Recognizing Scouts turning 18 who don't earn Eagle Scout

[Navybone]

Our troop has a few Scouts who will soon be turning 18.  For various reasons, they have not progressed toward earning Eagle Scout, but have remained very active in the troop.  They continue to be very active members of the troop, participating in camping, are excellent in working with younger scouts, giving them the benefit of what they have learned, etc.  They are great Scouts, they represent the troop and BSA very well, and would have made excellent examples of what an Eagle Scout is and what they represent.

To me, it would be a shame to simply have these Scouts disappear when they turn 18 without some level of recognition.  They could have given up when earning Eagle was no longer an option, but they have not.  They have held leadership positions (positions of responsibility) , they uphold the Scout Law and Oath, and they are respected by the adults and scouts in the troop.  I am wondering if other troops have a way they recognize and publicly thank similar scouts in their troops when these Scouts reach the end of their time as Boy Scouts.    

And if there is already a thread on this, please let me know – I tried a number of search options with no luck. 

[DuctTape]

One possibility is to have some sort of "invitation to become an ASM". 

[mrjohns2]

20 hours ago, DuctTape said:

One possibility is to have some sort of "invitation to become an ASM". 

I like that idea. Like a cross over from AOL. 

[InquisitiveScouter]

LOL, they should DRIVE over a bridge

[curious_scouter]

It's not a tradition yet, but we've had 5 boys this year who will all turn 18 before April.  We've made a habit of having the last outing they attend have some kind of going away party and some aspect focused on their favorite part of scouting.  Like a fishing outing followed by an elaborate dinner by their Patrol and then the Scoutmasters supply a pile of cobbler and desserts and we give a later lights out that night.  Leading up to their last meetings and outings, I announce it and do lead up recognition in my opening recognition segment as well. 

[MattR]

9 hours ago, curious_scouter said:

It's not a tradition yet, but we've had 5 boys this year who will all turn 18 before April.  We've made a habit of having the last outing they attend have some kind of going away party and some aspect focused on their favorite part of scouting.  Like a fishing outing followed by an elaborate dinner by their Patrol and then the Scoutmasters supply a pile of cobbler and desserts and we give a later lights out that night.  Leading up to their last meetings and outings, I announce it and do lead up recognition in my opening recognition segment as well. 

That's a great idea. The only thing I'd add is a chance for memories. Either a slide show of the scouts through their scouting career or even stories from anyone. It's the best part of our ecohs.

[mrjohns2]

10 hours ago, curious_scouter said:

We've made a habit of having the last outing they attend have some kind of going away party and some aspect focused on their favorite part of scouting. 

This is awesome that you did it on a campout; not a Court of Honor. 

[sierracharliescouter]

We recognize the scouts that age-out without Eagle. We do it in a couple of ways. As mentioned above, we will recognize them at their last outing - often gifting them a water bottle from that location, if available, and recognize them at their last scout meeting before turning 18. For the ones that are interested, we absolutely extend an open invitation for now or in the future to continue with the unit as an adult, including participating in high adventure treks.  

[cmd]

This seems like something we should probably do even if they do reach Eagle.