OK I have emailed around 5 times and I J. paid the 12 membership fee thinking maybe someone would contact M. with info but still no luck,. I have to say the girl scout site really should have a locate troop by zip and give you an email of the a local chapter.
So I got the confirmation thanking M. for signing up my daughter and still no info on a local chapter?
I emailed the eastern pa address again for the 6th time in a year...any idea of what i should do to find a local chapter?
I tried that link and email a few times. noone ever responds.
shes in public but no chapter is associated. i J. recieved the email back from the school
eta
I think i got the info! the school secretary contacted a mom she thought was in the girl scouts and gave M. her info and said they do meet at the school in thursdays. so here is to hoping=)
I didn't try it...but found this:
http://www.girlscouts.org/councilfinder/
Your school doesn't have anything? We have a local girl scout office here in my town is probably where i would start if the school did not offer any information.
I can't remember is your daughter in kindergarten? Your local service unit should be holding recruiting events through her school. From the recruiting events they try to identify mothers that might be interested in leading the troop. If no one steps up no leader = no troop.
Otherwise I think by registering her without a troop she is a member at large that can still participate in camps etc but is not a member of a troop.
Is your hcild in public school? If so there's a chapter in your kid's school. If you're homeschooling or if your child's in a private school check with the local public school. My kids weren't in scouting - but very involved with similar groups and activities at church. I couldn't find time to do both so I picked the one that was of greater importance.
Goodluck!
Your school should have a Girl Scout coordinator who can put you in touch with the troop leader(s) in your daughter's grade/age level. J. call the school and ask who this is, or look on the school website, sometimes you can find it there (I know, because I used to be that person!)
It's too bad that your local council office is not getting back to you. Whenever someone contacted our council directly (usually a home school parent, or a parent at a school with no scouts) they emailed M. right away, and I would follow up by making sure the girl got placed in a troop. That's how it's SUPPOSED to work.
ETA: contrary to what others are saying Girl Scouts DO recruit through the schools, even though they are not a school sponsored organization (Boy Scouts do as well.) We always had a table set up at school reg day, with photos, flyers and sign up sheets. We also sent info home in the kids' Friday Folders.
here is the information for your local charter. I would try using the facebook or the twitter acct to get their attention.
Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania
Miquon, PA 19444-1741
###-###-####
(888) 564-4657 - Local Toll Free Phone
E-mail: ____@____.com
Web Site: http://www.gsep.org
Facebook: http://facebook.com/209416449070251
Twitter: http://twitter.com/girlscoutsepenn
Also since scouting is not a school sponsored activity service units don't usually do local recruiting.
Don't email. Call your local girl scout council and get a real person on the phone.
GS isn't "associated" with schools but often uses school facilities to meet. If there are no troops at all that meet in your school, there will not be a "school coordinator" person --who would be the first place most of us would send you.
Please phone your GS council where you have sent the e-mails and let them know you have e-mailed five times, your child is a paid member, and you have had no response on finding a troop. Tell them exactly where you're located (leave it in a message if you have to leave one).
Registering is a national function, and the act of registering does not bring an automatic listing of local troops. It's not surprising that the e-mail confirming your child's registration did not give you troop information (it's troop, not "chapter" -- if you say chapter, they might not realize what you are really seeking). Registration usually occurs after a girl has found a troop, not because a girl's still seeking one. That's why you didn't automatically get a response listing troops for your child. It's not a function of the registration process that registers a girl in the national organization.
I would ask your GS council what "service unit" covers your geographic area and then ask the council office to put you through to the staff person who handles that specific service unit and its troops. That person should know every troop in the area -- but be aware that he or she will not necessarily know which troops are full at a given time since girls go in and out especially at the start of the school year. But that staffer should be able to give you contact information for troops at your daughter's level (Daisy? Brownie).
You also can contact other schools near yours and ask to find the school coordinators for those schools. Your child can join a troop that meets at another school -- GS does not have to be "at school, after school" as many folks assume. It's actually good for troops to be composed of kids who do not all already know each other!
I am sorry you are not getting responses. Check that you are contacting the correct GS council for your area; boundaries of councils sometimes are odd and you may not be in the council you think you are in. If you go to GSUSA.org you should be able to find the council that covers your area. If you are already doing all this through GSUSA.org, that is the national site and will not be able to help you with local troop issues. Please stick with it -- GS is worth it!!
Our local GS council is horrible at answering e-mails. You need to pick up the phone and be persistant.
The honest answer is they J. may not know or may not have a troop in your area. There is always a huge need for leaders. It has been my experience that with the younger troops they don't start coordinating and searching for volunteers until school starts and then everyone needs to be trained, etc. It can take several months for a troop to get started.
I've had to find troops on my own. Ask around. Since your daughter is already registered, she can attend events sponsored by your local service unit or council. You would find these on the website. If you attend one of these, you may be able to make some connections and find a troop.
