There are basic steps to follow in publicizing any Scouting event. The following suggestions will help unit leaders develop a media plan for the Eagle Scout Ceremony.
CONTACTS: Prepare a mailing list of the newspapers in your council, district, and unit area. These should be daily, weekly, religious, and school newspapers, business, church, organization, council and district newsletters.
BIO: Obtain detailed biographical material from the recipient and a 4"x 5" (or larger) black and white glossy photo, (some newspapers take their own photos.) Include Scouting honors and leadership positions, education, church, civic and school activities, and include the troop number and the Scoutmaster's name.
Prepare a one page double-spaced news release from the biographical
material. This should be typed on a standard 8 1/2"x11" sheet of white
paper. Be brief, use short words, always use exact dates, give age of the
Scout, name the chartered organization and above all spell every word correctly.
When preparing a news release, six points are important to remember:
Who... What... When... Where... Why... and How. Get all those points into
the first two or three sentences. Then go into the details of the story.
Address and mail all news releases to the editor of your local newspaper
and newsletters at least a week in advance of the presentation, or as soon
as possible after the ceremony. Because of space limitations, most large
newspapers deal exclusively with photos and captions of Eagle Scouts. Smaller
suburban newspapers welcome photos and longer articles and are more likely
to use them.
The Eagle candidate should send out invitations to VIPs about 3 months before the actual ceremony. This allows time for busy politician and business leaders to respond to the candidate's invitation.
A Sample Invitation Letter
123 Main Street
Somewhere, USA
The Honorable _______________________
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC. 20510
Dear Senator __________
I would be greatly honored if you could attend my Eagle Scout Court
of Honor on 13 July 1998 at the First Banquet Hall of Fame at 2 PM in Mill
Valley, Illinois. Your presence would greatly add to my receiving the Boy
Scouts of America's highest honor, the Eagle Scout Award. I hope you will
be able to attend my Eagle Court of Honor.
Yours in Scouting,
Sample Scout
Community/government
Invitation List Ideas
When writing to a member of Congress, use the address below:
THE HONORABLE ________________________
U.S. Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510
THE HONORABLE _________________________
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D. C. 20515
When writing to invite the President or Vice-President of the United States to your event, use the address below:
Mr. George W. Bush
President Of The U. S.
Mr. Richard Cheney
Vice President Of The U. S.
(NOTE: there is a different address for requesting commendation letters and greetings.)
Key leaders in your home town that you may consider sending an invitation to:
MAYOR
City of ____________
Fire Chief
City of __________
Chief of Police
City of ____________
Superintendent of Schools
Public Schools
Council President
Council Commissioner
District Chairman
District Commissioner
District Executive
District Advancement Chair
District Activities Chair
District Camping Chair
District Training Chair
Unit Commissioner
Charter Organization Representative
Troop Committee Chair
Previous Scout leaders (including Cub and Webelos)
It is common practice to write to a variety of government officials, celebrities, and others to request Commendation letters for a new Eagle Scout. These letters are then presented to the Eagle at the Court of honor, usually in the form or a scrap book. A list of possible addresses can be found at http://usscouts.org/eagle/eaglecongrats.asp. There is also a large list at the bottom of this web page < click here to go there now >.
If you have suggestions for this list or send requests to the addresses below that are refused or returned, would you please let us know by sending a note to the webmaster?
Here is an example letter to send requesting a certificate or letter of achievement from our community, state, and federal leaders.
October 4, 2006
Vice President Richard B. Cheney
The White House
Washington, D.C. 20502-0039
Mr. Vice President:
This letter is to ask for your assistance in recognizing the achievements and service of
(Eagle Scout’s name as desired on letter)
(mailing address -- can be the Scout’s address, or c/o someone at another
address)
All of the recognitions and letters will be compiled, placed in a binder or other suitable keepsake, and after they are read, will be displayed during this special occasion for (first name of Eagle Scout).
Thank you very much for taking time to help this community and this unit recognize the personal achievement and service of Eagle Scout (last name).
Sincerely,
*your signature*
(Your full name)
(Your Scouting position)
(Your Unit's number/name)
Another Sample
October 1, 2003
The White House
Attn: Greetings Office
Washington, D.C. 20502-0039
Dear Mr. President:
The Scouts, Leaders and Members of the Committee Boy Scout Troop (#) take great pleasure in announcing that:
In honor of this achievement, we have scheduled an Eagle Scout Court of Honor for (date and time), at (location, town).
We would appreciate a letter or certificate acknowledging his achievement. We will compile it with other acknowledgments and place in a scrap book commemorating this special occasion.
Thank you for taking time from your extremely busy schedule to help this community recognize the achievements and service of Eagle Scout (Scout's Name).
Sincerely,
(Name)
Alternatives to Commendation Letters
As an alternative to requesting commendation letters, you might consider this suggestion from an Eagle Scout candidate and his parents:
My son loves to read and wants to pass that love for books and reading along. His Eagle project was to collect books and give them to children. He collected over 5,000 books and gave them to a local school and the students there. (The school is a Title 1 school and many of the students there did not have a lot of books.)
Instead of requesting a lot of letters of congratulations, he asks each person to whom he sends a letter to either read a book to a child or donate a book to a library or school. With each letter, he supplies a bookplate, as shown below:
 |
Fly
away on Eagle’s wings. In honor of Buddy Haines becoming an Eagle Scout. |
||
|
July 2004 |
Buddy Haines, Troop 121 | ||
|
Continue to Read! |
|||
|
|
|||
Examples of Commendation Letters Received
Here are some examples of the type of commendation letters you might be able to receive recognizing a new Eagle Scout:
(Thanks to Barbara Moss for suggesting adding some sample letters.)
This is a list of dignitaries names, addresses and salutations, for
the purpose of
requesting commendation letters to Eagle Scouts. The addresses are
divided into
groups as shown in the Table of Contents.
If your requests for commendation letters are returned, or you have corrected address or name information, would you please help us keep this list up to date? Please send update information or suggestions for names to add to this list (with addresses, please) to . Thank you.
Table of Contents
- US Government
- Boy Scouts of America
- Business and Industry
- Universities
- Astronauts
- Previous Presidents
- Previous Vice Presidents
- People
- The Roman Catholic Church
- The LDS Church
- Other Religious Leaders
- Scouting
The Current Administration
Here are some place to start for Congressional e-mail addresses:
Official:
http://www.house.gov/writerep/
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Unofficial:
http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/
The President
The White House
Attn: Greetings Office
Washington, D.C. 20502-0039
Mr. President
Vice President Richard B. Cheney
The White House
Washington, D.C. 20502-0039
Mr. Vice-President
Senator [the name of your U.S. Senator]
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Congressman/woman [the name of your local
Congressperson]
Congress of the United States
House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
Boy Scout Program Manager
National Park Service
1849 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20240
U.S. Air Force
(Request a certificate online at
http://www.usafa.af.mil/superintendent/pa/scoutaward/index.cfm )
Department of the Army
(Request a certificate online at
www.goarmy.com/ycr)
Office of the Assistant Secretary
of Defense Public Affairs
Director for Community Relations
The Pentagon, Room 1E776
Washington, DC 20301-1400
Office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
ATTN: Chairman's Public Correspondence Branch/SJS
400 Joint Staff Pentagon
Washington, DC 20318-0400
Commandant of Cadets
U.S. Air Force Academy
Colorado Springs, CO 80840-5421
Justice Clarence Thomas
Supreme Court of the United States
Washington, DC 20543
Justice Stephen Breyer
Supreme Court of the United States
Washington, DC 20543
Justice Anthony Kennedy
Supreme Court of the United States
Washington, DC 20543
US Fish and Wildlife Service
(A self-serve certificate is now available. Go to
http://www.fws.gov/educators/educators.html)
Drug Enforcement Administration
Attn: Information Affairs Coordinator
Office of the Administrator
700 Army Navy Drive
Arlington, VA 22202
Steve Fossett
President
National Eagle Scout Association
P.O. Box 152079
Irving, TX 75015-2079
International Association of Lions Clubs
300 22nd Street
Oak Brook, IL 60521-8842
E. Neville Isdell
The Coca Cola Company
P.O. Drawer 1734
Atlanta, GA 30301
| Indra K. Nooyi PepsiCo, Inc. |
Mrs. Nooyi regrets she cannot respond to each
individual request. Please copy the letter below and print it
for your Eagle Scout. |
USAF Thunderbirds
Lt. Col. Kevin Robbins
USAFADS/CC
4445 Tyndall Ave
Nellis AFB NV 89191-6079
National Football League
280 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10017
Mr. Hector Ruiz
Chairman and CEO
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
P.O. Box 3453
Sunnyvale, CA 94088
NASA receives a large number of requests for Eagle
commendation letters. NASA is now requesting that all requests be sent
to the following address:
The Astronaut Office will respond with one letter on behalf of the astronaut corps. |
Senator John Glenn
Ohio State University
400 Stillman Hall
1947 College Road
Columbus OH 43210
Jimmy Carter
Attn: Correspondence Office
The Carter Center
453 Freedom Parkway
Atlanta, GA 30307
(or fax the request to 404-331-0283 )
George H. W. Bush
10000 Memorial Drive
Suite 900
Houston, TX 77024
| William Jefferson Clinton | Send an e-mail request to . This is the correspondence e-mail address of the Clinton Foundation, whose website is http://www.clintonfoundation.org/ |
| General Charles E. Yeager | General Yeager reports that he receives over 500 requests a week for Boy Scout commendations and can not respond to them all, so he responds to none. To support the General Chuck Yeager Foundation, he will autograph items for $50 each. The General Chuck Yeager Foundation is dedicated to the enhancement and enrichment of young people’s lives through programs that are focused on the principles that General Yeager has exemplified. www.chuckyeager.com |
Mr. Ralph Nader
P.O. Box 19312
Washington, DC 20036
Mr. Craig A. Moon
President and Publisher, USA Today
Gannett Co., Inc. Headquarters
7950 Jones Branch Drive
McLean, VA 22108-0605
Mr. Andrew Heyward
President, CBS News
524 W. 57th St.
New York, NY 10019
Mr. Bill Parcells
Coach, The Dallas Cowboys
One Cowboys Parkway
Irving, TX 75063-4727
| Mr. Ted Turner
Turner Broadcasting, Inc. P.O. Box 105366 Atlanta, GA 30348 Mr. Turner, as with many on this and other lists, receives so many requests that he can no longer reply to them all. However, he does want to recognize the Eagle Scouts, and has requested the letter at right be posted on his behalf. Please copy the text to a form or letter as you want it printed for your Eagle Scout. |
Dear Eagle Scout:
Congratulations on attaining the highest ranking within Scouting. The realization of this outstanding achievement will undoubtedly lead to successes and accomplishments throughout your life. Best wishes for the future. Very truly yours, Ted Turner |
Mr. John Jacobs
Power Connection
Box A
Santa Anna, CA 92711
Mr. Jerry Jones
Owner, The Dallas Cowboys
Cowboys Center
One Cowboy Parkway
Irving, TX 75063-4727
Mr. Samuel J. Palmisano
Chairman & CEO
IBM Corp.
Old Orchard Rd.
Armonk, NY 10504
Mr. Neal Shapiro
President, NBC News
30 Rockefeller Plaza
New York, NY 10012
Mr. James S. Brady
c/o National Organization on Disability
Washington, DC 20006
Mr. David Westin
President, ABC News
Capital Cities/ABC Inc.
47 W 66th St.
New York, NY 10023
Sandra S. Froman, President
National Rifle Association
11250 Waples Mill Rd.
Fairfax, VA 22030
Mr. Edwin Feulner
President
The Heritage Foundation
214 Massachusetts Ave., NE
Washington, DC 20002
His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI
00120 Vatican City State, EUROPE
Most Holy Father
Your Holiness' most humble servant,
The Young Men General Presidency
Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
47 East South Temple Street
Salt Lake City, UT 84150
Dr. Robert Schuller
The Crystal Cathedral
12141 Lewis St.
Garden Grove CA 92840
The Scout
Association,
The Gilwell Park Campsite,
Chingford, London, E4 7QW, United Kingdom
Last update: 8/14/2008