By Kaily Kessinger
Senior Girl Scout, Colorado Springs
Leaving your home state, your family and your friends can be a challenging feat for teenagers. For me, going to the National Girl Scout Convention was an incredible yet intimidating experience. I was lucky enough to have my best friend, Hannah, and mother, Caryn, come along for the journey. Being accepted to go and represent the Girl Scouts of Colorado was an amazing opportunity.
When we first arrived at the hotel to meet the other Colorado girl representatives I was instantly struck with fear. “Will they like me?” I wondered. My doubts were cleared in a matter of seconds when Hannah and I met the first girl to arrive, Laurelanne. She was sweet, funny and the three of us hit it off instantly. As more of the girls arrived Hannah and I welcomed them warmly and tried to get to know each and every one of them. I have never met a more engaged, more talented, kinder group of young women in my life. One girl, Chiara, recognized me immediately and we both realized we had gone to summer camp together at Colorado’s Magic Sky Ranch where we were CIT’s together for two weeks.
Throughout the first day all of us girls got to know one another and everyone treated each other with respect and never left anyone out, and I genuinely enjoyed every single one of these incredible girls. When classes started some of us went our separate ways to learn about our different interests. I met some incredible girls from all over the country in my Gender Equity class. Most of us had common interests, which made working with them so wonderful. The Colorado Girl Scouts eventually got to spend some down time together and talk about projects and ideas to bring back to our state.
I was amazed at what some of the girls were planning for their Gold Awards. Toward the end of Convention I was sad we had to part and go back to our different cities in Colorado, but I was glad I met these marvelous girls. My experience at Convention was an amazing one that I will never forget.
By Hannah Clair,
Senior Girl Scout, Colorado Springs
The 2014 Girl Scout National Convention was one of my most memorable experiences as a Girl Scout. This convention connected girls from all over the world. Every girl that attended the convention was very inspired by the speakers, guests, and each other; we each created a plan for a take-action project to benefit our community. We spent a lot time developing our plan for these projects and helping other girls with ideas, we also got to listen to some amazing guests and speakers. There were many speakers at the convention, from book authors to the GSUSA president, however, the most powerful speaker was Elizabeth Smart — her story impacted everyone in the room. The convention was so much fun and I met so many amazing girls that I still talk to today.