Originally published in 2009
by Rick Davenport,
Texas Transportation Institute
At 18, Tommy Waldo takes the Boy Scout Oath seriously, being involved in scouting since elementary school. Along the way, he has built a resume worthy of someone much older. The high school senior began taking flying lessons at 14 and completed his solo at 16. It was flying that led him to his greatest achievement to date – becoming an Eagle Scout.
“I noticed that the wind was much different on both ends of the long runway at the Taylor Municipal Airport, where I learned to fly,” Waldo said. ”The wind could be calm on one end and gusty on the other.” Waldo was determined to get another windsock installed at the airport – a goal that became his Eagle Scout service project. Little did he know all the hoops he’d have to jump through to see his windsock to completion. Luckily, he had the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) on his side.
First, Waldo spoke with Daniel Benson, an airport planner with the Aviation Division of TxDOT who worked with the Federal Aviation Administration to determine the windsock location based on strict design requirements.
During the approval process, Waldo also received some much-needed help from Alton Young, the facilities construction manager in TxDOT’s Aviation Division. It didn’t hurt that Young was already an Eagle Scout, earning his honor 40 years earlier. “For a 16-year-old to have the insight to realize the wind differentials … well, I was impressed,” Young said. “I was glad to help him anyway I could.”
“The project started in the summer of 2006 when I made a presentation before the airport board,” Waldo recalled, after looking back at the detailed records he was required to keep in earning his Eagle Scout. “After it was approved, it had to go through the Taylor City Council. After everyone signed off on it, we started doing the actual construction on January 19, 2008.”
It was a simple idea with a worthy result. The windsock has helped pilots gauge the shifting winds at Taylor. Waldo has learned that coming up with ideas is sometimes easier than getting things done. It’s a lot like flying, Waldo realized on his solo flight. ”Taking off is the easy part, and flying is a piece of cake. But landing can get you. My landing was very rough. But the end product was worth all the effort.”
And so was his service project. Waldo was honored with his Eagle Scout during ceremonies at the State Capitol in Austin on August 17, 2008. In attendance was fellow Eagle Scout, Alton Young.
Waldo plans on pursuing either an aeronautical or nuclear engineering degree at Texas A&M University next fall. Judging from his determination so far, it’s a pretty safe bet that he’ll achieve that goal, too.