Girl Scouts give back to community

By Ashton Marra

Skye Taylor has earned multiple badges, attended many summer camps, and sold more than 15,000 boxes of cookies during her 12 years as a Girl Scout, but, in her opinion, she’s gained something more valuable than all of the acclaim.

“I know now that one person can make a difference,” Taylor said. “They say it so often that it’s become cliché, but they say it for a reason. One person can make a big difference.”

Taylor, a 17-year-old Senior at the Covenant School in Huntington, made her difference while completing her Gold Award. A Gold Award is the highest honor in Girls Scouts, and, to be earned, a girl must commit 65 hours of community service to one project.

 “Keep Your Chin Up,” Taylor’s project, placed painted ceiling tiles in the pediatric units and their waiting areas at Cabell-Huntington Hospital.

Taylor is just one of the more than 20,000 girls in the 61 counties in West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland and Ohio under the jurisdiction of the Girl Scouts of Black Diamond Council.

Established in 1974, the Black Diamond Council formed from the merging of four existing councils, and in the past year has undergone realignment, adding counties in Ohio to its jurisdiction.

 Troops are divided by grade level into Daisies, Brownies, Juniors, Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors. According to Emily Tucker, director of marketing and public relations for the Black Diamond Council, girls can become a scout at any age as long as they take the Girl Scout Promise, follow the Girl Scout Law, and pay annual dues of $12.

 Tucker said any girl who is unable to pay dues is eligible for financial assistance through the Opportunity Fund. A portion of the money for this program comes from the annual funding given to the council by the United Way of the River Cities.

About eight percent of the Black Diamond Council’s annual budget comes from United Way donations, Tucker said. The bulk of the organization’s funding comes from cookie sales, donations, and national grants.  Insert the number of dollars given by UW and total dollar amount of the council’s budget.

Amanda Fellure, membership development coordinator, said the Girl Scouts’ ultimate goal is to benefit the girls and help them benefit the community.

“Girl Scouts isn’t just about the cookies and the crafts and the campfires, but it’s about building our leaders of tomorrow,” Fellure said.

The Black Diamond Council is a volunteer-driven organization. It’s run by mothers, grandmothers, and former scouts, Tucker said, but volunteering with the Girl Scouts doesn’t have to be a huge commitment.

“Most people think you have to be a troop leader to volunteer, but that’s just not true,” Tucker said. “Volunteers do anything from recruiting to accounting to public relations. We can even set them up with a one-time event.”

Taylor took advantage of the volunteerism promoted by the Girls Scouts to fulfill her goal and complete her Gold Award.

With the help of volunteers from the community, Taylor painted and hanged more than 500 ceiling tiles in the pediatric and pediatric intensive care units at Cabell-Huntington. Taylor said it was rewarding to see how her project had changed the atmosphere of an entire floor at the hospital.

“It was so great to see that the kids could forget about their tests or being sick and be happy. They didn’t have to think about being afraid,” Taylor said.