Posthumous Awards and the Spirit of the Eagle Award

What this page is

The two recognitions the Guide to Advancement describes after the death of a registered youth member, from topics 5.0.6.0 and 5.0.7.0, cited on every item.

They are two different things

A posthumous rank or award is advancement. If, before death, a youth member in any Scouting America program met the requirements for a rank or award — including age and service — they may receive it posthumously. If the board of review that rank needed was never held, it is held now, by the ordinary methods.

The Spirit of the Eagle Award is honorary. It is offered by the National Court of Honor for registered youth members who lost their lives through illness or accident, as a final salute and tribute, and to recognise publicly what they contributed to the mission of Scouting. Despite its name it is not the Eagle Scout rank, and the Guide sets no advancement condition on it whatsoever.

Both may apply. Neither depends on the other. A young person who had just finished Life rank requirements can be awarded Life posthumously and be recognised with the Spirit of the Eagle Award, and the two processes run separately, through different people, on different timescales.

The one date on this page

The Spirit of the Eagle application must be completed and submitted by a unit committee to the local council within six months of the member's death. The Guide describes no procedure for an application made after that.

The mistake that costs a family something

For a posthumous Eagle Scout application, a cover letter from the Scout executive or designee must indicate that it is posthumous. That letter is what changes the congratulatory letter returned with the pocket card and the certificate. Without it, the family opens an envelope congratulating their child on their achievement in the present tense.

How to read the graph

An arrow points from the thing that has to happen first to the thing it unlocks. Nested items are part of the step above them rather than steps of their own. Dotted lines are recommended order carrying no obligation; dashed lines apply only in the case written on the arrow. The dotted line with no arrowheads between the two branch heads means neither one waits on the other.