Apparently The Girl Scouts are seeing a serious decline in both membership and volunteerism, according to an article I just read. And I think that is pretty darn sad. I was a Girl Scout, I sold cookies, and I went to camp. And you know what? That one week I spent at Girl Scout Camp when I was a ‘tween was one of the best summers of my life. I learned to sail, got my head checked for lice, made tiki torches out of Kotex pads, made arts and crafts, used an outhouse, slept in a cabin with no doors, and sang some really cool camp songs that I still remember to this day. It was the best summer ever!
The article suggested that the decline might be due to competing activities and a lack of desire on the girls’ and the volunteers’ part to embrace the wilderness portion of the club. The Girl Scouts have tried expanding their focus by offering ” …digital filmmaking, financial literacy, eating local, social innovation and business etiquette,” but still, their numbers are dwindling. Things have obviously gotten waaaay more complicated than they were for me as a young girl, because really, the cookies were all I needed to seal the deal. And, even if the cookies weren’t enough, my green badge symbolized not just accomplishments, but acquired skills–I think that’s why it’s sad to see the decline.
So, if you have some spare time on your hands and you are a normal functioning adult {read: not a weirdo}, you should totally pop over to your local Girl Scouts chapter and volunteer.
I know there are some former Girl Scouts reading this right now, so make sure to share you favorite Girl Scout memory in the comments below…and power on fellow cookie-pushers!
~Mavis
**The article listed a pretty impressive group of former Girl Scouts: Laura Bush, Condoleezza Rice, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, Martha Stewart, Venus Williams, Katie Couric, Natalie Morales, Lisa Ling, Taylor Swift, Mariah Carey and Sandra Day O’Connor.
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Colleen says
I was not only a girlscout from brownie to senior, I was also a girl scout camp counselor for two summers when i was 18 & 19. I can genuinely say that those are some of the most memorable summers of my life. I got letters from some of my campers afterwards, which I still have. I also made friends in the US, AND in the UK (we imported counselors, they dont really have summer camp outside the US i guess) that I still talk to 12 years later. I think scouting is important, and I hope they can keep it going.
Mavis says
That’s awesome and I so agree!
Michele says
I was Brownie through Cadette….way back when. There are so many good memories of being a Girl Scout. Day camp during the summer was awesome. One of the leaders had a pet skunk went everywhere with us…the little stinker walked on a leash, and he was so cute.
Mavis says
A skunk? That’s crazy!
Lana says
I was in scouts all the way through and then I was Brownie leader. I loved scouts! I think that families are choosing American Heritage Girls now.
Clifford Hawley says
My wife and I are planning to have our daughter in Girl Scouts. I imagine some of their decline is related to the increasing political polarization of our country. Right-wingers hate the Girl Scouts for various moronic reasons. They tried to boycott GS cookies this year because of a tweet about women leaders. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2014/02/19/girl-scout-cookie-boycott-abortion/5609149/
Katie C says
In my opinion, Girl Scouts should be a program that is fun, encouraging, educational and very nature-minded. Whether I’m left or right wing (or neither. Those two classifications are narrow-minded and old-fashioned), I don’t want to send my child to Girl Scouts where the focus is not the aforementioned. The political/planned parenthood focus and lack of a serious purpose in which children can be engaged, is why we will not participate in Girl Scouts.
Parents that choose how/when their children learn about various complicated issues are not morons. They’re making a choice. Which I’m sure you appreciate being able to do with your child/ren.
If everybody loved everything about Girl Scouts and everything it stood for (politically or otherwise), it would be a thriving program. Natural selection is at work. If enrollment is declining, it’s not a program that people are as interested in anymore. It’ll have to change for the better or die.
A good childhood friend of mine was involved in Girl Scouts and she loved it. I always wanted to join, but had various other activities. Hopefully they find a better focus that will work for all families.
Donna Jantzer says
I totally agree with you Katie. I was a girl scout in the 60’s and 70’s, and my mom was my leader. My daughters were Girl Scouts in the 80’s, and I was their leader. When you are the leader you know what they are learning. We camped and fished and learned arts and crafts like embroidery. I loved it, they loved it. I know exactly what you mean about what is happening now, and I believe that is the reason for the decline. It is sad. Of course I do miss the cookies, as they are getting harder to find.
Carolyn S says
I was a girl scout from Brownie through Senior and went to summer camp every year & also was a CIT (counselor in training) in high school for 2 months at a time (best summers ever). My mother was my leader and I am now the leader to my daughters troop, she also ran the local day camp. I wanted to give this same great experience to my daughter but I had a hard time finding 5 girls interested to form a troop (this is the minimum required to start a troop) but now we have 8 enthusiastic girls who love being scouts. I don’t really see girl scouts in the way you do at all, it is about the experience of the group, skills, camping, fun… not political or religious affiliation. I can tell you that one main reason for the decline is that Moms are working and can’t volunteer their time, and this also means the girls are in after school care till 6pm. The Girl Scout organization also doesn’t seem to be very supportive, I feel they are just trying to make money from the badge books etc that could all be freely accessible online. Also many parents think that sports are more important but I believe that girls get so much confidence & accomplishment from being part of the troop, selling cookies, camping, EARNING badges and learning skills, etc. Being a leader is a time challenging commitment and anyone who does it should be truly appreciated for the time & leadership that they put in for girls.
Pamela Williams says
I too was a girl scout! We were happy just baking cookies with the other scouts, picking up trash at the local park, just hanging out. I started as a Brownie, went to a Junior and on up through the ranks. I now have a daughter and would love her to become a girl scout but…when I spoke to a leader it was all about raising money for this or collecting for that. The girls only met once a month, which would be hard for my daughter to make friends only seeing this group of people once a month. Kids are much busier than we were back then between playing an instrument, sports etc. I am not surprised they are in a decline. I decided a long time ago to start my own program so I did and have had several homeschool families join in. i designed it for families to do at home, individuals and as a group. Boys and girls alike.
Mavis says
Your program sounds great!
Debby Timson says
I was a girl scout as a child for 6 years and leader 8 years with one daughter and 9 years with my other daughter who is a graduating senior(did not do Brownies). The program has changed more in the last 4-5 years, than in my previous 50 years. The journey program was introduced about 5 years ago and the girls immediately groan because it is more like school work, and I don’t blame them, I agree. Camping is fun, as well as out door and many craft/art activities. Most of them have been eliminated, like about 98%. In a few days they are going to allow the girls to ‘vote’ on about ‘4’ out door badges to be added, as they were nearly all eliminated. The new focus is on STEM. Science, technology, engineering and math. Again, school work. They wonder why the girls would rather play sports or maybe dance. They can get a badges for that. I think us as adults we want our daughters and the rest of the girls to have the same experiences we did as scouts. With the new program, that won’t happen for most.
Mavis says
Dang it. That’s so sad to hear!!
Debby says
This attachment is from GSUSA for the girls to vote on what type of outdoor program for badges/skills they want. Before the outdoor program was eliminated, all of these were included. Now they are given the choice to vote to for only one…Meaning they will only get part of the program back. https://jfe.qualtrics.com/form/SV_cUtsr5vSMqKEpLv
Pam says
I was a brownie many decades ago and have find memories of that time. I only quit because I had to wear a (Brownie) dress to school on meeting days, lol! Sadly, I’ve had a couple of friends with daughters say they feel the focus is too much on go-overcome-achieve. Careers are pushed and motherhood is dishonored. I’ve had the career and the stay-at-home mom time and will soon be going back into the workforce. Both are honorable choices. Girls shouldn’t have one view forced down their throats. It does seem that Girl Scouts is too narrow minded to appeal to a wide segment of society. If girls want to do crafts and cook over fires and have some traditional girl choices–why not let them? Isn’t some recreation time good? Why do they have to be preparing for a career? I know there are Scout alternatives out there that are more like the scout programs of yesteryear. If that’s what people are wanting those groups should do well.
Diane says
At the age of 43, Girl Scouts today is not what it used to be when I was a kid. Last year, my daughter was old enough to join as a Daisy (didn’t have Daisies in my days – started with Brownies). I went so far as to agree to be the troop leader. Well let me tell you, it was a HORRIBLE year. While Clifford likes to refer to ‘right-wingers’ as hating the Girl Scouts for ‘moronic reasons’, I challenge your readers to do their own research on the transformation of what this organization has become. It used to be everything you indicated and that’s what I LOVED about it as a kid. It has however sadly become a political machine for the left-wing, tree hugging, a windmill in everyone’s backyard movement. I should have done my research first and then I would not have made the huge mistake of joining this group. The Boy Scouts so far are still normal. We’ll see how long it takes before they’re turned.
Clifford Hawley says
The Boy Scouts are run by a group of dead enders that are slowly being dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century. If by normal you mean discriminatory and bigoted the world is getting less “normal” every year. The Boy Scouts will change and join the new mainstream.
Diane says
There you go again resorting to name calling. Is your argument so weak that the best you can do is resort to name calling? You have an opinion and I will defend your right to express it even it is completely opposite to mine. But I TOO have an opinion and I have a right to hold it without being labeled a bigot or a racist or a moron or whatever else is the standard answer from those left of center that don’t agree with those to the right of center.
Progressives preach tolerance but that only goes so far as agreeing with the progressive thought process. Have a different opinion and you’re a bigot!
Folks, do your homework first before joining any organization from Girl Scouts to Boy Scouts and everything in between.
My friend Clifford, if my believing that abortion should be a rare event in this country (and 8 year old kids shouldn’t be exposed to Planned Parenthood propaganda via the Girl Scouts) makes me a dead ender and a bigot and so old world then I wear those titles with a badge of honor.
Diane says
I so agree with Clifford. My son was going to join (a friend wanted him to, and he did go to a few meetings) but couldn’t bring himself to lie about belief in a god. He’s an atheist and considered not an upright, moral young man. Hogwash!
Mavis says
Oh man. So sad to hear it’s become so political!
Barbara says
I was a Girl Scout from brownie – cadette. My daughter is a second year Brownie and has been in since she was 5. I am a leader with her troop. This is my daughters forth year and she absolutely loves Girl Scouts. She has told me over and over that she will keep doing Girl Scouts forever. I don’t agree with many of the decisions that are made on behalf of Girl Scouts, however, my other leader and I will make our troop the best experience for the girls that they can have. Many girls had never camped before and even with the young girls, we have been both cabin and tent camping. Girl Scouts is all about what is put into it by the leaders.
Mavis says
Thank you for volunteering your time for those girls so they can have such an awesome experience!
Diana says
At GS camp in 5th grade, I learned how to make a loud cat-call whistle. I still regard that as one of the most valuable life-skills ever. And I learned mud management. If you let mud in the door (tent or house), you will end up with mud everywhere. Everywhere. I also learned the words to ‘Both Sides Now’, which at the time I thought was the most beautiful song ever recorded. I still love that song.
susan says
Diana, your memories make me smile. 🙂 I also have great memories of GS and camp. Although I am still jealous of people that can cat-call whistle (and you are correct, IS a valuable life skill), I learned that six girls in a small Subaru (seat belts were not required back then,. and some got to sit in the hatchback area too), singing and moving to the music make the car difficult to steer (according to our leader). I learned the words to “shoo fly pie”, Grandma’s Feather Bed, and the song from MASH. I learned the importance of salt tablets when canoeing for 26 miles. I took a swimming challenge and we spent an afternoon going around a 6 mile lake. I celebrated my birthday at camp once. It was a great day.
Toast and oatmeal (and other very simple foods) taste best when camping and ravenous, don’t they? 🙂
Sigh…. camp…… good times…….:)
Peggy Stenglein says
Girl Scouts has changed. My younger girls are now 14 and 15. We joined as Daisy’s. We left just after Brownies. The troops in my kids age didn’t like to camp, or explore. The meetings were usually 1 hour, and it seemed more like play time than any focused activity. Maybe it was our troop, and the troops around? They no longer have to accomplish a goal, simply ‘try it’. There are a million ‘try it’ badges, and they cost about $2.35 a pop. You could accumulate quite a few or twenty something of these in a school year, then there were weekly dues. It felt more like just shelling out money for play time. I would have loved to have my girls learn about the star consellations and go star gazing with their troop, and learn to make candles from scratch, and camp, and explore. Instead our big trip was an overnight at the zoo. We slept in sleeping bags in the Discovery Center building of the zoo…cool, but there were airbeds, and just crazy running and jumping until bedtime. We were going to go to another troop, but were told up front…’we don’t do camping’. So what was the point? I have done many of the cool things I hoped Girls Scouts would have offered with my kids myself. 🙂
Juli Maiuri says
As a troop leader of going on 8 years, I think that the GS program is what you make of it! If you are excited about the program, the girls will be too. And please don’t forget about camping, as it is an essential part of Girl Scouts. There is few things more exciting to me than picking up my girls at camp and they are so independent and so excited about the things that they got to do! More recently, I also became staff (my husband has been for a number of years) so I welcome any questions that you may have!
Carla says
My girls were in Girl Scouts for about 8 years. They loved it when they were small but became increasingly disappointed as they got older and more aware about the emphasis on feminism and the Planned Parenthood connection. They already knew they were amazing young women and did not enjoy the political correctness that is pervasive in the Girl Scout movement.
Julie Holbrook says
I was a girl scout leader for 6 years from brownies through juniors. I’ll tell you the problem for us was getting parents to be involved. I had almost 20 girls in my troop and only two other adults (my co-leader and one parent) that I could count on every time. I heard time and time again that they worked and needed some ‘me’ time, so they wouldn’t be available to do x, y,z. My co-leader and I both worked full time and still made scouts a priority. The thing about scouting is that it forces you to spend quality time with your kids and their friends if you’re doing things right. It might not seem like anything ‘special’ but I have heard from my old boy scouts that they appreciate all the time we had together and they remember us encouraging them to make good choices. Something simple like a camp out can mean the world to a kid . Scout leaders can’t do all the work. It’s sad, but like all things if it’s important to people they will step up and get involved. If not, it goes by the way side.
Marie says
I was a Brownie through Senior scout. Even a “survival camper” in a city park with a cash of goods I had made and stored in a tree for my overnight adventure, 3matches & a tin cup to retrieve water from a stream. And…of course my trusty knife. I then had the program so pumped up in my daughter’s brain when I became a leader for her troop that we tried to do everything imaginable from selling enough cookies in the ferry lanes to field trips across our state. They suddenly lost interest as it became too much work! Really? Open your eyes and smell the adventures! Campfires with the best s’mores on earth, kayaking, sleeping outdoors, hiking around the Cascades, being still with oneself in nature. Work-yes. An experience of a lifetime-yes. Volunteerism-yes-the good, the bad & those that say they will but don’t at the last minute. Every activity needs a financial base with supporting pillars. Don’t let this organization fade away. I have two granddaughters and we are going to hike up the hills when they grow older- badges or not. Someone lit my flame, I lit others-now how about you?!
janet says
I was a Girl Scout till high school, First class, if they still have that! I loved scouts and have great memories of camp! I always buy a case of cookies every year to support a wonderful organization!
Pam says
Was in from 2nd grade to high school. When we moved from the “urban” to the “suburban” a little over a year ago, I though it’d be great to get involved as a leader. Closest troop to me is 92 miles away. When I made inquiries about starting a troop closer to home, it was about as popular as leprosy. Very sad that many young girls will miss out on some of the great memories I have from my years in Scouts. Guess for many, if it doesn’t come with a smart phone and/or a computer, it’s just not interesting.
Emily says
I agree with some of the other commenters. We were in Girl Scouts before and after the journey program was implemented-what a pain it is! It is very STEM oriented which not all the girls are interested in. It is also very business oriented so they can sell cookies. Not to mention the new program is complex and requires a lot of time investment from leaders to just prepare for the meetings. And the cookies, what a rip off! $6 a box and GS admin is so top heavy the girls get $.75 of that. I got to a point as a leader I felt like admin was way out of touch with what leaders needed to facilitate and what the girls wanted that I couldn’t do it anymore.
Cindy says
I loved brownies and girl scouts. Camp was great but earning my badges was the highlight for me. Cooking, sewing, hiking, volunteering and on and on. I learned a lot of new things and my leaders were awesome women. I am sorry the club is on the decline.
Tracie H says
I started as a Brownie and continued through Cadette in the eighties. Every year for camp we stayed in a “shelter”, it had four posts a roof and a wooden floor that we put our sleeping bags on! We made our dinner of soup in Folgers cans and baked potatoes in the campfire. We learned how to treat the flag by doing colors every morning and night. Some of my best memories! Unfortunately, I have to agree with the others that Girl Scouts is not what it used to be. When my daughter was old enough to join we finally decided that we would just do all of the things my husband and I remembered from our days of scouts as a family because it just wasn’t the same.
Nan C says
My 8 yr old is in her 3rd year of Girl Scouts – it took a lot to find her a troop and then last year her troop disbanded. She loves her new group (she loved her other group too). They do a lot of outdoor/camping things and she absolutely LOVES it – last weekend they camped outside (in the cold and rain). Her leaders are awesome and love it and it shows! I never did Girl Scouts – camping and the outdoors are definitely not my thing (I’d rather go to jail for the weekend). It’s not cheap to belong ($50 + per year) and day camp was over $200 for the week (overnight camp runs around $500) but she loves it and it’s learning experiences that she will never have with me….I don’t see to many politics but there were some parent leaders in her last group that were in my opinion horrific and pushy with there views/ideology (they were actually right-wing wackos, not crazy liberals) (thank God they weren’t her leader). Overall I definitely give it a thumbs up!
Vy says
I was in Girl Scouts in Alaska, we made little footie bags for the sled dogs for a local racer 🙂
Mavis says
That sounds pretty cool to me!
Peggy Stenglein says
Awesome!
Daisy says
I did brownies for a couple years, and I will always remember selling those cookies, and then eating them in the back of the car. Also learning how to make ice cream and candles at camp, learned to ride a horse, spent the night at the franklin in statue museum in the storm room. Girl scouts really helped shape a lot of random skills that I have now, and good memories.
Lea says
I was a Girl Scout leader for a number of years while my daughter was interested in being a Girl Scout. I believe one of the main reasons that volunteerism is down is a very simple reason. Most families: 1 parent – works all the time; 2 parents – both work all the time. Even though the daughters could still be in Girl Scouts – leaders need to have a good deal of time to devote to planning, organizing. Even when the girls get to an age where they are doing the planning and organizing, adult leadership is still a must. Many women just do not have the time to devote to anything outside work and home. When I was a leader, the council “insisted” that just being a leader was not enough – they wanted me to also train adults. So, I volunteered for that as well even though I worked full time. Then at one point, I was told I was not doing enough and should give up my daughter’s troop. That was not even an option for me. I loved leading a troop, taking them camping, on trips, helping shape the girls to be leaders in their community. Unfortunately, troop membership dwindled as the girls became teens and wanted to be more involved with school activities. It was a sad day when the troop meeting had 2 girls – my daughter and my co-leader’s daughter. That is when we disbanded the troop. I tried my best to keep my daughter interested in continuing on her own but it just did not work out.
Diane says
I was a Camp Fire Girl instead of a Girl Scout. From Kindergarten (Blue Bird) up into middle school. The Girl Scouts in my area didn’t do the outdoorsy stuff the Camp Fire Girls did. They were the “popular” girls and it was more a social club. The Camp Fire Girls had a camp with horses!
Lindsay Burden says
I JUST signed my daughter up for her first DAISY troop yesterday 🙂 We are SO excited. I hope she will create some of the fond memories you describe.
Margery says
The change in the programming definitely was not a positive, that being said it is what the leaders make of it. My daughter is in 9th grade and the troop she is in is a small one of about 8-10 girls grade 7-12. They might complete one journey a year. But what they do as a troop is canoe team ( they practice all year and then race against other scout troops), traveled to England to meet with girls and boys from around the world this summer, help lead the Daisy troop, go camping regularly, cook and clean for local SERTOMA meetings, local horse shows, the fair and more. They earn a lot of there money cooking. I like to say I have one daughter who has moved on to adulthood and one still in the troop when they leave they will have seen some of the world ( older daughter went to Switzerland) , will be able to cook a meal for a crowd, serve food and clean up, treat adults and younger children correctly, no fear of public speaking and so much more. They may not have a lot of badges but they sure learn a lot and make some live long friends of all ages.
Stefanie @ The Broke and Beautiful Life says
I was a girl scout- an Eagle scout in fact- but with the Ukrainian scouting organization rather than the American version. I know what gives me pause about signing my future children up is the strong religious focus (at least in our version).
Michelle says
I was a Girl Scout for a couple of years, a loooong time ago, in a little town in upstate New York. My Father was in the military and we moved away and I never found another troop. Years later, when I tried to get my daughter involved the Counsel in S.E. Virginia was not at all supportive of the Daisy program and when she came of age for Brownies no one would return my calls.
Heather says
I was a girl scout as a kid. I planned on putting our (now college-aged) daughter in it, but they didn’t have enough leaders back then. So, we joined 4-H and did the craft club (and then sewing). I am proud to say that I have now been a leader for 10 years (even though our daughter obviously has aged out of 4-H).
Dana says
I heard a follow up on this that the decline is due to lack of troop leaders. They have a large number of girls wanting to join and no space for them.
Mavis says
If that is true, it makes me so sad!
Beth says
I’ve heard that too, not enough leaders. So I was very happy to find out that there was a little Daisy troop starting in our town and I enrolled my daughter in it. She likes it a lot, the cost has been minimal, and we meet once a week. Going to the meetings are a blessing when you have 3 brothers and no sisters!
Julie kaylor says
Kinda late for me to chime in ,but here in Nevada my niece and her friend wanted to join ,they got the paper work from the school and were very excited about it , then her friend told us her parents said NO because the cost was to high , so my mom took a look at it because when I was in it it was about 5$ a month , so long story short it was hundreds of dollars to join ,both my mom and I were flabbergasted to say the least , we read and read over it thinking it must be uniforms or something but NO and this is why my niece is not in scouts sad but true
Debby says
Our troop charged nothing. Our girls are now Ambassadors 11 & 12th grade. There is always registration fee – appx $15. New troops start with nothing. Some leaders opt to request a fee per girl rather than monthly dues. Some will set it as low as $10 and maybe $50 or more. Some will include the cost of books(appx. $17 for the guide and each journey packet is more) and uniforms. Some may ask for make up fees due a planned trip and insufficient funds for the additional girl/s. Some troops will have funds built up and charge nothing. Another option is to charge as they go – trips, activities, supplies, ect.