Adam has sometimes been mistaken as one of our older youth. But the truth is that he has been a loyal and very active assistant advisor for more than five years. He came to us after another member of the crew encouraged him to play soccer with us. The crew quickly learned that Adam is very good at soccer. And the youth liked him.
He became part of the advisor team soon afterward, joining with Andrew Roy and undergoing Venturing leader training.
Adam has always been fascinating to the youth for many reasons, not the least of which are his eating habits. Some youth will run from the sight of grits. Adam not only prefers them but pretty much prefers that over anything else for breakfast. Adam eats well and a lot. We don’t hjave to worry about leftovers when he is on a trip.
He has been extraordinarily active in both outings and meetings. And whenever the group plays glow stick wars, Adam is usually on one side or the other, running full tilt. A few years ago we were playing at Dreher Island and it was a brutal game because everyone was running through the thorns and finally the game ended. Then everyone heard Ted screaming and realized no one had seen Ted or Adam. And when we got down to the beach we saw the pair of them wrapped in mortal combat, with Ted trying to keep Adam from running. More recently, Adam was running one night in a glow stick war game at a meeting when he collided with the trailer, cutting open his shin, an injury requiring stitches. He was the first crew member in our history to use the BSA insurance.
Adam hasn’t participated in every activity. He isn’t really fond of skiing, for instance, though he has gone on ski trips to help chaperone. And speaking of chaperoning, the other adults owe Adam lots of thanks over the years for helping to be our closer on campfires. When we went to bed, Adam stayed up, entertaining the remaining campfire groupies with a personality profile test or participating in a game of Taboo or Magic.
Adam graduated last year from USC magna cum laude. He also was accepted into Phi Beta Kappa, a testament to his very keen intellect. And he now wants to point that intellect at a graduate school and may be heading to Texas later this summer for a research job.
When it came time to name Adam, I know what I wanted but it was hard to find the Native American translation. And then recently I found it. You see, while the youth of this group have long loved Adam for his friendliness and willingess to play their games, there is one thing that youth have been fascinated by more than any other. Adam is a fan of Star Wars and many years ago, learned how to replicate the sound of the Wookie, Harrison Ford’s tall, furry sidekick in the movie series. Some members have been so intrigued by his ability to make the sound they have asked him to teach them, one of the more unusual Venturing instructions ever given in the woods. Well Indians, of course, never heard a wookie. But they did hear something with a similar sound.
So tonight, Adam, it is my honor to award you the Sioux name Liwanu, which means, ‘Growl of a bear.’
Congratulations!