'It's Pretty Cool': Girl From Davis Earns Boy Scouts Highest Honor
DAVIS (CBS13) – A teenage girl from Davis earned the highest honor in a traditionally male organization – the Boy Scouts.
Melissa Meux, 14, showed off what it took to become an Eagle Scout – the highest honor in the Scouts organization. It all started when she was a little girl with big dreams in Davis.
"I was five years old in kindergarten and my parents said, 'Hey, you want to join Girl Scouts?,' and I was like, 'Yeah, that sounds fun!' " Melissa said.
But it wasn't long before the Boy Scouts caught her eye.
"I thought it was a really cool opportunity because I got to do all kinds of things like camping, backpacking, going to summer camp, and that's where I got a lot of my badges and such," she said.
Melissa loved the Scouts so much, she decided to aim high. She had a little coaxing from home.
"So I earned my Eagle Scout award in 1986 in the Bay Area," said Brian Meux, Melissa's father.
Her father is thrilled she decided to pursue it – the title is a badge of honor in her family.
"She is a third-generation Eagle Scout because her grandfather and her uncle are also Eagle Scouts," Brian Meux said.
Melissa is part of a group of young ladies to earn the achievement. Advisor Linda Palmer is excited to see scouts adapting.
"Because girls were never allowed, church issues were bigger, homosexual issues were bigger," she said. "So all of that is really water under the bridge."
Palmer said youth – like the Scouts – have adapted. Melissa has completed her project and paperwork and is now just waiting until February when the process will be formalized.
"I have a whole bunch of friends who are working towards it too and I think it's pretty cool to be part of that," she said. "I think it will be great to represent the organization and women in general."
The girls will be formally presented on February 8 – the day the Scouts was founded.