HeatherK

The adults involved with the Troop met and discussed what to do, and then we discussed the situation and all our feelings with the other troop members. Our concensus was that we would support "Pregnant Girl Scout" as much as we could, as long as she agreed not to make every meeting about her and her pregnancy. When I talked to PGS about our decision, she said she was relieved that we had chosen to treat her just like any other Girl Scout and that she would have a place to come where she could just be herself. After kicking up this hornets' nest, the whole situation departed after a few weeks. PGS having real problems living at home with her mother, so she moved to another town to live with her grandparents. The baby was born in March, a girl, and both mother and daughter are doing well. PGS plans to return to high school this fall to complete her Junior year, with her grandparents babysitting. She was registered as a Juliet for the remainder of last year, but does not plan to register this year. I would be lying to say I was not relieved to have the situation depart, but the Troop responded as a whole by spending all of the spring semester following a book called "Respect" from the Search Institute. It's all about knowing yourself, setting your boundaries and standing up for yourself. We've talked about friends, family, romantic relationships and sex. Not surprisingly, all of the Girl Scouts' parents were happy for us to talk to their daughters about romance and sex. A local doctor even came in to talk to us about sex misconceptions and sexually transmitted diseases. I am very proud of the Girl Scouts in our Troop and the decisions they made regarding this situation. They never cease to amaze me.

She had her 17th birthday on Monday.

So far Girl Scouts are searching for an answer, and going further up the line to get one. My concern is not for the physiological condition of pregnancy unless Girl Scout insurance will not cover her for injuries related to pregnancy. My concern is how to deal with the very real SOCIAL issue of teen pregnancy. From our brief time together within a troop meeting, the Girl Scout gave me the impression she intends to raise the child, probably with the help of her mother. When talking about being pregnant, she stated she has a feeling that it will be a girl, because "when you're pregnant, you have a feeling" and she's already had "girl-baby dreams". According to the CDC, in 2006 435,436 babies were born to mothers aged 15 to 19, or 41.9 per 1000 young women in this age group. Teen mothers are enough of an issue in our county that we have a day care for them at the high school, which is thankfully right across the street from the middle school, because they need it too. I have not disallowed the Girl Scout from coming on the trip, I only pointed out that she will have personal responsibilities at that time that she needs to consider before making future plans. Both the Girl Scout AND her mother were planning on leaving the 2 month old baby behind while they went off for 16 days. I don't have any children of my own, but I cannot imagine how she will be able to do that. I know that she needs extra support, but at the same time, there are five other troop members that need support, too. What if a parent decides to remove their daughter from Girl Scouts because of a pregnant troop member? Please stop trying to make me the bad guy, when I'm asking for advice on how to deal with a situation that is way beyond my training as a Girl Scout leader. Where do I find the balance between helping one Girl Scout in a bad situation, stopping her from glamorizing her situation without constantly using her poor decision as an example of what not to do, teaching the other troop members that this is far from ideal, teaching acceptance that sometimes people make mistakes, and teaching personal responsibility???? If her Mother had told me about the pregnancy before arriving at a troop meeting, I would have been able to ask GS for advice in advance and talk this over with the other adults in the troop leadership team. As it is, we're backpedaling and trying to figure out where to go from here.

A new Senior Girl Scout moved into my area and was referred to my troop. After meeting her mother, an 11-year GS troop leader, at a Service Unit meeting, I invited them both to our next troop meeting. At the meeting, the Girl Scout introduces herself and states she is 3 months pregnant. After picking my jaw up off the floor (couldn't Mom have given me a little heads-up?), I ended up making her cry by telling her she won't be able to go on a 16-day, 3000-mile roadtrip with the troop next summer, because her baby will be 2 months old. Didn't mean to make her cry, but I think a reality check was in order after Mom reassured me that they would find someone to look after Baby while they were on the trip. This Girl Scout has been in Scouting since kindergarten, and she says she still wants to be in the organization. I cannot find any policy from GSUSA, except with relation to "sexuality" which is "don't ask, don't tell". I'm seriously torn between: 1. Knowing that this young woman needs a support network and that we have all promised to be a sister to every Girl Scout. 2. Being concerned about the example this will set for the other members of the troop (three 8th graders, and two 10th graders). Plus this is a small, rural community and do I want a 6-month pregnant troop member out selling cookies in January? I don't in any way condone her actions, and she accepts that she made a poor choice. In 8 years as a troop leader this is my first real conundrum.