Executive Editor

In light of the challenges to teen and adolescent girls who are either missing their friends or facing self doubt about their education and life experiences due to the ongoing pandemic, the Girl Scouts Heart of Michigan (GSHOM) council is finding ways to reconvene.

In Calhoun County, the Girl Scouts will hold two free family events called Mystery in the Park in Battle Creek and one each in Marshall and Albion, said Calhoun County Girl Scout Co-Chair Joann Germinder, who shares duties with Co-Chair Lauren Vining.

The dates and locations are Saturday, Sept. 26 at Station 66 from 2-4 p.m. and 6-7:30 p.m. and on Monday, Sept. 28 at Leila Arboretum’s Fantasy Forest from 6-7:30 p.m.

The Marshall event will be Thursday, Sept. 30 at Ketchum Park from 6-7:30 p.m. and the Albion event will be Wednesday, Sept. 29 at Victory Park from 6-7:30 p.m.

“These events will be for current and interested girls and their families,” explained Germinder.  

The event will be a scavenger hunt where the Tarjar (fictional character) has lost the marshmallow for the s’mores.  

“In family groups and socially distanced,” said Germinder, “they will follow clues to lead them to each station and then solve a mystery/puzzle at each that will ultimately lead to the location of the marshmallow.”

Girls can go to any event,” said Germinder. “It's for girls and their families.”

Due to the virus, the Girl Scouts Heart of Michigan has issued guidelines that girls should not be transported together in cars.

“This event will have a variety of stations that work with STEM activities and problem solving skills,” said membership specialist, Krytal Prince, “to seek out the clues to solve the mystery. I do believe that they will be excited to join a troop and learn more about Girl Scouts.”

To join a troop for one year, it is $35 per girl and $25 per adult there is financial assistance available. 

The adult membership includes a paid background check.

Leaders throughout the council who attended a virtual kickoff heard CEO Jan Barker share the results of her research into what girls need.

“The virus clearly has an effect on girls,” Barker told the leaders. “And, it’s really important that we understand that if we know the effect from the virus that we can understand our important role in assisting girls in coping and thriving through the COVID outbreak.”

Locally, said Germinder, troops have been finding ways to engage the members.

In Battle Creek, there are 10 troops while in Marshall, Albion, Homer and Athens there is one each.

“Our current troops have been doing some amazing ways to help the girls socialize over the past months and plan to in the future,” said Germinder, “until they can completely socialize again.”

Some of them are having Zoom meetings where girls can just talk and see each other.

“Even our youngest Daisies have been able to feel connected this way,” said Germinder.  

Troops are using Zoom and other resources, and continue to work on Badges such as their cooking badge. 

Leaders delivered to girls’ porches ingredients that the girls needed to use in their recipes and then they would have a Zoom so everyone got to see their creations (and their parents had to taste test the results for them.)  

“Troops have donated cookies to the front line workers and other hometown heroes,” Germinder said.

According to Barker, Girls, particularly adolescents and teens, find their validation through friends.  

“And, especially girlfriends,” said Barker, “and isolation has caused extreme separation and it’s distanced girls from the much needed social interaction.”

She said it’s distanced them from one another, so, this lack of social support and peer group validation is a major concern.

“You may have heard girls say, ‘I miss my friends.’ That’s really a huge point for girls because they are such social humans,” said Barker. “Some things that I think Girl Scouting can help with in a tremendous way, to connect girls, its important that our volunteers find out how to have Zoom (online meeting program) meetings or how to have events where they can socially distance, maybe meet at a park.”

That’s why Girl Scouting, she added, “is so powerfully important right now because I think we can lift up girls’ mental health, we can create a sense of normalcy that the girls might not find in another place.

“So,” Barker added, “I think our job is to help leaders really share not only their skills but what’s really important right now is that they just have a chance to see each other, talk to each other, engage with each other and lift one another up.”

It’s really important and that’s what Girl Scouting does, according to the council CEO.

“We owe it to our girls to connect them,” said Barker to the leaders. 

Barker said she has virtually been in on some of the girls’ Bridging ceremonies (moving up to then next Girl Scout level.) 

“Along with that lack of social support, I think another area that’s really important,” said Barker, “there’s this loss of a sense of structure and organization that can create confusion and worry for some girls, especially girls who are very orderly minded.”

The other thing that’s worrying girls, said Barker, is the loss of stimulation. 

“That’s provided by that educational environment,” she said, “so in addition to being without their friends, that educational environment helps girls’ mental acuity and brain development.”

The learning void and educational stimulation can also affect a girl’s sense of confidence and belief in her mental ability, her research revealed.

“So, if the thinks she’s missing out and that she’s regressing educationally,” explained Barker, “that can cause her to have lack of confidence in her own mental being and really create a sense of fear of failing to learn or they feel this ‘I’m losing my intelligence’ or ultimately, they can feel like ‘I’m not very smart.’”

She encouraged leaders and other volunteers to ask their Girl Scouts what they learned that day or event what got them excited.

“Or, ‘what did you learn today about the out of doors? Did you see a bird you didn’t know?’” suggested Barker. “Try to identify some areas outside of the educational realm. It doesn’t have to be math, science and social studies, it can be tree identification, or geology or something as simple as collecting some tadpoles and watching them grow legs and becoming frogs so I think if leaders will take what they love and are enthusiastic about learning and understanding and just share that with the girls so they feel they’re still growing and they won’t lose confidence in their own mental attainment.”