Girl Scouts of the United States was founded in 1912 by Juliette Gordon Low, it’s membership started in Savannah, Georgia. Members of Girl Scouts rose from 18 to nearly four million today. It’s known as the world's largest organization dedicated to helping all girls everywhere build character and gain skills for success in the real world. Girl scouts members develop strong values, leadership skills, social conscience, and confidence about their own potential and self-esteem that will serve them all their lives.
The Purpose of Girl Scouting is to inspire girls with the highest principles of character, conduct, patriotism, and service that they may become happy and resourceful citizens. All girls from ages 5-17 can participate in the fun, friendship, and power of girls together through the Girl Scout experience, including community service projects, cultural exchanges, building sport skills, and environmental preservations.
The Girl Scouts launched a program last year titled "For Every Girl, Everywhere," and performed major outreach among its membership, particularly in terms of trying to reach more Hispanic girls(Taylor. 2002, Advertising Age). The Hispanic market isn't the only minority audience on which the Girl Scouts see a need to make an effort. The Girl Scouts first worked to identify the common ground between the Girl scouts and Hispanics, and then create the "Cultural Awareness Training Program," which would lead to more successful recruiting(Taylor. 2002, Advertising Age). The volunteers are given various ideas on what kind of events they can hold, such as "Pedicure Night" which a local volunteer sponsored to create a comfortable atmosphere for the girls.
In the United States there are approximately thirty Girl Scouts Beyond Bars programs, most of them limited to providing only one service: once-a-month visits to the prisons(Freedman. 2003, Texas Monthly).That's because every girl in this troop has or has had a mother in prison. They are known as the Girl Scouts Beyond Bars. When the Girl Scouts cookie season is over, they will be enterprising carwash, which is usually a success. With the girls washing, soaping, and spraying cars, themselves, and several customers, many of the girls are looking confidently to a brighter future. According to Julia Cuba, the program executive of the Lone Star Council, which oversees Girl Scout troops in eighteen counties in Texas and Oklahoma, 96 percent of the girls in the “Girl Scouts Beyond Bars” have stayed in school. Ninety-nine percent have avoided teen pregnancy. Ninety-eight percent have kept out of trouble with the legal system(Freedman. 2003, Texas Monthly). These are outstanding percentage considering that the girls whose mothers are in prison are six times as likely to end up in prison.
After the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, the Girl Scouts of Suffolk County, N.Y., wanted to do something to help themselves and other young people come to terms with the horrors of September 11(Chronicle of Philanthropy, 2002). They created three "participation patches", once each for the states that were under attack, New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania. In order to earn the patches, Girl Scouts members must perform specific tasks; these task includes writing letters to local law officials such as the firefighters about patriotism, Learning about airline security and about the Office of Homeland Security, and many others. The girls must also take part in a community service project wearing ribbons of patriotism color and as well as giving it to a friend. By earning these patches, the experience will help the girls to honor the nation’s rescue workers, take pride in their country, and to overcome their fears about safety.
This particular interest group, Girl Scouts, had overall successfully accomplished their principal goals. Members of Girl Scouts build strong characteristic as well as strong values. The program helps many girls stay out of jail and in a path for success. Girl Scouts help to unite all girls everywhere despite their cultural background and gain knowledge of leadership skills, sense of right and wrong, and better self confidence. These childhood experiences for these girl scouts will carry on forever and guide them in their future lives.






















Work Cited:


Girl Scouts extend multicultural reach. Taylor, Catharine P. Advertising Age; 1/28/2002, Vol.73 Issue 4, p18. http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,uid&db=aph&an=5968268

Scout’s Honor. Friedman, Kinky. Texas Monthly; Aug2003, Vol. 31 Issue 8, p168. http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,uid&db=aph&an=10327082

Girl Scout Patches Aid Recovery. Chronicle of Philanthropy; 9/5/2002, Vol. 144 Issue 22, p11. http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,uid&db=aph&an=7357095

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