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By KATHLEEN LEWIS
LOT HAS CHANGED, since "Paws" left America in 1998.
His collar was white and his orange shirt had that fresh laundered look.
Today the white is a dingy grey and his shirt looks like it was worn by a running back who hit the dirt more than once.
But he is the same stuffed tiger.
"He left a Cub Scout, he came back a Boy Scout," said Joe Yeager, Scoutmaster of Troop 197, Lake of the Woods.
Back in 1998, the Tiger Cubs Pack 197 were talking geography. Beanie Babies were front-page news. And the Internet had taken off.
These three factors created the conditions that led the Lake of the Woods pack to send a Ty Beanie Baby on a seven-year journey around the world.
The stuffed animal visited Antarctica, New Zealand, Singapore, Australia and the United Kingdom before its return in December. While away, he remained in the care of troops that agreed to host him.
"He really was an ambassador of goodwill between our boys and boys around the world," said Anthony Elswick, who came up with the idea.
Elswick, of Lake of the Woods, is an assistant with the Scouts. He said the leadership is always exploring new learning experiences.
His son William was 7 when Paws left. Now he is 13.
While the stuffed tiger was away, the Scouts charted his journey on a map.
"Paws was a way to find tons of other Scout troops and learn about other cultures," said Zach Yeager, 13.
For each destination, the boys mailed ahead a box of items to represent them. They included things like Redskins cards, a county emblem, a pamphlet about Virginia and a disposable camera. Packages came back with similar items.
Pierce Coppa, 12, of Somerset Farms, is intrigued that so many other hands have handled the stuffed tiger.
"If you touch his ear, you touch where someone else has done the same thing," said the Orange County resident.
Elswick contacted Scout troops by e-mail to find out if they would receive the mascot. Paws' first host was an Eagle Scout in Antarctica. The Scout left the ice island two months later by way of New Zealand. While there, he mailed the stuffed animal to Singapore.
Paws was on the Asian island about four months and then he went to Australia, where he stayed a year.
During that time, Elswick had gotten word from the troop in Cape Town that President Nelson Mandela would be speaking to the Scouts.
Eager to have the stuffed tiger meet the president, Elswick sent e-mails to the Australians who seemed reluctant to part with the little guy. Shipping took a month so Paws missed meeting Mandela. The tiger stayed in South Africa about five months.
From there, he went to the United Kingdom. It was 2001 and Elswick was consumed with medical needs so he lost track of Paws.
Last fall, he was able to regain contact with the U.K. troop leader to get the tiger back.
The package arrived just before Christmas.
The tiger's shirt is autographed and bears a patch and a beaded pin in the shape and colors of the South African flag.
The Scouts are talking about sending Paws out again so he can visit all of the continents. He missed going to South America, said Elswick.
"He's gone to countries that we never knew were there," said Aleks Wilms, 13, of Lake of the Woods.
Aleks admitted he didn't even know Singapore existed.
But since Paws' return, he can easily point it out on a map.
To reach KATHLEEN LEWIS:
Email: klewis@freelancestar.com