THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, May 30, 1995 TAG: 9505270064
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Column
SOURCE: Larry Maddry
LENGTH: Long : 106 lines
GIRL SCOUTS from 1,600 troops across southeastern Virginia and North Carolina will be keeping their fingers crossed at 5 Tuesday afternoon.
That's when the ground breaking for the most ambitious undertaking ever attempted by the Girl Scout Council of Colonial Coast will begin.
The ground-breaking site is called A Place for Girls.
It was named, in a way, by the 16,000 Girl Scouts who are in the council. Years ago, a questionnaire was sent to the troops asking girls what they felt they needed most.
The item most often mentioned was ``a place for girls.''
It was a good idea. Some of the things the girls wanted the place to contain were: a swimming pool; a wetlands area; fitness trails and nature study areas; classrooms for math, science and technology projects; and a kitchen. And maybe a place where Scouts who come all the way from North Carolina, or even Maryland, could spend the night before going home.
That's what the Girl Scouts wanted. And they were willing to work for it by selling Girl Scout calendars and organizing other fund-raising activities in the towns where they lived.
With some help from charitable organizations, they raised a total of $438,000 in four years. This was used to purchase 11 acres of land, divided by Bell's Mill Creek, in Chesapeake. The site is on Cedar Road not far from the Chesapeake Civic Center.
Wednesday's ceremony in Chesapeake will mark a beginning of the construction: main building, trails, platforms, picnic shelters, etc. The construction has a high price tag: $2 million.
The Girl Scouts are hoping that foundations and individuals will step forward with contribution to help.
That may seem like a lot of money, but I can't imagine a better investment in the girls of our region than that.
Every day, I read on the national news wires from Washington about the budget cuts and the necessity for the private sector to carry the load formerly carried by the government.
And at the same time, more and more stories about young people shock and dismay.
Here are some of the sad statistics:
25 percent of all girls will be sexually abused.
55 teens get pregnant every day in Virginia
Girls over age 12 attempt suicide three to nine times more often than boys.
At a time when single-parent households are becoming more and more common, children are not getting the care and attention they need and deserve. It is very hard for working mothers - many of whom are receiving wages below the poverty level - to find time for the girls in the family.
Try lecturing about ``family values'' to an overworked mother who is so tired when she gets home that she is challenged to get food on the table for supper before falling into bed.
The Girl Scouts are trying to help fill in the value-system gaps for young women brought up in such a world. Having fun and encouraging learning and self-esteem is what Girl Scouting is about.
And it works. A recent survey of women in Who's Who in America showed that 64 percent are former Girl Scouts.
Once thought to be an organization for middle-class white girls, it is no longer so. If it ever was. About one-quarter of the Girl Scouts in our Colonial Coast region are either African-Americans, Native Americans, Asians or Hispanics. And most of the money received from United Way contributions by the Girl Scouts goes to children at risk, Scouts who come from underprivileged homes - in neighborhoods where the crime rate and drug use is high.
Good examples of women who have benefited from Scouting and have begun giving back to their communities are plentiful. Women like Nicole Patterson, a student at Norfolk State University who tutors children in a public housing project at no charge.
The local Girl Scout council has attempted to meet the challenges of teen pregnancies. With parental permission, Girl Scouts attend classes taught by trained counselors. And the council has broadened its outreach. Today, there are even Girl Scout troops in our region's homeless shelters.
Pat McKinney, assistant executive director for development for the Girl Scout Council of Colonial Coast said that A Place for Girls will include the services the girls asked for.
When we talked of the bad influences on young people these days, she mentioned that girls are ``just a little more vulnerable'' to them than boys. That's why A Place for Girls is so important. It will be a place where girls can sleep over. And a place where they can learn about the wetlands on the premises and how the wetlands and the creek running through it are part of the Chesapeake Bay eco-system.
``This is the most important project we've ever undertaken,'' McKinney said. ``We hope it will be filled with girls all the time - from Brownies in kindergarten to young women in the twelfth grade.''
The building project has already received support from the community. Contributions have been made by Armada-Hoffler Construction Co. (which is donating its contracting services), the Parsons Foundation, the Beazley Foundation, the E.C. Wareheim Foundation, the Justine Nusbaum Family Foundation, the Morgan Foundation, the Napolitano Family Foundation and the Tidewater Children's Foundation.
But the $2 million goal cannot be met without help from the public. If you believe that A Place for Girls deserves your support, a check made payable to the Girl Scout Council of Colonial Coast should be mailed to:
Pat McKinney, c/o Girl Scout Council of Colonial Coast, 4190 South Plaza Trail, Virginia Beach, Va. 23452. MEMO: Lawrence Maddry is a member of the Girl Scout Council of Colonial
Coast's Advisory Board. ILLUSTRATION: Color graphic by Ken Wright, Staff
by CNB