Thinking of Two Departed Boy Scout Friends: Gary and Glenn

Gary and Glenn
Favorite photos of them from FB

One of the most important parts of my grade school years was my kindergarten through 7^th grade time at Robert Burns Elementary School in Detroit.  Closely intertwined with those wonderful school, teachers, and classmates was my time in the Cub Scout Pack 223 and Boy Scouts 223 which were also based out of Burns School.

One of my Boy Scout friends was Gary Bull (12/5/51-5/3/16).  I had not seen Gary nor heard from Gary since 1967 or 68.  This happened with many of the people I knew from Burns and Boy Scouts.  I opted to go to Cass Technical High School downtown, whereas almost everyone else that was still in the neighborhood went to Cooley High School.  We simply lost touch as we all gradually moved out of Detroit in those turbulent times in the city.  

 Gary and I lived in the same neighborhood.  His house was a short block away. He was a year and a half older than me.  The age difference means nothing once your grow uo but in grade school and junior high it was a bigger deal.  Gary was a grade ahead of.  We only knew each from Boy Scouts. He was a very cool and was like a big brother to me and just about everyone else in the our troopo..  He loved the scouts and scouting.  He was a good friend.

Beyond being a friend and fellow scout there is one of the thing that Gary did for me that I will be forever grateful.  I stopped playing the violin in the 7^th grade.  There were a few reasons for this (probably a future blog topic).  I was not entirely happy about it but I did it nonetheless.  Gary and I were hanging out one day and somehow, we got to talking about me dropping out of violin.  At that time, Gary was taking guitar lessons, was really into rock and roll, and even performed at a few Boy Scout gatherings with a couple of other scouts.  He suggested I take up the guitar which is something I had never considered.  He was very convincing and inspiring.  So, I took him up on it.  We went to the music shop on Grand River and Strathmoor where they had a selection of new and used guitars.  I bought a very basic no-name steel string acoustic for like $5.  It was surprisingly playable for the paltry price.  Gary then became my guitar teacher.  He taught me like ten or twelve chords and had me strumming some three and four chord popular songs like Gloria, Louie Louie, and House of the Rising Sun.

My guitar career was nothing special and short-lived, but he revived my interest in music performance.  A year or so later, I tuned my guitar like an oud, loved it, and never looked back.  Next thing I know, I had an oud and shortly thereafter, I was playing gigs.  I developed a lifelong dedication to the oud and am still out playing sixty-five years later.  Gary played a key role in a most valued part life.  After reconnecting, my interest in the guitar naturally was revived and I have taken a few lessons and am trying to master the fingerboard.  Whenever I pick up my guitar, I think of Gary, and play House of the Rising Sun.

Thanks to the best part about Facebook, Gary and I reconnected in June 2013.  We messaged each other and caught up.  I did have a chance to thank him for his pivotal role in my musical journey.  He had some health issues which progressively got worse leading to his passing. 

For some reason, Gary popped into my on June 17th.  I thought I would go on Facebook and look at his page, look at some old photos, and reflect on my old Boy Scout friend.  Before I had a chance to type Gary’s name in the search box, I saw a post on Glenn Baugh's site.  It sadly stated: “This is Glenn's family. Our hearts are hurting deeply over the loss of our dad, papa, husband and brother. No more pain or suffering. We will see you later!”  My heart became heavy. 

Glenn (8/15/53-6/14/25) was another friend from Burns and Boy Scouts.  I knew Glenn from either Kindergarten or first grade.  We were in classes together at Burns and Cadillac Jr. High.  We also took violin lessons together.  Glenn was a wonderful fellow.  I recall him as a quiet but very kind and friendly fellow.  I remember him as a good student.  His schoolwork and everything he did was meticulous to my less organized self.  I remember admiring this in my friend, and aspired to his level of presentation.  I never really got there until college.   

Glenn used to participate in Cub Scout baseball and then some of the epic games we playing as young teenagers on the Cooley athletic fields.  If I recall, Glenn was a lefty, the only one in our pick-up games, and he could really belt the ball.  He lived right across the street on Coyle from Cooley High’s athletic fields.  Glenn was part of the football game I wrote about in A Veteran’s Day Memory.  He played quarterback a bit in that game and I remember affectionately calling him Sammy Baugh because of some great passes he threw that day.   It was a glorious day in an innocent time just before everything changed for decades in Detroit.

As with Gary, Facebook allowed me to reconnect with Glenn, coincidentally, in June of 2013.  We exchanged birthday greetings, commented on each other’s posts, and we caught up in texts.  In 2020, he sent a message asking me if I remembered him and asked that I not forget him.  I understood he was saying bye and was probably just diagnosed with something chronic.  I wrote him back immediately but he never responded to the texts I sent him that day or the birthday greetings in ensuing years. 

I remember Glenn telling me about his summer trips to the Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan’s upper peninsula.  Glenn’s heritage was Finnish and Finns settled in the Keweenaw Peninsula primarily due to economic opportunities offered by the copper mining boom in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  I was fascinated by this place because of Glenn's stories and enthusiasm.  Because of this, I always wanted to visit Keweenaw, which is something I should still do.

In Scouts, I remember Glenn and his father, Harold, basically funding the Troop 223 by getting us to collect old newspapers and recycling them for a few cents per pound.  The Baughs initiated these paper drives.  Eventually, all the boys in the troop participated.  Truth be told, Glenn and his father collected more than the rest of the troop combined maybe even by a factor of two or three.  The troop bought a trailer to use for caring our camping gear, but the greater use of the trailer, by a long shot, was to take loads and loads of paper to the recycling center.  I admired Glenn and his dad for their hard work and quiet determination.

Reading what friends and family posted about Glenn and Gary was most heartwarming.  Everything I loved about these two fellows as kids and teens became traits for which they were loved and admired in the adult and family lives. 

When I finally got to Gary’s Facebook page, I was amazed by the number of posts from his family and friends since he passed.  They all missed him for the same kinds of easy going inspiration, mentoring, and friendship he provided to me way back in the 1960s.

I am sorry for the passing of my two schoolmates and fellow scouts.  I am ever so blessed and appreciative that we were able to reconnect and get to know each other again before they passed.  

 Rest well Gary and Glenn.