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Chinese American Brownie Troop 42
Charlotte Halsema Ottinger, FTIA Parent
As parents to daughters from China, we are acutely aware of issues that our children will face as they grow older. The early school age years can be a vulnerable time for children who were adopted as this is the time they begin to be confronted with questions from their peers while also trying to understand their own personal stories. And we, as parents, are often struggling with these same issues while searching for ways to help our children navigate through these years. We know our daughters need to learn about, appreciate, and feel proud about their ethnic heritage while comfortably growing into All-American kids.
As a result of our conversations about these issues, Chris Jacobson and I decided to form a Brownie troop for girls adopted from China. With the blessing of Hoosier Girl Scouts Capital Council, we formed Troop 42. We thought this would be a way to give our daughters an opportunity to develop friendships with girls whose backgrounds were similar while participating in one of the most All-American activities – Girl Scouts! Now, with a year of Brownie meetings behind us, our troop is heading into its second year with more than 30 members – and many others who have expressed an interest in joining!
Troop 42 is a unique troop in that it is a “city-wide” troop. We have members from all areas of the metropolitan Indianapolis area – we even have members outside of Indianapolis who travel nearly an hour to attend our monthly meetings. Our troop is open to any qualifying girl who wants to experience Chinese culture since each of our meetings incorporates some aspect of Chinese culture. Jane Lavey, experienced Girl Scout troop “cookie mom” and mother to 7 year old Brownie Emily, stated “When I learned of this troop, I thought it would be a great opportunity for Emily to learn both lessons from Girl Scouts (i.e. leadership, goal setting, etc.) and about her native country. She would also be playing with and learning from other girls like herself.” When asked how she felt the first time she attended a Brownie meeting and saw that all the girls were Chinese, 8 year old Ginger White said, “I thought that was really cool – all those girls were from China!”
Each of our monthly meetings focuses on traditional Girl Scout activities and goals while infusing projects and information related to China. For example, when studying sign language and deaf culture for the “Special Languages” patch, we invited a deaf woman to speak to the group, using an interpreter, about her personal experiences as a deaf woman. Then the girls learned about the differences between how deaf people live in China versus the United States. With this new knowledge, the troop decided to sponsor a deaf Chinese orphan in school for a year. For our spring program, we met at a park for a “fun day” and had my 7 year old son, Sam, (brother of 8 year old Brownie, Sarah Ottinger) present on “Crickets as Pets in China” complete with examples of authentic Chinese cricket cages – one of our Brownies’ favorite meetings. At another meeting, the girls earned their “Games Around the World” patch by rotating thru stations and playing traditional Chinese children’s games. For their “Watching Wildlife” patch we invited a local wild turtle rehabilitator to present a program to the girls during which they were able to see a variety of live turtles, learn about the symbolic meaning and uses of turtles in Chinese culture, and understand why some turtle species are endangered. The girls brought donations of items used by the rehabilitator and sponsored her Asian Box Turtle for a year.
Whenever possible, we invite Chinese Americans to help with our programs, such as our Mother/Daughter Chinese Tea. During this meeting, the girls learned about tea cultivation and were shown aspects of a traditional Chinese tea ceremony. They also learned about YiXing teapots. Each girl had an opportunity to “show and tell” her own favorite teapot, make a pot of tea and enjoy a variety of Chinese snacks – earning a “Tea Party” fun patch.
In addition to American Brownie patches, the girls will be earning patches such as “Chinese Festivals” and “Calligraphy” from the Hong Kong Girl Guides, part of the International Girl Scout network. Some of this year’s anticipated programs include a Mother/Daughter Chinese cooking class (“Make It/Eat It” patch), Traditional Chinese Musical Instruments (“Listening to Music” Patch) and Holiday Panda-monium meeting (Hong Kong “Conservation” patch).
Thanks in part to a grant from Our Chinese Daughter’s Foundation (www.OCDF.org ), our first year concluded with a trip to Chicago’s Chinatown where we had a luncheon speaker discuss Chinese dining etiquette and participated in special programs at the Chinese American Museum of Chicago. The girls also participated in a photo journalism project with specific photo assignments in Chinatown to record their visit and stimulate conversation about their experience. (Each girl will complete a photo journalism scrapbook provided by Jennifer Demar of Scrap and Tell www.scrapandtell.com .) Following the visit to Chinatown, several of the Brownie families participated in an optional excursion to the Shanghai Circus at the Navy Pier.
Although some of the concepts presented to the girls have been more involved than can be fully understood through one program, such as our hands-on activities with the abacus at the Chinese American Museum, our intent is to expose the girls to Chinese culture. Mastering many of the skills and understanding traditions is a process that will require years of involvement in the Chinese community and “layers” of instruction. Nonetheless, “some of the activities have sparked conversations about China that otherwise would not have occurred” said Jane Lavey. And, our girls seem to have become more aware of their Chinese heritage. “I have certainly noticed that Lia seems more interested in, and aware of, her roots” said co-leader Chris Jacobson.
It’s been a fun year! Our experience is that Girl Scouts provides an excellent way to combine aspects of American culture while promoting ethnic diversity and pride. According to Cathi Wahnsiedler, mother to 7 year old Brownie Lucy, “What is so special about the troop is an intangible that I believe could not be found in any other scouting troop…that is the love and dedication of moms of Chinese daughters who have made a special place in our hearts for all daughters/children of China. I think this is what has made the level of [this] troop so outstanding.” In fact, most of the mothers stay through the meetings, building stronger relationships with each other while learning about Chinese culture themselves. Without the willingness of the parents to jump in and help at each meeting, our programs could not be as involved and comprehensive. According to Jennifer Connor, mother to 6 year old Brownie Katelyn, “I have met new friends for myself and have enjoyed seeing my daughter do the same….We have always fostered a positive attitude about being Chinese and the troop activities have fortified this.” The success of our troop can be summed up by 7 year old Lia Jacobson, daughter of co-leader Chris Jacobson, “I like having all my friends around because it makes me feel really good inside!”
Our “kick off” meeting for the 2006-2007 Brownie year will be held in September and will include a silent auction fundraiser for upcoming troop programs. If you would like to donate an item to the silent auction or for more information about Brownie program ideas or registering your Brownie in Troop 42, please contact Charlotte Ottinger at COttinger@indy.rr.com
The following are some photos of Brownie Troop 42, and their recent trip to Chicago’s Chinatown and the Chinese American Museum of Chicago.
Troop 42 in Chicago’s Chinatown
Abacus program at the Chinese American Museum
