Girls
from Troop 2500, part of the Cumberland Valley Girl Scout Council in
Nashville, Tenn., simulate a horse's field of view as they prepare to
take a ride at Camp Sycamore Hills, a Girl Scout camp in Ashland City.
“The opportunities for girls involved in Girl Scouts are endless,”
Judith Plummer, troop leader, said. “They learn about themselves and
their strengths, and about others. They learn how to cooperate and
organize to get things done. Working together with other girls gives
them opportunities to try new things and new behaviors. A UMNS photo by
Mike DuBose. Photo number 03-298, Accompanies UMNS #440, 9/16/03
No Long Caption Available for this Story
Girls
Scouts from Troop 2500, part of the Cumberland Valley Girl Scout
Council in Nashville, Tenn., get ready for a horse ride at Camp Sycamore
Hills, a Girl Scout camp in Ashland City. Judith Plummer, troop leader
and a member of Belmont United Methodist Church, says the concept of
family -- that all Girl Scouts are sisters -- is important. The
denomination’s Tennessee Annual (regional) Conference has formed an
alliance with the Cumberland Valley Girl Scout Council, which has 26,000
members and 8,000 volunteers. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose. Photo number
03-297, Accompanies UMNS #440, 9/16/03
No Long Caption Available for this Story
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - When Sarah was 7, she got 17 sisters.
It happened when she joined the Girl Scouts and became a Brownie.
The
United Methodist Church has a long history as a supporter of scouting.
In 1996, the church formed a partnership with the national Girl Scouts
organization, committing all United Methodist churches to hosting or
supporting a Girl Scout group.
In August, United Methodists and
Girl Scout leaders in Tennessee formed an alliance in hopes of providing
a model that other faith groups could use in hosting scout troops.
Judith
Plummer, scout leader for Troop 2500 and a member of Belmont United
Methodist Church, says the concept of family - that all Girl Scouts are
sisters - is important to her troop.
"I'll never forget the day
when I had gone in to pick up my children from Eakin (elementary school
in Nashville) and I overheard one of my Brownies, Sarah, say loudly to a
classmate, 'I do too have 17 sisters! Hey, there's my leader. Just ask
her!'"
The denomination's Tennessee Annual (regional) Conference
formed the alliance with the Cumberland Valley Girl Scout Council, which
has 26,000 members and 8,000 volunteers. The Commission on United
Methodist Men, responsible for scouting programs in the church, has a
representative on the alliance.
Jean Lyon, a troop leader and
member of Belle Meade United Methodist Church, has participated in the
discussions between the Tennessee Conference and the Cumberland Valley
Girl Scout Council.
The national agreement makes forming the
alliance and helping troops find a place to meet easier, Lyon said.
"People are not tapping into the national level," she said. "It makes a
lot of sense to let the church and the Girl Scouts know what is going on
and finds ways to help each other."
Belle Meade had as many as
14 troops operating in the church at one time, said Lyon, who has been
involved in scouting for many years.
"Scouting is a ministry opportunity for the church," she said.
"I'm
excited about the alliance forming," said Larry Coppock, national
director of civic youth ministries for the United Methodist Church. "I
believe it will really help promote the Girl Scout program in the
church. We hope that Cumberland Valley's model will be the first of many
around the country."
Girl Scout volunteers, including United
Methodist scouting coordinators and members of the Commission on United
Methodist Men, met Aug. 28 with Valeri Otey-Nellis, adult development
manager and diversity specialist with the Girl Scout Council.
Otey-Nellis
said the alliance could be a model for the Girl Scouts in developing
closer relationships with other faith communities.
"We selected
the United Methodist Church to begin this effort because we already have
approximately 35 churches hosting Girl Scout troops," she said. "The
Tennessee Conference and the General Commission on United Methodist Men
have also been very supportive of Girl Scouting."
During the
meeting at the Girl Scout office in Nashville, the group agreed to take
several steps to strengthen the relationship, including: ·
Encouraging representatives of Cumberland Valley Girl Scouts to hold
workshops or provide information centers at meetings of United Methodist
Men where scouting is discussed. · Beginning conversations with
United Methodist Women in the Tennessee Conference to discover how the
organizations can help each other. · Seeking ways in which Girl
Scouts can participate in "Warmth in Winter," a Tennessee Conference
youth gathering in late February. · Recruiting district coordinators
in Nashville and other Tennessee cities - Murfreesboro, Columbia,
Fayetteville, Franklin, Clarksville and Cookeville. · Developing a 2004 Interfaith Retreat.
Studio
2B, a new program from the 3.9 million-member Girl Scouts of the USA,
empowers teen girls to design their own program experience through
interest groups, clubs or troop meetings. Meeting in age groups of
11-13, 13-15 and 15-17, the girls engage in "high adventure" outdoor
recreation, such as mountain climbing and rafting, along with career
development and other activities. The alliance hopes a Studio 2B
activity can be introduced to youth during the Warmth in Winter retreat.
"The
opportunities for girls involved in Girl Scouts are endless," Plummer
said. "They learn about themselves, their strengths, and about others.
They learn how to cooperate and organize to get things done. Working
together with other girls gives them opportunities to try new things and
new behaviors.
"I have come to learn that the United Methodist
Church is progressive and proactive," she said. "I like that. The
opportunities for growth and fulfillment for adults and youth are
limitless."
Jim Hardin, Tennessee Conference scouting
coordinator, said every local church should have a scouting coordinator
responsible for four youth programs - Boy Scouts of America, Girl Scouts
of the USA, Camp Fire USA and 4H. The coordinators serve as liaisons
between the youth organizations and the church, and they coordinate
these programs with church activities. The volunteer coordinator also
serves on the church council and encourages participation in "God and
Country" and "Good Samaritan" award programs.
Hardin said he is
recruiting sub-district scouting coordinators who will be responsible
for four or five churches. Members of the alliance suggested that would
be a way to encourage churches to host Girl Scout troops. # # # *Richard J. Peck, communications coordinator for the Commission on United Methodist Men, contributed information for this story.
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