CLOVIS TEEN TO MAKE HISTORY
Clovis teen Megan Scruggs will make history today, December 21st, when she is set to become one of the nation’s first female Eagle Scouts – a prestigious achievement attained by some of the country’s most noteworthy figures. Megan is among hundreds of young women who will make up the Inaugural Class of female Eagle Scouts.
“Earning the rank of Eagle Scout takes hard work and perseverance, and we are honored to recognize Megan for this significant accomplishment. As an Eagle Scout myself I know the tremendous work that Megan has put forth to achieve this goal and am very impressed with her tenacity along the Scouting trail” said Lee Murdoch, Conquistador Council Executive Director.
Scouts BSA is the program for youth ages 11 to 17 previously known as Boy Scouts. Since then, tens of thousands of young women throughout New Mexico and across the country have joined the organization’s most iconic program with many, including Megan, working their way toward the rank of Eagle Scout. Eagle Scout is the program’s highest rank, which only about 6% of Scouts achieve on average.
“Megan was moving to Clovis after being in a troop overseas and was excited to help start a troop for young ladies in Clovis. She quickly became the youth leader of our troop and has been a driving force behind our successes. Megan being not only the first female Eagle Scout in Clovis, but in southeastern New Mexico shows other young ladies that they too can achieve this honor of it is what they want. Megan has forged the way for future scouts here in Clovis. I am very proud of her accomplishments and know she has a very successful future ahead of her.” related Michelle Bjorklund, Scoutmaster for Troop 733.
Megan began her path to Eagle In 2019 as a founding member of Troop 219G at RAF Lakenheath, England. When her Father, USAF Lt. Col. Clifford Scruggs, was reassigned to Cannon AFB, Megan completed another first when she helped found Clovis’ first BSA troop for girls – Troop 733G, sponsored by American Legion Post 25 in Clovis, New Mexico. Megan’s project consisted of locating and cataloging veteran’s graves at Lawn Haven Memorial Gardens cemetery in order to better honor Clovis’ veterans. She chose this as her service project because “Being a military kid definitely influenced my project choice— however, I was approached with this idea and I decided to run with it because of COVID restrictions and because it was a project focused on honoring our fallen veterans. It was hard at first because I was essentially starting out with a clean slate, so I collected the information and there were over two hundred missing vets from the records. I corrected that information and now Wreaths across America and Gold Star Mothers have more of a chance to honor each fallen veteran in this community. I don’t ever want them to be forgotten and I’m glad I could help as best I could with honoring them and their service time.”
In addition to gaining skills that last a lifetime, individuals who earn the esteemed Eagle Scout rank can reference it for academic, vocational, and military recognition, including scholarships and advanced enlistment grade. As is the norm with most Eagle Scout recipients, Megan plans to use the skills and experience she gained in Scouting as she moves to Louisiana to attend LSU, and hopes to stay involved in Scouting, perhaps as a Scoutmaster at a local Troop.
Congratulations to Megan on her many achievements, and thank you for being a positive influence for kids in our community.
