Girl-Led Program Allows Young Girls To Dream Big
Amalia Garcia (center, bottom row) and her fellow members of Troop 55906 during their meeting on October 14, 2023, in Cicero, Ill., at the Cicero Community Center. Efrain Soriano/ Cicero Independiente
By Efrain Soriano
Be considerate and caring, use resources wisely, make the world a better place and be a sister to every Girl Scout.
For 12-year-old Cadette Girl Scout Amalia Garcia, these values have become second nature since joining Girl Scouts nearly five years ago. However, before finding her troop, Amalia struggled to find her place in the town.
“She entertained herself with reading or drawing or with whatever community activities that we would find around town,” said Amalia’s mom Leticia Carmona. “But nothing that was really her own, the way her brothers had opportunities.”
One Girl Scout troop in Cicero is changing the narrative for Amalia and many other young girls.
“Girl Scouts gives girls a chance to do something positive,” said troop leader Andrea Barrios. “We don’t have many spaces outside of schools for girls to do that here in Cicero.”
According to her family, Girl Scouts have brought out the best in Amalia.
“It's not necessarily like the Girl Scouts have changed [Amalia], if anything, the whole experience has reinforced more of who she really is,” said Carmona.
Interests and Opportunities
Amalia Garcia holds her Girl Scouts vests full of pins and badges that Girl Scouts proudly wear on their vests that require much more than just selling cookies. Garcia’s vests are a proud display of all she has achieved during her journey as a Girl Scout. Efrain Soriano/ Cicero Independiente
Schools can sometimes be limiting for students whose interests don’t align with the curriculum, according to Carmona. She believes that Girl Scouts in Cicero play an essential role in providing youth alternative routes to explore their passions and build confidence.
“You want to learn horseback riding? Okay, there's a badge for that. Let's learn horseback riding. You're into the digital world? Well, there's a badge for robotics, there's a badge for you,” said Carmona. “So, you can really tap into what they want to do.”
However, the pins and badges that Girl Scouts proudly wear on their vests require much more than just selling cookies.
“The badges are usually a five step process. It's a more curriculum based type of learning and so they are given options,” said Carmona. “At the end of it, they learn that task and they earn that badge.”
From practicing archery to budgeting lessons, Amalia said she believes Girl Scouts is setting her up for success in the future.
“Ever since I was in kindergarten, I've always wanted to be a teacher and Girl Scouts can help me with that,” said Amalia. “Sometimes I'll work with the younger girls and they’ll teach me new skills that could help mentor any girl.”
Girl Scouts in Cicero
Amalia Garcia (center) sits with her fellow troop members during their October 14, 2023 meeting. The troop diligently serves the community in resourceful and sustainable ways. Their proudest accomplishment so far is earning the bronze award for building the first-ever Little Free Library in Cicero. Efrain Soriano/ Cicero Independiente
According to Barrios, the biggest goal of Girl Scouts is to help girls build courage, competence and character.
“Girl Scouts is about teaching girls to be civic minded, a lot of troops focus on community service projects that find a problem in their neighborhood and they try to come up with a solution,” said Barrios.
Carmona said she believes Girl Scouts are all about respecting youth and providing them good role models.
“I think it's always important for adults to show children respect, independent of their height, their age and their knowledge level. And I think Andrea has been able to do that without making the girls feel submissive or lesser human beings,” said Carmona.
Alongside their troop, Garcia and Barrios have been diligently serving the community in resourceful and sustainable ways. Their proudest accomplishment so far is earning the bronze award for building the first-ever Little Free Library in Cicero, built from scrap wood. It's located on the corner of Austin Boulevard and 29th Street.
“We had to design the layout of the little free library, and decide the books we wanted to have in there,” said Amalia. “Then the troop and I painted all the pieces and we even put our hand prints on it.”
Since then, Amalia has also constructed flower boxes out of file cabinets that she salvaged from her mother’s workplace. The troop continues to work on community service projects that include researching ways to help animal shelters or nursing homes in the near future.
Efrain Soriano is Cicero Independiente’s youth and schools reporter covering issues affecting young people in Cicero/Berwyn.
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