Scouts ‘quitter' finds 2nd chance in next generation
Painter: Scouts 'quitter' finds 2nd chance in next generation

By Bryan Painter

Published: May 31, 2007

EDMOND — The red-faced, jovial man melted into a mood of somewhat shame.

The reason? Quitting.

For someone who devoted 31 years as an employee of Dayton Tire and 28 years as a member of the Oklahoma Air National Guard, quitting is not something in which he takes pride.

But Jim Hagar, 65, of Edmond bid farewell to the Boy Scouts as a preteen in the 1950s after being involved for about 1 1/2 years.

Television was popular, and hanging out in the family living room was a lot more comfortable than spending a week away at summer camp and suffering the misery of homesickness. So he walked away.

About 20 years later, he returned with his son Chris Hagar by his side. Chris Hagar became a Cub Scout in 1973 and Boy Scout in 1977. He worked his way up to the Star Rank, which was separated by only one other rank, Life, before moving on to Eagle.

Jim Hagar could've headed back to the TV.

Instead, he held fast and is now the charter organization representative of the Last Frontier Council's Troop 77. That means he's the go-between between the Scout troop, a Venture crew and a Cub pack and the First United Methodist Church of Edmond, which is the charter organization for the troop.

He oversees the troop, crew and pack, which takes up to three days a week — time that could be spent watching TV.

But the mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices during their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law.

And Hagar is convinced he made a mistake by quitting in the 1950s.

"I always regretted not having gone on with my scouting,” he said. "Maybe this is a way to redeem myself for quitting before.”

Not only is he glad he stayed, so is another generation. Hagar's daughter, Tonya Puryear, has two sons involved in scouting.

Trey Puryear is a Scout, while Noel Puryear is a Bear rank in Cub Scouts.

"I love being involved with youth, and I'm so glad my grandsons are a part of scouts today,” he said.

In 2005, Scouts served 2.9 million young people. That's a lot of people when you consider it is about equal to the population of Chicago in 2000.

But Hagar would like to see more, not just for the numbers but for the value of what is learned.

One aspect he's especially pushing is leadership training.

Obviously, they receive training for how to take care of themselves in the outdoors, but they can also pick up some skills that can be used indoors or outdoors.

"They learn how to get along with others,” he said. "Plus, there's a merit badge for personal management. They can learn how to handle a checkbook and how to budget.”

Rather than searching online for a definition, I asked Hagar for his.

His reply traded the word "what” for the word "who.”

"We had a young man who had a physical disability, and to start off with, he had an attitude problem,” he said.

Now, the young man didn't whine when he had trouble. He didn't want help, even when that meant carrying a full pack with him on a five-mile hike. But he didn't always get along with others and kept a distance.

"You might have thought he wouldn't last,” Hagar said. "But he stayed in until he was 18 years old and earned his Eagle badge.

"He stuck it out.”

That young man later died, and at his funeral, his mother told Hagar how scouting had made a big difference in his life.

As he became more and more involved, his attitude toward others changed. He'd jump in and help and he would accept help.

"He stayed in there and did what you're supposed to do,” he said. "He was one of our better scouts by the time he left Scouts.”

Hagar, disappointed that he himself dropped out of Scouts, is very thankful his son stayed with it for years.

From your perspective, how did it help him?

"He probably learned how to work with and lead youth,” Hagar said.

And why that is important?

Chris Hagar, 41, is now the youth minister at the First Baptist Church of Kingfisher.

But that's not the end of the story.

A few years ago, Chris was diagnosed with mouth cancer and was told he would never talk again and that he would have to find a new profession.

"Because of his love of God, he never gave up,” his father said. "And what he learned in Scouts may have had something to do with it.”

By mid-day, the day after surgery, he was yelling "I'm having trouble breathing.”

"The nurse said, ‘You're talking,'” his father recalls. "He said, ‘Sure I'm talking, I'm having trouble breathing.'”

So he never quit. His faith is strong and he's still helping youth.

His father quit something once that is now very dear to him. He has no plans of quitting Scouting again any time soon.

"I look back now on my life and I know this is where God wants me to be,” Jim Hagar said.

"He got me back on this path, and I'm very glad He did.”