Courtesy of GSUSA Blog - May 6, 2010Girl Scouts of the USA dedicated the Elliott Native Plant Garden at the Edith Macy Conference Center today in honor of Herford N. and Priscilla Elliott and their family’s longtime efforts to help develop girl leaders who value and protect wildlife and the environment.
The Elliott family, through the Herford N. Elliott Trust Fund, has supported GSUSA’s Elliott Wildlife Values Project since 1977. The dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony was attended by GSUSA and Girl Scout council staff members, as well as former Elliott Wildlife Values Project managers.
“We are so grateful to the Elliott family for their support of Girl Scouts,”said Florence Corsello, Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration at GSUSA.
“The outdoors and respecting and appreciating nature are an essential part of the Girl Scout experience, and it’s more than fitting that we would honor the Elliotts and their longtime commitment to Girl Scouting with a beautiful garden and a beautiful setting like the Edith Macy Conference Center.”
The mission of the Elliott Wildlife Values Project is to develop girls as leaders of both wildlife conservation and environmental stewardship efforts, who positively impact their communities and the world. The project fosters the Girl Scout mission of building girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place. Girls develop science, outdoor, and leadership skills through girl-led, cooperative activities, in which they learn by doing. In the process, they
discover a strong sense of self, develop positive values, and gain an understanding of their important role in caring for wildlife and for our earth’s natural resources; connect with nature, the outdoors, and their local and global communities; liaise with environmental experts; and investigate career opportunities; and Take action to identify community and environmental needs, positively impact the environment, and educate and inspire others to act as stewards of the earth and its wildlife.
The project supports local Girl Scout councils, committees, and volunteers globally through program development, membership and volunteer development, learning opportunities and consultative services, grants to councils, and collaboration with organizations and agencies.
“Millions of girls have benefited from the work of the Elliott Wildlife Values Project,” said Jodi Schwarzer, Project Manager, Elliott Wildlife Values Project at GSUSA.
“The Elliott family’s support has been instrumental in building our national environmental and outdoor programming.”
The garden, which is located near the Great Hall in an area of the conference center known as Sleepy Hollow, features a variety of native plants and places where visitors can view local wildlife and engage in quiet reflection. The garden was funded by a grant from Bank of New York Mellon.
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