(no subject)

[rivka]

Alex has really been looking forward to becoming a Girl Scout when she hits kindergarten age. (They've redone the age levels since I was a kid - it used to be that you didn't start until first grade, when you were a Brownie. Now they have Daisy Girl Scouts for grades K-1 and Brownies for grades 2-3.)

We recently joined a local homeschooling group, and they have an all-ages Girl Scout troop with clusters of girls at each level (and a "tag-along club" for boys, which is nice). I e-mailed the leader to ask if we could visit a troop meeting even though Alex isn't technically of age yet. She wrote back immediately to say that the troop is really only just getting started, and in fact they're having their Investiture ceremony on Thursday, and did Alex want to just visit or would she like to join now?

I just got another e-mail from her with information about preparing for Investiture. We'll need to go out and buy Alex a uniform and insignia. But here's the part that brought tears to my eyes:

The girls are working on their Promise and Law Patch. Girl Scouts are an all inclusive organization, meaning that there are many ways to say the 3 fold promise. It is a very personal thing. I have introduced the promise, omitting part of it to include all the girls, regardless of beliefs. Now it's upto you the parent to help your daughter to personalize it.

I will include the promise in the entirety. Please go over it with your daughter and decide which version works best for your family. Thanks

On My Honor I will Try
To Serve ________ And My Country ( Option: To Serve My Country)
To Help Other People At All Times
And to Live By the Girl Scout Law

The Blank could be: Science, God, Mother Earth, Allah, Hashem, My Ancestors, Buddha, etc.

I was a Girl Scout when I was a kid, and then I was a Girl Scout Camp counselor. They were an awesome organization then, committed to feminism and inclusion, but I have to say it looks like they're even more awesome now.

Comments

[hobbitbabe.livejournal.com]

That does sound awesome. How much is the wider organisation and how much is this troop, maybe doesn't matter.

When I was a Brownie and a Guide, it was "Godthequeenandmycountry". When Martha was a Brownie, it was "myself, my faith, and Canada". I loved that - especially the order.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

Girl Scouts USA explicitly declared that the "God" in the promise was optional and could be replaced by another word Scouts were more comfortable with, back in 1993. (Sadly, some troops schism-ed and formed something called "American Heritage Girls," where they could be assured of the right to exclude.)

I am sure that there are many local troops in which the right to not say "God" is never brought up - much less an open discussion of the personal nature of the oath, and an explicit invitation to choose the right words for you. This troop seems cool.