James - I think you know what I think.
Wonderful letter.
A posthumous initiation could easily be done with his big (or if they didn't have them since they were a colony, the colony prez or someone else he was exceptionally close to) standing in his place.
Plus his family, I'm sure would appreciate it immensely. Any time you lose a loved one, people often are so uncomfortable that they just avoid mentioning them which makes it hurt even more. Anything you do to recognize the person who's gone is the right thing to do.