SENIOR TIMES - NOVEMBER 2018-1 based troops. Nearly 20 percent of all Boy Scouts are Mormons. My calling was in working with youth and training adults to work with youth, he said. It allowed me to serve my church and spend more time outdoors with my family. Preece was too busy working multiple jobs as a teenager to earn his Eagle Scout badge, but his devo- tion to scouting and his passion for hiking and camping rubbed off on his family. All three of his sons _ Mark, 61, of Rhode Island, Rick, 58, of Grass Valley, Calif., and Grant, 53, of Vista, Calif., _ are Eagle Scouts. So are eight of his grandsons and a great- grandson will soon achieve the rank. All of Preeces family has also absorbed his pas- sion for the outdoors, in- cluding Nedra, his wife of 63 years; daughter Cindy, 59, of Utah; and daughter Becky, 57, who is on a hike this week to the base camp of Mount Everest in Nepal. Preeces 31-year-old granddaughter Sarah Pre- ece of Rhode Island said he inspired her career as an outdoor recreation man- ager and Alaskan wilder- ness guide. She has fond memories of family camp- ing trips, where her grand- dad carried his own pack
NOVEMBER 2018 Volume 37 - Issue 11
FEATURING INSIDE
OHIO'S FOREMOST NEWSMAGAZINE FOR BOOMERS & BEYOND
At The Centers ....................................10 At Your Service ...................................10 Hall of Fame .........................................9 Introductions ......................................10 Postcard From Columbus ....................4 Smart Collector ....................................7 Tinseltown Talks...................................5
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VETERANS DAY
Soldiers Return
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page 6
Avoiding Heartbreak
75 YEARS OF SERVICE
Once a Scout, always a Scout
See SCOUT , page 9
page 5
Happy Days' Thanksgiving
Scout councils. Bryce Hall, who serves as commissioner for the Scouts Buena Vista dis- trict, said Preece has been a mentor for him and many other adult volunteers over the years. We look at him as the ideal scout, Hall said. He has a wonderful personality. Hes always positive and optimistic and has a great deal of wisdom to share. Much of the work Pre- ece has done with the Scouts over the years has been through the Mormon church, which partnered with the organization in 1913 to organize church- By Pam Kragen The San Diego Union-Tribune In 1940, Richard Dick Preece first recited the Boy Scout oath as an 8-year-old Cub Scout in his native Pocatello, Idaho. Seventy-eight years later, the Vista resident is still liv- ing by that code of loyalty to God, country and the Scout Law. At a celebration in Vista, the 86-year-old Preece was honored by the national Boy Scouts of America with the rare 75-Year Scout Veteran Award, recognizing three- quarters of a century of continuous service. Preece, a retired Navy commander and dentist, said he was humbled to receive the honor, which was pinned to his uniform in front of a crowd of nearly 100 people at the Vista Stake Center for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Scouting, Preece said, was a way he could honor both his faith and coun- try while helping to shape young minds in a positive way. If a scout follows the program, it teaches them responsibility, organization, leadership and a love for the outdoors, he said. Its something Ive believed in all of my life. The Boy Scouts national organization doesnt keep a record of how many people have received the 75-year Veteran award, but its a very small number. Local scout leaders said they believe Pre- ece is only the second recipient in the San Diego- Imperial district, which has 8,000 adult volunteers and serves 15,000 youth. To earn the pin, the recipient requires records of continuous active involvement. Most adult vol- unteers start out in the scouts as boys, then return as parents to lead their sons troops. But Preece never stopped. He moved directly from serving as a scout to leading troops, committees, coun- cils and commissions. He ran jamboree gatherings, camps, hiking and canoe trips, and interviewed and coached Eagle Scout ap- plicants. Even today, hes serving on two regional Ellie Preece, right, pins the Boy Scouts of America's 75-year Scout Veteran award on her grandfather, Richard Preece, as his wife, Nedra, looks on at a ceremony in his honor. (Marc Harris)
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Healthy U Ohio
Richard Preece celebrates his award with other veteran Scouters.
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