GIRL SCOUTS CELEBRATE LEADERSHIP DURING GIRL SCOUT WEEK

CONTACT:

Sharon Bellinger

sbellinger@gsofct.org

860-522-0163, ext. 3244

Girl Scouts ask you to wear your pearls as a sign of unity.

Conn, Girl Scouts of Connecticut joins Girl Scouts around the nation to make the

world a better place and celebrate Girl Scout Week, March 8-14. The week

honors the 97th anniversary of Girl Scouting in the United States, which falls on

March 12.

Connecticut's 46,000 Girl Scout members will celebrate in a variety of ways; from

religious services in some communities on the first day - designated as Girl Scout

Sunday - to brunches, special troop events and other activities. Girl Scouts

across Connecticut will also be distributing Girl Scout cookies ordered in January

and gathering at Westfield Shoppingtown Trumbull and Enfield Square to

celebrate Pi Day (3.14), while spreading the word of Girl Scouting in their

communities.

It was on March 12, 1912 that Juliette Gordon Low founded Girl Scouting and

registered the first 18 girls into her new organization, called Girl Guides, in

Savannah, Georgia. The first troop in New England, and most likely in the

country, was in Litchfield in that same year, with Mrs. Baillie Ripley as their

leader. As with many grass root organizations, funding was a problem so Juliette

decided to sell her necklace of rare, matched pearls to fund the early days of Girl

Scouting in the USA.

In honor of Juliette and the spirit of Girl Scouting, all Girl Scouts, past and

present, are encouraged to participate in the celebration and reconnect with

today's Girl Scouting. In addition, everyone who has ever been associated with

Girl Scouts is asked to wear pearls as part of a statewide campaign to identify

women of all ages who have been positively impacted by the Girl Scout

experience. Those interested in reconnecting with the organization are invited to

join the newly created Alumnae Association. Information can be found on the

website www.gsofct.org or by emailing Deirdre DiCara, Director of Alumnae

Relations at ddicara@gsofct.org.

Girl Scouts has continued the traditions, resourcefulness, and mission to provide

what girls need to succeed. Every community is grateful to Girl Scouts for the

good they do, and to its volunteers and supporters for making Girl Scouting

possible locally. Helping girls to discover their strengths through impacting their

communities was what Girl Scout founder Juliette Gordon Low instilled from the

earliest days.

Girl Scouts, in keeping with its tradition of meeting the changing needs of girls,

proudly presents the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, a curriculum that fosters

specific leadership qualities such as self-esteem, positive values, critical thinking,

community spirit, and the ability to educate and inspire. The Girl Scout

Leadership