The Girl Scouts USA (GSUSA), founded in 1912, has been in the spotlight this week — but not for its popular cookie sales.
An online form circulating on social media this week related to sleepaway camp reportedly asked parents of girls to specify if their kids go by masculine pronouns — and if they’d prefer “gender inclusive” sleeping arrangements for their children while the young ones are at camp.
The form, reportedly sent by a parent to the widely followed Twitter account End Wokeness, asked parents or caregivers to provide “basic camper information” regarding preferred pronouns, including “she/her,” “they/them,” “he/him” and “other.”
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A group that considers itself a faith-based alternative to the Girls Scouts spoke out on the topic.
Patti Garibay, founder and national executive director of American Heritage Girls, headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, told Fox News Digital on Wednesday afternoon, “Straying so far from the vision of its foundress, GSUSA has once again entangled itself in the ever-shifting winds of today’s culture.”
Added Garibay, “As Alexander Hamilton once said, ‘Those who stand for nothing fall for everything.'”
Garibay said, “Is today’s GSUSA the Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts — or something in between?”
She added that “so many alumnae have grieved that Girl Scouts have lost their way as they witness a true loss of a national treasure.”
Garibay said she started American Heritage Girls “for this very reason.”
The organization voted in 1993 to make the word “God” optional in its oath.
Garibay spent over a decade with the Girl Scouts in different parts of the United States.
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She then left the organization and formed American Heritage Girls in 1995, she said.
She felt she had to leave the Girl Scouts after the organization voted in 1993 to make the word “God” optional in its oath.
Some members of American Heritage Girls are shown here. The founder of American Heritage Girls, Patti Garibay, said she knew she had to leave the Girl Scouts after the organization voted in 1993 to make the word “God” optional in its oath. (American Heritage Girls)
“This wasn’t something that I came upon lightly, as in, ‘Let’s just start an alternative to the Girl Scouts because I’m not liking what’s going on there,'” she told Fox News Digital previously.
Garibay founded American Heritage Girls as a Christian alternative to the Girl Scouts.
It “inspires girls to pursue a deeper walk with Christ and focuses on Christian values and family involvement.”
Today, AHG is the largest faith-based scouting organization in the world, with over 60,000 members, according to Garibay’s organization.
The group says it “inspires girls to pursue a deeper walk with Christ and focuses on Christian values and family involvement.”
American Heritage Girls, which has members in all 50 states, notes on its website, “When a girl’s identity and her worldview lens are rooted in faith, the gospel message doesn’t stay neatly tucked in her Bible only to be taken off the shelf each Sunday … it impacts every part of her life!” (American Heritage Girls )
It also helps young girls and parents deal with social and cultural issues through a platform called “Raising Godly Girls.”
The group shares on its website, “When a girl’s identity and her worldview lens are rooted in faith, the gospel message doesn’t stay neatly tucked in her Bible only to be taken off the shelf each Sunday … it impacts every part of her life!”
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A biblical worldview, it continues, “shapes the way she understands herself, her purpose in the world, and how she can influence an unholy world for Christ using the God-given gifts bestowed upon her at the moment of her creation.”
“We’re proud that Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) is an inclusive organization that uplifts all girls.”
Garibay is author of the book, “Why Curse the Darkness When You Can Light a Candle?” She and her husband have four married children and nine grandchildren.
American Heritage Girls has troops in all 50 states, as well as independent “Trailblazers” in 15 countries.
Troops can be found across a variety of Christian denominations.
The American Heritage Girls organization said it helps young girls and parents deal with today’s social and cultural issues through a platform called “Raising Godly Girls.” (American Heritage Girls)
The Girl Scouts USA told Fox News Digital — when reached for comment about the reported form asking families to provide preferred sleeping arrangements for their campers, including “gender inclusive” accommodations — “We’re proud that Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) is an inclusive organization that uplifts all girls.”
It added, “We are committed to creating a safe, welcoming and supportive environment where all members are empowered to be themselves as they discover their strengths, rise to meet new challenges, and become leaders in their communities and the world.”
“Accommodations for transgender youth are made with the local Girl Scout council to best support each troop and member.”
It also said, “Accommodations for transgender youth are made with the local Girl Scout council to best support each troop and member.”
The group also notes on its website, “If the child is recognized by the family and school/community as a girl and lives culturally as a girl, then Girl Scouts is an organization that can serve her in a setting that is both emotionally and physically safe.”
The Girl Scouts proclaims that it “builds girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place,” its site also indicates.
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The group maintains that “as Girl Scouts, girls discover the fun, friendship, and power of girls together. Girls grow courageous and strong through a wide variety of enriching experiences, such as field trips, skill-building sports clinics, community service projects, cultural exchanges and environmental stewardships.”
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Fox News Digital reached out to Girl Scouts of the USA for additional comment.
Jon Brown and Christine Rousselle of Fox News Digital contributed reporting.
