At our recent Marshfield Rotary meeting, we had the pleasure of hosting guest speakers Ashley VanDreel and Rachel Stankowski, who shared their inspiring experiences serving as local Girl Scout leaders. The Marshfield Area Girl Scouts (MAGS) network supports 41 registered girls across 10 diverse troops, spanning from young Daisies in kindergarten to high school Ambassadors in 11th and 12th grade. MAGS serves a wide regional footprint including Marshfield, Spencer, Stratford, and the Auburndale area. Through this structured program, local girls gain invaluable life skills including self-defense, first aid, outdoor survival, and STEM. They also master goal-setting and entrepreneurship through annual fall product and cookie sales, while gaining global perspectives from international guest speakers and cultural fairs.
Community service is foundational to the MAGS experience, highlighted by their routine participation in the United Way’s "Make a Difference Day" to rake leaves and clean yards for local elderly residents. Ashley and Rachel highlighted the profound impact of individual troops, such as Troop 6339, which honors veterans by placing flags on graves, stocks Free Little Pantries with extra cookies, leaves encouraging messages on Scotty’s Pizza’s ”Pay Ahead” wall, and recently hosted a Field Day event for their sister troop. Equally active, Troop 6136 gives back through annual card-making for nursing homes, a "Share the Love" stuffed animal drive for the Ronald McDonald House, creating fleece tie blankets for the Marshfield Area Pet Shelter, and boxing meals for Feed My Starving Children. Through leadership, collaboration, and heartfelt service, these young leaders continue to embody the Rotary spirit of "Service Above Self" right here in our community.