My name is Gabriella Burke,  I am an 11 year old, 6th grader and I am a proud member of Girl Scout Troop 2033 in Valley Stream.  Since I joined the Girl Scouts in Kindergarten I have had fun camping with my sister Scouts at the Valley Stream Camporee.  

The Valley Stream Camporee is a Community event that the village hosts every year to honor and thank all the Scouts (Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Cub Scouts and Venture Scouts) from Valley Stream for the good work and community service we perform to make the world a better place.

I have been participating in this Community Event since I was in Kindergarten and it is always my favorite part of the scouting year.  During Camporee I get to camp with all the other Girl Scouts and share the skills I learned throughout the year. We also get to show our abilities to the other scouting groups in Valley Stream.  The Girl Scouts get to compete against the other scouts and we often show up the boys and win.

I think that not only will the girls miss out if we don't participate in this community event, but the Girl Scouts of Nassau County will lose out too.  So many times friends stop by Camporee and ask me 'if I become a Girl Scout, can I come to Camporee too?" Now these girls will walk through the same park and be invited to join in with the boys.

Camporee was my first camping experience.  Before my first camporee, I didn't think I could camp.  It was the event that gave me the confidence to know I could go on other camping trips further from home,  

I am usually quiet and don't like to bring attention to myself.  But my scouting experiences have taught me to be courageous and strong so I feel I need to speak up about this issue.  I just feel that if adults are having problems and disagreements, kids should not be effected.  Scouting is not about adults it's about kids. That's why I'm asking the Girl Scouts of Nassau County and the Girl Scouts of the USA to reconsider their decision in this matter.