Eagle Scout Letters are a valuable resourceto any Eagle ceremony, but they need to be conserved.
by Mark Ray
Senior Writer, Author of the Eagle Court of Honor Handbook

Is this a great country or what? For just the cost of a stamp, you can get almost anyone from the mayor to the President to send your new Eagle Scout a letter of congratulations. These letters make a great keepsake for the Scout, and reading them adds to the prestige of the court of honor.

Requesting these letters has become increasingly popular in recent years, partly because several Web sites (including scouter.com) list addresses for dozens of people who will write them. Sadly, though, familiarity is breeding contempt as celebrities’ mailboxes fill up with invitations to attend ceremonies for Scouts they’ve never heard of in places they’ve never been.

Congratulatory letters are a valuable resource — but they’re a resource that needs to be conserved. So what can Scouters do to ensure a continuing flow of letters?

First, be stingy with your stamps. Don’t write to everyone on a given list. Of course, you’ll almost certainly write to local and state officials, as well as your Senators and Representative and the President. Beyond that, though, just write to people the Scout would like to get a letter from. If he’s never heard of J.W. Marriott or James Brady, save yourself a stamp. (Conversely, don’t leave out people who may be celebrities in the new Eagle’s eyes only, such as an out-of-town grandparent who can’t attend the court of honor.)

Second, don’t just send an invitation. How would you feel if you got a wedding invitation from the daughter of a co-worker at the job you left 10 years ago? Well, at least that’s someone you know — imagine how celebrities (or their assistanta) feel when they ges an unsolicited court-of-honor invitation from a total stranger.

It’s much better to send a specific request for a congratulatory letter. In your letter, tell something about the Scout, his Eagle project, where he plans to go to college, or what career he’s chosen (especially if the person you’re writing to works in the same field). One Eagle Scout who’s highly placed in the federal government told us that he personally reads the requests that come into his office and would like to see this kind of detail. Some people will take several weeks to reply, so send out your requests as early as possible. You don’t need to wait for the invitations to come back from the printer or even for a location or time to be nailed down since you’re not actually inviting the person to the ceremony (unless they’re local).

Also, consider enclosing a self-addressed stamped envelope with your requests, especially those you send to people who may be on fixed incomes. And make sure you indicate where the letters should be sent.

Congratulatory letters can be the icing on the cake of a great court of honor. Just remember they’re the icing — not the cake itself.

SCOUTER's Net Compass Resources for Eagle Congratulatory Letters