Girl Scout Adventures~Flag ceremony

Group pic of the girls before flag ceremony. 

Getting ready to present the flag. 

COAST GUARD APPRECIATION DINNER FLAG CEREMONY
Last night my Brownie Troop #118 did their first Flag Ceremony, where they presented the Flag at a local Coast Guard Appreciation Dinner. At yesterdays Brownie meeting, we practiced with the flags and the girls practiced their roles of carrying the flags to the front, putting them in the holder and the leader announced the time for the group to stand and do pledge of allegiance. Fortunately another parent with lots of prior experience in scouts helped with this part of it, as it is all very new to me! We practiced over and over again until the girls felt confident.

When the time came this evening to do the formal ceremony at the dinner, the whole scene struck a soft chord in my heart.

To begin with, the event was VERY formal for Kodiak and all the Coast Guard active duty were in uniform. Their significant others were dressed to the "T". The dinner started and my 6 Brownies were called in to do the ceremony.

When the time came, everyone in the reception hall stood and Nora was in charge of carrying the  American Flag up to the front. She weaved through the sea of uniformed men and women and she was careful to not let old glory touch the ground.

On the other side of the room, another Brownie, Abigail, carried the Alaska Flag to the front. The leader, Shelby, did the annnouncing in her confident,  strong voice. I could hear her even in the back of the room. I was so proud of her for projecting out so confidently in such a big and crowded room.

Everyone in the room put their hands to their hearts and said the pledge of allegiance in unison. I was a little choked up with pride inside and could barely say the words of the pledge out loud. The whole moment of our 6 little brownies leading the Coast Guard Appreciation dinner in this formal, important ceremony was enough to make me explode with joy inside.

After the pledge, the crowd clapped. The girls walked to the back of the room and we exited. Nora said that as they walked out, she could hear people saying, "They're so cute" and several people in the crowd gave the girls High 5's as they left the hall.

 I"m excited to be part of these new adventures for Nora and I to have together. And to lead girls on such novel experiences for ALL of us.

Zoya