Tarna: Four Generations, One Lasting Girl Scout Legacy

August 14, 2026

For Tarna, Girl Scouts isn't simply a part of her family's story. It has been woven through four generations of women in her family.

Tarna's Girl Scout journey began in 1978, but her family's connection goes back even further. Her grandmother, Marjorie, was a troop leader and later worked in membership in Minnesota. Her parents became her troop leaders as the family moved from Florida to Arizona, and as an adult, Tarna continued the tradition as a troop leader, parent volunteer, cookie mom and council volunteer here in Nebraska.

Today, she shares that legacy with her daughter, Clara, as they co-chair the GSSN Alum Network together.

Across four generations, the world has changed—and so has Girl Scouts. Tarna remembers learning to make bread and butter, singing Christmas carols, cooking over campfires and even taking part in an "assembly line vs. individual assembly" challenge that she now looks back on as her first business lesson.

But through every generation, one thing has remained: giving girls the opportunity to try, learn, speak up and discover what they're capable of.

"Girl Scouts has provided those necessary opportunities to do, learn, and use one's voice in a safe, encouraging, and forgiving environment in a manner that builds the confidence required to persevere in life."

For Tarna, that's the lasting power of Girl Scouts. The lessons may evolve with each generation, but the opportunity to build confidence, use your voice and imagine what's possible remains.

100 years. Countless stories. One lasting legacy.