 Programs
of Religious Activities with Youth P.R.A.Y. Girl Scout News Bulletin Second Quarter 2008 Welcome to the P.R.A.Y. Girl Scout News Bulletin. This Bulletin is how we share information about the religious awards programs and ways to strengthen relationships with the religious community. FAITH BASED INITIATIVE LAUNCHED BY THE GIRL SCOUTS OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE The Faith Based Initiative launched by the Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee is making an impact. The Initiative is designed to increase and strengthen partnerships with religious organizations in order to provide religious growth opportunities and increase Girl Scout membership. Katie Kendall, Training and Faith Based Initiatives Manager, is hard at work implementing the plan of action. “Our Faith Based Initiative has been launched with great success…we have started many new Faith Based troops and many, many girls are working on their Religious Emblems.” Katie’s first tasks were two fold: contact religious organizations, and create a Faith Advisory Board. In contacting the national representatives, the Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee were delighted to discover that four major organizations had their headquarters in Nashville: the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the United Methodist Church, the Muslim American Society Scouting Department, and the Diocese of Nashville Catholic Committee on Scouting (two of their committee members are on the board of the National Catholic Committee for Scouting). These organizations are working closely with the Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee to secure letters of support and to identify congregations to start new Girl Scout Troops. The Faith Advisory Board is also coming together quickly. Their first meeting was in April and over 20 faith groups were represented. The Faith Advisory Board members are responsible for being the “Point of Contact”/Trainer for their respective faiths. This means they are to be the main contact for clergy and principals, adult Girl Scout leaders, and girls themselves. Click here for more information on the role of the Faith Advisory Board member. Middle Tennessee encompasses 39 counties so it is critical to have an active Faith Advisory Board to serve this large of a territory. The religious awards programs are one way for Girl Scout councils to get their “foot in the door” with religious organizations. The Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee hopes to have display medals of the various programs as well as resource packets for trainers. Some of the resources for the members of the Faith Advisory Board have come from P.R.A.Y. Click here to view the presentation resources. Katie Kendall credits CEO Agenia Clark for her vision in spearheading religious organizations as a primary initiative. Although membership numbers are in constant flux, Katie Kendall says that on an average, 41.2% of their Troops are housed in religious buildings (churches, schools, and community centers that have a religious component), which represents 37.6% of their membership. Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee intend to see these numbers grow. Hats off to Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee for their efforts in helping girls fulfill their promise "To Serve God"! 
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