July 3, 2025 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

Local Girl Scouts reflect on trip to Georgia

The road to Georgia was long and winding, but worth it.

Recently scouts in Troops 2077, 2116 and 2134 presented information on their trip to Savannah, Ga., to parents and other scout troops.

The troop spent five days in July in Savannah, taking a trolley tour, eating lots of food, taking a ghost tour, visiting the Girl Scout birthplace, taking a tour of the Girl Scouts first headquarters and visiting Tybee Island.

Lily Ploense, 15, said her favorite part of the trip was walking around Savannah and finding new facts about Girl Scouts.

“My favorite part of the Savannah trip was getting to spend the week with my friends and all the memories we made and laughs we had,” said Sara Steffens, 16.

“My favorite part of the Savannah trip was actually just being in the house with all of my friends and making memories that’ll last me a life time,” said Edanne Barber, 16.

Hannah Fox, 15, agreed that the best part of the trip was hard to pin down. Fox said she enjoyed taking pictures, spending time in a garden and spending time with her friends.

The trip gave the girls the chance to learn about the history of scouting.

Gracie Warns, 14 said her favorite part of the trip was visiting the Andrew Low Home. The home is the Girl Scout First Headquarters building and was formerly the carriage house for Girl Scout founder Juliette Gordon Low’s adult home. The home was willed to the Girl Scouts upon Low’s death in 1927.

The building has served Girl Scouts longer than any other building in the nation and is the only building left by Low to Girl Scouts.

The building has historical significance, not only for the Girl Scouts, but Savannah as it has been shared with the United Way, the Junior League and The British War Relief Association during World War II.

The home now serves as a museum, program center and shop while offering educational experiences for scouts.

Madeline Thompson, 15, said while she enjoyed visiting the Girl Scout historic sites, she also enjoyed visiting Tybee Island.

“I loved visiting the ocean,” she said. “I’m a sucker for everything that involves the beach. I guess you could call me a fish out of the water.”

Thompson said she also learned that Savannah is the home to many firsts, including not only the Girl Scouts but also the first lighthouse on the Atlantic Coast and the first Black Baptist congregation in America.

“Savannah is truly an amazing place full of surprises,” she said.

All of the scouts said visiting the birthplace of Low was another highlight of the trip.

“It was kind of like she was there with you, like you could feel her spirit lurking around and still feel that part of her was there,” said Alexis Taylor, 15.

The birthplace gives scouts a look at the history of Low and shows how she built the girl scouts into an international organization. The house is filled with original and period furnishings and has high ceilings and unique features including elaborate millwork, decorative plaster ceilings and a large mahogany staircase.

“Visiting Juliet Gordon Low’s birthplace was an experience that I felt brought me closer to Girl Scouts across the country, as it a meeting place for all Girl Scouts,” said Emily Elsbernd, 14.

Katie Powers, 15, echoed that sentiment.

“It was amazing to visit the place where Juliette Gordon Low was born and raised,” she said. “I knew much about Juliette before going on the trip, but knowing and seeing are two different things. I knew she was artistic, but I got to see her hand-painted plates that looked unbelievably realistic.”

All of the girls said they value their time in scouts because it enables them to have experiences they would not have otherwise while building strong friendships.

“Girl Scouts is extremely important to me because I get to help others and potentially even change their lives,” Thompson said. “Girl Scouts is amazing because it’s women empowering women. There are so many negative things happening around us, but Girl Scouts really helps to lift us back up again.”

Taylor said she likes scouting because it is inspiring.

“It inspires little girls around the world that girls can do just about anything if they put their mind to it,” she said.

Barber said she enjoys scouts because of the sense of sisterhood it creates.

“Girl Scouts has taught me about being a leader and that any girl can feel like a sister,” she said.

For more info about visiting Girl Scouts locations in Savannah visit: https://www.gshg.org/content/dam/girlscouts-gshg/documents/Discover%20Savannah.pdf

in People
Banner
Related Posts

Spartan Spotlight… Lindsey Aden

April 8, 2020

April 8, 2020

St. Joseph-Ogden senior Lindsey Aden has big plans for her future. Aden, who lives outside of Royal, will be attending...

Kids say…

June 17, 2019

June 17, 2019

Every week we ask five St. Joseph area students a question about farming. Today, five students from PVO South tell...

Get to know Scott Perkins

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Scott is running for the St. Joseph Grade School Board. What motivated you to run for school board? I’ve been...

Talk of the Town with SJO Superintendent Brian Brooks

May 9, 2019

May 9, 2019

Every week we ask a village mayor, school superintendent or board member three questions. This week we talked to St....

Franzen chosen to lead middle school

March 30, 2021

March 30, 2021

The new St. Joseph Middle School Principal will be a familiar face. The St. Joseph Consolidated Community School Board voted...

10 things you don’t know about me… Jeff Isenhower

October 31, 2019

October 31, 2019

Every week we talk to an area resident and ask them to give us 10 interesting facts about themselves. This...

10 things you don’t know about me… Todd Jacob

October 2, 2019

October 2, 2019

Every week we ask an area resident to share 10 interesting facts about themselves. This week we spoke to State...

How I Get it Done… Matt Crider

October 21, 2022

October 21, 2022

This week we spoke to Matt Crider of Trinity Web Design and Consulting, LLC to ask him how he gets...

‘It has been an honor to care for you and your families’

December 21, 2022

December 21, 2022

Patients of Dr. Jeanelle Murphy got some not so jolly news at the beginning of December. Their doctor is leaving...

Senior Spotlight… Danie Kelso

August 5, 2019

August 5, 2019

Every week we ask a St. Joseph-Ogden senior five questions. This week we spoke to Danie Kelso. What do you...

5 things you don’t know about me… McKenzie Keller

August 7, 2019

August 7, 2019

McKenzie is in the running for the title of Little Princess! She is six years old. We asked her to...

10 things you don’t know about me…. Katie May

July 17, 2019

July 17, 2019

Every week we ask a local resident to tell us 10 facts about themselves. This week we spoke to St....

Senior Spotlight… Drew Coursey

July 17, 2019

July 17, 2019

Every week we ask a St. Joseph-Ogden senior five questions. This week we spoke to Drew Coursey. This post is...

PTC to be honored for community work

April 19, 2019

April 19, 2019

The St. Joseph Parent Teacher Club has one goal—bridging the gap between teachers and parents. The St. Joseph PTC meets...

10 things you don’t know about me… Abbie Layden-Rogiers

June 17, 2019

June 17, 2019

Each week we ask a community member to tell us 10 things about themselves. This week is Abbie Layden-Rogiers, owner...

Comments
Leave a Reply