Why Girl Scouts?
I was one — starting in first grade as a Brownie and hanging in until I graduated from high school as a Senior. In the early years, I was enthusiastic because my friends were in the troop. However, as I grew older, many friends left. I missed them, hated the uniforms, and felt geeky for staying, but Mom was my troop leader. To make her happy, I stayed. Secretly, I loved camping and making s’mores over an open fire. After high school, I leaped into adult life, a life without Girl Scouts.
I realize now those years in scouting prepared me for living the life of adventure. I was 22-years-old ready to risk everything for economic and personal independence. But there were roadblocks. In 1970, a woman could not get a credit card in her name, own a home, or qualify for a business loan. I embraced the challenge and faced the reality of success and failure, pushing against the norm. Girl Scouts gave me the courage, confidence, and character to help make the world a better place for my daughter’s generation.
A single incident at my last Girl Scout event in 1965 brought my inner power to consciousness. I was sitting in a sea of senior scouts from across the nation in an amphitheater size tent in Idaho at the National Roundup—the culmination and reward for years in scouting. A panel of adult women talked about our futures. Their words came across as telling me what I should think, that my future was set. My mind exploded. I stood and thundered, “If we are the future, isn’t it up to us, not you adults, to determine what that future might be?”
An assistant wove through the sea of Scouts to find me after the session. “The panel leader wants to talk with you.” I froze, afraid I was in trouble once again. But to my surprise, she asked me to take part in the closing panel discussion. This Girl Scout experience gave me the confidence to question and challenge. It served me well throughout my life.
Fifty-four years later, I am a Girl Scout Adult Volunteer supporting the leaders of 30 troops in Northern Virginia. It’s my way of paying it forward to help today’s young girls have the opportunity to live a life of adventure. It’s good to be back with Girl Scouts.
Don’t believe the impact Girl Scouts can have on your daughter’s life? Over 50 million American women alive today took part in Girl Scouts growing up. Just look at some famous Girl Scout Alums:
Actors Taylor Swift, Mariah Carey, Abigail Breslin, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Dakota Fanning
Star athletes include tennis players Venus and Serena Williams
Media greats Katie Couric, Barbara Walters, and Robin Roberts are Girl Scout alums
Businesswomen Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube, and Virginia Rometty, CEO of IBM
Former Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton, Madeleine Albright, and Condoleezza Rice
72% of current female U.S. senators and 58% of women serving in the U.S. House of Representatives
Five of nine current female governors
To volunteer, reconnect, donate or join, visit www.girlscouts.org.