Made an Eagle Scout in FDR's presence
LaVerne "Pete" Bruhn of Elgin earned his Eagle Scout Award more than 70 years ago, but the ceremony and its national visibility remained a vivid memory for the rest of his life.
Mr. Bruhn passed away Sept. 14. The lifelong Elgin resident was 89.
"It was quite an event," says his youngest son, Gregg Bruhn of Elgin. "Having grown up in the Depression, and having to scratch and claw to get anything, receiving an honor like this was a real thrill."
Mr. Bruhn received his award at the very first National Jamboree in 1937, sponsored by the Boy Scouts of America and held in Washington, D.C. President Franklin Roosevelt invited the Scouts to convene there, and more than 27,000 boys from 48 states took him up on it.
They mounted a veritable tent city on the Capital Mall, in the shadow of the Washington Monument. President Roosevelt himself attended the event, and while he did not pin the award on the prospective Eagles, his presence underscored its significance.
"(Pete) was proud of that all his life," says his wife, Ariel Bruhn.
The couple met shortly after that, while ice skating in Lord's Park in Elgin. Mr. Bruhn's service in the Navy during World War II interrupted their courtship, but they married on June 17, 1944.
Mr. Bruhn followed his father's lead and went to work in the machine shop at the Elgin National Watch Co. After he returned from the war, he earned his engineering degree at DeVry Technical Institute in Chicago.
With his engineering degree, Mr. Bruhn moved up to become a foreman in the spring room before transferring to the engineering department where they worked on blueprints for different jeweled watch models.
Mr. Bruhn finished his career as vice president of manufacturing with Eligloy Co. in Elgin, a spinoff of the Elgin National Watch Co. that produced many of its parts.
In his spare time, Mr. Bruhn worked actively with the Boy Scouts, serving as Scoutmaster of Troop 18 at Columbia School in Elgin, before forming a Sea Scout troop, which met at a cottage on the Fox River, where they built and sailed boats.
"He was a leader by example," his son says. "He never forced people to do something, but he led you down the right path and allowed you to make the right decision."
All three of his sons participated in Scouting with their father, and they also found him coaching on the sidelines of their Little League games. When they weren't playing, they often went fishing together.
Mr. Bruhn also found time to participate in a variety of service organizations in Elgin, from the American Legion to the Fraternal Order of Elgin Eagles to the Kiwanis and the St. Paul United Church of Christ church council.
Besides his wife and son, Mr. Bruhn is survived by his son Jerry (Judy) of Colorado City, Colo., and Ron (Kathy) of Aurora, Colo., and four grandchildren.
Services have been held.