The Woods Services Award is given to one Scouter per year nationally for exceptional service and leadership. The nominee should have served Scouts with disabilities in several capacities at the unit, district, council, or national levels of the Boy Scouts of America. The nominee for this prestigious award must have served Scouts with disabilities for at least three years strictly as a volunteer. This is a BSA award sponsored by the Woods Services Foundation in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, in memory of Luther W. Lord. The recipient receives a plaque from the Woods Foundation and may wear the BSA community service square knot. 

The Woods Services Award nomination form, BSA form #512-258, can be found at scouting.org/filestore/pdf/512-258.pdf. After being completed, the nomination must be signed by the nominee’s Scout Executive and received by the national BSA office by December 31 for the following year’s award. The Woods Services award is presented in May. Because of the limit of one award per year, each council may only submit one nomination per year. 

When completing a nomination form, remember that those evaluating the nominee do not know the Scouter. They evaluate a nominee based only on what is contained in the form. Therefore, be sure it is complete. You may continue any section on an additional page. A good writeup will also include one or two specific examples of exceptional service. Emphasize the number of Scouts with disabilities affected both directly and indirectly through the nominee’s leadership at the unit, district, council, and national levels.