Pascal Tessier was awarded the Eagle Scout ranking on Monday and became one of the first openly gay members of Boy Scouts to achieve that award.
"It's just really amazing, and it honestly hasn't really sunk in yet," the 17-year-old Boy Scout said, reports The Washington Post. "We didn't know if it was going to happen at all."
Tessier is referencing how he risked the chance to earn the ranking by openly advocating the Boy Scouts change their policies over gays participating. The National Council of the Boy Scouts of American voted in favor of allowing gay youths. Gay adults are still not allowed to be Scout Leaders.
According to The Associated Press, Tessier could be the first openly gay Eagle Scout after the BSA changed it's policies, but there's no official data to prove that one way or the other.
Tessier added that he isn't done trying to get the Boy Scouts to completely change its ways, noting "On my 18th birthday, I'm planning on applying to be an adult leader for the Boy Scouts so that we push the issue."
image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
