For some girls, this is where it all starts. Girl Scouts is where they learn leadership skills, confidence, problem solving skills, innovative thinking, and the cultivation of a passion. For some girls, this is an addendum to what they receive at home, but to others, this is the only opportunity they will have to interact with adults who are volunteering to mentor young women so they can go out and blaze a positive trail of their own in the world. 

The Girl Scouts organization is dedicated to preparing girls for leadership, providing more than 15,000 girls in our region, grades K to 12, with empowering, fun, and impactful leadership experience. The programming focuses on critical areas such as civic engagement, STEAM, entrepreneurship, and outdoor experiences. According to the organization’s Northeast Kansas and Northwest Missouri’s chief executive officer, Joy Wheeler, “With the support of incredible, dedicated adult volunteers, we are empowering the leaders of tomorrow to take our community to the next level and fill a workforce gap that continues to grow.”

The organization reports that girls involved in the program fare better than non-Girl Scouts in the areas of strong sense of self, positive values, challenge-seeking, healthy relationships, and community problem solving. All of these areas contribute to strong leadership outcomes. In the case of strong leadership, Mackenzie Clevenger provides a perfect example. While working towards her Gold Award (the highest acclaim a Girl Scout can achieve), Mackenzie has spent more than 80 hours researching, designing, planning, and building a brand new greenhouse for the members of the Veterans Community Project. This new greenhouse will help veterans on their own journeys as they learn patience, watchfulness, industry, and thrift while understanding the growing process of plants and how it benefits them. Never doubt that one girl can, indeed, make a difference! 

The Girl Scouts’ organization is always in need of dedicated volunteers and stewards of the program. There are more than 8,000 current volunteers in the region, and more volunteers means more Girl Scouts can be served. Adults provide roles such as troop leaders, program experts, facilitators, financial experts, Cookie Program leaders, and camp leaders. It is always the right time to provide a powerful example of adult mentoring and leadership to young, eager-to-learn girls.

Featured in the March 19, 2022 issue of The Independent.
By Anne Potter Russ