Centenary Day WCM Message

Today as we celebrate the 100^th day of our 100^th year as Girl Guides and Girl Scouts it is a chance for us all to come together and reflect on where we have come from and where we are going, to plant the seeds of change for the future.

For 100 years,

- we have planted Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting in diverse communities around the world …

- we have planted the seeds of change in the world…

- we have planted opportunities for girls and young women to grow as responsible global citizens

And Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting has put happiness into the lives of millions of girls and women.

Today thousands of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts are celebrating 100 years of changing lives.

It was a group of girls who first planted the idea of Girl Guiding in the mind of founder, Robert Baden-Powell, more than 100 years ago, in 1909, when they demanded a place for girls at the Crystal Palace Boy Scout Rally.

These girls were, in fact, the very first advocates for the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts - speaking out and challenging the norms and gender conventions of the time.

Our founder also believed that “There's nothing like 'Being Prepared' is there, for what might seem possible, even if it may not seem probable.”

Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting is an organisation that prepares girls and young women for the future, it plants new ideas and helps them grow and develop and has given us all opportunities that we would never have dared were possible.

Today as we give service to our community and make a difference in the lives of others and celebrate 100 years I’d like to leave you with a final quote from our founder Lord Robert Baden-Powell.