My First Year in Scouts BSA
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On Feb 1, 2019, female scouts between the ages of 11-17 were welcomed to enter into the ranks of Scouts BSA. Since that time, we have seen new troops form and flourish throughout the Pinnacle District. Troop 3226 from Cross in the Desert UMC in Phoenix, AZ has two girls working towards their Eagle. Tessa Corbet is a Star scout that recently returned from her second year at Camp Geronimo. She was drawn to Scouts BSA by a friend. Corbet states, “I didn’t know anything about scouts. Most girls have brothers or a father that are active in scouts, but this was a new experience for me. I recognized after the first meeting that this would be a good opportunity to learn leadership.” Since that time, Corbet has been active in her troop as a Senior Patrol Leader and now actively as an Assistant Senior Patrol Leader.
Her first year in Scouts BSA has been filled with backpacking trips, summer camp, and merit badges. Cooking has been her favorite merit badge so far (though rifle shooting comes in as a close second). She states, “I highly encourage everyone to take it at camp. The counselors made it a fun and I was able to do it with my friends. I don’t cook but the staff made it exciting to learn.” Corbet is also a member of Girl Scouts of America and working towards her Gold Award in addition to being active in both high school sports and National Honor Society.
Corbet adds, “Scouting has been an activity that teaches a lot of life skills through its activities that I know I will be better off experiencing, especially the leadership opportunities that will help later in life. It has been challenging to try to be organized and stay on track to get Eagle. I have to stay on top of everything, but I know I will get there.”
Tessa Corbet (Top-Right) Lainey Apple (Bottom-Left) at Camp Geronimo. My First Year in Scouts BSA by Rob Madden, Photo Credits: Rob Madden, Lisa Scibienski
Lainey Apple, a Tenderfoot scout with the troop, comes from a family of scouters. Watching her brother go off on fun camping trips and troop meetings from the background, she jumped at the opportunity to join Scouts BSA. “I saw the stuff that my brother was doing and know of the importance of earning Eagle for scholarships that I wanted to be a part of it too,” she says. She continues, “The greatest challenge that I have faced is learning how scouting works, especially the process behind merit badges and having to push myself to get rank requirements done.”
Apple attended Camp Geronimo for the first time this year. She explains, “Camp has been the most fun, especially being able to choose which classes to take, hanging out with my friends, and catching crawdads.” Additionally, she is also a member of Crew 2619, working towards her Summit award, and belongs to Girl Scouts of American where she is working in her Gold Award. Overall, Apple has enjoyed her first year in scouting. She says, “We girls want to be a part of scouting. Scouting has been a great way to develop friendships, skills and connections in something that we were not a part of before. Scouting has had such a positive impact and I am so glad that I am a part of it.”
