First female Eagle Scout in Darien: ‘It’s not ‘insurmountable’
DARIEN — A member of the town’s only all-girl Boy Scouts troop has officially been awarded the title of Eagle Scout, the highest rank in the Scouts BSA program.
Lindsay Ferretti, 18, received her Eagle Scout pin in mid-December, making her Darien’s first female Eagle Scout.
Ferretti actually earned the designation in May after completing her Eagle project, leading a team to paint over 50 yellow fire hydrant locater markings on telephone poles to help firefighters find the closest hydrant in emergencies.
But after the Darien
Scouts cabin flooded in July, Ferretti said she wanted to postpone her official award ceremony — the Court of Honor — until her friends and family could gather in the cabin together.
“So much happened so quickly, but it was the most amazing thing ever,” Ferretti said recently. “I feel like I learned so much about myself by achieving this. And it has really helped me mold me into the person that I am now.”
The ceremony was holiday-themed, Ferretti said. She was presented her pin and friends and family gave speeches.
Most Eagle Scouts earn that rank after years in the organization — at a minimum, the process takes 20 months.
Ferretti achieved the designation in two years. She joined Troop 219 in 2019, after the Darien Scouts announced that it would be starting its first girls troop following a decision from the Boy Scouts of America to expand its scouting program to include girls. The organization later renamed the Boy Scouts program to Scouts BSA.
“So much happened so quickly, but it was the most amazing thing ever. I feel like I learned so much about myself by achieving this. And it has really helped me mold me into the person that I am now.” Eagle Scout Lindsay Ferretti
There are 16 girls in Troop 219. Several of them are also on track to attain their Eagle Scout ranks in the near future, troop leader Susie Flaherty said.
As the first Darien girl to achieve the ranking, Ferretti said she hoped to show her peers that becoming an Eagle Scout is not an insurmountable goal.
“I think it’s an example for girls, that ‘You can get here too,’” Ferretti said. “This isn’t just something for boys.”
Ferretti is currently a senior at Marymount School of New York, and said she hopes to study math and engineering in college.
She also says she plans to continue working with her hometown troop.
“This really was my end goal, but almost in a way it’s not the end goal,” Ferretti said. “It’s just a new place for me to start and keep doing more.”