GREENSBORO, N.C. — For more than 100 years, Eagle Scout has been an goal only boys could achieve. But in 2017 - when the Scouts began allowing girls, that all changed. Now, the nation has it's first class of female Eagle Scouts - and four of them are from a troop in Guilford County.
Alexandra Santiago, Selby Chipman, Holly Stewart and Caroline Ruppel have worked toward the award for two years in their girls-only troop. Alexandra completed a blessing box, free good pantry for Hope Chapel. Selby built a nature viewing platform on the Oakview Mountains to Sea Trial. Holly created a flag retirement fire pit and donation box in Summerfield. Carolina crafted a mobile information kiosk for Guilford Battleground Park.
"It makes me feel proud of myself end of the other girls with us right now and I'm just really proud of all the girls in the country that were able to get this honor," Santiago said.
Nearly 1,000 young women across the country became part of the trailblazing group this week – the first class of Eagle Scouts since girls have been allowed into the organization.
"For many other people who disliked that we were doing it they still dislike it," Ruppel said. "They don't know what we're doing and they don't like the fact that females are allowed to do this and that some point we just have to accept that and decide our own decisions."
Only 6% of Scouts make it to the top. It takes hours of work and merit badges. But to these four Eagle Scouts, it's more than an award.
"It feels like all the girls who are able to accomplish this suddenly became part of this big group or this very spread out family across the country," Ruppel said.
"We all worked really, really hard and it didn't matter like what we were doing, if we didn't know what we are doing, we would still complete it because if we had the help that we needed and we tried at it, we can get it done," Chipman said.