NYC's Homeless Girl Scout Troop Expands To All 5 Boroughs

NEW YORK, NY — Homeless girls in all five boroughs can now take the Girl Scout oath. Troop 6000, New York City's first-in-the-nation Girl Scout group for homeless kids, has expanded to serve 15 shelters across the city just over a year after its launch, officials announced Thursday.

"These scouts are learning to tackle challenges with courage, confidence and character, and I can't wait to see what kind of leaders they become," first lady Chirlane McCray said.

The city's Department of Homeless Services and the Girl Scouts of Greater New York launched Troop 6000 last February as the first such program for kids in the city's shelter system. Giselle Burgess, who now serves as the troop's program manager, reportedly helped start it in a Long Island City homeless shelter where she was staying with her five kids.

The troop has since exploded to include more than 500 girls and women across the city participating in the leadership and community development program, city officials said. The troop even sold more than 32,000 boxes of famous Girl Scout cookies during their first cookie sale this spring.

Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration pledged to reach that many people last July, when it committed more than $1 million over three years to the troop through the Department of Homeless Services and the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City.

"The impact that Troop 6000 has had on the girls and women is profound," said Meridith Maskara, the CEO of the Girl Scouts of Greater New York. "Girls feel like they're not alone, that others understand them and that they belong to a much larger community and can make a difference in the world."

Karina, Burgess' 12-year-old daughter, said her troop would meet once a week and learned various lessons in science, math and other topics.

Karina's family has since found a home elsewhere in Queens, but the troop helped her bond with other girls who were experiencing what she was going through, she said, interactions that aren't easy in most shelters.

Now that the troop has made it through its first year, Karina said she's proud of her mom.

"She really outdid herself on this, and I'm so happy to see that there's so many other girls now enjoying Girl Scouts and getting to feel the feelings I felt when I finally met those girls and got to interact with them," she said.

(Lead image: Members of Troop 6000 pose at City Hall on Thursday. The program now serves more than 500 girls and women at 15 shelters across the five boroughs. Photo from NYC Homeless Services/Flickr)