This summer, while most Girls Scouts are splashing in the pool or making macaroni necklaces at Vacation Bible School, Laura Leigh Fox will be driving around in her VW Beetle and deciding on what college she wants to attend.

Laura Leigh doesn’t sell Thin Mints anymore or wear a cute Brownie uniform to school, but at age 17, she is as much of a Girl Scout as she was when she started her scouting career in first grade.

“People are really surprised when they find out I am still in Girl Scouts,” says the rising Oconee County High School senior.

Laura Leigh is a bit of a rarity.

In Boy Scouts, a good many teenagers stay in the organization, and a select few even attain the rank of Eagle Scout. In Girl Scouts, many girls drop out of the program by the time they hit middle school. Fewer still stay in throughout their high school years.

“There are only four other girls left in my troop,” Laura Leigh explains.

Laura Leigh said a lot of people at her school know she is active in the Oconee 4-H program, but not many people know she is still in a Girl Scout troop.

“I don’t talk about Scouts a lot at school, but it is not because I am ashamed of being a Scout,” she says. “I really am proud that I am still a Girl Scout, and I tell people that when they find out that I am still in Girl Scouts.”

Scouting for Laura Leigh and the other four girls in Troop 2153 means monthly meetings, where the girls often go out to eat together or catch a movie. She enjoys the social aspect of her troop, Laura Leigh says, but equally enjoys the hard work involved with completing the requirements for the Girl Scout Gold Award.

The Gold Award is the highest award given in the Girl Scout program, and involves many hours poured into a project that a Scout designs and carries out on her own.

For her Gold Award project, Laura Leigh decided to teach a group of Clarke County students about fitness and nutrition. Since January, Laura Leigh has gone once a week to the after school program at Fowler Drive Elementary, armed with healthy snacks and fun activities.

“We read books about health and nutrition, play games, and eat the snacks I take to them,” she says. “Also, I really have been stressing to them the importance of drinking lots of water.”

The experience, she says, has been more rewarding than she ever imagined.

“The kids have taught me more than I have taught them,” says Laura Leigh. “Working with these kids has really opened up my eyes to how fortunate we are here in Oconee County.”

Laura Leigh plans different activities every week, things ranging from an Easter egg hunt in April to blowing bubbles in May. Whatever the activity, she stresses the importance of getting up, getting outside and getting moving.

“We play games like Red Rover or relay races, we blow bubbles or play with horseshoes, really anything that gets them moving around,” she says.

Laura Leigh also teaches healthy eating habits, and says the kids gobble up the pretzels, yogurt, and other snacks she brings with her. But, what they really seem to savor is the love and attention she brings.

“They hug me when I get there, and when I leave they hug me again and ask when I will be coming back,” she says, smiling.

At least once a week, she adds, a student begs to go home with her.

The OCHS student, who also squeezes in time for dancing at Joan Mann Dancing Studio and working at Perfectly Polished, says she has gotten lots of help with her project from fellow Girl Scouts in her troop and from her mother, Judy. Even her 14-year-old brother, Jonathan, has tagged along to help on several afternoons.

Now that school is out, Laura Leigh’s trips to Fowler Drive Elementary are over. But, she still must compile all the information and pictures from her project, where she will present them to her troop before receiving her Gold Award.

Even if she didn’t have her eye on the highest honor in Girl Scouting, Laura Leigh says she would still be glad she stayed with Scouting all these years.

“The older you get, the more fun you have in Scouts,” she says. “Girl Scouts has been a great experience for me.”

And, just because Laura Leigh doesn’t sell Girl Scout cookies anymore, doesn’t mean she wouldn’t like to buy a box or two.

“I haven’t seen anyone selling cookies this year, but I keep saying that if I see someone selling them, I would love to buy some,” she says.

Mary Anne Carroll is a reporter for The Oconee Leader. She can be reached at 706-310-1104 or by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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