7/24/2019 Media response from the Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri

1/1

Thank you for reaching out and providing Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri the opportunity to answer your

questions. We are extremely proud of the great work Girl Scouts do in their communities. We will

continue to deliver the mission of Girl Scoutingto build girls of courage, confidence, and character,

who make the world a better placeto girls and young women of every background in eastern Missouri.

Were we surprised?

We were disappointed in the Archdiocese of St. Louis decision. Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri has

enjoyed a history of cooperation with the Archdiocese of St. Louis for almost 100 years. In fact, an early

religious scouting awardthe Marian Award, which is one of the highest honors for Catholic girls

originated with our Council in 1957. Although we are a secular organization, we greatly value our long-

standing partnerships with religious organizations across many faiths.

Does this change anything?For Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri, we will continue as usual. Our focus remains true to our mission of

building girls of courage, confidence and character who make our world a better place. The

Archdioceses position will not sway us from our mission. Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri serves over

43,000 girls with the support of over 15,000 adult volunteers in the City of St. Louis and 28 surrounding

counties in eastern Missouri. It is because of this support that we have remained one of the largest and

strongest Girl Scout Councils in the nation.

How many Girl Scout Troops or girls will potentially be affected?

There are over 4,000 Girl Scouts whose troops meet in Catholic churches, but this figure does not

include all of the amazing Catholic girls who attend public schools and participate in Girl Scouts. We

provide opportunities for girls to build leadership skills that when combined with their faith formation,develop them into strong women, who will lead in their homes, communities, our country and our

world.

How will this affect Cookie?

I believe the community as they have generously done over the years will continue to support the Girl

Scout Cookie program. Girls gain valuable social and leadership skills and the Girl Scout Cookie Program

is the most anticipated and participated-in activity in Girl Scouting.

The concerns expressed by the Archdiocese of St. Louis involve adult issues and are not appropriate to

discuss with children. I hope the conversation is one that will remain between adults. Confrontations

with our girls would be unacceptable.

We find it highly disappointing that anyone would boycott Girl Scouts in an effort to further their

agenda. Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri is a nonprofit organization with a nearly century-long history of

providing girls with opportunities to build the skills they need to become our next generation of leaders.

In eastern Missouri we serve over 43,000 girls with support from more than 15,000 adult volunteers.