CARIBOU, Maine — Girl Scout Troop 1006, a Brownie troop that consists of second and third graders, was just formed here at the beginning of the year.
The new troop is led by Kristi Bell and Dawn McCrossin. Bell attended a recruitment event with her daughter Vivian last Fall and learned there was interest in the Caribou area for a Brownie troop, and decided to become a leader.
Once Bell was on board, her daughter asked friends at school if any of their mothers would be interested in being a co-leader, as Girl Scout troops require two leaders.
Kristi Bell soon learned that Dawn McCrossin, a friend who was a member of Scouts as a child, wanted to be on board as well.
The two leaders then began to spread the word about the troop via word of mouth and Facebook. Now, just three months after their first meeting in January, the troop has seven members.
“And we’re just getting started,” Bell said.
While the troop is new, the youngsters already are making their presence known in the community, and Bell said the girls were able to sell more than 300 boxes of Girl Scout cookies in less than a month.
“There are multiple phases of the cookie sale,” she said, “but our small little group was able to sell 360 cookie boxes in three weeks.”
Looking ahead, the troop plans to grow and increase their community presence throughout the year.
“Girl Scouts is really girl led,” said Bell. “It’s up to the girls what they want to do, and at our last meeting when I asked them what they would like to do, the topics were all over the board.”
Bell said some girls were interested in animals while others were interested in science. Bell indicated that the Girl Scout Council offers a plethora of ideas related to STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields.
“We want to do a lot of community service,” said the co-leader, “and get the girls active in the community and show them what’s out there. The projects will be based on what interests the girls, and what will help them develop and grow.”
Some of Bell’s future ideas for spring and summer include going outside and hiking, walking along nature trails, and going on scavenger hunts.
“I want to expose them to things they haven’t had a chance to do yet,” she said.
Bell said the Girl Scout Service Unit Team, which she referred to as “the leader’s leaders,” has been a tremendous help for her and McCrossin in the past few months, and that anyone interested in joining or volunteering can visit girlscoutsofmaine.org and search for Troop 1006 in Caribou, or attend one of the troop’s monthly meetings.
“We meet the third Saturday of every month from 1-2:30 p.m. at the Gray Memorial Methodist Church in Caribou,” Bell said. “If anyone is interested, they don’t have to be a member, they can just stop by and see what it’s about, ask us questions, and we’ll go from there.”
