Awards

The Queen of Saints or Noble degree is the highest honour bestowed on members of the Ladies Auxiliary, Knights of St John International who are in good standing and have served the Order faithfully for a minimum of twenty (20) years. The degree gives recognition to members for their sacrifices towards the upliftment of the ideals of the Order and Mother Church.

After the first Queen of Saints Award ceremony was held in 1988, there was a growing concern among members over the minimum twenty-year length of service required to qualify for the award which meant that many members who joined the Order late in life and served with dedication and diligence for many years might not get the opportunity to receive the Noble degree due to ill health in old age or death. These proponents wanted a reduction in the constitutional requirement of twenty years of unbroken service to ten or fifteen years.

In 2022, in response to this concern, the Supreme Subordinate President, N/S Eugenia Enyimayew, supported by the Recording-Corresponding Secretary, N/S Cecilia Aisha Armah, conceived the idea of granting a separate award to members who had served the Order, the Church and their Community for at least ten years. The proposal was discussed by the Supreme Subordinate Board at its November 2020 meeting. Cape Coast Grand Auxiliary led by its President, N/S Cecilia Patience Koomson, was tasked to develop guidelines for the introduction of the award. The five-member Committee of the Cape Coast Grand Auxiliary, headed by N/S Elizabeth Jackson Amissah with Sister Angelina Aba Yalley as Secretary, presented its report which was accepted by the Supreme Subordinate Board. The award was named the “Mystical Rose Award” in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Objective

The Mystical Rose Award seeks to recognize and encourage members who have served the Order diligently and with dedication for a minimum of ten continuous years and who are not yet due to receive a noble degree.

Qualification Criteria

• A minimum of ten but less than twenty continuous years of membership in the Order
• Good financial standing in the Order, the Church and the Community
• Regularity of attendance at meetings and turnouts

The nomination of candidates for the award is done at the Subordinate Auxiliary level with oversight and recommendation for approval by the Grand Auxiliary. Nominated candidates are assessed on the Order, the Church and the Community through a structured research exercise organized by the Supreme Subordinate Auxiliary.

The Mystical Rose Award ceremony is organized by the Supreme Subordinate Auxiliary as a Grand Auxiliary activity. The award involves the presentation of a breastpin comprising a silver medallion on a short blue and white ribbon which would be worn over the breast pocket of the military uniform during turnouts. A Mystical Rose badge is also presented to candidates for use on their cape.

The first MRA ceremony for each Grand Auxiliary was held in May 2023 with subsequent ceremonies to be held biennially during the month of May in the uneven year. A total of over 900 sisters who had served the Order for between 10 and 19 years were invested with the MRA breastpin during the award ceremonies. The month of May (Rosary Month) was chosen because it is traditionally dedicated to honouring and seeking the intercession of Mary, the role model of the Ladies’ Auxiliary, the Mother of God and Mother of the Church.