A Scout soars like an eagle (Tuskegee Airman earns eagle scout 70 years later)

The Tuskegee Airman are so inspirational, these are the guys we should hold up as examples for kids. This story is totally cool.

Soon after he received the medal and neckerchief that made him an official Eagle Scout yesterday, retired Air Force Lt. Col. Eugene Cheatham told a crowd it was "the most momentous event in his life." In reality, however, he didn't have to say a word. His actions said it all. Cheatham, 89, smiled, waved and pointed at familiar faces in the audience, and reverently stroked the Boy Scout hat he received before placing it proudly on his head. Here it was. After more than 70 years. His moment. "In our country today you only have to know two words – Wow! This is cool!" said Cheatham, emphasizing colloquialisms more common to an MTV generation than to his own. "I'll never forget this day," he said.

"When O'Keefe asked Cheatham if he had any regrets about his life, he spoke of a rainy day in 1931 in New York City, when he was supposed to be given the rank of Eagle Scout.

Cheatham had walked to the school auditorium from his home in Harlem for the ceremony. He wore jeans, an old shirt and his Scout sash and cap. It was all his family could afford.

When he saw all the other boys – dressed in uniform – assembled in the auditorium, he was too ashamed to go in.

After O'Keefe heard the story, he decided he was going to help Cheatham get the rank he earned more than seven decades ago. He embarked on a quest to secure the required documentation.

Yesterday, Cheatham received the Scouts' highest honor.

"I'm happy to see him so happy," O'Keefe said after the ceremony, glancing over his shoulder at Cheatham, surrounded by media and assorted well-wishers. O'Keefe is a third-generation Eagle Scout.

"I know all of the stuff that went into this for him," O'Keefe said. "This is his 15 minutes."

Near the start of the nearly two-hour ceremony, Cheatham was escorted into the museum's Pavilion of Flight by several fellow Eagle Scouts. Dressed in a blue suit, white shirt and jaunty red tie, he ascended the steps to the stage, looking strong for a man who was recovering from a recent fall that had injured his ribs.

A succession of speakers told the crowd how Cheatham had lived his life by the "rules, laws and oaths" of the Boy Scouts. They spoke of Cheatham's positive outlook, confidence and consideration of others, exemplified by his continued desire to speak to schoolchildren and service groups about his experiences.

"I think you see in Eugene the things an Eagle Scout is supposed to be," Al Bachman said. Bachman was a member of the review board that concluded Cheatham had earned the required number of medals to attain the Eagle rank.

Then a group of 21 Eagle Scouts, young and old, joined Cheatham at the front of the stage to repeat their oath. The youngest among them was Cody Holmes, who received his Eagle status two years ago at age 14.

"It was awesome," Cody said after the ceremony. "I'm proud of him. He deserves it."

Among those who gathered to celebrate Cheatham's accomplishments were several members of the Gen. B.O. Davis Jr. Chapter of the Tuskegee Airman, Inc. in San Diego. Cheatham acknowledged them from his seat on stage, as well as a few veterans of the Korean war who he spotted in the crowd.

"It's a long time coming," said Louis U. Murray, a fellow Tuskegee Airman."

RONI GALGANO / Union-Tribune

Eugene Cheatham, 88, flew more than 100 missions during the Korean War and became a lieutenant colonel. But he never received his Eagle Scout award. On Sept. 18 at Balboa Park's Aerospace Museum, thanks to efforts spearheaded by a local Navy corpsman, he will.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20040807/news_1n7scout.html

As O'Keefe drove Cheatham from his home in Spring Valley, the two talked about Cheatham's accomplishments. He was one of the trailblazing black pilots known as the Tuskegee Airmen and flew more than 100 missions during the Korean War.

I am Kevin (age 15) of Troop 680. This man (Mr. Cheatham, age 89) came and joined our troop ice cream social, and there he WALKED up the stage stairs, gave a smart smile showing us how he can still do that even of his age, and told us his life story. He is a VERY cool dude and looks great for how old he is.

I think its an honor to have someone like him to be the first to achieve eagle after 18 years of age.
I myself am a few months away from completing my eagle project, and am looking forward to my eagle as well.
Mr. Cheatham, it is an honor to have you accept this rank.

"Now, more than ever, we need more Scouts! Help recruit!" "http://www.scouting.org"

I remember an ad for the BSA, it showed astronauts mission patches, I think mostly Apollo, with the caption... "Before they wore these.........They wore these... and then the BSA patch.

I sure wish that guys like the Tusgegee Airman were bigger heros to kids. All the focus seems to be on rappers and self centered athletes, movie stars, etc. These are not the people children should be emulating. There ARE real heros out there. This society is failing the younger generation by not celebrating these folks better. The stories are astonishing.

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