"He was leading me on the whole time. He still hasn't had the courage to tell me himself. I am sad and confused over the whole thing. He told my Dad to tell me. I haven't heard from him since." Because of his initial approval, Andresen believes Del Valle might have been influenced by older leaders in the troop (James). .
Andresen's father immediately resigned from the position after talking to the scoutmaster. "He wants nothing to do with the troop," said Ryan's mother, Karen (James). .
Karen then took matters into her own hands by posting a petition on Change.org, which has received more than 22,000 signatures to date and even one Eagle Scout who offered to renounce his award and send it to Ryan. "It was not his idea, it was mine," she said of the petition, in which she specifically referred to the merit badge, "Citizenship in the Community" (James). .
"It means standing up for what is right, and I am proud of Ryan for doing just that," she wrote. "Will you stand with him, too?" she asked the online community (James). .
According to Karen, Ryan's bullying also led to cutting and an eating disorder. "Everything was going against him and I needed to be his advocate," she said. "It's not his fault he was born gay. It's all so unfair and I wanted to help" (James). .
Deron Smith, spokesman for the Boy Scouts of America, released the statement: "This scout proactively notified his unit leadership and Eagle Scout counselor that he does not agree to scouting's principle of 'Duty to God' and does not meet scouting's membership standard on sexual orientation. Agreeing to do one's 'Duty to God' is a part of the scout Oath and Law and a requirement of achieving the Eagle Scout rank." Smith continued on to explain that the Boy Scouts never sought out Ryan's sexual orientation, but that after discussions with the Andresen's, it was clear that Ryan was "no longer eligible for membership in scouting" (James).
