Donald Eclare Studaven was born on December 14, 1933 to Ethel Studaven (b. 09/19/1917, d. 10/11/1938) on Chicago’s West Side. Tragically, his mother died shortly before his 5th birthday. Don was raised by his aunt and uncle, Hannah and Leslie Duerson. He attended Thomas Jefferson Elementary School at 1522 W. Fillmore St. in Chicago and went on to attend and graduate from the Richard T. Crane Technical Preparatory School at 2245 W. Jackson Blvd. in the shadow of the Chicago Stadium.
As Scouting was not available to Don as a youth, it was not until his adulthood that he became involved with the Scouting movement. He assumed the post of Scoutmaster of Troop 1222 in 1961 after being asked by the Parent/Teacher Association at Victor Herbert School, 2100 W. Monroe Street. The group approached Don because they knew him as a neighbor who was active in the community.
It was here that Don’s Scouting career started to flourish. The troop made it a point of camping out every other month, and attending Owasippe’s Camp West on Crystal Lake for two weeks each summer. While providing much needed service to the youth of the area, leadership opportunities quickly appeared. He served as the Chair of the Fort Dearborn District Training Committee and completed his Woodbadge Training in 1963. Recognizing his abilities, Chicago Area Council tapped Don to serve on the Council Training Committee – a position he held for the next thee years.
Don started his career as a professional Scouter as the ranger of Camp Harrison in Calumet City in 1963. He served in that post until the camp’s closure in 1967, at which time he became the ranger at Camp Kiwanis. During this time, Don received his Scouters’ Key and the District Award of Merit in 1966. He was a perennial axe craft instructor at the Chicago Area Council’s Show ‘n Do’s throughout the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, and served as a staff member on several Woodbadge Courses. Perhaps one of his proudest accomplishments as a professional Scouter was his lead role in developing a Cub Scout Day Camp program in the mid 1960’s. For his many contributions to Scouting, Don was recognized with the Silver Beaver Award on January 28, 1967.
Serving as the ranger of Camp Kiwanis (and Camp Fort Dearborn) until May 1, 1986, Don was then named as the Owasippe Scout Reservation Director of Properties. The attraction to the beauty of Owasippe was strong, and upon his retirement from Scouting in 1994 he elected to live permanently in Blue Lake Township, Michigan. Rather than ending his career as a leader, Don went on to serve as a Blue Lake Township Trustee from 1988 until 1996, which was followed by a term on the Township Planning Commission until 2000, at which time he was elected Supervisor of Blue Lake Township. Don has also served as Chair of the Muskegon County Chapter of Michigan Townships Association and as a member of the Muskegon County Silent Observer. Don served as a volunteer chess instructor in the Chicago Park District program, a counselor and athletic instructor for the Chicago Boy’s Clubs, and is a founding member of the Owasippe Outdoor Education Center.
Don sealed his membership in the Order of the Arrow on May 29, 1982 at Owasippe. Thereafter he has been known as “Genachgiton Mechmauwikenk” or “Caretaker of Camp”. He recalls that it poured down rain the entire night of his Vigil, and that while chopping wood his axe slipped and he cut his arm. True to his commitment, he persevered without flinching and stayed the entire night. When the public recognition ceremony was over the next day, Char and Tony Escobedo took him to the Mercy Hospital in Muskegon for stitches.
Outside of Scouting, Don met his wife Charleen while working on Cub Scout Day Camp Program at Camp Kiwanis in 1970. They have four children Michael (Robin), Jeffrey (Kathleen), Aileen (Randy), and Howard (Christine), with a tribe of six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
When reflecting on his life in Scouting and the Vigil Honor, Don notes, “Respect life, take care of our Earth, respect yourself, and have some fun while doing it.”
Donald E. Studaven – October 2014