Wilton has a strong tradition of Girl Scout involvement. Now one troop of fifth grade Girl Scouts is taking a leadership role in teaching Wilton just how great the organization is.
Six girls from Troop 50349 have found a great way to commemorate Girl Scout Recognition Week, an occasion celebrated this week each year on the organization’s anniversary. They’ve hand-made 40 large green ribbons, each adorned with a fact about Girl Scouts, to hang on lampposts around Wilton Center. They’ve also put up posters in stores around town that raise awareness about Scouting as well.
“We thought it would be good to put up facts about Girl Scouts on the ribbons that we’re hanging up around town. The ribbons are in Girl Scout colors to make people notice them and see what Girl Scouts are about,” explains troop member Lia Gordon.
Many of the facts are about Girl Scout history, says Erika Petterson: “The facts are about Juliet Low and when she started Girl Scouts, famous people who have been Girl Scouts, how many Girl Scouts are still active, and how many troops there are. Not many people know that it’s National Girl Scout week right now, and we want to make it known and that it’s a thing.”
Molly DeLuca explained that it took about 20 hours to put the project together, and according to Avery Newcomer, the girls did research after school in the computer lab and at home.
Some of the facts they uncovered included finding out that Lucille Ball, Taylor Swift, Hillary Clinton and Venus Williams have all been Girl Scouts, and that 70 percent of United States women senators were Girl Scouts when they were young. Since one of the goals of the organization is to teach the girls leadership skills, it’s something they all found fascinating.
As “Junior” level Scouts, the girls have put in a lot of time and hard work together over the years, says Meredith Mobyed. “When you’re at this level, you’ve done two years of Daisies, two years of Brownies. This is our sixth year.”
Not every member of the troop elected to take part in the project–only the girls trying to achieve a Bronze Award have worked on it.
“In different levels of Girl Scouts there are different awards you can earn. A Bronze Award is the first really big one. You have to spend 20 hours doing something working together to help your community,” Avery Baumel explains.
But putting the ribbons together wasn’t the only thing the girls needed to do. In order to be able to post them around town, they had to prepare and make a presentation to first selectman Bill Brennan.
“For the award, part of it is coming up with the idea, but then they have to talk to officials in town to see if it makes sense and how they can go about it,” says Troop leader Kirsten Petterson. “We set up a meeting with Bill Brennan, they presented their plan and showed the facts and pictures of how they were going to do it. They were really thorough with their presentation. We were very appreciative of how nice he was to the girls.”
At the meeting, Brennan also presented the girls with a town proclamation, honoring Girl Scout week and the fact that Wilton as a town supports the girls who take part in the organization.
Petterson said she and the other parents are incredibly proud of the girls and their efforts. “I’m proud beyond belief. I’ve been with these girls since they were in kindergarten. What they were doing then–running around and playing Duck, Duck, Goose, to now hearing them become young ladies. They are the epitome of teamwork and sisterhood. Individually they’re remarkable girls who know what they want, and are so compassionate.”
The girls themselves are very aware as well of what they’ve learned and what they’ve accomplished by being Girl Scouts:
Molly: “It teaches us how to work together and cooperate with each other, and how to be helpful to your community.”
Meredith: “I think Girl Scouts is a great way for girls to get together as a group, and do fun things together and work together to make the world a better place.”
Lia: “Being a Girl Scout is also a lot of hard work. We’ve learned a lot that can help us further in life–we’ve learned camping, how to tend a garden, knot tying, and you can see from all these patches that we’ve learned something different.”
Avery B: “Girl Scouts helps us know that we can do things that really make a difference, and that’s really cool.”
Avery N: “It really brings together friendship, that you can be friends with anyone, that all these girls are your friends and you can meet so may people.”
Erika: “Everybody in the troop is a sister, and one of the facts was that it’s one of the largest organizations in the world for girls and that it can keep growing and help you make friends.”