AHG founder urges girls to ‘open the floor’ for discussion about their faith journey

October 3, 2022

CINCINNATI, Ohio — American Heritage Girls (AHG, www.americanheritagegirls.org) — one of the largest Christian, scout-type organizations in the world — is proud to encourage AHG members to be involved in Focus on the Family’s “Bring Your Bible to School Day” this Thursday, October 6.

AHG’s Christian foundation goes hand-in-hand with Focus on the Family’s “Bring Your Bible to School Day,” a nationwide, student-led movement to read and treasure Scripture as God’s Holy Word, to encourage others with the hope they have in Christ Jesus, and to celebrate religious freedoms in the United States. The event empowers Christian students of all ages to speak God’s grace and truth into the culture around them, starting with two simple steps — bringing their Bibles to school and sharing what God’s Word means to them.

The message of sharing faith with friends ties in well with AHG’s mission of building young women of character who have a heart for the Lord. AHG’s dedicationto providing Christ-centered programming is tailored to the age and ability of each girl.

Patti Garibay, founder and executive director of American Heritage Girls, stated, “Our AHG program is thoughtful, well-rounded, and intentional. A girl who completes the AHG program will be a Christ-following servant leader who is honoring, relational, and competent — in short, a woman of integrity. These are the type of women who will be well-equipped to share the Good News in any situation.”

Last year, Focus on the Family had 590,327 students register for the event in over 50,000 schools across the nation. This year, Christian girls now have new opportunities to share with their friends the hope they have in Christ, and how this hope has seen them through the many challenges they have all faced over the past two years.

Garibay commented, “We encourage all of our members to participate in ‘Bring Your Bible to School Day’ and utilize it as an opportunity to share the Gospel with their peers. It can be challenging to start a conversation about Christ, but girls can find solidarity among other believers in their school and use ‘Bring Your Bible to School Day’ as a catalyst to bring Christ to their classmate. For girls who might not know how to start that conversation, this is a great way to open the floor for that dialogue.”

To register for “Bring Your Bible To School Day” or for more information, click here.

Garibay recently spoke on Focus on the Family’s nationwide radio program about the importance of raising godly girls and how parents can help equip the next generation of women. Host Jim Daly said, “Patti’s advancing a very noble cause and I’m so encouraged by her commitment to godly values and her desire to pour into the next generation of young women.”

American Heritage Girls was founded in 1995 when Founder and Executive Director Patti Garibay became concerned with the direction the Girl Scouts of America was headed. Garibay, along with a group of concerned parents, wanted a faith-based, scout-type character development program for their daughters, and American Heritage Girls was born. Today, there are Troops in all 50 states and girls being served in 15 countries around the globe. Girls can join a Troop at any time; if a Troop is not available nearby, they can become a Trailblazer and enjoy the AHG program alongside their parent. A variety of Christian denominations are also represented as Charter Organizations for Troops. Thousands of volunteer members across the country are helping girls grow in their faith, cultivate a heart for service, enjoy the great outdoors, and have more fun than they can imagine. 

At AHG, girls ages five to 18 meet together as a single Troop at the same time and then break out into Units by Levels. This gives AHG girls the important social experience of interacting with friends and godly mentors of various ages; members also learn leadership skills within a group setting. AHG Troops are located in local communities across the nation. If none exists in a given area, families can bring the AHG Program to their own area. An American Heritage Girls Troop Development Coach is available to provide resources to potential Charter Organizations and other families to form a new Troop. To hear more about the purpose, mission, and vision of AHG from Founder and Executive Director Patti Garibay, click here.

AHG’s “Raising Godly Girls” radio feature and Raising Godly Girls blog shares guidance and biblically based advice on many key topics affecting girls today—from bullying and identity to anxiety and body image issues. It gives parents, educators, and faith community leaders a set of tools, resources, and Scripture-based advice to assist in raising girls after God’s own heart. The “Raising Godly Girls Minute” with Patti Garibay airs on 1000+ Christian radio stations across the country.