Seven states in ten days.  Author Alvin Townley took to the road this month and carried his message to Scout councils in the Midwest, Northeast, and South during his 2009 Winter Tour.  In Canton, Ohio, he met with council leaders and spoke to 250 people at the Buckeye Council's annual Gathering of Eagles.  Next stop was LaCrosse, Wisconsin, where he spoke to a packed Golden Eagle Dinner, before leaving for Chicago, Illinois.  On his arrival, the Three Fires Council hosted Alvin at a dinner with three 1930s Eagle Scouts.  The following day, Alvin keynoted the 2009 Eagle Banquet, where more than 100 Eagle Scouts were recognized for achieving the Eagle Rank in 2008. 

After a weekend visit with friends, Philmont alumni, and Eagle Scouts in Washington, DC, Alvin traveled to New York City, where he met filmmaker Ian Rosenberger and Boy Scouts of America district executive Buey Ray Tut, both featured in his upcoming book, Spirit of Adventure (May 2009, Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press).  Ian was a finalist on the CBS show "Survivor: Palau," and Buey is undertaking a project to drill water wells in East African villages.  Ian taped interviews with Buey and Alvin on locations in New York City, then the trio ventured into New Jersey to film celebrated young surgeons Vince and Vance Moss.  These twin brothers had completed two medical missions to Afghanistan and an Army tour of duty in Iraq.  Learn more at www.vinceandvancemoss.com/.  

The following day, Ian and Alvin traveled to Connecticut to meet Eagle Scout Matt Dalio, founder of China Care (www.chinacare.org), and discussed the influence of Scouting on Matt's life thus far.  After wrapping up the filming, Alvin returned to Washington, DC, for meetings with Eagle Scouts on Capitol Hill.  He ended the Winter Tour in Richmond, Virginia, where he and Apollo 13 commander Jim Lovell addressed a gathering of 500 Scouting supporters.  The next morning, Alvin keynoted a breakfast at the University of Richmond then taught a class on leadership to Richmond business majors before leaving for Atlanta.