Throughout the year, Girl Scouts all over our region are engaged in a wide range of community service activities – contributing to their communities as individuals, and as part of a troop. Girl Scouts are encouraged to connect with one another, and to reach out to those in need.

Two very successful community service projects involve all Girl Scouts in our council.

Cookie Sale Service Project

Girl Scout troops may elect – at the end of each Girl Scout Cookie Sale – to make a contribution to a charitable organization selected by the council. Previous years' recipients include Operation Support Our Troops, Greenlock Therapeutic Riding Center, RISPCA's Marvin's Fund, The Gloria Gemma Breast Cancer Resource Foundation and
The Matty Fund.

The 2015 council-wide service project beneficiary was A Wish Come True Inc. In July, GSSNE presented a check in the amount of $6,319.09 to the organization. This check was contributed by troops who elected to donate a portion of their cookie sale proceeds towards this year’s council service project. “We are thrilled to have the support of so many amazing Girl Scouts. Their hard work, dedication and commitment to helping others is very much appreciated” said Amy Simonini, Operations Manager at A Wish Come True Inc.. The donation helped to grant a wish to a 13 year old girl named Grace, who is also a Girl Scout! She went to NYC and visited the set of the Food Network® show, Chopped. Founded in 1982, AWCT is the oldest wish granting organization in RI. They have been serving ill children and their families in our community for close to 34 years. Their mission is to grant the wishes of medically qualified children ages 3 through 18 who have a life-threatening illness and live in Rhode Island and areas of southeastern Massachusetts.

Our 2016 council-wide service project beneficiary is The Katie DeCubellis Memorial Foundation.

Project Undercover

For more than 15 years, Project Undercover has been GSSNE's annual council service project. Each year in the fall, girls throughout the council collect underwear, socks and diapers for the 40,000 children in Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts who live in poverty or encounter emergency situations. Project Undercover arranges distribution through area social service agencies. Over two million items have been collected and distributed. For more information, visit www.projectundercover.org.

Hispanic Initiative

Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England (GSSNE) has approximately 700 troops serving 7,700 girls ages 5 to 18, representing all of RI, 13 towns in surrounding Massachusetts, and one town in Connecticut. About a year ago GSSNE convened a Hispanic Advisory Board, with the goal of reaching out to the Hispanic community to acquaint them with Girl Scout programs and recruit girls and adults. Collectively, GSSNE has an extensive community based network of troops and afterschool programs working through established organizations. There is a need to introduce and engage young girls from underserved communities to leadership development and empowerment opportunities.GSSNE is committed to ensuring that all girls have access to our well-developed resources regardless of their zip code and/or economic situation. Currently the number of GSSNE members is not representative of the RI Latino population. The Hispanic Advisory Board believes that it is due to a lack of awareness, particularly for limited English speaking households.

GSSNE does not plan a distinct chapter, rather an inclusive approach to increase participation in existing troops and programs. The inclusive approach aims to be mindful of the barriers preventing young girls from participating in GSSNE activities and proactively addressing those challenges in collaboration with partners who are committed to transforming communities.

Interested in getting involved? Please contact Wanda Rivera at wrivera@gssne.org or Gricel Ocampo at gocampo@gssne.org.

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Urban Outreach

Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England believes that every girl who wants to be a Girl Scout should be a Girl Scout.

In various urban communities in Rhode Island and southeastern MA, girls can become part of after-school troops or take advantage of six-week summer sessions, the costs of which are subsidized by corporate and other private foundations. Last year alone, generous contributions enabled 1,300 girls from urban communities in RI and MA to become Girl Scouts.

You, too, can support our Urban Outreach efforts by making a donation online.