Last week, I had the privilege to serve as an assistant counselor for this year’s session of Missouri Girls State. I was a delegate in 2016 and was asked to return as a counselor for the first time. I had an awesome time as a delegate last year, but I knew that my role this year would be to make sure that all the girls I came into contact with were having just as much fun as I had. In my role, I was able to truly appreciate all the work that Missouri Girls State does to shape the next generation of female leaders into confident, capable women. As a counselor, I was able to sit back and watch the action of the week unfold. I can honestly say that I was in awe of all the wonderful things that you all accomplished.

Maybe now that you have had some time to catch up on sleep and eat good food, you can begin to reflect on your time on the UCM campus. The week flies by, and you often do not realize how much it changes you until you get home. No matter what position you held during the week, you all have a thousand reasons to be proud. While earning positions in the state office or seats in the General Assembly are incredible feats, there are things that every. single. one. of you did that contributed to an amazing session of Missouri Girls State.

First of all, being around over 800 accomplished young women is extremely intimidating. No matter how confident you are, there is a certain level of anxiety that comes from being thrust into a new situation with a bunch of girls you have never met. You are all brave for stepping out of your comfort zones and taking the leap into a week that hopefully changed your life in some way.

One of the first things you do with your city is elect all the city-wide positions. I watched girls in my city put themselves out there in a way that is unique to Girls State. Not everyone can have a city position, but I saw girls lose one race and quickly jump back into another. Your courage to dive head-first into Girls State is what makes the week so special.

As the week progresses and your city gets closer, the real magic of Girls State begins. I saw people reach out to the quiet girl in their class, city, or county. I saw people donate all of their Girls State Bucks to the girl in their city who was starting her campaign for a state elected position. I saw people comforting the girl in their city when she lost her election or got in an argument with her friends back home. The magic of Girls State is the unadulterated support that you all give each other. In a society where girls too often feel the need to tear each other down, it is so comforting to be a part of an environment where women support each other and lift each other up. If you helped someone out during the week, you contributed to the experience that is Missouri Girls State.

As you all enter your senior year, I hope you can take some lessons from Girls State with you. I hope you all remember that you are special, that you matter, and that you have the ability to impact the world in ways you cannot imagine. As you apply for college or begin planning your life after high school, I hope you can remember that you were meant to accomplish great things: Missouri Girls State was just the start of that. And if you are ever feeling down, just remember you have a city of 40 girls that love you and a Girls State community of over 800 who will never stop supporting you.

“We are up and coming, progressive, kind and strong. And to our own Girls State, we proudly sing our song.”