Scouting, Volume 48, Number 7, October 1960 Page: 17
40 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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WHAT'S BEHIND
A Wl N N E R
fop honors in the Eleventh National Science Fair at Indianapolis,
Indiana, gave Donald F. Carpenter first place in the physical sciences
plus three armed services awards. His competition was tough—365
"brains from high schools in forty-four states and several foreign
countries. At the time he was sixteen, a junior, and an Explorer.
His win climaxed 1.500 hours spent in designing and constructing
a counterflow vortex tube and studying its aerodynamics and thermo-
dynamics. This theoretical research may he applied in jet propulsion
and home heating.
In a lab notebook Don has a two-page list of people who have
helped him. His dad describes one of these men here.
Mr. Alan H. Tucker, Scout Executive
Charter Oak Council
Hartford, Connecticut
Dear Tuck:
As the father of one of the Explorers in Post 12, West Hartford,
I would like to see Advisor Nicholas A. Welch given suitable recognition
for his outstanding and devoted volunteer work with the Explorers.
Mr. Welch turned over a large room in his own home as the meeting
place for the post. They meet every Saturday morning formally, but may
be found there individually or in small groups almost any time.
Mr. Welch is a mechanical engineer with the American Hardware Company,
He has a large basement in his home that overflows with power and hand
tools. He has taught each of the Explorers to use these safely, and
several have become fairly skilled as amateur machinists. They dabble in
hi-fi, photography, radio, tape recording, metal work, and woodwork.
Mr. Welch's philosophy is to let the boys learn by doing. He offers
guidance, suggestions, and fatherly advice when solicited, but will not
do their jobs for them. He is more interested that they have the
personal experience of learning than he is in the thing produced.
Post meetings feature one or two scientific talks by the Explorers.
Among subjects covered have been the eye, vectorial algebra, light inter-
ference, starfish, rocketry, and amateur radio. Post 12 sponsors
dances, swimming parties, and seminars. Each summer for several years
Mr. Welch and other fathers have taken the Explorers of Post 12 and Scouts
of Troop 12 for seven days of mountain climbing and camping.
For the annual science fairs, the Explorers find the Welch's home
workshop the ideal place to create their exhibits. My son Don says he
spent 450 hours there working on his project. You are well acquainted
with the phenomenal success of these boys in the school, state, and
national science fairs. Mr. Welch modestly says that the Explorers teach
him in their pursuits of science. "I don't do anything myself. I just
try to provide opportunities for the boys to do things for themselves.
They plan their own activities and do all the work themselves. It's
fun!" Mr. Welch is a real leader.
The contribution of Mr. Welch and his family to the character building
of these young men cannot be measured. It is reflected in their daily lives.
Long live Nicholas A. Welch!
Sincerely,
l
Samuel S. Carpenter, Jr.
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Boy Scouts of America. Scouting, Volume 48, Number 7, October 1960, periodical, October 1960; New Brunswick, New Jersey. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth329289/m1/19/: accessed May 5, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Boy Scouts of America National Scouting Museum.