County Girl Scouts looking for memorabilia for exhibit
By Matthew Whittle
Published in News on November 13, 2011 1:50 AM
Girl Scouts in Wayne County are celebrating their 100th anniversary this year and they're looking for some help -- and any memorabilia that current or former Scouts can lend for an upcoming exhibit at the Wayne County Museum.
Lillie Thompson, a Girl Scout volunteer and chairwoman of the county's 100th anniversary celebration efforts, explained that they're looking for anything people might want to share, including uniforms, books, patches, pins, tins and even photos.
"Anything that former Girl Scouts have that they would like the community to see," Ms. Thompson said. "A lot of the troops will also have display boards with pictures."
And with a strong history of Girl Scouts in Wayne County, she's hoping for a good response.
"Several of the churches that were involved when I started 35 years ago had been sponsoring Scouts for 50 years," she said. "The numbers go up and down, but at one point we had more than 60 troops in Wayne County, even though we're down to 30-some now. But we've been a big part of the community. We have a lot of history here in Wayne County."
The exhibit won't open until March 12 -- the official Girl Scout birthday when Juliette "Daisy" Gordon Law met with 18 girls in Savannah, Ga. in 1912 -- but Ms. Thompson is hoping people might begin bringing items in so they can be cataloged and organized.
Of course, she added, every item will be treated with care and labeled so they can be returned in April.
Other events being held to commemorate the 100th birthday -- the year-long celebration actually began on Oct. 1 and will last until Sept. 30, 2012 -- include a reception and tea to coincide with the exhibit opening in March, a "bridging event" in April during which the Scouts will "celebrate the last 100 years while looking forward to the next 100 years," and in January, a rally to celebrate 100 years of Scouting and to kick off the annual cookie sales.
For more information about Wayne County Girl Scouts' 100 year celebration activities or to lend items for the exhibit, call Ms. Thompson at 751-3707 or the local Girl Scouts-North Carolina Coastal Pines office at 734-6231.