Anyone familiar with American Heritage Girls?

[bjj]

A member of our homeschool group confronted me about having my 9 y/o girl join her American Heritage Girl group. She didn't have much to tell me other than it is similar to Girl Scouts. I know she belongs to the Family Bible Church and I know she knows we are Catholic. I'm not sure if this group is non-denominational or if this may be her way of evangelizing.

[Brenda V.]

On the surface it is a good organization. You can go here http://www.ahgonline.org/ and explore their webstie to see what they are about.

The only thing on their webstite that gave me pause was their Statement of Faith found here http://www.ahgonline.org/ahg/about/sof.php.

The part that worries me is this part "We believe the Holy Scriptures (Old/New Testament) to be the inspired and authoritative Word of God." (please go to the website and read it in its entirety though). As Catholics we view "authoritative Word of God" to be defined differently than Protestants. Many Protestants will tell you that it is the only way to know God's will in our lives - this is a false teaching and is called "sola scriptura" and can be disproved with scripture! As Catholics we will say that the Bible is "athoritative" in it's own right but there is also Sacred Tradition!

I would ask if I could observe several meetings, especially of older girls (if possible) to get a better feel of where this specific troop or group will be going with the program.

Otherwise, approach your Priest to see if you can start your own Am. Heritage Girls troop at your Parish where you can incorporate Catholic beliefs more fully into the troop and troop activities. Or better yet, look into "Little Flowers" or "Challenge Club". Both are exclusively Catholic group centered clubs.

Brenda V.

[bjj]

Thank-you Brenda for the word of caution. Unfortunately, our parish is small, 75 families. Needless to say, hard to find enough girls. let alone children.

[iron]

I would not hesitate to get a Catholic American Heritage Girls troop started if you can get a decent number of families. My 3 daughters a part of a very active Catholic AHG troop in our town. In fact, I am leading a Daddy/Daughter Campout next weekend with 16 families/45 people total. I can't tell you how excited I am to have my daughters as part of AHG. The group is very Catholic in how they go about their work with the girls and employ the program.

Although the groups founders are not Catholic, the central organization is not at all biased against Catholics--my wife went to their National Convention this past spring. They even had a workshop for leaders of Catholic troops, and the national leaders when out of their way to make sure Catholics feel comfortable being part of their organization. I don't think Catholics should have an issue with their oath--we recognize the authority of the Scriptures. I do recommend that you have your troop chartered from a Catholic parish, K of C council, or such, so it is clear this is a Catholic AHG troop. AHG expects the troops to infuse the particular religious customs of the charter organization into the activities of the troop, and you would want this to be Catholic.

My daughters have also done Little Flowers, but I don't see LF as a scouting organization like AHG is. AHG has level awards and merit badges which are similar to other scouting organizations. Their "Stars and Stripes" Award is equivalent to earning Eagle Scout.

Bottomline is that love my daughters' Catholic AHG troop, and so do they.

[iron]

I would not hesitate to get a Catholic American Heritage Girls troop started if you can get a decent number of families. My 3 daughters a part of a very active Catholic AHG troop in our town. In fact, I am leading a Daddy/Daughter Campout next weekend with 16 families/45 people total. I can't tell you how excited I am to have my daughters as part of AHG. The group is very Catholic in how they go about their work with the girls and employ the program.

Although the groups founders are not Catholic, the central organization is not at all biased against Catholics--my wife went to their National Convention this past spring. They even had a workshop for leaders of Catholic troops, and the national leaders when out of their way to make sure Catholics feel comfortable being part of their organization. I don't think Catholics should have an issue with their oath--we recognize the authority of the Scriptures. I do recommend that you have your troop chartered from a Catholic parish, K of C council, or such, so it is clear this is a Catholic AHG troop. AHG expects the troops to infuse the particular religious customs of the charter organization into the activities of the troop, and you would want this to be Catholic.

My daughters have also done Little Flowers, but I don't see LF as a scouting organization like AHG is. AHG has level awards and merit badges which are similar to other scouting organizations. Their "Stars and Stripes" Award is equivalent to earning Eagle Scout.

Bottomline is that love my daughters' Catholic AHG troop, and so do they.

[bella mama]

Catholic Heritage Curricula has a program called "Pilgrims of the Holy Family". It is for both boys and girls and activities can be chosen based on the age of the participants. They have badges that they can earn and while your child is learning a useful skill, they are also learning the virtues that go along with it. There is even a "yahoo" email group for this program. If your children have "aged" out of Little Flowers or Blue Knights, or if your looking for a way to incorporate boys and girls into a group, this is worth looking into!

[rishl]

http://www.ahgonline.org/uploads/dio...ndorsement.pdf

The AHGC is attracting many Catholics as an alternative to the Girls Scouts. It is supposed to be non-denominational and is sponsored thru a local church. It is Christ-centered whereas other groups offer a view of *God optional. Unlike other girls groups, it also has the support of the Boy Scouts of America. http://www.ahgonline.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=166193

We were part of Little Flowers / Blue Knights before we relocated, and that was a lot of fun. It can also be done with a small group. We had about 8 girls and 12 boys in separate groups. http://www.eccehomopress.com/

I review with my girls if I find any differences that we need to discuss. Most recently, during Bible stories they went over the books of the Bible. So, of course there were a few of us whose Bibles were not exactly the same as others. We took it as a learning opportunity when we got home.

I hope this helps. You can by all means open a troop. I'm not sure about the details for possibly making it all-Catholic.

[DiannaK]

We are in Louisville, Kentucky, and there are a handful of AHG troops here, including two Catholic troops.

We follow the AHG format with troop levels ec, but our girls learn about Catholic saints, have Catholic service projects, etc. I love it .... My daughter is creating friendships with other Catholic homeschooled girls.

[Ellyakamommy]

"'Confronted you" about joining the group, not approaching you? Do you get along with this woman? That's not the gist of your question though...

What I know about AHG and how similiar it is to GS--
Girl Scouts of America has changed their national policies such that many Catholic families are no longer comfortable having their children participate. American Heritage Girls is gaining momentum in Catholic circles because it is a genuine scouting organization for girls that is separated from the controversies Girl Scouts of America has engendered by being involved with Planned Parenthood, doing away with merit badges, and advocating a certain philosophy of femininism. AHG is much more family and church oriented, and activities are more camping/life skills/orienteering based than GS has become; hence the increasing popularity.

HTH.

[tropicaljava]

Originally Posted by Ellyakamommy

"'Confronted you" about joining the group, not approaching you? Do you get along with this woman? That's not the gist of your question though...

What I know about AHG and how similiar it is to GS--
Girl Scouts of America has changed their national policies such that many Catholic families are no longer comfortable having their children participate. American Heritage Girls is gaining momentum in Catholic circles because it is a genuine scouting organization for girls that is separated from the controversies Girl Scouts of America has engendered by being involved with Planned Parenthood, doing away with merit badges, and advocating a certain philosophy of femininism. AHG is much more family and church oriented, and activities are more camping/life skills/orienteering based than GS has become; hence the increasing popularity.

HTH.

I am not sure where you got your information from about the,Girl Scouts . Girl scouts still give out merit badges. They are not affiliated with Planned Parenthood. They still have camping:
http://www.girlscouts.org/program/basics/camping/
I am not real sure what you mean about feminism. Are you referring to the idea that girls can be leaders? Personally, I feel that is a good thing to teach our young girls.How about this for life skills?
http://grist.org/list/2011-11-02-gir...-merit-badges/

Now I can understand why you might like a group that is more "Catholic", I think your message would have a whole lot more traction if you took the time to research (as in Google) your assertions, rather than just post what someone else said that sounds good to you.

AHG may very well be a better choice for many girls and their families. I would suggest doing some research before making that choice, especially if a parent feels that some varieties of a "Christ Centered" program might clash with their own religious views which could be possible with AHG depending upon the church the chapter is affiliated with.
http://www.ahgonline.org/
http://www.nccgscf.org/

[JannyC]

Originally Posted by tropicaljava

Now I can understand why you might like a group that is more "Catholic", I think your message would have a whole lot more traction if you took the time to research (as in Google) your assertions, rather than just post what someone else said that sounds good to you.

AHG may very well be a better choice for many girls and their families. I would suggest doing some research before making that choice, especially if a parent feels that some varieties of a "Christ Centered" program might clash with their own religious views which could be possible with AHG depending upon the church the chapter is affiliated with.
http://www.ahgonline.org/
http://www.nccgscf.org/

Every diocese in the US has a Committee on Scouting that provides guidance and direction to local units, promotes this mission of Scouting as Youth Ministry and sponsors Catholic-centered programs, events, and activities for Scouts. One program, the Rosary Patch program, encourages youth and adult Scouts to pray the Rosary on a regular basis. The diocesan committees hold weekend camporees for spiritual development (i.e., retreats) and oversee the earning of religious recognition emblems (i.e, Marian Medal, Ad Altare Dei).

To dismiss Boy Scouting or Girl Scouting as unsuitable for Catholic children because of what one reads on the internet is short-sighted and lacking due diligence in raising one's children.

[willia4]

The Catholic religious recognition programs administered by the National Catholic Committee for Girl Scouts and Camp Fire (NCCGSCF), under the auspices of the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry (NFCYM), allow young people to explore and become more involved in their Catholic faith. All programs are designed to support and complement the catechetical efforts of Catholic parishes and schools. In particular, the Family of God is an excellent supplement for children preparing for the reception of their first Eucharist. The Spirit Alive provides substantial and creative activities to augment preparation for the sacrament of confirmation.
Reprinted from here : http://www.nfcym.org/gscf/recognitions.htm

[Calgar]

Originally Posted by tropicaljava

I am not sure where you got your information from about the,Girl Scouts . Girl scouts still give out merit badges. They are not affiliated with Planned Parenthood.

Gee, a one post wonder.

Girl Scouts of American claim not to be affiliated with Planned Parenthood but they launder money they give to PP through another group, Girl Scouts International.

I was told on the phone and through email with the regional girl scouts leadership that Girl Scouts of America is not a Christian organization and that the word God in their creed is meaningless. They said it's like the use of God in our constitution. Totally secular. Their words.

[Brendan]

My wife runs an American Herititage Girls troop at a Catholic Parish. It is one of 5 in the area.

The troops are very involved in the NFCYM Catholic badge programs, my wife is both an instructor for the badges, and sits on the Archdiocesan committee for the girls programs.

In addition, I am an Assistant Scout Master for our parishes BSA troop.

The BSA and AHG have a formal relationship ( the only such organization for girls that the BSA is associated with). AHG is modeled very closely on the Boy Scouts, in structure and advancement. It uses a single troop model that encompases many different age groups, with similarly aged girls then broken out into 'squads;. For those familar with the BSA, this is exactly like the single troop with multiple 'patrols' inside of it. That give the girls many leadership opportunities to guide and mentor younger girls within the same troop.

AHG is very supportive of Catholic troops, there is nothing in the organization that is contrary to the Faith, in fact it is very complementary. The organization is pro-life and Christian to the core. My wife's troop with go out and pray the Rosary in front of a local abortion clinic, in uniform, as a troop.


My wife was a Girl Scout, but we decided not to put our girls in the organization when we saw the background of the people they chose to speak at their national convention several years ago. They were all staunch pro choice, pro homoexual speakers. This decision was confirmed again with the last set of speakers at their national convention.

If those are the women that GSUSA is proposing as models of what modern womanhood should be, it runs very counter to the message Pope John Paul II gave in Mulieris Dignitatem.

That document will forever be my guide in raising my girls to be the women God intents them to be, and any organizaiton that has a coutner image does not deserve my girls in it's ranks. GSUSA has not earned that right, AHG has.

[Brendan]

One other facet of Girls Scouts that reinforced our decision.

A troop in Colorado was forced to accept a 7 year old boy into the troop. The boy considers himself to be a girl, therefore GSUSA forced the troop leader to admit the boy and then required the troop leader to take sensitivity training.

So this boy is now not only permitted to go on campouts with the girls, the troop leadership can do nothing that would treat him any differently than the girls in the troop (think tents and bathroom facitlies)

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/girl...ving-life-girl