On March 12, 1912, Juliette “Daisy” Gordon Low assembled a group of girls for the very first Girl Scout meeting. Acquainted with Robert (later Lord) Baden-Powell, Low saw how Boy Scouting helped young men grow, and wished to do the same thing for girls.

In 2010, Sandra Grice of Fairhope is taking up part of that tradition. A former Scout herself, Grice is a co-leader of Cadette Troop 8062, a group of older Scouts who are 11-13 years of age. Her co-leader is Jennifer Seale. Grice also works with the county “service unit,” which helps coordinate the work of troops. Girl Scouts is a United Way agency.

“I see all the things that Girl Scouts do,” said Grice. “The organization is service oriented, and they learn about life. They have the opportunity to be exposed to do the right things. They do more than cookies.”

Grice is the mother of two daughters, Gillian and Sandi, and moved to Baldwin County from the Atlanta area about three years ago with her daughters and husband, Rusty. Grice. She still works on Information Technology projects for her old school district in Georgia. Both of her daughters are involved in Scouting.

“I think (Scouting) makes stronger girls,” said Grice. She says she has seen all the girls in her troop grow, including one young woman who was very meek and is now, “vivacious and bubbly.”

Grice also serves on the Service Unit’s Gold Committee, which oversees young women working on the “Gold Award,” the highest honor in Girl Scouting. Earning the award is not easy.

“The project has to show advocacy and sustainability,” said Grice. “There is about 80 hours of work.” Girl Scouts earning a Gold Award must show how someone or a community agency will carry on the work begun by the project. Unlike the Bronze and Silver awards, which can be done as a troop, the work must be done by an individual.

The projects can be impressive.

“One girl I know lost her mother for the lack of a helicopter (to get her to a hospital), so she had a helipad built at a hospital,” said Grice.

While there is a lot of work, Grice says, “I now think I get more out of it than the girls. It puts them in different situations, they do things they would not normally do.”

This experience, Grice believes, allows girls and young women to learn to take care of themselves and others.

“We talk about differences people might have. We know it might be scary, but we learn to reach out.”

She said she was particularly proud of one of her Scouts who while in sixth grade, stood up to some classmates who were bullying another girl. 

And while camping is a part of Scouting, Grice admits roughing it was “a stretch.”

“We (her and her co-leader) used to do everything, but now the girls do more and more,” said Grice.