Gabby Mayrend, 14, of Saline, became the first female from the Huron Trails District to earn the rank of Eagle Scout. Mayrend recently refurbished all of the firepits at Faholo Camp and Conference Center in Grass Lake, while rebuilding benches and firewood storage boxes.

By Martin Slagter | mslagter@mlive.com

SALINE, MI – Gabby Mayrend watched as her brother worked his way from Cub Scout to Boy Scout, deciding along the way she wanted to join him. She was a Girl Scout, but thought Boy Scouts offered more camping and leadership events and better outdoor activities. So, in 2018 when Boy Scouts allowed girls in, Gabby acted quickly.  “I was really excited,” said Gabby, a 14-year-old Ann Arbor Huron High School freshman. “I went over to my mom and said, ‘We’re going to be starting a troop.’” Gabby wasted no time working her way through the Boy Scouts ranks from the moment she and her mother Tammy began recruiting and forming Troop 439 in Saline. And now, she’s the first girl from the Huron Trails District to earn the Eagle Scout rank. She joins her brother, Zachary, who earned the distinction in 2018, and her grandfather and great-grandfather, who were Eagle Scouts, too.

“When I joined Boy Scouts, it was one of the things that I knew I wanted to do,” Gabby said.  “I didn’t care how long it took me. I didn’t care how much I was going to have to put into it. “I knew it was something I could take back to my family and be like, ‘Hey, I’m proud of this,’ and have them look back at me and I guess be proud of it, too, knowing that it’s continuing through the family.”

Gabby is part of the inaugural class of female Eagle Scouts. She’s earned 41 merit badges while also serving in leadership roles as an instructor, patrol leader, den chief and assistant senior patrol leader. She’s currently the senior patrol leader for the troop, which is led by her mother. Among Gabby’s more difficult tasks in working toward the Eagle Scout rank was identifying an appropriate project to do amid COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. She went through at least
five ideas before another local troop told her about a campground that was looking for a scout to do some work.

Gabby went to work refurbishing all the firepits at Faholo Camp and Conference Center in Grass Lake, while also rebuilding benches and firewood storage boxes. Seeing another of her children achieve the Eagle Scout rank was gratifying, Tammy Mayrend said, particularly in watching her daughter grow and mature through the process. “Sometimes I can’t believe it’s my own kid,” she said. “She’s so driven, and sometimes seeing that drive – she just pushed forward, no matter what obstacle. This year with COVID, it didn’t matter what obstacle was in her way, she was going to find a way around it and find a
way to get that rank.”  Gabby is not resting on her laurels, though. She said she plans to remain ambitious as an Eagle Scout, with a goal of visiting every high adventure base. She plans to attend Northern Tier in July 2021 and also hopes to earn every merit badge available in scouting.

Learning a different set of skills in Boy Scouts is everything she thought it would be, Gabby said. “With Girl Scouts, a lot of it was business badges and entrepreneurship and financial literacy,” she said. “Boy Scouts is a lot more of the outdoor skills and leadership, teambuilding, bonding and service. They definitely both have useful skills, but I personally prefer being in the outdoors and the leadership skills Boy Scouts has to offer.”

Photo provided | Tammy Mayrend