Fr. Frank gives a blessing to Nicole, Madelyn, Gabe and Rochelle at the GirlScoutsWhyNot.com booth
In addition to hearing Lila Rose speak at a general session during the National Right to Life Committee convention a few weeks ago, I also met Rochelle Focaracci and her daughter, Madelyn. Rochelle was a Girl Scouts troop leader, and Madelyn was a Girl Scout. In February 2009, though, one day after World Thinking Day, Rochelle and Madelyn left the Girl Scouts for good.
Their reason for leaving was that in 2008, Rochelle had been contacted by her sister about a connection between World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) and Planned Parenthood. The two sisters sent each other articles and looked for hard evidence. Rochelle found enough evidence to decide to leave the Girl Scouts 9 months later, and she also to set up a website documenting evidence of the connection.
Rochelle and her children as well as a young friend of the family were very enthusiastic as they kindly shared the truth about WAGGGS partnerships and what the organization is teaching enrolled Girl Scouts. What she shared with me and was promoting at her exhibit is a new video series which is up on her website and on YouTube in three parts. The series was produced by GirlScoutsWhyNot.com as well as by SpeakNowGirlScouts.com. The YouTube channel is GirlScoutsWhyNot.
The website has its own description of the three-part video series and says that “[e]ach video has an accompanying video documentation guide, which provides supporting verifiable evidence that is presented in the video series.”
Part 1: Features Madelyn, a former Girl Scout teen from Georgia. Madelyn explored the problematic curriculum that exposes girls to abortion rights advocacy groups and role models. She also shows how the official GS blog links girls to resources with graphic explicit content.
Part 2: Features Ann, a mom of a former fourth-general Girl Scout from Missouri. Ann focuses on GSUSA relationships that conflict with the prolife position including the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS), the international scouting organzation of the GSUSA which is a founder and primary funder. Ann explores GSUSA’s other concerning relationships as well.
Part 3: Features Mickie, a dad of a former Girl Scout and husband of a former Girl Scout leader from Florida. Mickie provides a father’s perspective on the Girl Scouts issues and explains how each of us can share the truth and protect girls from the Girl Scouts’ harmful curriculum and relationships.
Also, coming from the video’s media release:
These videos demonstrate that the Catholic bishops launched their inquiry into the Girl Scouts with good reason. The facts documented in the videos give Catholic parents–all pro-life parents–reason to worry. And, given the pro-abortion convictions of the Girl Scouts’ leadership, and the Girl Scouts’ long-time relationships with pro-abortion, sex-promoting advocacy groups, these problems are destined to repeat themselves. The videos and accompanying documentation guides clearly implicate the Girl scouts on their continued denials of the many allegations brought forward by faith based and pro-life groups regarding their ties to pro-abortions groups and agendas.
The website GirlScoutsWhyNot.com was launched in May of 2010, but this was just the beginning. In May of 2011, SpeakNowGirlScouts.com was launched, and in October of that year came 100 Questions for the Girl Scouts. Rochelle also spoke fondly of the Girl Scouts Why Not Mission in Georgia, which is her current state of residence. She let me know that they do have a spiritual adviser as well and mentioned the importance of faith.
The exhibit was impressive not only with how it was set-up and the helpful information provided, but with also the hard documented evidence. A binder contained carefully marked and highlighted tax returns, segments from the WAGGGS website (which have since been taken down), and other pieces of information. What Rochelle showed me about WAGGGS and the Planned Parenthood connection can be found here, but as Rochelle explains it, an estimated 800,000 Catholic Girl Scouts paying a $12 annual membership fee, 49 cents of which goes to WAGGGS per each girl, that’s $393,959 that is going to an organization that promotes abortion and is very much affiliated with pro-abortion organizations. Unfortunately, Catholic Girl Scouts may not even be aware that their membership fee is going toward promoting something so inherently against their faith.
And the number of dollars which pro-life Girl Scouts contribute to a pro-abortion organization is even greater when non-Catholic pro-life Girl Scouts is calculated in as well. In light of such depressing news, whether disillusioned Girl Scouts already have left or are thinking of doing so, Rochelle mentioned outreach particularly to Christian and Catholic girls. She also provided a list of alternatives, including American Heritage Girls, which is signed with the Boy Scouts of America, and Little Flowers, which is a Catholic alternative.
Rochelle was passionate and a very kind soul. She told me all about her experiences and that while this was a decision that took 9 months to make, she trusted God’s timing. She also is dedicated to the website and her cause. Rochelle was full of dedication when she showed off her binder and a Resource Book for Senior Girl Scouts, which listed, among other things, how to deal with “[e]nding a pregnancy.” She also showed me pictures with Lila Rose, news articles, and a quote from Abby Johnson endorsing her organization.
But most impressive of all, was that it was clear that Rochelle is going to stick with this issue. She is not going to let it go away, because she wants to inform and protect young girls.
