ARTICLE
By Dustin Steiner, Vice President Government & Industry Relations - published in Monday Morning Quarterback, May 12, 2025 Last week, industry and Boy Scout leaders alike gathered to honor one of our own, Good Scout of the Year, Mark Filanc of FILANC. Sierra Pacific West’s Mike Carcioppolo once again served as Master of Ceremonies, with his vintage mustachioed headshot in the program. One sentence in, and he declared he was already off-script to the surprise of no one in the audience. Mike also had some fun mispronouncing “Filanc” – something he has had experience with himself. Sean Roy, the CEO of the San Diego–Imperial Council Scouting of America, shared a scouting update. Retired Vice Admiral John Mustin, US Navy, was the keynote speaker for the event. His talk was a no-nonsense view of the geopolitical threats facing us today. As a retiree, he was free to speak his mind, given his experience. Starting off with a bit of humor, his cell phone alarm went off about 20 seconds into his speech, and without hesitation, he looked up at the audience, as if already done with his 20-minute speech, and asked, “Any questions?” He then took his requisite shot at the Army by noting that the First Article of the Constitution says, “We shall have a Navy, but may raise an Army.” Admiral Mustin emphasized the importance of having an advanced fleet by quoting former President Bill Clinton, who once remarked, “When anything happens, my first question is, "Where is the nearest carrier"? He continued to regale the crowd with real-time information about our operations and threats abroad, including a beautiful quote about the “bureaucratic quagmire of Pentagon and D.C. politics.” Upon concluding his remarks, Emcee Carcioppolo, in a somewhat exasperated tone, thanked Admiral Mustin and said, “The script says [thanks for sharing your] ‘stories, but that was real life!” Next on the agenda was the guest of honor, Mr. Mark Filanc. He took the stage with his teary-eyed wife, Kim. Mark was presented with a framed caricature hand-drawn by Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Steve Breen. The drawing featured Mark in a red SDSU polo and an Eagle Scout badge with the mountains of Montana and a Bald Eagle as the backdrop. A video montage featuring friends, family, a couple of his scouts, and even a stuffed ram, extolled the virtues of Mark the man, Mark the Scoutmaster, Mark the businessman, and Mark the friend. When he finally stepped to the mic, there was, perhaps, an unexpected emotional pause before Mark finally quipped, “I’m speechless…kinda rare for me!” Mark talked about his love of scouting as a younger brother tagging along unofficially on a camping trip where the catch of the day froze overnight. He said the tents allowed more rain inside than was outside, but all he could remember was how much fun he had! Troop 777 rolled right off his tongue as he proudly shared when it was his turn to become a Scout. He told of the traditional snipe hunt that he and his fellow neophyte scouts unassumingly embarked on for 45 minutes before realizing the ruse. Mark’s dad, fellow Good Scout of the Year recipient (and former AGC San Diego President!), Jack Filanc, was his Scoutmaster. Ahead of their time, Mark said they included his sister and some of her friends in a girl patrol. A family affair, Mark’s son, Mark Jr., was also a Scout when Mark Sr. took over as the Scoutmaster, culminating in three generations of Filanc Eagle Scouts! In fact, Mark recalled having just become Scoutmaster when he attended the first-ever Good Scout of the Year event honoring John Elliott (another fellow AGC San Diego President). Mark said he lives by one of the scouting creeds to “do a good turn daily” and was grateful to “work in an industry where we cherish the values that scouting brings.” He thanked SDSU for building the future construction leaders in the program that bears his family name and is so near and dear to his heart that he couldn’t help but make a pitch for donations mid-speech. Throughout the program, Mark was described by words such as a leader, outdoorsman, and Renaissance Man - all of which were on full display for the culmination of the event, where Carcioppolo auctioned off a “Big Game Dinner” for 12 - hunted, head-chef’d, and hosted by Mark himself! In the end, Mark the philanthropist shone through once again, as his dinner raised $7,000 (additional dollars) for the Scouts. At an event in his honor, Mark still managed his daily “good turn.”
By Dustin Steiner, Vice President Government & Industry Relations - published in Monday Morning Quarterback, May 12, 2025
Last week, industry and Boy Scout leaders alike gathered to honor one of our own, Good Scout of the Year, Mark Filanc of FILANC. Sierra Pacific West’s Mike Carcioppolo once again served as Master of Ceremonies, with his vintage mustachioed headshot in the program. One sentence in, and he declared he was already off-script to the surprise of no one in the audience. Mike also had some fun mispronouncing “Filanc” – something he has had experience with himself. Sean Roy, the CEO of the San Diego–Imperial Council Scouting of America, shared a scouting update.
Retired Vice Admiral John Mustin, US Navy, was the keynote speaker for the event. His talk was a no-nonsense view of the geopolitical threats facing us today. As a retiree, he was free to speak his mind, given his experience. Starting off with a bit of humor, his cell phone alarm went off about 20 seconds into his speech, and without hesitation, he looked up at the audience, as if already done with his 20-minute speech, and asked, “Any questions?”
He then took his requisite shot at the Army by noting that the First Article of the Constitution says, “We shall have a Navy, but may raise an Army.” Admiral Mustin emphasized the importance of having an advanced fleet by quoting former President Bill Clinton, who once remarked, “When anything happens, my first question is, "Where is the nearest carrier"? He continued to regale the crowd with real-time information about our operations and threats abroad, including a beautiful quote about the “bureaucratic quagmire of Pentagon and D.C. politics.” Upon concluding his remarks, Emcee Carcioppolo, in a somewhat exasperated tone, thanked Admiral Mustin and said, “The script says [thanks for sharing your] ‘stories, but that was real life!”
Next on the agenda was the guest of honor, Mr. Mark Filanc. He took the stage with his teary-eyed wife, Kim. Mark was presented with a framed caricature hand-drawn by Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Steve Breen. The drawing featured Mark in a red SDSU polo and an Eagle Scout badge with the mountains of Montana and a Bald Eagle as the backdrop. A video montage featuring friends, family, a couple of his scouts, and even a stuffed ram, extolled the virtues of Mark the man, Mark the Scoutmaster, Mark the businessman, and Mark the friend. When he finally stepped to the mic, there was, perhaps, an unexpected emotional pause before Mark finally quipped, “I’m speechless…kinda rare for me!”
Mark talked about his love of scouting as a younger brother tagging along unofficially on a camping trip where the catch of the day froze overnight. He said the tents allowed more rain inside than was outside, but all he could remember was how much fun he had! Troop 777 rolled right off his tongue as he proudly shared when it was his turn to become a Scout. He told of the traditional snipe hunt that he and his fellow neophyte scouts unassumingly embarked on for 45 minutes before realizing the ruse. Mark’s dad, fellow Good Scout of the Year recipient (and former AGC San Diego President!), Jack Filanc, was his Scoutmaster. Ahead of their time, Mark said they included his sister and some of her friends in a girl patrol. A family affair, Mark’s son, Mark Jr., was also a Scout when Mark Sr. took over as the Scoutmaster, culminating in three generations of Filanc Eagle Scouts! In fact, Mark recalled having just become Scoutmaster when he attended the first-ever Good Scout of the Year event honoring John Elliott (another fellow AGC San Diego President). Mark said he lives by one of the scouting creeds to “do a good turn daily” and was grateful to “work in an industry where we cherish the values that scouting brings.”
He thanked SDSU for building the future construction leaders in the program that bears his family name and is so near and dear to his heart that he couldn’t help but make a pitch for donations mid-speech. Throughout the program, Mark was described by words such as a leader, outdoorsman, and Renaissance Man - all of which were on full display for the culmination of the event, where Carcioppolo auctioned off a “Big Game Dinner” for 12 - hunted, head-chef’d, and hosted by Mark himself!
In the end, Mark the philanthropist shone through once again, as his dinner raised $7,000 (additional dollars) for the Scouts. At an event in his honor, Mark still managed his daily “good turn.”