To the Editor:
Congratulations go to Lawrence Jordan and his merry crew on successfully navigating the Great Pee Dee River in their primitive craft, the Cause.  The Ken Burns series on Mark Twain aired on PBS about the same time this voyage took place.  So, it is quite easy to make a Huck Finn connection here.
This was no small undertaking.  A great deal of planning and preparation was necessary to pull it off.  The Great Pee Dee is a big river and  can be very unforgiving.  This was a bit of chance to take with such an inexperienced crew and untried craft.  Foolish?  …Nah, these guys had a lot going for them.  Their design and construction was evidently spot-on.  And, their lack of experience was compensated by confidence that on-the-job training would be sufficient.  Nonetheless, as well planned and prepared as they were, they could not have known beyond reasonable certainty that the Cause would survive the voyage.  Perhaps the fear of not trying was greater than that of failing.
How did these young men acquire such confidence, courage and spirit?  Surely, a part of it could be their involvement in Boy Scouts.  
Each of them has been or is currently involved in scouting to the fullest extent available to them.  This is the kind of character Scouting builds.
So, I guess you could look at this voyage in one of two ways:   A group of guys just having a good time on the river (which they did).  Or, an example of young men with the gumption to turn a dream into reality.  If not for the latter, there would be no footprints on the moon.
Earl Dutton
1310 John St.
Dillon, SC