Girl Scouts is a 111-year-old organization created with the goal of encouraging girls “to embrace their unique strengths.” A century later, the organization and its branches like Girl Scouts of Suffolk County, which formed in 1968, continue this mission, exposing girls to an unlimited number of career paths, especially ones that have traditionally and statistically shut women out.
For example, when it comes to the STEM workforce, women are largely underrepresented. According to American Association of University Women, only 28% of the workforce in science, technology, engineering and math is female. Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts
The Girl Scouts of Suffolk County aims to solve this by utilizing spaces like the Discovery World STEM + Arts Center. The 4,500 square-foot facility in Yaphank promotes hands-on science education through experiments, high quality technology and scientific programs. The center has been closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Suffolk County Suffolk County
Last Saturday, the Girl Scouts of Suffolk hosted their annual Making an Impact Breakfast to raise funds and match an anonymous $100,000 donation for the reimagining, refreshment and reopening of the center in order to continue their bridge-gaping mission. Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County
The sold-out breakfast featured a panel moderated by Girl Scouts of Suffolk County Chair of the Board Donna Smeland and President and CEO of Girl Scouts of Suffolk County Tammy Severino. Panelists included WABC-TV Eyewitness News Investigative Reporter Kristin Thorne, retired Lt. Colonel of the U.S. Army and longtime Educator Jacqueline Gordon, Vice President of Member Experience at Bethpage Federal Credit Union Karen Sweeney and Board-Certified Holistic Health Coach and CEO of Canadeo Health and Wellness Corp. Catherine Canadeo. The event also featured a keynote speech from Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Dr. Sandra Lindsay, who made history as the first person in America to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts
One theme that continuously popped up throughout the event, and is a pillar of the girl scout community, was confidence. This is one of the major reasons attributed to why there are very few women in STEM and other fields. A 2018 study showed that boys and girls generally carry the same level of confidence until around age 12. By age 14, there was a reported 27% difference in self-assurance between girls and boys with girls. Girl were more likely to describe themselves as “stressed, anxious, shy, emotional, worried, depressed, and ugly.” Boys would characterize themselves as “confident, strong, adventurous and fearless.”
Some of these negative feelings were very familiar to a young Lindsay, long before she became who she is today. Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County
“I wasn’t always confident,” admitted Lindsay after speaking to over 275 guests during the breakfast. “My younger self is probably saying ‘Who is that person?’ I was very, very, very shy. I remember starting college and my first class was a speech class. Unfortunately, I arrived to the class late and the teacher said ‘It’s your turn to give your speech.’ I thought I was gonna die. That experience helped me to build and since then I’ve just taken it one step at a time.” Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County
Lindsay has come a long way since speech class. She made headlines and history as America’s first recipient of the coronavirus vaccine. She also spends a significant amount of time traveling and speaking with thousands advocating for best health practices.
Lindsay was able to make the transition from shy student to confident advocate and speaker over time emphasizing that it did not happen over night. Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts
“Over the years, watching women that I admire and want to emulate, I’ve learned lessons from them,” said Lindsay. “[You have to] be comfortable with feeling uncomfortable and not just taking the easy way out. If I stand in front of an audience and I didn’t feel like I did my best, I look back. ‘What could I have done differently?’ I don’t beat up on or blame myself. I give myself grace and what I think is a failure is an opportunity to do better.”
Emmy-Award Winning Journalist Thorne echoed this sentiment, and stated that giving herself grace and thinking about failure in a different way helps her get through rough days. Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County
“Sometimes I resort to beating myself up a little bit and I’m like ‘Why do I have to act like that? Why do I have to be like that?’ Cause I know I can do better,” said Thorne. “So I try to reframe and it works for the most part. It’s just saying today, ‘You know what, today is not a good day. I could have done better, but tomorrow I’m gonna try harder. What am I gonna do, the day is over. I can’t go back and change it.’ I also resort back to my faith. I’m a woman of faith, so I just pray and say, ‘God make me stronger today, make me better cause I know I can be, but I need your help because life is really freakin’ hard.'”
When it comes to media, 24% of people in newsrooms, television and radio are women according to a 2015 study conducted by The Global Media Monitoring Project (GMMP). They also reported that it will take a projected 67 years to close the gender gap in media globally. Thorne, who has been in news for nearly two decades, says that something as simple as a body language has made a difference in her career. Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts
“I’m a big believer in a strong handshake,” said Thorne. “It comes from my father. Most men have really strong handshakes. Women on the other hand, how often do I shake a hand and it’s limp or falling asleep. The handshake and eye contact is extremely important. It’s the first vision that you give somebody of who you are. If you have a strong handshake you have now changed whatever they thought of you. My dad even told me ‘If a man really hurts your hand, you hurt him back,’ and I’ve had to do that. I’ve interviewed some very strong men in law enforcement and their handshakes, you do not mess around with. The second I go in there, I’m letting them know I’m strong and they feel it and it changes everything.”
Another confidence builder recommended by Army Veteran Gordon, who served on the board of girls scouts for over a decade, is remembering and celebrating the small victories. Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County
“The best way to build confidence is to get successes under your belt — even small things,” said Gordon. “What I always tell all my Ujima students is to make your bed in the morning. So if nothing else gets done for the rest of the day, you can say you’ve accomplished at least one task. After that, then I can go downstairs and maybe make breakfast. That’s another task I’ve accomplished. It may not seem like anything, but it actually is something. We always have to remember to look behind us at the mountains we’ve already climbed and use that as a reflection to continue to move forward.”
Gordon’s bed making ways track back to her days in the army. She joined in 1984, and at that time, women made up around 10% of the armed services. Today, numbers have increased with 17.3% of women now serving. It’s still a stark contrast compared to the 82.7% of men who serve. Throughout her time in the army, she gained valuable mentors and she drives home the point that one can’t do everything alone. Mentorship is something she advises young girls seek actively. Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts
“Meet someone that inspires you, that you feel a connection to,” advises Gordon. Say to them, ‘Would you mind if we stay connected or can I have your phone number? I would love to pick your brain a little bit more.’ And make sure you follow up. Send that email. Say ‘Can we meet for coffee?’ Then ask them ‘Will you be on my board of directors?’ You are your own CEO. Just like one of the speakers said today, every cooperation needs a board of directors. So ask that person if they would be willing to be on your board and stay in touch. You have to do the work because you want the support, so you make sure you do a follow-up.” Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County
Director of Advancement and Strategic Partnerships for Girl Scouts of Suffolk Nyrekia White, who put the breakfast together with the help of sponsors and supporters, says the organization strategically selected these women to speak due to their ability to share their stories candidly and inspire those around them. Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Girl Scouts
“We wanted guests to hear from influential women who could share their personal experiences, including their successes and failures, in a way that would inspire community collaboration on raising girls and young women of courage, confidence and character who will make the world a better place,” said White. “Our goal was to address mental wellness, career exploration and mentorship. And we can all help girls build courage, confidence and character by pouring into them, exposing them to new people and experiences, allowing them to try things and fail and try again.”
If you’re interested in donating to Girl Scouts of Suffolk County, you can click here. To learn more about the Discovery World STEM + Arts Center and help them reach their $100,000 goal, click here. Suffolk County Suffolk County Suffolk County
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