Girl Scouts of North East Ohio

The mission of the Girl Scouts of North East Ohio is to build girls of courage, confidence and character — and who make the world a better place.

“One of the things that I love about Girl Scouting is that it is proactive in addressing the development and needs of young girls in our community,” said Daisy L. Alford-Smith, chief executive officer of the Girl Scouts of North East Ohio. “Our leadership development program is so compelling because we help girls develop a strong sense of self through a variety of activities, which enables them to make wise choices for themselves now and in the future.”

For example, the Scouting financial literacy program teaches girls the fundamentals of goal setting, budgeting and entrepreneurship, providing a strong basis for future economic self-sufficiency, she said.

In 2007, five Ohio Girl Scout councils merged to become Girl Scouts of North East Ohio. The new council continues to offer girls and adults a wide variety of leadership development opportunities.

According to GSNEO, the realignment eliminates the duplication of efforts and supports growth and innovation in membership services, advocacy and fundraising and strengthens core services such as girl and volunteer development, programming, community outreach and partnerships.

The group serves 40,000 girls (ages 5-17) and 14,000 adults in 18 counties, including Cuyahoga, Lake, Geauga, Summit, Portage, Medina, Ashtabula, Mahoning, Trumbull, Columbiana, Stark, Carroll, Tuscarawas, Lorain, Erie, Huron, Sandusky and Seneca.

The South Service Center, on Applegrove Street NW in North Canton, services 4,200 girls and 1,500 adults in Stark, Carroll and Tuscarawas counties. There are about 600 troops. Great Trail Girl Scout Camp in Minerva is the only camping facility in Stark County.

Highlights in Stark County include the pre-kindergarten- and kindergarten-age girls who receive an introduction to Girl Scouts through the “Daisy by Mail” program. During the summer, each girl receives activities by mail that she can complete with her family. At the end of the summer, the council celebrates each girl’s achievements at a graduation ceremony.

The council also conducts in-school and after-school programming in elementary and middle schools throughout the county.

Monthly programming at the Multi-County Juvenile Attention Center on Faircrest Street SW in Canton Township helps girls learn the benefits of developing healthy relationships with their peers and adults, evaluate past decisions and set positive goals for the future.

Service to the community is a fundamental part of the traditions of Girl Scouts. Scouting teaches girls the importance of giving back to their communities through its Year of Service program, in which girls participate in a different service-related project each month. Most recently, Scouts collected more than 5,000 pairs of old athletic shoes to donate to the Nike Reuse-a-Shoe program. The shoes are ground up and used to make playground and sport surfaces.

WHO: Girl Scouts of North East Ohio

WHAT: Girl Scouts

BOARD MEMBERS: Karen McQueen, chairman; Jacqueline Silas-Butler, first vice chairman; Roberta Uhrich, second vice chairman; Lynda Rossiter, treasurer; and Dan Bragg, secretary. Members-at-large are Fred Cash, Brenda Heidinger, Carole Mount, Joan Villarreal, Theresa Beyerle, Lillie Reynolds, Beth Frank, L. Rafael Rodriguez, Brent Gardner, Christopher Scala, Claudia Jones, Karen L. Talbott, Katerina Papas, and Natoya Walker. Member Scouts are Maya Jones and Trixie Taucher.

PROCEEDS: Benefit Scouting programs and campgrounds.

DONATIONS: Corporate Headquarters, 4019 Prospect Ave., Suite 240, Cleveland OH 44103 or the South Service Center at 1010 Applegrove St. NW, North Canton, OH 44720.