Cub Scout camp-out event welcomes female members

<p>Nassau County Boy Scouts are holding their first Cub Scout camping trip of the season this weekend, and it marks the first year the event includes female scouts.</p>

News 12 Staff

Apr 28, 2018, 4:30 PM

Updated 2,356 days ago

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Nassau County Boy Scouts are holding their first Cub Scout camping trip of the season this weekend, and it marks the first year the event includes female scouts.
The "Cuboree" event in Wading River features lots of outdoor activities, like scaling a rope bridge.
"People come here as families to begin with, so girls are nothing new to the Cub Scout organization. It's just bringing them in as members, and giving them a uniform," says Peter Shields, with Boy Scouts of America. "The recognition for the things that they're achieving is what's changing in the Scouts, not the actual program itself."
Shields says only a handful of female scouts have signed up for the event as members so far, but they're hoping that number continues to grow.
One of the newest female members is 9-year-old Sarah Scotch. Her mother Kimberly says her daughter, who is also a Girl Scout, is now able to perform more outdoor activities, such as archery, that are not offered to Girl Scouts.
“It's monumental,” she said. “She doesn't really appreciate what it means now at this age, but when she becomes an adult she'll look back and say, ‘Wow, I was one of the first female Cub Scouts.’”