Lake Linganore Member becomes BSA Troop 1268 ' s First Female Eagle Scout
BSA Troop 1268 of New Market celebrated their first female Eagle Scout and one of the first class of female Eagle Scouts in the country , Ashlyn Cooper . Ashlyn , a Member of the Lake Linganore community , completed the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America ( BSA ) after completing her board of review in October 2020 .
Ashlyn joined BSA the very first day BSA opened their scouting program to female youth in February 2019 . Ashlyn ' s ties to the organization run deep . Her mother is the Scout Master of her troop 1268 , her father is the Scout Master of the linked troop 268 , her grandmother was the first female leader in her uncle ' s BSA troop several years ago , her grandfather was a Sea Scout leader ( a separate program under Boy Scouts ), and her great grandfather was a Boy Scout in the 1920 ' s .
After joining , she embraced the program , logging 48 camping nights , 160 miles of hiking , 200 service hours , 39 merit badges , five summer camps , and serving as the troop ' s first Senior Patrol Leader . She also attended and then joined staff for the BSA ' s National Youth Leadership Training , was inducted into the Order of the Arrow , and as previously mentioned , completed her Eagle rank .
Ashlyn built storage units for a charitable health facility that needed storage space for donations for her Eagle Scout project . " I wanted my project to make a difference in people ' s lives ," Ashlyn shared . " The organization has a room that they use to store donations , but people had a hard time finding what they needed , and the organization needed more space to hang clothing ." The organization also needed to be able to move the units effortlessly .
To satisfy the organization ' s needs , Ashlyn started by designing the mobile storage units and sketching out different ideas . She ultimately decided on three designs . After picking three designs , Ashlyn determined her materials list and created the actual plans to build the units . On June 27 , 2020 , Ashlyn led volunteers through the process of making the units . Following CDC guidelines , volunteers from Scout Troop 1268 , and our Brother Troop 268 , helped build and deliver the units when completed . " I believe that I have succeeded in bringing a difference to people ' s lives . Through this , I have learned how to lead others and how to design and build complex plans ," Ashlyn said .
The BSA journey for Ashlyn is not over . She plans to continue to earn Eagle Palms , which are awarded for continued leadership and skills development after obtaining an Eagle Scout rank . Ashlyn has already earned three palms and has a goal of 60 merit badges by the time she turns 18 . She also is now the Junior Assistant Scoutmaster .
Congratulations , Ashlyn !
LakeTalk December 2020 27