Navajo Girl Scouts

At Diné Bi Olta, Girl Scouting is a hit

By Alastair Lee BitsoiWhen Amber Crotty decided to establish a Brownie troop at Tséhootsooí Diné Bi Olta, little did she foresee the response: Over 50 girls--about 20 percent of the student body--signed up to become members of the newly formed Arizona Cactus Pine Troop No. 3053.

They ran the gamut from Daisies (grades K-1) to Cadettes (grades 6-8), as the ages are grouped in Girl Scout parlance.And:Crotty, who together with co-leader Nikki Alex started organizing the troop in November, said the strong response indicates a need for after-school programs not just at the Navajo language immersion school, but in most other schools as well.

"If anything, this demonstrates the lack of programs available, not just to girls but to kids after school," she said. "For the most part, they wanted something to do after school."

Before the DBI Girl Scout troop was organized, most of the girls said they either went home after school or to the local Boy's and Girl's Club, where they only did homework.

"I wanted to learn more things about nature," said Eriona Tapahe, 11f, a cadette. "I was excited because I haven't been in the Girl Scouts before, and wanted to try it."Comment:  Should every child be enrolled in some kind of after-school activity? Hmm...it might help.

For more on Scouts and Indians, see Boy Scouts Build Chumash Village and Boy Scout Dances at Powwow.

Below:  "Brownies Tiajia Gamble and Alena Crotty sell Girl Scouts cookies with handmade posters for Tséhootsoí Diné bi'Olta Troop No. 3053 on Feb. 11 at the Basha's grocery store in Window Rock." (Amber Crotty)