The Western Washington state chapter of the Girl Scouts youth organization has made a powerful statement by rejecting a $100,000 donation -- a gift that would cover nearly one-third of its yearly financial assistance program -- that came with a caveat demanding the money could not be used for transgender members.
“We said Girl Scouts is for EVERY girl. And we gave the money back,” the organization states.
The group decided to turn instead to crowdfunding platform Indiegogo to help raise the money. To promote the crowdfunding raise, Girl Scouts launched a social-media campaign to raise awareness for the cause with the hashtag #ForEVERYGirl.
“Our vision at Girl Scouts of Western Washington is that EVERY girl in our region — regardless of her race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, gender identity or geographic location — is empowered to unleash her potential, build her future and transform her world,” the Indiegogo campaign says.
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And supporters made an even more powerful statement when they donated two and a half times that amount of money for the Girl Scouts on the crowdfunding site Indiegogo. As of Wednesday, July 1, the crowdfunding effort had raised more than $260,000 from more than 5,000 individual donors.
The story is a heartwarming demonstration of the power of crowdfunding at its best. And it’s also a sign that the Girl Scout marketing team has its finger on the pulse of changing sentiment toward transgender issues.
By turning away the initial cash donation, the Girl Scouts team has bought itself what money just can’t buy: a good reputation. And that’s literally priceless.
Watch the video that Girl Scouts made explaining their cause on for the Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign below:
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