Ja Di Gon Sa — The Troop Honor Society

Gene Berman had a neckerchief he had recently acquired he was unsure of the provenance. A little research by Ian Pinnavaia revealed that it was from an old Troop Honor Society located in Queens, NY.

As a Scout in Troop 273, there were two honor societies where one could earn membership. The first was a local Troop honor society: Ja Di Gon Sa. The second was the Boy Scout’s national honor society: Order of the Arrow (OA). Troop 273 was unusual in that most Troops did not have their own local honor society.

Ja Di Gon Sa was the honor society for Troop 273. Like Order of the Arrow, scouts were voted into the society by their fellow scouts. And also like OA, Ja Di Gon Sa was inspired by native American legends and lore. Ja Di Gon Sa used the Iroquois as the basis for society legend and purpose, while Order of the Arrow used the Lenni Lenape for their legend and purpose. Although I am still sworn to secrecy about both Societies, I can let you know that Ja Di Gon Sa involved the Iroquois False Face Society.

You can read more about it here.

Ja Di Gon Sa -- The Troop Honor Society
Ja Di Gon Sa — The Troop Honor Society


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“We must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt.” –Thomas Jefferson

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Author: Bill

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