A friend of the troop, Martin Russell, took them when he left this summer to go to Tanzania’s Machame Lutheran Hospital, where about 700 babies are born each year. Many of the mothers are of the Masai tribe, who travel quite a distance to get to the hospital--usually by foot and in a very pregnant condition. After giving birth, they rest a bit for the journey home and because the Masai love treats, and have so little, the cookies lit up their faces and made their stay a lot sweeter. Bob Kasworn from the hospital sent this message to the troop: “Please tell the Girl Scouts they have done a good thing and the women here say, God bless you, ‘Mungu akubariki.’”
In Hillsdale, CA, Girl Scout Katie Nickison is working to collect books to support the African Library Project, which will open a children’s library in Lesotho. Lesotho is a landlocked country and enclave — entirely surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. Lesotho boasts one of the highest literacy rates in Africa. Read more about Nickison's international efforts in the San Mateo Daily Journal.
Do you have examples in your community of globally minded Girl Scouts? Please let us know!