Girl Scouts of Colorado gives girls sense of belonging, confidence as part of its mission
Coloradans continue to show their generosity with early giving for Colorado Gives Day. To celebrate the statewide initiative, CBS Colorado is showcasing nonprofits all across our state taking part in the day. One of those nonprofits is Girl Scouts of Colorado.
"Every little bit of funding counts, absolutely," said CEO Leanna Clark. "We have 15,000 girls across the state, so the dollars that come in fund programming and adventures for those girls. We offer scholarships. We don't want money to ever be a barrier for girls."
Recently, she and some of the girls shared their stories with CBS News Colorado's Mekialaya White at the Girl Scout DreamLab in Denver. Eevee says being in a troop has helped her find belonging.
"I started kindergarten and I asked people every day if they wanted to be my friend and every single time, they said no," Eevee paused. "After a few weeks, I decided to join Girl Scouts. You feel like your friend is there because your Girl Scouts are your sisters. You feel like everyone is here."
Jillian is among those sisters who's also spent years as a Girl Scout.
"I joined Girl Scouts when I was a Daisy, so while I was in kindergarten, so a long time ago," she laughed. "I've been doing stuff ever since. Oh my gosh, it's done so many different things."
Most importantly, Jillian says Girl Scouts has helped her grow.
"It's made me so much more confident in how I speak and how I interact with people around my community. I've learned entrepreneurship and leadership and a lot of public speaking skills."
"The girls are amazing," said Clark. "And some of these girls, like Jillian I've known since she was this tall, and now, she's driving! But just to see their maturity and poise and girls like Eevee, to hear what it's done for them, the sisterhood that it's enveloped her in, it's life changing."
To help Girl Scouts of Colorado for Colorado Gives Day, visit a special section of coloradogives.org.
Giving for Colorado Gives Day runs through 11:59 pm on December 9, 2025. During this period, every donation is boosted by a $1 million+ Incentive Fund and gives nonprofits the chance to win part of $100,000 in prizes made possible by Colorado Gives Foundation and presenting sponsor, FirstBank.
