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this is very difficult for me. I was a member of a Boy Scout troop in the Portland area during the mid 60's. It may have been one of the oldest troops in OR. We had an assistant troop master who was clearly interested in boys. He was a single man, never married as far as I knew. He came into my life when I was about 12 (I am 60 now). This man was very looked up to by the other scouts. There was a weekly swim at a local motels indoor swimming pool. I think that there was a 10 or 15 cent charge for each of us to swim. I guess it was about an hour or so, but we dived and swam and horsed around and when it was all over we went to the shower room to get the pool water off and the assistant scout master would give towel rub downs. They were great!!!

There were a group of us boys that became a sub group of the troop, I guess. We gathered at his house, went on field trips to the coast and hikes up the Columbia River gorge. All of it quite wholesome. He also took a lot of photos. He would have  slide shows at his home, he had a wonderful collection of classical music which he would play as he showed

slides of mountains and other places he had been.

But there was one thing very unique about this man, which he never talked about...during WW2 he had been captured at the Battle of the Bulge. He had a number tatooed on his arm.

This man taught me a lot. About nature, how to read a map, appreciation for classical music.

And he informed my parents that I needed to have my vision checked.

But he really liked to look at naked boys/men. and he wanted to see me erect as a 13yr old boy.

Now at 60 I have my problems and I would like to lay them at his feet. But I can't. He was kind and gentle and listened when my parents were angry and judgemental.

I really loved him

but then I ran into him many years after I had moved away. It was in a museum and he did not recognize me after some 25-30 years. I told him my name and he rememberd but then went after  his persecuters saying he was innocent in his taking pictures of naked boys.

I had thought about going to visit him is his retirement community but did not. I am pretty sure he has passed from this world and wish him peace.

posted 3 years, 1 month ago
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