and that would not be what a good scout would do.”

“We all give back because of what we got from it, 你得到的越多, 你付出的越多, and that’s why I continue to do it.”

“我有义务继续下去，但我也希望继续下去，这样其他和我没有父子关系的年轻人就可以像我一样继续从球探中受益……我们都会回报，因为我们从中得到了什么。, 你得到的越多, 你付出的越多, and that’s why I continue to do it.”

Mr. Vavas站在Mr. 吉姆曾经站在那里，看着外面的狼巡逻队，结束了他对夜晚的回顾. 他看着球探们，几乎所有的人都是在他的观察下成长起来的. He tells them all to bow their heads. 他们都是这样.

“愿伟大的童军领袖守护我们，保护我们，直到我们再次见面. 阿门.”

他抬起头来. 

“军队了.”