As the 95^th anniversary of Girl Scouting approaches in 2007, Girl Scouts of the Western Reserve, Inc. joins Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) in a historic transformation to modernize the iconic organization and focus on leadership development for girls in the 21^st century.

We are excited to announce that all five Girl Scout councils in Northeast Ohio are joining forces to better serve the girls of our communities.  The uniting of Girl Scouts of the Western Reserve with Girl Scouts of Erie Shores, Great Trail, Lake Erie, and Lake to River councils will bring together Girl Scouts from Ashtabula, Carroll, Columbiana, Cuyahoga, Erie, Geauga, Huron, Lake, Lorain, Mahoning, Medina, Portage, Sandusky, Seneca, Stark, Summit, Trumbull and Tuscarawas Counties, as well as parts of Wayne and Harrison Counties.

The goal of this realignment is to build a high capacity council that can better deliver on the promise of our mission:  Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place.  Our new council will benefit from the strengths of our region such as the well-connected highways, shared media markets, and the many diverse program opportunities available to girls.

“This transformation is so important to the future of Girl Scouting, and Girl Scouts of the Western Reserve looks forward to reaching out to our partners in the local community throughout this process to deliver the Girl Scout experience to more and more girls,” says Dee Jones, CEO of Girl Scouts of the Western Reserve.

Throughout the next year, the five Girl Scout councils will be working together to ensure a smooth transition, while continuing to provide an exceptional Girl Scout program during this time of realignment.  This isn’t about any one person or one council.  This realignment is about everyone in Girl Scouts.  It is about our regional readiness and commitment to focusing on girls, their lives, their challenges, their opportunities, their destinies.

This realignment will provide continued quality service to volunteers with a commitment to customer service.  There will be more and different program events, more camp opportunities, more friends to meet.  Everyone in Girl Scouting and in our communities can look forward to expanded opportunities for girls, enhanced services to adult volunteers, continued outreach to underserved populations, and vibrant partnerships to meet our commitment to girls.