spark | take action
A nonpartisan initiative to inspire, prepare, and mobilize girls and those who care about them to lead positive change through civic action. The year 2020 has already fundamentally changed the way we do things: attend school, participate in faith services, and go to Girl Scout troop meetings. We have endured a global pandemic, racial tensions, and and natural disasters. These situations have not been completely resolved, but we have have emerged stronger because we have worked together to persevere and withstand these experiences. Girls have been on the forefront of being part of the solution to these challenges.
could easily play with their peers, and Kiki wanted to allow the children’s service dogs (and dogs in general) a safe place they could run free while being close to their owners. Their dual goals have become a reality in summer 2020!
Why? Because they are G.I.R.L.s.
Interacting with elected officials and administrative civil servants was quite a learning experience for them. Kiki explained that she has “really learned how our community works, and that is pretty cool. You get to go to meetings and see how the town is run and how the township officials listen to the community members.”
When you're a G.I.R.L. (Go-getter, Innovator, Risktaker, Leader)™ you do great things. You believe in taking action and righting the wrongs you see. You believe we are more powerful together than we are apart. Stand Up. Step Up. Get Involved. You, too, can be part of the G.I.R.L. Agenda, a nonpartisan initiative to inspire, prepare, and mobilize girls and those who care about them to lead positive change through civic action. All the good deeds you do—the Bronze, Silver, and Gold Award projects you complete or the Take Action community service you work on—are part of the G.I.R.L. Agenda. Whether you’re being a good neighbor, participating in school activities, addressing concerns in the community, or taking your quests for positive transformation to the local, state, national, or international level, you are the catalyst for change. Get Inspired. Get Prepared. Get Mobilized. Visit the Civic Engagement section under the About page at girlscouts.org for more info & suggestions! Want to see girls in our own region Stand Up, Step Up, and Take Action? Check this out: Troopmates Katie M. and Kiki L. both had phenomenal ideas for their Gold Award projects about how to transform a local park: Katie had a vision of making the park handicapped accessible so kids like her
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Discover much more online at gsep.org!
But, what did the girls discover was necessary for their dream to come to fruition? They had to partner with North Whitehall Township in Lehigh County and work with various departments in local government to make it all happen.
Katie described the process of gaining approval for the park updates: “There’s a lot of groups, committees, and staff I’ve had to go in front of and basically sell them on the idea first, including the North Whitehall Board of Supervisors, the Township Manager, the Township Engineer and the Park and Recreation Board.” Kiki also shared that she “was surprised that all these folks are part of local government.” She added, “I didn’t think that there would be that many different people involved.” Because the girls had to talk with so many varied groups, they ended up with a lot of practice sharing the story and goals for the park. Katie said that working on this project with local authorities has “allowed me to come out of my shy shell and taught me to be more communicative because I’ve had to advocate for myself and others. I’ve had to do it to get what the park needs.” Kiki agreed with her troopmate that working on a community development plan like this has also helped her build her communications abilities. She explained that “we were really nervous presenting to the Township Board of Supervisors the first time,
