If LG Girl Scouts Save Hut Membership Woes Still Linger

As the legal process to preserve The Hut for the local Girl Scouts continues (see stories in both issues of the Record last week), troop leaders are looking ahead at the future of the organization if the preservation of the property is successful.

“One thing many people may not realize is Girl Scout troops are almost entirely led by volunteers—most often parents and grandparents of the girls in the troop,” said Michelle Messer, a long-time troop leader and parent of a senior girl scout. “As those girls grow up and graduate, their troop leaders naturally step away as well. That’s the season we’re entering now. Many of our long-time leaders have dedicated years, and in some cases decades, to Girl Scouting, and many of our girls are older, some graduating.”

If there aren’t any young scouts to replace graduating seniors as they leave each year, there will eventually be no more scouts to keep the organization running. This is an issue the Girl Scouts of Fayette County is facing.

“Currently, we have no elementary school age girls in scouts,” Messer said.

The enrollment numbers for the Girl Scouts of Fayette County took a hit after the pandemic, and without girls to fill it, the preservation of The Hut won’t matter.

“If our community is successful in preserving The Hut, our next challenge will be ensuring it continues to be filled with the laughter, learning, and friendships that have defined it for generations,” Messer said. “This will require a new generation of parents, grandparents, and other caring adults to step forward as troop leaders and volunteers—and it will also require new girls and families to discover all that Girl Scouting has to offer.”

For more information or to register as a scout or troop leader, go to girlscouts.org.