Step One: Life to Eagle Guide

Go to the West Central Florida Council website and download then print the Life to Eagle Guide. This document, along with Troop 219’s Ten Steps to Eagle, will be indispensable resources as you travel down the Trail to Eagle. Chances are everything you need to know will be found in one of these two documents. Please note, Ten Steps is intended to supplement, not replace, the council’s Life to Eagle Guide. If the answer you seek is not found in either one of these publications, contact your troop’s Life to Eagle Coordinator or your Scoutmaster.


Step Two: Blue Cards

Know where you stand. To qualify for the Eagle Scout rank you must earn at least 21 merit badges (13 required and 8 electives). If you think that you have completed the necessary merit badges, the next step is to contact the Scout Service Center, 11046 Johnson Boulevard, Seminole FL 33772 and request a Work Copy, which is an unofficial reproduction of your Eagle application. A Work Copy Request form can be found on Page 11 of the Council’s Life to Eagle Guide. The Work Copy will list rank advancements and merit badges (applicable to eagle advancement) and the dates earned. Once you have your Work Copy, compare it to rank advancement and blue cards in your personal scout file. Make sure the dates match, but don’t be alarmed if there are some discrepancies. Show these to your Scoutmaster, Life to Eagle Coordinator or Troop Advancement Chair so the proper paperwork can be filed with the Council so your record can be corrected. If discover you are missing required merit badge (s), get to work.


Step Three: Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook

Now, armed with your Life to Eagle Guide, Troop 219’s Ten Steps to Eagle, a corrected Work Copy and your Scout Handbook (which has been checked to make sure that all rank requirements have been initialed and dated), download the most recent version of the Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook off the Council’s website. More information can be found on Page 2 of the Life to Eagle Guide. Before you proceed any further, read this workbook. Once you have decided upon a project, discuss it with your Parent/Guardian and your Eagle Mentor, then clear your idea with your Scoutmaster or Life to Eagle Coordinator. Once your project idea has been vetted, complete the Eagle Scout Service Project Proposal section of your Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook. Now, with your paperwork in order and your project proposal completed, contact your District Advancement Chair to schedule a meeting to have your Life Scout rank certified and your project approved. You cannot begin work without the pre-approval of the District Advancement Chair.


Step Four: Project Approval

When you meet with the District Advancement Chair, bring along your Eagle Mentor and/or Parent/Guardian so they understand what will be required of you.  Wear your “Class A” uniform and bring all your necessary documents (see above). When in doubt, refer to the Council’s Life to Eagle Guide. Make sure your blue cards, which should be kept in plastic sleeves inside the three-ring binder that will serve as your Eagle Book, are in the same order as they appear on your Work Copy. More information on how to format your binder can be found in the Eagle Book handout produced by the WCFC Skyway District. Your goal is to get your project approved on the first try. Do not schedule this meeting unless you are well-prepared and confident of project approval. Please note that if you plan to raise third party funds you must get approval at this time as well.


Step Five: The Project

Sections 3.2. through 3.2.3.2., go into great detail in regards to your Eagle Scout Service Project, but from a troop standpoint, you need to coordinate scheduling of fundraisers and work dates with your Scoutmaster and Eagle Mentor to make sure they do not conflict with those other Eagle Candidates. Be sure to keep meticulous records of the hours you and your mentor spent planning, the hours you, other scouts and adult leaders spent working on the project as well as all receipts from food, materials etc. As a rule, do not schedule more than one or two work days. Your fellow scouts, just like you, have busy schedules. Your best bet is to “plan your work” and “work your plan.”


Step Six: The Eagle Book

If you paid attention to Step Five and kept meticulous record during the project phase, this segment of the Trail to Eagle should be easy. Your Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook will contain your original Eagle Scout Service Project Proposal, Eagle Scout Service Project Plan and your Eagle Scout Service Project Report as well as Eagle Scout Service Project Fundraising Application if applicable. Please include all supporting materials, i.e., sign-in sheets from your fundraisers/work days, photos of your project during the various phases of construction and upon completion. If you downloaded these documents at the start of the process and updated them on your computer as you went along, you should accomplish this task without much difficulty. Be clear and succinct, and most importantly, make sure you balance your books. For example, if you raised $2,167, you should have spent $2,167.45. If you raised $2,167.45 and spent $1,985.64 then you should donate the remaining $181.81 to your project beneficiary. The WCFC Skyway District’s Eagle Book Handout contains more information on how to put your Eagle Book together.


Step Seven: The Application

Remember your Work Copy back in Step Two? Now it is time to fill out the real thing – the Eagle Scout Rank Application which can be downloaded off the council website. If you had discrepancies on your original Work Copy and had them corrected make sure you request a second Work Copy to make sure your records are in order before you fill out you Eagle Scout Rank Application.  Section 3.4.1. of the Council’s Life to Eagle Guide goes into great detail regarding how to fill out this document, but believe it or not many scouts overlook or skip this stage of the process resulting an embarrassing moment during the next step, the Scout Troop Eagle Evaluation Review (S.T.E.E.R.) meeting. Please note – your Eagle Scout Rank Application, which must be printed two-side on one sheet of paper, should mirror the Work Copy.


Step Eight: The S.T.E.E.R. Committee

After all of your paperwork is in order, you may contact the District Advancement Chair and three members of the Troop Committee and request an Scout Troop Eagle Evaluation Review or S.T.E.E.R.. This meeting is similar to the Board of Reviews that you went through as a Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star and Life Scout.  Be prepared to talk about your project. Know how much it cost and how long it took to complete. Once you have completed your S.T.E.E.R., it is the scout’s responsibility to take their Eagle Book (See Section 4 of the Life to Eagle Guide) to the WCFC Service Center.


Step Nine: The Board of Review

The last step of the process is the District Board of Review. These meetings are scheduled for the second Monday of the month.  Don’t be nervous – you are almost there.  The members of your board of review, all seasoned scouters, will have already looked at your Eagle Book, so once again be prepared to answer questions about your project as well as highlights from your scouting career.  For example, what was your most memorable camping experience? What was your favorite merit badge? What was your least favorite merit badge? You will also be asked to recite the Scout Oath, the Scout Law and the Outdoor Code. You may think you know these by heart, but you would be surprised at how many scouts stumble when put on the spot. So do yourself a favor and brush up on the basics.


Step Ten: Court of Honor

Congratulations! You made it! Well, not quite. You still have to wait for your paperwork to be certified by Boy Scouts of America National Service Center in Irving, Texas. This process can take four to six weeks, but while you are waiting, you and your family can plan your Eagle Court of Honor. There are dozens of ceremonies on the internet, so look around and find one you like. Make it yours…you earned it. Eagle Scouts can also request congratulatory letters from former presidents, members of Congress and a variety of civic organizations including Sons of the American Revolution and the local Elk’s Lodge. The U.S. Scouting Service Project at www.usscouts.org is a good place to start.