Kids can’t make THAT much of a difference, can they? Is it possible for a 6-13 year old girl to really change anything in society? Of COURSE they can! Over the next few weeks this column will feature many of the different Girl Scout troops around Glen Ellyn. Focusing on the time and effort that these girls put into our community might open the door for others to do the same, and the girls will feel a sense of recognition for all the contributions they make. Stay tuned over the next few weeks to see what a difference the girls in Glen Ellyn are making!
The different levels of Girl Scouts are Daisies, Brownies, Junior Girl Scouts, Cadets, and Seniors. Each level earns different types of badges through various activities that teach the girls life lessons and skills. Daisies earn petals to form a daisy flower on their smocks, Brownies earn Try-It badges that form hexagonal shapes on their vests or sashes, Juniors earn various different junior badges depending on what events they participate in, and Cadets/Seniors/Ambassadors earn Interest Project awards, according to the Girl Scouts website.
Kindergarten Daisy troop #2173, based out of St. Petronille School, consists of 25 wonderful and loving girls who’ve been a part of something bigger than themselves since at least this past January, when they joined their Daisy Girl Scouts troop.
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Leader Colleen Helenhouse puts in the effort with three other moms to teach these girls about responsibility, serving their community, and general overall life lessons. So far this year the girls have participated in events such as being a Good Girl Scout Sister, which earned them a petal for their Daisy. In this exercise, the girls created vignettes to display the proper ways to treat each other and to be socially responsible. They also expanded their creativity and learned to respect authority by entering the kitchen at Barone’s Pizza and taking directions on making their own pizzas, which the girls enjoyed afterward. In addition to these events, Troop 2173 also attended an event at Cosley Zoo in Wheaton to earn their considerate and caring petal by learning how to care for the animals and to be considerate toward nature. To honor those who support their endeavors, the Daisy girls helped host a “Mom’s Tea” at a recent bridging ceremony. The girls honored their moms at the tea and thanked them for helping out throughout their first Girl Scout endeavors.
Next year the troop is looking forward to focusing on a lemonade stand at the school in an effort to learn forethought, planning, and forecasting.
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When asked about potential future endeavors, Ms. Helenhouse said, “I have to look more into it, but I’m thinking things like holding a tea for the older generation in the church congregation and doing a food drive for local shelters. I’m always looking for suggestions, but we’d like to do something to bridge the gap between the church and the school here [at St. Pet’s].”
She added, “My biggest focus right now, and advice to parents, is to keep the girls in it as long as possible. We had multiple different troops at the bridging and the girls didn’t split up into smaller groups, everyone wanted to hold everyone else’s hand and be friends. I thought if we can keep them together this way, they won’t feel the need to put each other down as they get older.”