First girls welcomed into Pueblo Boy Scouts of America chapter
Some major changes took effect for the Boy Scouts of America — the organization is letting girls join, and the Rocky Mountain Council Boy Scouts of America is one of the first to welcome girls.
The Pueblo troop’s addition of new members also comes with a name change to Scouts BSA.
But the announcement isn’t easy to take for all families. Katie Krska’s son is struggling with the change.
“I asked my son what his opinion was on girls joining Boy Scouts and he said, ‘Absolutely not, it’s a bad idea, girls shouldn’t be in boy scouts, girls should be in Girl Scouts,'” she said.
Some Girl Scouts are even confused by the move.
Coralyn Gauvin says her days as a Girl Scout were fulfilling and offered a different experience from the Boy Scouts.
“It was a wonderful experience. You know, there were things I got to do through Girl Scouts that I would have never been able to do if I wasn’t in a program like that,” she said. “And I think if done well, Girl Scouts can be just as an enriching program as Boy Scouts.”
But this historic inclusion means a lot to those who support it.
Troop leaders say little will change with the program itself, but it’s meant to allow families to spend more time together. That’s why Lacey Nash and Kendra Rivera-Irvin decided to join.
“My dad was in Cub Scouts and I thought it’d be really fun,” Nash said.
“My little brother was in Cub Scouts and I wanted to be in it with him,” Rivera-Irvin said.
They’re also a part of history as Pueblo is one of the first to have girls in the program.
The Pikes Peak Council of the Boy Scouts of America said girls will be added to their Cub Scouts program for kindergarten to fifth graders starting in June.
“We had some Cub Scout packs that chose to participate and we had about 5 in the Pikes Peak Council and to date, we have just under two dozen girls who have already joined Cub Scouts,” Scout Executive for the Pikes Peak Council, Jim Machamer said. “The curriculum will stay the same, what we have though is boy dens and girl dens so they’ll be part of the same Cub Scout pack, but generally meet separately.”
With the female additions to the organization, what will happen to Girl Scout membership?
Annemarie Harper, the public relations director for the Girl Scouts of Colorado said it’s actually grown since the announcement.
“Just last year we introduced new STEM activities and outdoor activities which girls had told us that they wanted those things, and we met them where they are,” Harper said.
Harper also said there are no current plans to add boys to Girl Scouts.
