March has been a pretty crappy month for me so far. I’m completely swarmed with my work schedule; I think that this weekend is my only weekend off. School work is starting to kick off and one of the professors I knew when I was at Post died on Thursday.
Despite the hard times so far, I know that March is supposed to be a good month in general for me. It’s Women’s History month. I’m a self proclaimed feminist and have been growing in a family of women. If anyone wants to see a really nice display check out the book display of Women’s History in the library that is all the way to the right when you walk towards the individual staircases to each floor. And no I’m not doing this because my mom did the display. Ok maybe part of me is mentioning because of that hah.
With Women’s History month comes one of the most important dates in my life. March 12th. March 12th will be the 95th anniversary of the Girl Scouts of America. I’ve been a scout for 13 years now, and despite the ignorance that people have, yes you can still be a scout long after your Brownie years.
On March 12th, 1912 Juliette Gordon Low started up the Girl Scouts in her hometown of Savannah. She thought of the idea while in England when she was a Girl Guide leader, which is the rest of the world’s version of Girl Scouts. Daisy, Juliette’s nickname, taught the girls how to be independent. She taught them to cook, sew, camp, fix things, and tend to the sick. Every girl had to wear a kerchief around their neck and until they did a good deed for the day, they couldn’t untie it. There were “merit badges” and special awards like the Golden Eaglet. The Golden Eaglet was given to the girl who demonstrated top notch Girl Scout abilities and went through tests such as earning a certain number of badges and service hours. This became what is the Gold Award today.
They made their own uniforms, the first being a dark blue. Do a search on Girl Scouts and there is a slideshow of the uniform fashions, it’s pretty funny. Those were some scary bell bottoms in the ‘70s. New awards came into being such as religious awards, service awards, life saving awards. We have so many different religious awards, service awards, a Bronze Award for Juniors, a Silver Award for Cadettes, and the coveted Gold Award.
There are 5 levels of actual scouting- Daisys, Brownies, Juniors, Cadettes, and Seniors. Each are 3 years long with the exception of Daisys. And believe or not, you can be a scout long after your “field years.” I am going in for my leader training, but I can get a paying job over at the Council Building which many of you know, but never really knew it. Over by Roosevelt Field there’s a cube like building and there are Girl Scout flags flying everywhere…yeah that’s the headquarters for all Nassau based associations. And if you are itching for some of those cookies, I can assure you there are so many booth sales going on right now wherever you step.
I honestly love being a Girl Scout. It made me into who I am today. I have a strong background because of the law and promise that carry the guidelines to the scouts. I am a Gold Award winner, the first in my association for 7 years. I am also an owner of the Silver Award, and the Bronze Award was around when I was a Junior. I was the keynote speaker at the luncheon in October. I continue to serve and volunteer whenever I get the call. I think they have me on speed dial. I joke around about taking over the Girl Scouts and becoming its ruler. My mom even told the CEO and President that I am going to a military take over, and they turned to me and asked me to wait a few more years because they like the jobs they are in.
If you know a girl who is in scouts, encourage her to continue. It will benefit her life forever. I’ve met some really important people in my life from Girl Scouts. You can’t buy what the Scouts have to offer, well…ok you can buy the cookies…but you can’t buy the morals, the adventures, and the lifelong lessons. Women’s History month is such an interesting month, so go find out more and see how many women changed the world.
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2 comments:
I have to say that I was a girl scout for a year or two. I started in 4th grade, I believe. Why I quit, I do not remember, but while I was a girl scout, it was a rewarding feeling. I do agree that continuing on with being one will benefit in the long run. Kudos to you, Marybeth!
First I would like to apologize for your loss, my heart goes out to you. I was once a Boy Scout, oh so long ago, and absolutely enjoyed it and wish that I had stayed with it. Being a Scout allowed for so much personal growth. I probably could have learned a lot from it if i were to have stayed in the Boy Scouts. I'm glad that you are still involved in the Scouts. I admire you for that, and i will always be a supporter...not only cause Carmel Delights are amazing...but because the morals that can be learned.
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