Girl Scouts of all ages do great things. Read their inspiring stories.

Mai Yer Xiong

(Excerpt from the Star Tribune story, Feb. 26, 2010) Compared with most Girl Scouts, Mai Yer Xiong, a senior at Central High School in St. Paul, was a little old to be selling cookies for the first time last year. But that didn't diminish her pride."To be able to approach strangers and promote my product, I just felt my confidence rising," she said.

Apparently so: Xiong applied for a scholarship to the prestigious Wellesley College and will begin classes there in the fall. She plans to study economics or political science, then go on to law school, a goal prompted in part by a Girl Scout-sponsored visit to a law firm. She credits scouting with "showing me I can accomplish just as much as anyone."

Anna Herzog

While selling cookies, Anna took it upon herself to ask every customer if they wanted to buy an extra box to be donated to military troops overseas. She contacted the VFW and asked them for a donation as well. She collected 225 boxes and those were shipped to five servicemen from her community.

Kyla Gronau

This young lady has a really powerful story about how being a member of Girl Scouts changed her life. She has cerebral palsy and was often made fun of as a young girl. When one of the girls in the neighborhood invited her to a Girl Scout meeting, Kyla said everything changed for her. Her confidence and courage have grown exponentially. Her mother and father are extremely supportive and see how Girl Scouts has had a significant impact on making their daughter a strong and well-rounded young lady.

Lauren-Elaine Brown

Lauren-Elaine started Girl Scouts in first grade. She continued through earning her Gold Award and will become an adult member upon graduation from high school this year. Lauren-Elaine’s story is inspiring because it shows perserverance and dedication to the Movement. She is a fine example of hard work and achieving what you set your mind to using the skills and talents learned in Girl Scouts. Lauren-Elaine will attend Loyola or Northwestern in the fall and will pursue a degree in biology to set her up for a career in forensics.

Hannah Anderson

For her Girl Scout Gold Award project, Hannah combined her career goal of working in early childhood special education with her passion for music by introducing children with developmental delays at Southwood Early Learning Center to different aspects of music. By experimenting with sound, volume, and instruments, the children enhanced development in communication, cognitive, social, and motor skills. Hannah created individual music lessons and compiled a book for the teachers and parents to use in the future.

Julia Brumback, Heidi Saxton and Hanorah Vanni

Julia, Heidi, and Hanorah partnered with Hope for the City, a nonprofit fighting hunger, poverty, and disease, to earn their Girl Scout Gold Award. They organized a collection of personal hygiene items in their community and, with the help of local Girl Scouts, assembled more than 600 care packages. Julia, Heidi, and Hanorah also put together a video describing poverty in Minnesota, the food shelves that received the packages, and Hope for the City that the Girl Scouts watched before assembling the bags.  

Jamie Golden and Abbey Terhaar

Jamie and Abbey addressed the issue of eating disorders for their Girl Scout Gold Award project. Through the creation of positive body image kits, they educated young girls and teens about the issue, while encouraging them to embrace their inner beauty and individuality. Jamie and Abbey also created care packages and activities for current patients at the Park Nicollet eating disorder clinic, as well as information pamphlets for community distribution.