Utah County Cub Scout pack adds girls to group

Attendance for Pack 1456’s Blue and Gold Banquet Tuesday night looked a lot different than it did last year. The Cub Scout group now has 11 girls in their pack. They are one of four packs in the Utah National Parks Council taking advantage of the changes announced by the Boy Scouts of America last fall.

“We really looked at this as a way to serve the full family and certainly a subset of the population that was not served very well before,” said Ryan Bertram, director of community development for the Boy Scouts of America Utah National Parks Council.

Bertram said changes to these four packs are part of an early adopter program which started in January.Beginning in the fall, all Cub Scout packs can choose from three options. 

“A Cub Scout pack can choose to be a family scouting unit with separate boy dens and girl dens, they can choose to be an all girl Cub Scout pack or they can continue being an all boys Cub Scout pack,” Bertram said.

The Mounteer family is taking advantage of the new family scouting program. They can now have their three daughters and one son in the same pack.

“It’s pretty busy, but it’s a commitment we have made,” Melanie Mounteer said.

Mounteer’s daughter, Emma said she has enjoyed her first two months with the Boy Scouts.

“You can hike, camp, cook,” she said. “I am so excited that I can now do other activities that girls normally didn’t get to do and that people in Cub Scouts could do.”