One of the most special awards we give out each year is the Outstanding Crew Member of the Year. It’s awarded to that crew member who has most demonstrated outstanding leadership, service and spirit. Someone who lives the Venturing Oath each day. What makes this award so special is that it is that the winner is selected by secret ballot by the youth, not the adults. Please help me congratulate this year’s winner, Mr. Tyler Johnson.
By any measure, if you wrote down a list of what would make the perfect Venturer, from a taste for high-adventure, a love of the outdoors, a spirit of always thinking of others and a gifted leader, Tyler would match those qualities.
I will talk a little more about him later in the evening. But Tyler has been serving Venturing as a leader for
most of his four years in the crew. He has served as vice president of program, vice president of administration, and president with our unit. He also has served as a vice president with the Venturing Officers Association and was selected as president last summer and is about to finish his term before going to Clemson. He’s also been selected as an area vice president.
His training resume is just as sterling as his leadership record. VLSC, Kodiak and Kodiak X. He’s also returned the favor by training others.
Of course, those are some of my observations. He was elected by the youth. And one reason is because he will do just about anything to help anyone in the crew. He has earned huge respect from the adults and other youth because of he not only is a great leader but is always willing to do the work. There recently was an article in Scouting magazine in response to a question from an adult about how an older Scout youth leader can gain cooperation from younger Scouts. The answer from one Scout leader: If you want some respect, show some. We don’t have bosses in the BSA, we have leaders. Ask yourself some questions: “Am I setting a good example? Am I leading from the front.” Said another: “When you’re cleaning latrines at summer camp, the leader should be the one with the toilet brush.” This is a concept that Tyler has always understood. He respects everyone in the crew, even if he will smile at someone and call them a chucklehead. And he turned heads during one of his first trips when he volunteered to clean all the dirty dishes from the night before in freezing temperatures. He has always been first in line for the dirtiest job.
Tyler is being named Outstanding Crew Member not because he has held a lot of offices but because the crew knows he is the very best – at leading, at serving and in relating to fellow Venturers.
For all those reasons, I am proud to proclaim Tyler Johnson our 2011 Outstanding Crew Member of the Year.