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Or Eagle Scout parents.

 

My screen name does NOT derive from having achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, so I am in need of advice. My wife and I have been invited to attend the investiture ceremony (is that the correct word? It falls slightly short of "coronation," IIRC) for the son of one of the wife's friends who has earned Eagle Scout. What's the protocol here? I know this is A BIG DEAL. I believe suit and tie is called for. Is it customary for invited guests to "gift" the recipient in some way? If so, what is called for ... a physical gift in some way related to scouting or his interests, or just ordinary old money?

 

TIA

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It's actually called a Court of Honor.

 

I never had my Court of Honor for when I received my Eagle but I don't believe gifts are typical. Someone else have any thoughts on this?

 

As for attire, typically it is a tie occasion, but I've been to some on both sides of the spectrum.

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Suit and tie is certainly acceptable, although I've never been to a ceremony with a strict dress code. I never had to worry about it, since I simply wore my uniform to any and all scouting events.

 

When I received my Eagle (my brother and I shared a ceremony, since we earned them less than 6 months apart), there wasn't much in the way of gifts. Mostly cards. I got a couple Scout related gifts, such as a Silver Dollar with an Eagle on the back that had never been touched by human hands. A few cards with money, but mostly not. Being an Eagle Scout, he should be quite grateful with just your presence and a card.

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My son's was a tie event, but there were folks there that had just dress slacks and a pressed shirt. Gifts were not really given even though it is considered an honor to be invited to such an important milestone in the scout's career.

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I echo all of the comments above. Dress attire is not really needed, but certainly don't wear a Hawaiian shirt and swim trunks. Lots of people wore a comfortable shirt with stripes and a nice pair of jeans to mine.

 

Guests can bring whatever they want as a gift. Their presence at the occasion and a verbal "congratulations" to the lucky guy is certainly enough. If you feel like giving a gift, keep it under $25 in value. Leave his family to give the larger gifts to him. My Parents got me a Ruger M77 Mark II .270 Deer Rifle, something that I will treasure forever.

 

The occasion ranks in the same echelon as a Religious Confirmation and Graduation (High School and College) to me.

 

Above all, enjoy the experience!

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:agree: but It all depends on the scout. Eagle court of honor's From what I under stand is mostly planed by the scout and his parents. Just do what you Think you should and what you think they would want. Its a big deal but not a wedding lol Have fun

 

Brandon

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  • 3 weeks later...

Well, we went.

 

We did NOT enjoy the event.

 

I wore a suit, and my wife was also appropriately attired. Appropriately, that is, to be with a guy in a suit. Most of the guests looked like they just stopped working in the barn or shop and strolled directly over for the event. I obviously need not have bothered dressing for the occasion.

 

Scouting seems to have gone downhill considerably in the 50 or so years since I was a Boy Scout. When I was a Scout, "uniform" meant something. The other scouts and adults in the troop were all wearing Boy Scout costumes, but the term "uniform" could not be applied. I don't think any two had the same trousers, and I'm certain no two had the same footwear. Some wore kerchiefs, most did not. It's February in Connecticut, and many wore short sleeved shirts -- including a few of the adult scoutmasters, who also wore conspicuously-colored long-sleeved undershirts beneath said short sleeved "uniform" shirts. At least one of the scouts wore short-legged cargo pants. Most of the scouts (and adults) looked like they had slept in their uniforms for a week.

 

But ... the part that REALLY irritated me was that, while they did manage to set the flags with the American flag to the flags' right and the Boy Scout flag to the flags' left -- the staff for the Boy Scout flag was at least 6 inches taller than the staff for the American flag.

 

Sheesh!

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Eagle,

 

I have seen first hand what you described many times in Troops other than the one that I was brought up in. I know the disappointment that you speak of.

 

I can tell you that there are plenty of Troops still out there that do hold the core values of Scouting true. I hope seeing one poor example does not hinder your thoughts of the program on the whole.

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Eagle,

 

I have seen first hand what you described many times in Troops other than the one that I was brought up in. I know the disappointment that you speak of.

 

I can tell you that there are plenty of Troops still out there that do hold the core values of Scouting true. I hope seeing one poor example does not hinder your thoughts of the program on the whole.

 

 

I agree whole heartedly. This was some of what I experienced when I move to Las Vegas and join a new Troop. There are still plenty of Troops that definitely do the program justice. It's always sad to hear of situations like this though.

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Well, we went.

 

We did NOT enjoy the event.

 

I wore a suit, and my wife was also appropriately attired. Appropriately, that is, to be with a guy in a suit. Most of the guests looked like they just stopped working in the barn or shop and strolled directly over for the event. I obviously need not have bothered dressing for the occasion.

 

Scouting seems to have gone downhill considerably in the 50 or so years since I was a Boy Scout. When I was a Scout, "uniform" meant something. The other scouts and adults in the troop were all wearing Boy Scout costumes, but the term "uniform" could not be applied. I don't think any two had the same trousers, and I'm certain no two had the same footwear. Some wore kerchiefs, most did not. It's February in Connecticut, and many wore short sleeved shirts -- including a few of the adult scoutmasters, who also wore conspicuously-colored long-sleeved undershirts beneath said short sleeved "uniform" shirts. At least one of the scouts wore short-legged cargo pants. Most of the scouts (and adults) looked like they had slept in their uniforms for a week.

 

But ... the part that REALLY irritated me was that, while they did manage to set the flags with the American flag to the flags' right and the Boy Scout flag to the flags' left -- the staff for the Boy Scout flag was at least 6 inches taller than the staff for the American flag.

 

Sheesh!

 

My Eagle court was nothing like that.

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A few years ago I was asked by my boss to help him out by taking on a leadership role in a Cub Scout pack. Even in the cubs, we knew to treat the flag with respect and line up properly. The pack I joined was worse than what you described, and the troops that the pack fed into were just as bad. I addressed this with the Cubmaster and a couple of scout masters and received the same response that "the boys do good enough by showing up." That wasn't good enough for me. I found a replacement leader among the parents of the boys that I led and quit soon after.

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I apologize for not replying sooner, as I haven't been on these boards much lately.

 

The *best* gift I received upon receiving my Eagle was spending time with friends and family. That was the best present I could ever ask for.

 

With that said, the "coolest" gift I received was a hiking stick.

 

Take a look at http://www.moonstar.com/~pmicken/boyscout.html

 

That's the website of the shop that made my hiking stick.

 

And yes, that picture on the left is me over 10 years ago.

 

 

The moral of the story...it isn't about the gifts. It's about being with the friends and family who helped you reach this milestone in your life.

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