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The honor was delayed when the retired Marine colonel, a Medal of Honor recipient, went to fight in World War II.
©Associated Press
March 24, 2003
JACKSONVILLE -- After earning enough merit badges for Eagle Scout, Mitchell Paige left his hometown of McKeesport, Pa., to join the Marines in September 1936. Six years later, he was awarded the Medal of Honor while commanding a machine gunner group against the Japanese during World War II.
But he never heard a word about his Eagle Scout award. Today, 67 years later, the retired Marine colonel is scheduled to finally receive the Boy Scouts' highest honor at a ceremony in Jacksonville.
Paige doesn't know what happened to the paperwork that was supposed to have been sent 67 years ago for his award. But it took an investigation by an FBI agent to determine Paige, now 84, was eligible for the honor.
For years, Paige considered himself an Eagle Scout. The values of scouting and his faith steeled him against the challenges he was to face in battle.
"I looked back on my scouting days and the Boy Scout oath," said Paige, who was a platoon sergeant when he reached Guadalcanal in October 1942. "I reminded my guys to be patriotic and loyal to the nation and God."
On Oct. 26, 1942, Paige was leading a platoon of 33 men when the Japanese broke through the line directly in front of his position.
Paige received the Medal of Honor for continuing to fight against the Japanese, although all of his men were either killed or wounded. He moved from gun to gun, continuing to fire until reinforcements arrived. He then led a bayonet charge and drove the Japanese line back.
A few weeks after the battle, Maj. Gen. A. A. Vandergrift, commander of the First Marine Division and later commandant of the Marine Corps, commended Paige: "Son, that was an important hill that you and your men held. It was the last major Japanese effort to dislodge us and capture the airstrip."
Paige was given a battlefield promotion to second lieutenant and was one of 440 Medal of Honor recipients in World War II, although 250 were honored posthumously.
Along the way, Paige wrote a book, A Marine Named Mitch, and was the model for a GI Joe Marine Doll.
In a telephone interview from his home in La Quinta, Calif., Paige said over the years he has spoken proudly of being an Eagle Scout and mentioned it in speeches he made as a Medal of Honor recipient.
A few years ago, Paige spoke to a gathering of Boy Scouts aboard the USS Constellation.
"I told them I was proud to address them as an Eagle Scout," Paige said.
After the speech, Paige said he was shown a book that contained the names of everyone who had received the Eagle award.
His name was not in the book.
"I was ready to collapse and die right there," he said. "That was the saddest time in my lifetime when I didn't find my name in that book."
Paige told his story to a friend, Thomas A. Cottone Jr., a special agent with the FBI. Paige had been the liaison officer from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society to the FBI, working on a project with Cottone to expose Medal of Honor impostors. Paige had earlier worked with Congress to increase the penalties for posing as a Medal of Honor recipient.
Cottone, also an Eagle Scout, began investigating Paige's case.
Paige's scoutmaster in 1936 had died, but Cottone was able to find a classmate to verify his story. She was at school the day it was announced the Paige had completed his Eagle Scout work and would soon be receiving his award.
"I can think of no greater event to promote the standards and ideals of the Boy Scouts of America than to welcome this true American hero into the ranks of Eagle Scouts," Cottone said.
Today, Paige will receive the award at a luncheon in Jacksonville.