I had been in Cub Scouts while living in East Oakland. We moved to San Lorenzo in perhaps October of 1954 when I was ten, not yet 11 so I could not yet become a Boy Scout. That I did in June of 55 when I joined Troop 1 at David E. Martin elementary school which was at the West end of Paseo Grande. I guess there were at least two other troops in San Lorenzo but Troop 1 was truly number one at the time. I was in Beaver patrol. I think a boy named Henderson was patrol leader or soon would be. The troop's Scout Master was Goldsworthy. He had two sons that were in the troop. The Assistant Scout Master, his name escapes me at the moment, I want to say Chuck, was once a Marine Corp drill sergeant so we spent allot of time in close order drill. Not a standard Boy Scout past time but I loved it. At one time there were at least 60 scouts in the troop in perhaps 6 patrols and when we were on the march we were quite impressive. When I got to Navy boot camp I was one of our company's best at close order drill as a result of my Boy Scout experience. I am dumping this to this page off the top of my head at the moment and will refine it latter with much more recollections including when my late Father Joe Safer was Scout Master.
June 1955, probably my birthday. I turned 11 so I could join Boy Scouts, Troop 1 San Lorenzo California. I am showing off my new uniform.
Probably my birthday?, 1956?. My brother Ken is still wearing his Cub Scout uniform. We had been in Pack 57, Oakland California. We moved to San Lorenzo in October of 1954.
The high light of each year was our week at Boy Scout Camp Dimond O near Yosemite. Hear is our Troop Plank.

What? DIMOND-O?? Well, yes, it seems. A web search confirms it was Dimond, not Diamond. Go figure. Why the heck did I not notice until now? That is my brother Jim Safer trying to point it out to me back then.

At Dimond O. On the right is our Scout Master, Mr. Goldsworthy. On the left is our Assistant Scout Master. What was his name??
The Dimond O chow hall.
Ben??
Dimond O's "Pill Hill". The camp doctor's office. I think that is Tom Murphy in the fore ground. Against the tree is, as I recall, a Junior Assistant Scout Master (JASM), An Air Scout. I think he wore a lite Blue uniform. His Name??
A bunch of us at the Dimond O Swimming hole. Front center is Craig Henderson, patrol leader of my Beaver Patrol. Can you name the others?
Typical barracks at Dimond O, perhaps 1956? There is a "graveyard" in the fore ground.
One of the many graves.
The one in rhe center reads "He was too heavy to be carried thats why he was buried. Scott Siconte". His last name is hard to read.
Gary Hanson of Troop 601 sent me this one. The marker seems to say:
Fancy Panz Smith (? meat the sap ?) His execution long over due. J.O. 36
Me at the "Kraft Keral". Dimond O.
1955 or 56.
Another view at the Kraft Keral, likely August 1955. Ed Will in the fore ground. Ed seems to have an ice cream bar from the trading post.
 From Gary Hanson.
Scoutmaster Mr. Goldsworthy with much of troop in front of our cabin, 1955.
From Gary Hanson.
Dimond O Trading Post.
From Gary Hanson
Dimond O office.
From Gary Hanson
Mr Goldsworthy and who? Maybe one of his sons? 1955
Looks to me like maybe they were set up as part of a prank.
From Gary Hanson.
In a cabin, 1955.
Left to right:
?, Allen Mars, Sid Corrie, Tom Seat, ?, Gary Hanson.
From Gary Hanson.
I suspect Sid's father was the owner of the infamous "Corrie's Quarry".
At the Dimond O swimming hole. That is our Scout Master Mr. Goldsworthy in the uniform.
Who is this??

Ron Kress?
My Beaver Patrol when I was Patrol Leader, or in this photo, Den Mother ;>. This was taken at the Dimond-O swimming hole. That is Tom Skinner next to me.
I believe Troop 1 had been renamed Troop 601 by the time this picture of Parol leaders and other senior scouts was taken in 1958. I on the left. Craig Henderson with the tongue. David Baker upper right. Bill Horner? lower right. Name the others.
Field trip to Sacramento. Left to right, David Baker, Tom Murphy, Glen Miller?, me.
My Troop 601 Beaver Patrol heading out on a bike ride for our Bicycling Merit Badge. I am on the right. Name the others.
Beaver Patrol meeting in my garage. I am on the right. Name the others.

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Oakland Tribune, Sunday, Feb.9,1958

One of the largest Courts of Honor ever held by a Boy Scout unit in the Oakland Area Council was that of Troop 601, San Lorenzo, at the David E. Martin
School. Nearly every one of the 54 members of this Arroyo District troop were presented with a total of 93 separate awards.

Special recognition was given to First Class Scout Jim Acheson for his quick thinking in applying first aid to a P.G. & E. workman. The man accidentally
broke a glass meter cover which severely cut his hand and later required seven stitches.
The P.G. & E. Company sent the troop a complete first aid kit in recognition of Acheson's service.

The following awards were presented to the boys by members of the troop committee.

Tenderfoot Scout:
Thomas Bell
James Gundell
Paul Just
Robert Kirkaldie
Barry Thackston
Lee Baker
James Sitnik
Ralph Ivey
Walter Bulman
Jim Murphy
Richard Jutchison

Second Class:
Roger Baker
Ronald Bell
Lyman Daily
Craig Eustice
James Gundell
Paul Just
Barry Thackston

First Class:
Jim Acheson
Tom Icanberry
Michael Lane
David Lobree
Thomas Skinner
Allen Tilghman

Star Scout:
Steven Owens
Paul Reynolds
Donald Safer
John Icanberry
Rayward Lynch
Glen Miller
Arthur Hardy

Life Scout:
Warren Avery

Perfect Attendance, one year:
Bill Horner
Tom Murphy
Jerry Spear
Arthur Hardy

Perfect Attendance, two years:
Gerald Johnston
Steve Owens
Don Safer
James Cook
Warren Avery
Craig Henderson

Perfect Attendance, four years:
Ronald Kress

Perfect Attendance, five years:
Mike Goldsworthy

Merit badges were presented to:
Toni Gari
Bart Corrie
Dave Lobree
Raymond Lynch
Glen Miller
Tom Murphy
Steven Owens
Ralph Peterson
Paul Renolds
Donald Safer
Robert Sitnik
Jimmy Acheson
Warren Avery
David Baker
Jim Cook
Craig Henderson
William Horner
John Icanberry

David Baker, John Icanberry and Gerald Johnston were recognized as Troop 601 Explorers, and Bob Sitnik was presented an "Emergency Award".
Adult Scout Leaders who participated in the ceremony were led by Scoutmaster Joseph Safer.
After closing ceremonies, refreshments were served by the Ranger Patrol Mothers.

 

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Brian? At Dimond O
Dimond O 1958. Me, upper right. Brother Ken Safer lower left.
I made it to Explorer Scout so I have a new dark green uniform. I was still with troop 601. I am "Star" with 9 merit badges in this photo from the summer of 1958.
My Father Joe Safer became Scout Master but I have not yet located any photos of him as such. If you have one, please contact me. This is a photo of him at a Contenental Can Company picnic at about the same time he was Scout Master.
Oh, wait. Here is a photo of my Dad as scout Master, The guy on the left.
Troop 601's 20 mile hike at Dimond O 1959. My brother, Ken, is 6th from the left. Jim Griffen, who gave me this photo, is 3rd from right. He is still active in Scouting. Jim Acheson is 5th from the left. Help me identify the others.

 

 

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Hello Don,

I was pleased to find that you created a new web page that included our scouting years. I found the web page by searching on Dimond O. Your Dad, Joe Safer, was a very large part of my life from age 11 to 16, and I shall never forget him, you, and Kenny. I remember your Mom, Gladys and young Jim, Don. Please pass my best regards to both of them. I had often wondered how your Mom tolerated Joe's dedication to scouting and time he spent away from home for scouting activities.
Now you have my thinking returning to all the camp-outs, jamborees, collecting Christmas trees and old newspapers, and a multitude of other scouting activities that I shared with you and your family.
As a Webelo from Cub Scout, Pack 1, I remembered being inducted into Troop 1 shortly after my 11th birthday in April 1957 with three other Cubs. The “Four Freedoms Ceremony” was conducted in candlelight at David E Martin School; Freedom From Fear, Freedom From Want, Freedom Of Speech, and Freedom Of Religion…as I recall, taken from a moving patriotic FDR speech 12-years earlier.
I seem to remember Jim Griffen being inducted into Troop 1 at the same time as me.
Troop 1 was in a state of flux in 1957 with both adult leaders and scouts moving up to higher levels by virtue of age. Your generation of scouts (as I recall) included Mike Goldsworthy, Bart Corrie, Ed Wills, Pepper Bowen, Warren Avery, Hal Starrett, Mike Baker and Craig Henderson was the youngest.
I was initially assigned to the Wolf Patrol, then later the Beaver Patrol and Warren Avery was the Patrol Leader.
Joe Haight was an Assistant Scoutmaster during those early years, and he had a son (or younger brother) that was a Junior Leader during 1957/1958.
The second generation of scouts included me, Darryl Smith, Allan Tilghman, Kenny, Steve Weeks, Bruce Stern, Tom Skinner, Bill Lockhard, Larry Sharp, Bill Siebold, Mike Looney, Steve Cuneo and many others. Most of this latter group went on to form Explorer Post 601 with Douglas F Sharp as the Advisor.
 I received my Eagle Scout award in the spring of 1964 as an Explorer.
 I remember my Dad telling me that your Dad had said that he would become the Troop Scoutmaster as long as each father in the troop agreed to spend at least one weekend per year on a scouting activity…”Is that asking too much?” It worked! We saw fathers spending much more time doing things like providing rides to Dimond O and Rancho Los Mochas, and from our perspective the amount of scout activities went way up after 1957.
The fathers did another thing that went largely unnoticed by the younger generation of scouts. They set up the merit badge program offerings so that outdoor merit badge selection at Dimond O and Los Mochas over a two or three year span would include all the outdoor merit badge opportunities required for Eagle Scout, such as the 50-mile hike, camping, etc. That enabled several Eagle Scout awards for many of our generation under the leadership of your Dad and Doug Sharp!

Best Regards and Good Health, Jim Acheson
-----------------------------------------------

My last vist to Dimond O, June of 1961. I am on the right. My brother Ken is in uniform. I was a member of the staff that year working mostly in the chow hall.
If the above is interesting, this may be also. Cub scouts at NAS Alameda next to a "Mars" flying boat 1953 or 1954. Gary Hanson is front row, third from the left. The cub with his eyes closed is Steve Owens. Who is the adult, or any of the others?
From Gary Hanson.

 

 

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I have acquired my father's copy of a roster of all Troop 601 members circa 1961.

Our Scout Master at the time was Bert Jamison.

There were 7 Assistant Scout Masters:
Arthur Skipworth
Earl Davis
John Kearns
Lawrence Altiera
H. Von Rothstien
Charles Stevenson
Charles (Chuck) Baker, (Eagle Scout)

My Father, Joe Safer, was Neighborhood Commissioner.
Joe Haight was Assistant District Commissioner.

Gerald Tilley was Committee Chairman
Robert Greene was "Institutional Rept."

Jim Stern was Treasurer
Bob Laporte was Secretary
John Storm was Advancement Chairman
Lloyd Cargo was Board of Review Chairman
Bill Hatteroth (Eagle scout) was Assistant Board of Review Chairman
Don Starratt was Refreshments and Aquatics Chairman

Bill Addison was Transportation Chairman
Irving Osofsky was Budget Chairman

"Committee men" were
Al Oftedahl
Walter Gundell
Jim Stevens
Eugene Henderson
Noel Weston
------------------------

Now for the scouts.

JUNIOR LEADERS STAFF
Don Safer (me) Jr Assistant Scout Master
Ken Safer, (my brother) Sr Patrol Leader
Mike Laporte, Assistant Sr Patrol Leader

Larry Sharp, Section Leader
Harold Starratt, Section Leader
Bill Hatteroth, Section Leader
Charles Encel, ?

BEAVER PATROL
Glen Davis, Patrol Leader
Chris Addison, Assistant Patrol Leader
Kevin Gustafsen
Ray Berg
Mike Mc Donough
Mike Altiere
Earl Davis (Patrol Dad)

RANGER PATROL
Charles Stevenson, Patrol Leader
Jerry Griffen, Assistant Patrol Leader
Jim Kitchens
Bob Clocksen
Scott Henderson
Bill Skipworth
Art Skipworth (Patrol Dad)

PINE TREE PATROL
Steve Acheson, Patrol Leader
Lee Oftedahl, Assistant Patrol Leader
Dave Eckstien
Curtis Cooper
George Goodnow (sp?)
Jim Ernst
Dave Tilley
Howard Von Rothstien
H. Von Rothstein (Patrol Dad)

BUFFALO PATROL
Steven Kahn, Patrol Leader
John Rodriquez, Assistant Patrol Leader
Jim Stevens
Dave Jamison
Don Cuthill
? Kahn (Patrol Dad)

EAGLE PATROL
Bruce Stern, Patrol Leader
Tom Gerton, Assistant Patrol Leader
Dave Scheid
Lewis Osofsky
Lloyd Cargo
Al Andrade
Lloyd Cargo Sr (Patrol Dad)

PANTHER PATROL
Bob Storm, Patrol Leader
Louis Gundell, Assistant Patrol Leader
Mike Kahn
Mel Erickson
Philip Weston
John Storm (Patrol Dad)

ASSOCIATE SCOUTS
Mike Goldsworthy (Eagle)
Bill Brocco (Eagle)
Ron Kress
Dave Baker (Eagle)
Craig Henderson (Eagle)
Warren Avery (Eagle)
Ed Will (Eagle)
Dave Lobree (Eagle)
Tom Skinner (Eagle)
Allen Tilghman (Eagle)

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