Celebrating the Atlanta Area Council Distinguished Eagle Scouts for 2023
The Distinguished Eagle Scout Award (DESA) was created in 1969 to recognize Eagle Scouts who have demonstrated a commitment to making their community a better place to live, and have achieved career and life success. It is a rare award that is given to a select few - less than 2,000 people have won this award and only 18 from the Atlanta Area Council have received it. We are pleased to announce two DESA winners this year, James “Jimmy" Love and John Yates!
Jimmy Love earned his Eagle out of Pack 212 in Atlanta in 1974. Love serves as the President and CEO of PrintPack, where he has worked since 1992. Love’s accomplishments are not limited to PrintPack. He has also been active in the community serving on the boards of the Atlanta Area Council, Agnes Scott College, and the Alliance Theatre.
Love was presented the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award at this year's Eagle Scout Recognition Ceremony where he paid tribute to his parents, sharing how his father’s love of Scouting was passed on to him. Love also talks about how the values learned by Scouts guided him throughout his life. “These values were not just words on a page or a handbook but were guidelines for behavior that we were expected to understand, embrace, and demonstrate in our daily lives. Integrity, honesty, loyalty, friendship, politeness, sincerity, truthfulness, helpfulness, and empathy all describe the character traits of people we knew we wanted to be.”
We are also proud to celebrate Attorney John Yates who earned his Eagle Scout in 1971 as a part of Troop 116 in North Carolina. Yates has been a partner at Morris, Manning & Martin since 1987. He has used the leadership skills learned from his experience at Scouts to represent more than 1,000 companies and offers services to start-ups, growing tech companies, and investors. He has also been a part of many community organizations such as CURE Childhood Cancer and the Woodruff Arts Center.
Congratulations to Jimmy Love and John Yates as the Atlanta Area Council's 2023 Distinguished Eagle Scout Award recipients!