DHS teen one of less than 400 boy scouts since 1910 to receive every single merit badge
Seven years ago, Isaac Giron set a lofty goal, to get every possible merit badge in the Boy Scouts of America.
Now, just before his 18th birthday, he has done it, becoming an eagle scout around the same time.
“It makes me feel like I accomplished a lot and it makes me feel really really good,” Isaac said.
In order to become an Eagle, scouts have to earn 21 merit badges in areas like first aid and lifesaving skills but there’s freedom to earn more. It isn’t a simple task as each badge can take months to complete. Isaac has earned 137 badges.
One example of a merit badge Isaac has earned is the cycling merit badge workbook. It is 17 pages long and it’s not just about cycling. You have to know safety guidelines, first aid for conditions like heatstroke, and bike mechanics. This particular badge also has a special meaning for Isaac and his dreams of being a firefighter.
“I earned my fire safety merit badge and it’s always been something that’s interested me. It’s something very cool, it’s something you only see int he movies and I want to be able to do that in real life,” Giron said.
The journey from boy scout to eagle hasn’t been smooth.
“He took some time off because I was diagnosed with cancer,” said Guillermo Giron, Issac’s father.
For his father, how Isaac faced those challenges was a true test of his character.
“That’s one of the things that’s great about him, that he cares. He’s one of the kids that a parent doesn’t have to worry about. On the contrary, he worries about his parents,” Guillermo said.
Isaac’s accomplishment is so rare that even the district’s eagle scout chairman, who led his eagle board review, was taken aback.
“I’ve never sat on an Eagle board where somebody had earned all 137 merit badges,” said Rob Pitchford, the district eagle chair for the Sunrise District.
But for Isaac, it’s less about him and more about the kids looking up.
“That is my goal to be able to show them that all this is possible for them as well with hard work and dedication,” Isaac said.
Isaac is in rare company. Less than 400 people in the entire history of the Boy Scouts since its inception in 1910 have earned every single merit badge.
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