Bay Area’s John Humphreys achieves Scouting America trifecta

TAMPA, Fla. — A Bay Area high school student has shown himself to be a leader of young people while accomplishing some impressive personal goals.

John Humphreys, a homeschooled high school junior, has achieved a rare “trifecta” of ranks from Scouting America: Eagle Scout, Sea Scouts Quartermaster and Venturing Summit.

On a recent weekend, Humphreys was leading a group of United States Navy Sea Cadet Corps members on a visit to the Florida Aquarium in Tampa. Some of them, including Humphreys, were fitted with special breathing gear so they could get into the water with the marine life.

“The helmet allowed me to see a lot of my peripheral vision, which was awesome,” Humphreys said. “I could see fish moving by me.”

Humphreys is a quartermaster with the Corps and has lofty goals for his group.

“I love the mission of it,” he said. “I really enjoy the cadets and their determination to strive to be better and learn more, and I’m here to help in some way to do that.”

Humphreys said that while achieving his awards, he has turned his focus to leading other young people.

“My motivation has evolved more into those aspirations of hoping to inspire and motivate others to achieve the high standards of achievement that I would be able to do,” he said.

Humphreys recently led an Earth Day cleanup at Port Tampa Bay. He also went on an environmental research trip to Antarctica when he was only 15 years old. He also recently led a group of young SCUBAnauts on some “SLAM” safety training.

His mom, Nicole Humphreys, said she is very proud of him.

“He has set some hefty, hefty goals, and he’s achieved them and not only has he achieved them, but he’s also helped other friends and scouts along the way,” she said.

“You don’t have to have a title to be a leader in your community,” said John Humphreys. “If you can just lead by example and inspire someone else to do the same and support the same cause. That’s great leadership.”

Humphreys said he would like to be a pilot in the Navy or Coast Guard. His mom said his ultimate goal is to be an astronaut.