Dell Headen -BSA memorial - Bonlee, NC, USA
Posted by: 
NCDaywalker
N 35° 38.807 W 079° 25.262
17S E 642945 N 3945920
"Near the entrance to a small cemetery with a unique headstone among the many there, it tells a story that (briefly) made national news."
Waymark Code: WMVV74
Location: North Carolina, United States
Date Posted: 05/27/2017
Views: 3
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"If you look at young Dell Headen's tombstone, the first thing you will notice is the symbol of the Boy Scouts of America, with its prophetic words: "Be Prepared" inscribed beneath it. The following is the story behind this unique stone, reprinted from the book "Tarheel Tombstones and the Tales They Tell", By Henry King (1990, Down Home Press)
"They called him 'Wart'. His family and friends called him that because he was somewhat small. Although not very tall, he was a happy, friendly boy with a freckled face and reddish hair that stood out in a crowd. He was a popular boy.
Somewhere along the way, when he was a small boy, too small to join the Boy Scouts, he'd hang around them anyway, always watching and interested in what they were doing. The first thing he did when he turned old enough was to become a Scout. He joined Troop 24 in Siler City. Oh, he loved scouting. It was something he was always talking about or working on some project for the troop.
Dell earned many honors in scouting and the family kept a record of them in a scrapbook. He was so well liked that when he fell seriously ill, the entire town became seriously concerned.
He had suffered a ruptured appendix. He was hospitalized. For a while, it looked as though he might recover, but then peritonitis set in. The news began to spread, and the boy who loved scouting who was clinging to life became a diversion for a nation under the strain of World War II.
Letters, cards and telephone calls swamped the hospital, not only from friends but from people who had never met him. Newspapers carried daily bulletins of is condition. An old clipping states, "...local doctors and many members of the hospital staff interested themselves in the young man's case as if he were the only patient they had. The people in the community kept the telephones busy day and night, inquiring about his welfare..."
Sadly, when he lost his battle with his illness, not only a family, but a nation mourned. His mother and father knew how much he loved scouting, and how much it meant to him. He loved it so much, the family decided to have a Scout symbol on his headstone. He was buried in his boy scout uniform.
In his memory, the Dell Headen Scout Honor Award was established. It is still given out every year."