“Being on the board is rewarding in so many ways,” explains Kate. “It’s a really educational experience. I am gaining a lot of skills I’ve never been exposed to before.”

Serving on the board is not Kate’s only way of giving back to girls in the community. She has been working towards her Girl Scout Gold Award by starting a debate club and public speaking team for middle school students. Kate encourages kids to voice their opinions through spirited yet respectful conversations.

Since sixth grade, Kate has been a Girl Scout Juliette and focuses her time on learning and connecting with her community. She says that working with younger Girl Scouts has taught her the importance of patience and perspective.

“I’ve learned how to approach problems in different ways,” she says. “It’s important to consider different ways to come to a conclusion—the way that different age groups look for solutions has taught me that.”

Color guards honor the American flag and formally represent Girl Scouts at events. Getting involved is a great way for girls of all ages to build courage and confidence, and display their Girl Scout pride.

To apply, please email Public Relations with:

• parent/guardian contact information
• the name and troop number of the Girl Scout applicant

All current girl members can apply.

River Valleys cannot guarantee a color guard opportunity to every Girl Scout applicant and will contact girls as needed.

Her decision to join TFA came during her senior year in college when she was looking for an opportunity to create a meaningful impact in the country. When Anna discovered TFA she thought it would be a great fit given her Girl Scouts background. To her, “The core values of the Girl Scouts are really aligned with Teach For America’s core values—transformational change, diversity, leadership, team, respect and humility.”

Years after completing her TFA term, Anna is now leading the effort to recruit young people into the program. She looks back on her experience with Girl Scouts and recognizes the integral role it played in encouraging her to become a strong leader. Some of her best memories are from summers at Camp Northwoods, where she camped and ventured out on canoe and backpacking trips.

“I think that the cumulative experiences at Camp Northwoods taught me about self-awareness, which I now know is critical to leadership,” reflects Anna. “I learned how to listen to others and to nature, how to be comfortable with myself (which is hard when you are in middle school), and how to have perspective and appreciate just how lucky and privileged I was growing up.”

This article was adapted from GSUSA’s original blog post. For the complete interview, visit GirlScouts.org.

Upcoming Dates:

• December 7–8
• December 8

Don’t miss this opportunity to celebrate the Girl Scout sisterhood with other Seniors and Ambassadors. Attend the day or overnight event and leave with new friendships and strong leadership skills.

Michelle traveled to Kenya with Girl Scouts from all over the United States through the Girl Scout destinations program, part of the Travel Pathway. Girl Scout destinations are travel experiences that range from two days to three weeks for Girl Scout Cadettes and older. Through destinations, Girl Scouts discover new places, gain confidence, develop leadership skills and connect with other remarkable girls.

During her trip to Kenya, Michelle and 12 other Girl Scouts connected with Girl Guides in Nairobi, interacted with kids at a Kenyan school and visited Kenyan villages. They sang and danced with people from the Maasai tribe, visited Maasai women who showed them how to make beaded jewelry, and spotted lions, zebras, water buffalo and other animals in the Maasai Mara wildlife reserve.

There is energy and enthusiasm in Michelle’s voice when she talks about Kenya. “I enjoyed myself so much,” she stated, “and the culture was so amazing. I want to go back. I don’t even know how to explain it—how it changed me. I was just very touched.”

After returning from Kenya, Michelle took action by exhibiting a poster display about Kenya at her local county fair. And this fall, she will deliver a presentation about her trip to a group of Cadettes at her local service unit. She lets people know what she did on her trip and then, if they’re interested, tells them about ways they can connect and make a difference.

Right now, Michelle is preparing to start college this fall, where she plans to study agronomy and agriculture. She said the destinations experience has given her the opportunity to travel even more and she is looking at ways to study abroad.

Ready to plan your trip to a far corner of the world? Visit travel to get started.

The forum offered the chance for Skky and Artisha to meet other girls from around the world while working on common goals shared by each country represented. The girls spent their days in workshops, getting to know each other and exploring Chicago.

A trip to remember, Skky says that her favorite event was the international night when girls wore traditional dress from their countries.

Traveling by motor coach, the group traveled from New Ulm, MN to southeastern United States, visiting historic and natural sites along the way. They visited the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, Kentucky Horse Park, historic Shaker Village, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Mammoth Cave National Park, Lincoln’s Birthplace National Monument and the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory. In addition, the group experienced some very memorable trip highlights.

One highlight was overnight camping on an aircraft carrier, the USS Yorktown, in Charleston, SC. The Girl Scouts experienced World War II history and gained an understanding of military service by sleeping in bunks, eating meals in the mess hall and exploring the ship and planes. The girls were thrilled to hear that Girl Scouts played an important role in World War II by supporting the troops, recycling essential materials, caring for injured soldiers and planting victory gardens.

Visiting Juliette Gordon Low’s birthplace was another trip highlight for the Girl Scouts. They participated in a special Interest session about the history of Girl Scouting, explored Savannah and found information about Juliette Gordon Low throughout the city.
For many in the group, swimming in the Atlantic Ocean was also a trip highlight. The girls spent a day at the ocean and saw dolphins, pelicans and other wildlife. They explored the shore with a naturalist, spent an overnight at the Georgia Aquarium and learned about tidal ecology, environmental protection and care of ocean mammals.

This trip was the culmination of three years of planning for the group. It helped them learn cooperation, leadership and self reliance. By accomplishing their goal of planning and taking the trip, the Girl Scouts learned that they can successfully carry out a major project.

Two Girl Scouts from Hudson, WI, recently marked a major milestone by earning Girl Scouts’ highest achievement, the Girl Scout Gold Award. To earn this award, a girl must dedicate herself to completing a Take Action project that addresses a need in her community and makes a lasting difference. She must fulfill requirements related to leadership, career exploration and community service. Before beginning their Girl Scout Gold Award project, girls must complete prerequisites that allow them to discover new skills, connect with others and take action to address a local or global issue or need, and brainstorm innovative ways to solve these problems. Each girl must take leadership in planning and implementing her project, and work with others in the community to act on her plan.

For her project, “Benches in the Woods,” Sarah focused on creating an area in an underutilized forest that could be used by classes and students. She designed sustainable benches using treated lumber and galvanized hardware, then led a team to build the benches. Her design will be used to create more benches. Girl Scouts, teachers and students are now able to fully enjoy and use the outdoor forest area for educational experiences.

Congratulations on earning your Girl Scout Gold Awards, Sarah and Haley!

This summer we’re featuring randomly selected Bronze, Silver and Gold Award recipients on our blog. Stay tuned for more stories about Girl Scouts who’ve made a difference in their community!

The project started two years ago, when the girls earned their Brownie Wings and bridged to Juniors. The group decided to pursue the Bronze Award by making pet blankets and toys, and gathering supplies on the Humane Society’s wish list. Along the way, the troop also completed the required Girl Scout Journey Take Action Project, which included a school and church-wide recycling effort to spread awareness on taking care of the environment.

The girls learned valuable skills, like teamwork, leadership, and budget and time management, in earning their Bronze Award.

In their pursuit to aid the local Humane Society, Troop 12771 sought out the support of their community by asking local merchants and their customers to support the project through donations. The Girl Scout Juniors worked with It’s a Pet’s Life, Cub Foods, Rockford Road Animal Hospital, Heritage Animal Hospital, Plymouth Covenant Church, the Woodcrest neighborhood, and Lulu and Luigi.

Ultimately, the troop presented 75 handmade fleece pet blankets, 30 handmade pet toys, 155 pounds of pet food, 50 pounds of cleaning supplies, and 10 dog leashes and collars to the Golden Valley Animal Humane Society.

Congratulations on earning your Gold Award, Troop 12771!

New York, N.Y. — According to a new Girl Scout Research Institute report, Girl Scouting Works: The Alumnae Impact Study, women who were Girl Scouts as children display significantly more positive life outcomes than non-Girl Scout alumnae.

Approximately one in every two adult women (49%) in the U.S. has at some point been a member of Girl Scouts; the average length of time a girl spends in Girl Scouting is four years. There are currently an estimated 59 million Girl Scout alumnae living in the U.S.

The study, which was not identified to participants as a Girl Scout project, surveyed a sample of 3,550 women aged 18 and older, roughly half of whom were Girl Scout alumnae and half drawn from the general population. The sample was chosen to be representative of the US population in terms of race/ethnicity, household income, education, marital status, and type of residence.

Compared to non-alumnae, Girl Scout alumnae display significantly more positive life outcomes on several indicators of success. These success indicators include:

• Perceptions of self. Of Girl Scout alumnae, 63% consider themselves competent and capable, compared to 55% of non-alumnae.

• Volunteerism and community work. Of Girl Scout alumnae who are mothers, 66% have been a mentor/volunteer in their child’s youth organization, compared to 48% of non-alumnae mothers.

• Civic engagement. Of Girl Scout alumnae, 77% vote regularly, compared to 63% of non-alumnae.

• Education. Of Girl Scout alumnae, 38% have attained college degrees, compared to 28% of non-alumnae.

• Income/socioeconomic status. Girl Scout alumnae report a significantly higher household income ($51,700) than non-alumnae ($42,200).

In addition to collecting quantitative data, the researchers conducted a series of live interviews with Girl Scout alumnae. Overall, alumnae say Girl Scouting was positive and rewarding for them. Former Girl Scouts:

• Rate their Girl Scouting experiences very highly. The average rating among all alumnae on a 1–10 scale is 8.04.

• Fondly recall their experiences in Girl Scouting. Fun, friendships, and crafts are the most frequently cited positive aspects of Girl Scouting.

• Say they’ve received concrete benefits from Girl Scouts, such as being exposed to nature and having a safe place to try new things.

• Actively recognize the influence of Girl Scouting on their lives. Three quarters of alumnae report that the Girl Scout experience has had a positive impact on their lives in general.

The positive effects of Girl Scouting seem particularly pronounced for women who were Girl Scouts longer, as well as for African American and Hispanic women.

“Girl Scouts turns 100 this year, and we couldn’t ask for a better birthday present than this kind of validation,” says Anna Maria Chávez, chief executive officer, Girl Scouts of the USA. “We declared 2012 as the Year of the Girl to help bring attention to girls and the value of encouraging and supporting them. To strengthen that support beyond the boundaries of Girl Scouting, we’ve launched ToGetHerThere, with the goal of reaching gender-balanced leadership in one generation.

“One kind of support we know girls need is role models—successful older women they can learn from and emulate. There is no group of women better suited to do that than our Girl Scout alumnae. We’re asking them to join our alumnae association and let us know if they’d be willing to visit schools and talk to girls who want to be leaders and may not be sure how to go about it. So Girl Scout, phone home. We need you.”

• Learn more about Girl Scouting Works: The Alumnae Impact study.
• Join our Girl Scout Alumnae Association.
• Learn more about ToGetHerThere—and to take the pledge to support girls and girls’ leadership