Contributed by Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama

Girl Scouts offers the best leadership development experience for girls in the world. Girl Scouts isn’t just a moment in her life, it’s a movement dedicated to building girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place.

On Sunday, March 20, 2022, Auburn Girl Scouts will host an 85th birthday party for the Girl Scout Hut, located at 234 E. Drake Ave. The hut was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage in December 2021, and has hosted meetings of local Girl Scout troops since the 1930s. The celebration will be held from 1 until 3 p.m.

“We’re hoping to welcome veteran Girl Scouts who met at the hut back to celebrate the hut’s birthday,” said Troop Leader and Hut Manager Melissa Blair. “We’ll have old scrapbooks and  a fashion show of vintage uniforms, and also have a guest book for those veteran Girl Scouts who would like to do an oral history recording about their time as Girl Scouts in Auburn.”

Blair, who is also a history professor at Auburn University, is hoping to build an archive of those recordings that can be saved by the university archives.

In addition to welcoming back former Girl Scouts, there will be treats, including Girl Scout cookies, face painting, crafts and demonstrations of Girl Scout skills like building a campfire and pitching a tent. Girl Scout leaders hope that the birthday party will raise awareness of the hut, its historic importance to the community and the need to preserve it.

“It’s a really special place,” Blair said. “The hut gives us a place to meet that is centrally located  and also steeped in Girl Scout history.”

Currently, there are more than 200 girls active in Girl Scouts in Auburn, and about half of the city’s troops meet at the hut at least once a month.

Through Girl Scouting, girls learn to face challenges head-on, embrace failure as a learning opportunity and find solutions to social issues all while building the skills and courage they need to take the lead every day. To join Girl Scouts or learn more about volunteering, please visit www.girlscoutssa.org.

WE ARE GIRL SCOUTS OF SOUTHERN ALABAMA

Girl Scouts bring their dreams to life and work together to build a better world. Through programs in 30 counties in southern Alabama, Girl Scouts of all backgrounds and abilities can be unapologetically themselves as they discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges — whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or make their first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors and millions of alums, Girl Scouts lead the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them. To join us, volunteer, reconnect or donate, visit girlscoutssa.org.