A Girl Scout is always prepared.
March 12, 2012 marks the centennial of the Girl Scouts of the USA! Juliette Gordon Low was their founder, and she is pictured here with two of her scouts.
Today is also Girl Scouts Blogger Day, so I thought I'd add my post to the mix.
I was a Girl Scout for several years during the late 60's and early 70's, and my experiences with the scouts has stayed with me the last 40 plus years.
I started as a "Brownie" Scout. I only have one memory of being a Brownie, other than the ugly brown uniform. One day at the end of our troop meeting, we were instructed to bring a clean and empty baby food jar with a lid to the next meeting. So the next week, we all brought our empty jars, and our troop leader brought homemade bread fresh from the oven and a large jar of raspberry jam she had put up that Fall. Our job was to make the butter!
After we took turns pouring fresh cream into our jars, we put the lids on tightly and shook the jars. Being kids from the suburbs, we were amazed that before long, the cream had turned to butter! We poured off the milk left on top, spread that freshly-made butter onto thick slices of bread, added a little jam and enjoyed a wonderful treat!
I remember the years wearing the green Girl Scout uniform much more clearly. (You know the Girl Scouts has always been green!) Our troop had chosen the "lily of the valley" as our crest, so when first starting out, our sashes only had the Girl Scout insignia, our troop number and crest, and I couldn't wait to earn my first badge. By nature I'm a collector, and I had high hopes of filling that sash with badges!
While fulfilling my quest to cover that sash with badges I learned so much! It was through the Scouting program I learned how to swim, give basic first aid, pitch a tent, dig a latrine (that wasn't very fun), speak in front of a group (I did that badly), start a fire without matches, cook (I think I just earned that badge for not burning the gas company down) and be a good citizen.
Every summer there were different camps Girl Scouts could attend for a week or 10 days. There was a camp in Southern Utah that I wanted to go to so bad; the girls were able to go on hikes in the beautiful red canyons and learned to ride horses. Knowing they couldn't afford it, I never did ask my parents if I could attend. I was able to go on several overnight outings in our local mountains and that was a lot of fun too! That's where I learned to pitch a tent, start a fire, and of course, dig that latrine! I still have a scar from one of those outings; I fell out of a tree, and another Scout was able to practice her first-aid.
I think the greatest gift I received from the Girl Scout program was tolerance for people who are different than I am. I grew up in a community where 99 percent of us shared the same race and religion. It was through scouting that I met and made friends with girls that practiced different religions, were of different races and had different beliefs than I. The Girl Scout program was a wonderful way to look at the world through "eyes wide open."
Things have changed over these last 40 years and so have the Girl Scouts. I understand the girls can earn badges for learning how to handle finances and investing. They no longer sell cookies door to door (at least not where I live), and those cookies cost much more than the 50 cents a box I sold them for!
I am glad to see that the Girl Scout motto "Be Prepared" has not changed, and more importantly that the Girl Scouts are still striving to empower girls and instill in them values that will help them for a lifetime!
Happy 100th Birthday to the Girl Scouts of the USA!
While fulfilling my quest to cover that sash with badges I learned so much! It was through the Scouting program I learned how to swim, give basic first aid, pitch a tent, dig a latrine (that wasn't very fun), speak in front of a group (I did that badly), start a fire without matches, cook (I think I just earned that badge for not burning the gas company down) and be a good citizen.
Every summer there were different camps Girl Scouts could attend for a week or 10 days. There was a camp in Southern Utah that I wanted to go to so bad; the girls were able to go on hikes in the beautiful red canyons and learned to ride horses. Knowing they couldn't afford it, I never did ask my parents if I could attend. I was able to go on several overnight outings in our local mountains and that was a lot of fun too! That's where I learned to pitch a tent, start a fire, and of course, dig that latrine! I still have a scar from one of those outings; I fell out of a tree, and another Scout was able to practice her first-aid.
I think the greatest gift I received from the Girl Scout program was tolerance for people who are different than I am. I grew up in a community where 99 percent of us shared the same race and religion. It was through scouting that I met and made friends with girls that practiced different religions, were of different races and had different beliefs than I. The Girl Scout program was a wonderful way to look at the world through "eyes wide open."
Things have changed over these last 40 years and so have the Girl Scouts. I understand the girls can earn badges for learning how to handle finances and investing. They no longer sell cookies door to door (at least not where I live), and those cookies cost much more than the 50 cents a box I sold them for!
I am glad to see that the Girl Scout motto "Be Prepared" has not changed, and more importantly that the Girl Scouts are still striving to empower girls and instill in them values that will help them for a lifetime!
Happy 100th Birthday to the Girl Scouts of the USA!
My mother, Judy Boling, was an active member of the Josephine County Historical Society from the mid-'60s until 2010. But she was a Girl Scout from the early '50s until she died. She trained leaders, taught girls, and was the Winema Council Historian for many, many years. None of her many involvements ever meant as much to her as Girl Scouts, and she probably influenced thousands of Girl Scouts over the years. She was presented the Thanks Badge twice by Girl Scouts USA, as well as one from Girl Scouts Japan. She served Girl Scouting in the USA, Japan, England, and France.
ReplyDeleteI would imagine those Girl Scouts your mother led will remember her fondly for the rest of their lives. I know one of my troop leaders had a profound impact on my life and I am so glad to have known her and learned from her.
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