Transcript

American Family Radio thanks sponsor Preborn for supporting pro life advocacy

Dr. Jessica Peck: We would like to take a moment to thank our sponsor, PreBorn. When a mother meets her baby on ultrasound and hears their heartbeat, it's a divine connection. And the majority of the time she will choose life. But they can't do it without our help. Preborn needs us, the pro life community, to come alongside them. One ultrasound is just $28. To donate, dial pound 250 and say the keyword BABY or visit preborn.com/AFR hello, and welcome to the Dr. Nurse Mama

Dr. Jessica Peck: show, prescribing Hope for Healthy Families here on American Family Radio. Here's your host, professor, pediatric nurse practitioner, and mom of four, Dr. Jessica Peck.

How do we raise Godly daughters in a culture that seems anything but?

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, hey there, friends, and welcome to my favorite time of day, getting to spend time with you, prescribing Hope for Healthy Families. And we have got a great big dose of it for you today. I am so excited to talk to you about what I'm going to talk to you about today. I hope that all of you were able to engage in some sort of festivities over the weekend celebrating America's 250th birthday. It was so encouraging to me just to see all of the families who were gathered together, and I hope you got to eat some good food and see some fireworks and to be able to celebrate the free freedoms that we have here in America, but most importantly, the freedoms that we have in Christ. And today, we are talking about something that is very uniquely American. I know you're probably getting really curious, but hang in there for a minute because it's going to be so encouraging. Because when I look at this world today and I am raising kids myself, my kids are older teenagers and young adults. And I look especially, at my children, and I know we're raising them in a moment where identity is just being formed faster than wisdom can guide it. Our kids are living at the speed of a smartphone. And girls, especially girls today, are growing up in a world that is louder, that is really visually driven, that is a lot more ideologically complex than any previous, previous generation, where messages about identity and worth and freedom and truth, and they are constantly being streamed over our girls, over our daughters, over our granddaughters, through screens or through peers or just through culture at large. And in the middle of that, parents are just asking themselves, they're asking the Lord, how do we raise daughters not just in confidence, but in conviction. How do we raise godly daughters in a culture that seems anything but? Now, this conversation matters because formation and digital exposure and screens and culture, it's just not neutral. Every child is being shaped by Something. And we need to intentionally step in to shape our daughter's faith. And that is most effectively shaped through intentional discipleship by parents and by godly adults who we're surrounding our kids with. And today we are joined by one such such person. Someone who has spent decades internationally answering that question through her own personal action, leadership and discipleship that started in her own home and is now a national movement. If you're wondering, some of you may have already guessed. Get that. Our guest today is Patti Garibay. She is a founder and executive Director emeritus of American Heritage Girls. This is a nationwide Christ centered, scout type character development program for girls from ages 5 to 18. And through American Heritage Girls, Patti has helped build a movement that now serves over 70,000 girls across 1300 troops in all 50 states and multiple countries, equipping them through leadership development, outdoor adventure service projects, and biblical discipleship. American Heritage Girls also reaches families through its Raising Godly Girls Girls podcast. It's blog and its radio features parenting resources designed to equip parents to raise girls of integrity in today's culture. I've had the honor of being on that podcast and interviewed by Patti's own daughter, Raechel Culpepper, who is the current leader of American Heritage Girls. And Patti it is always just such a joy and a privilege. And I can only imagine all of the American Heritage Girls who are going to gather around the radio and listen to the founder that is you. Thank you so much for being here with us today.

Patti Garibay: It is an honor to be with you, Dr. Peck. I really enjoy our time together.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Me too. Me too. And so to understand, you know, where we're going, we're going to talk about the future.

You started American heritage girls in 1995; look what happened after that

Let's talk a little bit about the past. And I know you and I have visited about this before, but I never miss an opportunity to introduce people to the power of the faith and obedience and the call of God in your life and one woman's life. So let's talk about that. Go back to, as my kids would say, the previous century before the Internet. Let's talk about you starting American heritage girls in 1995.

Patti Garibay: Oh, boy. Jessica. It's like any other kind of story, really. It wasn't something that I intended to do or even wanted to do. It was something that rather than cursing the darkness, I felt the Lord was calling me to light a candle and to start something new. Now here's the backstory. It wasn't just something that came out of nowhere. I had been serving in the Girl Scouts USA for over 12 years. As a Girl Scout leader of three different troops. And I also, served as an area delegate and a troop organizer. Meaning I recruited girls to belong to the Girl Scouts. I bled green. I absolutely loved that organization. It was the organization I grew up in, that my mom was my leader. It is traditional. It was all the things that were American and apple pie. But it no longer had been that way. And I started to learn more and more in 1993 when the Girl Scouts USA decided to no longer mandate an oath to God in the Girl Scout promise. Oh, boy. Jessica, you know what happens when we kick God out and we're a character development program? What are we going to base those morals and that character on when we let God out of the equation? Well, needless to say, we fast forward 35 years later and look what we have. We have a mess. Not even a, figment of our imagination around Girl Scouts anymore. It's a progressive agenda that is really still very powerful in girls lives. And Christian parents need to be very cautious, I believe, of this organization, what it now stands for.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, tell us about the role that your own daughters played in wanting to give them an experience like you had growing up to have that sense of tradition. The mission of American Heritage Girls, as I'm, reading here, is to build women of integrity through service to God, family, community and country. How did you see that unfolding in 1995 and, you know, contrasting how has that progressed now to today with American Heritage Girls?

Patti Garibay: Well, I am, the blessed mother of three daughters, and my oldest daughter Raechel is now running American Heritage Girls. Out of all of the qualified candidates that our board was seeking, she did rise to the top. She was definitely the one the Lord had anointed and appointed for this time, this Esther moment, we like to call it. But back in those days, Raechel had been a Girl Scout, and then her sister Megan as well, and then that third daughter, Katy. I'm a third daughter. I don't know, Jessica. It's not easy being the third daughter. You know, you weren't supposed to be a daughter. Right.

Dr. Jessica Peck: I'm the oldest, just three girls. So I. There's. There's three girls. I know that three daughter dynamic really well.

Patti Garibay: Absolutely. So Katy was so used to getting hand me downs and leftovers that I couldn't give her a junkie girls organization. Okay. So I thought, hey, what I could create for her and her friends would be better than what this thing is standing for now. And I have to tell you, I had no idea that the Lord would use this and grow this in the way that he did. It was a simple yes for what I believed was a simple task, to, have my daughter Katy get through Scouts, whatever that looked like for us, Christ centered, of course, and then we call it a day. And she will have had great times, memories, learned a lot, and loved the Lord even more. But I guess he had different ideas. And today, Katy is now a leader of her daughter in American Heritage Girls. So God has blessed this. This. Yes, very heartily.

American Heritage Girls started with 10 girls and has grown to over a million

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, tell us a little bit about the spread and reach. I talked a little bit about it, in the introduction, but did you ever, in your wildest dreams, thinking, okay, I want to do this for Katy, that it would reach as far as it has?

Patti Garibay: I had no earthly idea. Again, we started with 10 girls, you know, and then it grew to 10 troops in Cincinnati. And then it. Then we had calls from all the way out in California how they heard about it, because we got to remember listeners. There was not the Internet at that time. We're talking 1993, 94, 95. best technology we had at the time was a fax machine, which was really antiquated at the time. So I don't know the Lord, the Holy Spirit, word of mouth, people were talking. They knew there were problems with the other organization. They wanted something different. And so that's how it caught on. But meanwhile, those 10 girls and then those beginning 10 troops experienced, experienced a whole lot of friendship and a whole lot of new life skills. But moreover, they learned about their identity in Christ. And that is why today AHG is thriving. Over a million girls of the last 31 years have had the AHG experience and have been blessed by this organization because the. It is the Lord's organization. And when we say yes to him, he says yes to us.

Dr. Jessica Peck: A million girls, Patti That is just absolutely unbelievable. And I just love pictures you, as a mom of these three girls, thinking, you know, you want to invest everything in them, but never imagining it would reach a million. And then to see that heritage I love. You know, it's called American Heritage Girls. And Patti you have certainly lived that out in your own life with your daughter taking the reins. And, you know, I was on the podcast, the HD podcast, around the time that that search was going on. And I can assure you that she went through a very rigorous process and to have her appointed as leader, I'm sure that you are so proud and looking at the character formation that you started in your daughters, we won't say how many years ago, because, you know, like, we're not going to talk age here, but it is a heritage. It is a legacy. Why do you think. How do you see American, heritage girls as being so effective in character formation for girls?

Patti Garibay: I think because it's based on timeless truths. The troops, the truths of the Bible. AHG has a biblical worldview in all that it does, from its badges to its service projects, to even the products that the girls sell to raise money to be able to do the fun activities that they so enjoy. Camping is always centered around Christ and his beautiful creation that. That God has given us over, you know, all these many years that we get to enjoy. And it's all looked through a prism of a biblical worldview and how God's role is in our world and how he is who our identity rests sin. And so when girls identify and understand that they are gods, that they. It's not about girl power, Jessica. It is about the power of the Holy Spirit in the girl. And that is the whole paradigm shift between us and the other organization. But here's the thing. Girls want truth. Boys want truth. Kids want truth. And frankly, adults need truth. So when their truth resounds, it's like a sweet aroma that we're so attracted to as humans to. To really know what's right and wrong. And kids these days are begging for it. They want that fence. We've had that free, gentle parenting for far too long. They now want to know what's right and wrong and how am m I going to be a parent if I don't know what's right and wrong? So I think it's really resonating. The pendulum does swing back and forth, and I believe. I really believe there is a revival going on, that kids are really wanting the Lord and this is one way for them to experience him very, very realistically and with a lot of friends all around them, which is a really wonderful way for teens to grow up.

Dr. Jessica Peck: You know, I often use that analogy, too, Patti about the pendulum swinging. It is. It is always that, and we over correct and then under correct. And, you know, it always swings back and forth. And to see that, you know, I think it's encouraging for parents because I think one of the narratives that parents have adopted today who have kids who are growing up, who are still under 18, still living in the home, they think, oh, this. This world is like nothing we've ever faced before, and nobody understands, and I'm not equipped and I'm scared to death to navigate the currents of culture. But when you describe your experience, Patti of how you started American Heritage Girls. Those cultural, cultural currents and the cultural waves that you're describing are remarkably similar. You know, it's, really a lot of the same thing. And I think even though technology changes and the way that we experience culture changes through technology, those heart issues behind, all, all of the, all of those issues and the real life character formation, those things do not change. And I absolutely agree with you that, that when we place our kids, values, their identity on the unshakable truth of God's word, it's going to best equip them to navigate culture. Because I see a lot of anxiety in kids who feel pressured to come up with their own identity. It's called image crafting. And all of a sudden they have to come up with an image of themselves that is the most marketable, that's the most culturally presentable. And what's celebrated today can cancel tomorrow. It's no wonder that we see kids who are anxious about that, but knowing they were made by a God who has such a bigger purpose for their life and to be able to do that, and seeing that you do that through the mission of American Heritage Girls, I'm going to say it again. To build women of integrity through service to God, family, community and country. That is a beautiful thing. And you're not. What you're describing, Patti is not just an organization. This is an environment for discipleship and formation. Something that is beautifully, intentionally countercultural. And when we come back, we have a lot more questions for Patti will talk about some of the challenges facing parents of girls today and how you can strengthen and encourage your daughter's faith. We're talking to Patti Garibay from American Heritage Girls, the founder. And we'll have much more when we come back right after this break. Don't miss it.

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This year, America celebrates its 250th birthday. Two and a half centuries of courage, innovation, faith, and freedom. But what will the next 250 years hold? The next generation could hold the next Billy Graham, the next Rosa Parks, the next Ronald Reagan, the next child whose life will impact generations. But first, they must be given the chance to live it. I couldn't imagine my life without him.

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America The Beautiful by Steven Curtis Chapman and Chris Janson: I sat down today to try to write a song about some troubling things that I see going on. Seems we all just want to talk about what's wrong with America. So much is broken. It's like we don't know where to start while the algorithms try to keep us worlds apart. But I'm just the grandson of a world war Purple Heart who fought for America and I just want to say oh, you beautiful for spacious skies around the waves of grain for purful mountain majesties above the fru. America, America God said it his grace on me and crown I with brotherhood from sea to silencing and maybe we could see beyond these battle lines and we drawn and realize we're really all in this thing together. Yeah, we're all in this together. I know we never will agree on everything. It's like a song. We've all got different parts to sing and how well we listen is how loud freedom will ring in America so let freedom rain Let us sing all beautiful full space skies forever Ways of rain fore purple mountain majesty above the fruit and floor America, America God shed his grace only and crown my God with brother blood from sea to time and sea from sea to time and sea this is America the Beautiful.

 American Heritage Girls focuses on raising godly girls

Dr. Jessica Peck: Welcome back friends. That is America the Beautiful by Steven Curtis Chapman and Chris  Janson. I don't know about you, but that gives me goosebumps and actually makes me a little bit teary. I hope that you had a great weekend celebrating the 250th birthday of our country, the beautiful America. And we. When I look at the words of that song, it is so, so reflective. The heart behind our program today when we are talking to Patti Garibay, the founder of American Heritage Girls who is looking started an organization in the 1990s to give girls just such a beautiful experience and looking at the mission, their mission is to build women of integrity through service to God, family, community and country. And, and that is a beautiful thing. And one of the greatest tensions for parents today is not just what children are learning because we don't just think about their homework, we think, how is it shaping their identity while they learn it? And it is a complicated time to grow up. And one of my pet peeves is when as older generations, we pass on that pessimism to younger generations, thinking, giving them basically the message, this is a terrible time to be alive. And I wish the world was like it was when I was growing up. And I'm sorry for you. We need to give them messages of optimism and hope. And Patti you have worked with, with multiple generations of girls now and raising godly girls, essential to your mission. You started this in the 90s. Your daughter has taken over this, organization from you today. How do you see things changing? How do you see Satan staying the same? And what gives you hope still in a God that is good,

Patti Garibay: we do serve a God that is very, very good, Jessica. And I think that is our standing hope throughout generations. We need to understand that sin has always been part of this world. It always will be part of this world until we meet our Heavenly Father in that place he has reserved for us. And while we tarry here, we must glorify Him. We must represent Him. We, we are the remnant. We are left. And we must live in accordance to his will and to what his holy word says. Doesn't mean we're always going to do it perfectly, but we certainly need to be representative, be the salt of, that we need to be the light that we need to be. And I think there's great hope, I. Because we serve God and He is a timeless, timeless omniscient Lord. But, yeah, we do have issues. We do have things in this country that are very disconcerting to me. but yet, if we are able to raise up and serve as the primary disciplers, and you said this very well earlier too, to raise up girls with confidence and conviction. We must have confidence and conviction as parents and primary disciplers. So if we are feeling negative and all this world's going, you know, down the tubes, it's just terrible. It's horrible. That's not going to give our girls hope. We don't have to falsely hope. We can speak with great aspiration and admiration for the Lord that we serve because he is good and he wants good for us. What we need to teach our kids is about time. Time is not just what, how we count time. Time to the lord, like the 250 years we just celebrated and we'll continue to celebrate this month. That is just a blink of the eye in the Lord's mind, in the Lord's Purview. So when we start to look at that, we start to look at some of the sin in this world and this doxing in this cancel culture, I think that's the most disturbing thing that the girls are afraid of right now, is if I don't fit in, I will be canceled. I will lose my friends. I will not have an influencer status on my social media. I will fall apart. What we need to do is to raise them up in conviction. And I find it an ironic day today, the very first day of the Charlie Kirk trial. And that was a man who knew who he was and whose he was. And a lot of our girls have great respect for someone like that who can give a message of truth in love. but yet in this culture, that becomes a threat to many. So how do we raise up a generation of girls with confidence and conviction in who they are and whose they are that can deliver their message with respect and love and yet great resilience. That, to me, is our biggest mandate or what we need to carry on. What we need to encourage our girls to gather around the tools. And that. That is partly community. There's a lot of arrows in that quiver, Jessica. Community, truth. Having friends around you, having your family around you, being able to know other resources that you can glean when you're troubled, to be able to have access to godly adults beyond your own parents, because there's times when you're going to want that. But we have to help as parents and develop those networks for our kids to fall into nets that are healthy and positive rather than going to social media, answer questions. So raising godly girls, this whole concept that American Heritage Girls started during COVID when all of our troops were closed because all of our troops are meeting within churches that have decided that this ministry is important to their church. We felt the Lord calling us to start something around equipping parents. And so if we equip our kids by talking about topics, and we have a lot of free ebooks around various topics of today, that, you can have a kitchen table conversation with your kids before the culture has a conversation. This is our big mantra, and I know this is your mantra too, is to get ahead of the game to talk about these things with our kids. Don't act like they don't exist, because then others are going to be filling in for us.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Oh, Patti Yes. You are singing for my songbook here. These are all the things and all the things, the resources and encouragements that parents need, need to raise girls and, and boys in this world today.

American Heritage Girls encourages parents to surround daughters with godly mentors

And I want to sit for a second on one of those concepts you were talking about, about surrounding them with godly mentors. And I, I see a decrease from that because I see decreased social interaction. A, lot of parent social interactions just are activity based. You know, they, they may just, or just convenience based or, you know, just okay, well we're in this activity together, so we know each other because we're the, in the sports team. but I think it's so important for us as parents to intentionally identify these are godly role models and mentors. These are safe people that you can go to for advice. Because sometimes it's just really hard for kids, especially as teenagers, to talk to their parents about things. And I'm not encouraging a culture of secrecy or saying that, you know, these people shouldn't say something, but if I can say, hey, go to your grandmother, you can talk to her. And knowing, talking about some of those, those parameters of confidentiality, but also saying, these are people who are going to magnify the message that I'm giving you. The as, as your mom, as mom to a daughter. These are messages of peop. That people are going to say, yeah, what your mom's saying, I've walked out, I've lived in my life. Here's how it has worked out, here's the fruit of that. And really American Heritage Girls, I think Patti is an intentional way for moms to engage with other like minded moms, to invest in each other's girls, to walk alongside those hard times, to celebrate the victories and also, you know, walk through and encourage when the trials come, because they will come. Our kids aren't perfect, our family's not perfect, the world's not perfect. But to have those mentoring relationships I think is something that we're missing in an age of where we'll go to AI before we go to a trusted godly mentor.

American Heritage Girls is a Christian mentoring organization for women and girls

Can you talk a little bit about how that looks in American Heritage Group girls and how that that model is there and that encouragement for moms especially.

Patti Garibay: I think it's the richest essence of American Heritage Girls is that mentoring, that Titus 2 approach where an older woman's able to speak into a younger woman's life and, and therefore the girl's lives as well. What we find is women are finding their tribe for the first time when they join American Heritage Girls. And notice I say women, I didn't say girls. The girls joined because they wanted to have friends, they want to have fun, but women are joining and they're having friendships. And fun and learning new skills and stretching their wings. I'll never forget hearing, a word from a woman in California, said, I have a word for you. After I spoke, I'm like, I don't know. I've been doing this long enough, Jessica. Sometimes I get a little worried when somebody has a word for me, you know, especially all these volunteers. But this one was a beautiful one. And she said to me, ladies ministry. And now I have to peel back my onion of, when I was being raised and my first time as a young mom, m in ladies ministry, it was not really something I like being part of. It had a certain prototype, if you know what I'm saying. And I felt like I didn't fit in. But this lady's ministry is really exactly that. It's ministering to women, women to women, around a biblical worldview. And they're finding their very best friends. They're like, I keep wanting to do this linking of arms. That's what we're doing as women and men. Dads are invited, too, to be part of this. This is a family ministry, especially when we come alongside a Trail Life USA troop that is often chartered at the church as well. You've got your family ministry going. But what I love that, that these young girls are looking up to these women that are leading them who feel less than most of us as leaders. We don't feel like we're godly enough or perfect enough to do this. But when our God calls us, he equips us as well, and we must say yes. And so before getting involved with any of this, I always say, bring it to prayer, because if the Lord's calling you, he will bring you absolutely through whatever it is that he needs. But here's what happens is the girls become. They become to be able to thrive. I have a story, if I could share, about a young lady. I was at a meet, the founder of Venin. She had kept waiting and waiting and waiting to talk to me. And I thought, this is sort of weird. I mean. And she didn't look like the normal American Heritage girl. She had coal black hair. She had dyed, and she had gauges in her ears for earrings. And she got his black fingernail polish. And I'm like, oh, my. But she had her beautiful uniform on. and she kept wanting to talk to me. I could tell privately. And so she waited. And I said, tell me, what's your name? She said, my name's Ashley. I said, what is it about American Heritage girls that you like? And how can we Be better. How can we do better? And she looked at me and she said, well, American Heritage Girls saved my life. And I was like, what? I had never heard anything like this before. And she looked me deeply in the eyes. She said, my parents were going through a divorce. I felt because I was acting up at home, it was my fault. I started to cut. I just wanted to feel something, so I was cutting myself. And she said I felt worthless and I felt like I was destructive and I was destroying my parents marriage. And so my friend invited me to an American Heritage Girl Troop meeting. There I met women that loved me. I met girls that cared for me and accepted me for who I was. I learned that I could set goals and I could achieve them. That I could help others out of my own pain. I could help others. Today she's a Stars and Stripes recipient. She's working in an, industry she always wanted. She's thriving. But she was at great risk if that friend hadn't invited her to that American Heritage Girl Troop meeting where she learned who she was and whose she was. And, and that's an important story. I think that that's one I've heard of, but there's so many more. Because kids today, they need positive role models. They need positive goals. They need to feel like they are some. I just was reading 46% of Gen Zers absolutely feel like they have no worth in this world, that there are no goals. 46%. Every out of every two, there's one that's scary. And that's where we can come in. As Christians, whether you're involved in American Heritage Girls or you're involved in your church, find a girl to mentor. We know the adage, the hand that rocks a cradle rules the nation. It is true. Women are the ultimate influencers. We need to raise them up in the way they should go. The Lord really despairs that, Patti

Dr. Jessica Peck: Oh, I absolutely love that. And when we come back from our next commercial break, I have a quick story to share with you about my interaction with an American Heritage Girls troupe that really stuck with me and convicted me and changed the way I think about Christmas, which is a pretty big, a pretty big sell there. But I will tell you about it when we come back. If you want to learn more about this organization, go to americanheritagegirls.org you'll see on the top there, there's a drop down for raising godly girls. You'll find the podcast and all kinds of other resources, and maybe you'll find a chapter near you or Even start one. We'll be right back with Patti Garibay

American Family Radio is dedicated to sharing the gospel and promoting godly values

Mark Oss: When you hear the letters afr, there are a lot of things that could come to mind. Automotive Finders, Resource, Alligator Frying Research, or the association of Flying Rednecks. All great organizations, no doubt. But we hope the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear AFR is American Family Radio, a, listener supported network dedicated to sharing the gospel and promoting godly values. God expects maturity in us. we should not be comfortable living with habitual sins. So that's a news cycle item. Is it the top news story to God? No, because he warned us about all of this. Now, I don't care how nice you think you are, if you're not telling someone the truth, you're not being loving to them. Make no mistake, we're not anglers from Red Bay, but we are afr, American Family Radio. And we're happy you're listening.

I Believe You by Megan Woods: I'd be lying if I said that I'm, okay. Cause right now I'm lost and lost count of the broken prayers I've, ah, prayed. And it's true that some days it'd be easier, than doubt. But your word has never let me down. so I believe you when you say you're fighting for me. I believe you when you tell me that my story isn't over just yet. I will rise up again. You promise me that I will make it through. And I believe you.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Welcome back, friends. That is I believe you by Megan Woods. And those kinds of messages are just exactly the kinds of messages that girls today, growing up in America and everywhere, need to hear and need to know that God is for them. He is fighting for them. And their story is not over. God is writing a beautiful story on the hearts of young women. And I am seeing God raise up such amazing leaders in this generation of Gen Z, gen Alpha, gen Beta. Behind them, these are all young adults, down to babies being born.

Patti Garibay is founder of American Heritage Girls

And today, as we are reflecting on the major milestone in America of its 250th anniversary that we just celebrated this weekend, questions become even more important about how do we navigate culture? How do we raise kids in today's culture that seems like it is not. Well, it's, it doesn't seem like it. It is not for their good. But there are forces at work that are. And one of those that we're talking to is founder of American Heritage Girls, Patti Garabay. You can go to americanheritagegirls.org and find out more. And Patti I told you before the break that I'd tell you a quick story about my own interaction with American Heritage Heritage girls. I participated in Operation Christmas Child. And I packed up all my boxes. I do that every year. And I took them to the drop off station. And this particular drop off station was manned by some American Heritage girls, or maybe I should say woman, to buy some American Heritage girls and their moms. And it was beautiful to see them working together. The moms were definitely in fellowship, having a great time. The girls were having a great time. I took in my boxes and they just were falling all over themselves to help me, you know, brought the card out and rolled them in, told me where to go, all of these things, and I dropped them off. And as I was leaving, one of the girls called out to me and she goes, you forgot the most important part. And I turned around and Patti my adult mind, I said, oh, I paid for them online. Because I'm thinking the most important part is to pay, right? Like, make sure we have the money. And she goes, no, not pay. Pray. We've got to pray over these boxes. And she called out to the girls and said, we have new boxes to pray over. And those girls came running with their moms. They laid their hands on the boxes, Patti and they prayed such a beautiful prayer. I mean, these were 9, 10, 10, 11 year old girls who were leading adult women in prayer and praying over the boxes that were going to go from Samaritan's Purse to all over the world. And it really changed my attitude because I thought, oh, I'm thinking about paying, you're thinking about praying. It was deeply convicting. It's such a beautiful experience, Patti

Patti Garibay: Absolutely. And you know, I'm not surprised they did that. That is the beauty of these young girls and the becoming young women. Oh, praise God. That's a beautiful story.

American Heritage Girls emphasize that heavenly citizenship is the highest priority

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, they were serving their community. And you know, you talk about American citizenship, but you emphasize that our heavenly citizenship is, is the highest priority. This organization is called American Heritage Girls. Tell us about their, their serving their country, loving their country, but also recognizing that this world is not our final home.

Patti Garibay: That's right. That this is a broken world and our nation is not a perfect nation. No one ever says that, but it is not a horrible nation either. And that is the message that we keep hearing. I mean, let's, let's admit it. This is even this 250th. I, had a big party at my home. I had cousins and I had, you know, nieces and nephews and all kinds, neighbors all the various postures, just trying to show them the love of God. And you know, there were some that just didn't want to celebrate America and they were, have been listening to all that's going on. And yes we have a lot of scars but we've got so much to be thankful for and that is our freedom. And the freedom, this is the misconception. Freedoms don't come from governments. They come from the Almighty God. Four times in the Declaration of Independence, God is mentioned in the freedom that he gives us us. So the fact that we're trying to put this under a bucket called Christian nationalism or whatever, you know, soup du jour they want to call this stuff, this is incorrect. Our freedoms come from God. Government is only there to protect them, they don't grant them. And so when we are electing officials in this rise of socialism, that is very concerning to me. Expecting government to, to supply everything for us. No, the Lord is our provider. All of that is secularism and it is seeping into government. It's seeping into our private lives. It's even seeping into the church and it is of great concern. And from American Heritage Girls, that's not what we're about. We're going to talk about those things. We're going to talk about the sin of slavery and how that was a wrong decision, but we're also going to talk about about the beautiful joy filled Emancipation Proclamation and how we were redeemed from that. That is a very important part of history. If we erase history, we change history. If we want retributions and all this other stuff, we'll never understand grace, forgiveness or any of the things that the Lord is trying to teach us for our heavenly citizenship. So let's remember who we're rooted in. We are God's kids first and American second.

Dr. Jessica Peck: It well talk about the civic responsibility and serving your community and the ways that American Heritage Girls equips girls to serve their community.

Patti Garibay: Well good. It was so good to see all day on Saturday I have Google alerts that talk about American Heritage Girls all across the country. And I was seeing flag ceremonies that were being led by American Heritage Girls and floats that they were winning first place because they're so creative, you know, all these different things that were happening, to celebrate and they, they love to do that. They to go and, and to welcome home veterans from their honor flights. That's one of the coolest things is to see an airport full of red, white and blue uniform girls welcoming these elderly, oftentimes elderly gentlemen back who, who Rarely feel like. They mostly feel like they've been forgotten. And just to see the joy on their face, they love that. Girls love to serve. We actively serve. Every troop serves at least three service projects a year, often with those that are disenfranchised. The unborn diaper drives for the unwed mother is an often, thing. Homeless, feeding the hungry, doing tangible being the hands and feet of Christ. That is part of what we teach girls. And you know, families love that because they all want to serve. But sometimes it's hard to create a framework of serving when it's just your family. But when a whole troop is doing this, it becomes fun and it becomes easier because we're all doing again, locking arms together and doing something really for the greater good. And so our servant's heart is really part of the byproducts or fruits of the American Heritage Girl program.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, you're right when you describe some of the political tensions and the disagreements and it, I do think that it can be a really scary time for girls to grow up. And there's this, really conflicting narrative about having freedom of speech. But also don't say that. And you know, you, you, you can think what you want as long as you think this and you know all of the that that is really hard for young girls growing up to navigate and to figure out. And I have met a lot of girls, Patti who are really afraid of speaking what they really believe, who are afraid of being bold in their faith because they've seen some of their peers, they've heard stories, they've seen it happen, of cancel culture, of bullying, of cyberbullying. Not too long ago, Patti I was talking to a college age girl who talked about just one thing that she had said in a group chat that was very, very mild and expressing her belief. And she talked about getting death threats from strangers because that was shared in a screenshot. And I think that can make girls really afraid. How do we, how do we help them to move forward, to speak the truth in love like we talked about earlier, to act with wisdom and grace and discernment? Do you feel like giving them a group of, of like minded girls who share the same values and who want to serve the community in the same ways? Do you feel like that is a, positive influence? How is that helping them to feel like they're not so alone and isolated in this world?

Patti Garibay: It is absolutely essential in. With loneliness being one of the top five mental health issues confronting girls. Loneliness and anxiety are right up there at the time and they're tied together. Even though they're more connected than ever through social media, they are lonelier than ever. Because we talked about that earlier, Jessica, that need for real social interaction. I want to just read something, if I could. From us.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Yeah.

Patti Garibay: A, speech I just recently gave at Turning Point USA Women's Leadership Conference. You want to know what bold and brave actually looks like? It's a seven year old learning to tie a square knot and pray confidently out loud with her troop for the first time. It's a 12 year old earning her camping badge while learning to flex her leadership muscle. It's a high schooler putting her phone in a basket at troop meetings and rediscovering what her own voice sounds like. There's no virtue signaling, no empty slogans. We're simply anchored. We're clear about who these girls are and clear about whose they are in Christ. They are told not to bend, not to blend, but to be bold. And they can do that in a community of American heritage girls and adult mentors.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Oh, Patti, that, that's a beautiful thing. And looking at that, that you're right. The epidemic of loneliness. We have a, A, a generation that's more digitally connected than ever, but yet is increasingly isolated and anxious. And it's no wonder to me when I scroll through social media, you have either doom scrolling with bad news coming to you every, every way imaginable, or you have comparison culture and you see all of these images of perfectly curated lives and the highlights of everyone's life. And comparison is the thief of joy. And I love even hearing you talk about girls putting their phone in a basket. I have found, Patti that when kids are given permission and it's established as a group norm that we're not going to have phones, it's like this weight falls off of them. They're like, oh my goodness, I can actually breathe. Like I don't feel so anxious and feel like I'm tied to my phone and what's going on and what's happening. But I have people right here in front of me, real life humans who love me, who are invested in me, who want my best, who are invested in my future. That is a really powerful antidote to the counterfeits, often for companionship that I see sold in culture.

American Heritage Girls wants girls to have freedom from cell phones

How do you see that, that, that genuineness, really creating such a beautiful culture for community, for girls growing up in the United States today, such freedom.

Patti Garibay: You said it so beautifully. There is freedom in putting those phones away, getting rid of those phones. You know, a kid can't Wait these days to get a phone, phone and then once they have them, it's like an albatross around their neck.

Dr. Jessica Peck: So true.

Patti Garibay: They can't release the thing. I mean, look at us as parents. You know when you've got your time monitor or whatever on your phone. You said you, you used your phone two hours more than you did last week. I'm like, why was it even on? Why was I even on it for two hours? You know what I'm saying? It affects all of us. It's, it's an addiction in many ways and addictions are rarely beneficial. so I, what I, what we have to do as parents is to find those like minded friends whose parents agree we don't want our kids on these phones 24, 7. We want them to be able to be kids, to explore childhood, to be able to be out in the out of doors, to be able to help other people, to be able to create creatively, to be able to accomplish goals, to be able to figure out what God's will is for their lives so that they can, can develop a true passion for their future career, whatever that might be. That, that needs margin. And when we have phones in our hands all the time, there's no margin there. It's absolutely zero time to invest in yourselves and in your spiritual life if you're on this phone all the time. Now, it can be for good. I, have some great devotionals that I read online every day. I, I get that. But for, by and large it's comparison shopping. And it's like you said, it's the, it's who am I going to be today? It's an image making that is false and it only leads to despair and loneliness and frankly anxiety.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Yeah, I think so too, Patti And you know, when I just look at girls today, one of the things I talk about all the time is the fact that we can tell our kids to get off their phones, but until we give them a compelling alternative, which is like telling them, get off your phone and sit there and stare at and American Heritage Girls is a great way to invest in your daughter for your faith, for, for their faith, to grow their faith, to help them serve God, serve their country, serve their community. And I love that. Patti tell people how they can get involved, what website they can go to and, and you can start your own chapter, what you should do if there's a wait list. How, how do we get, how do we get plugged in? Patti tell us all those things.

Patti Garibay: Absolutely. Visit our [email protected] and look and navigate that top bar. We need volunteers. And you're never too old to volunteer. A matter of fact, a wise woman of 50 plus is an excellent volunteer too. So mentor a girl. Our nation needs you. Visit our website, americanheritagegirls.org pop in your zip code, find a troop in your local area, or there are steps on how to be good one at your own church.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Thank you so much, Patti

What would you say is your vision and your hope for American Heritage Girls?

And we just have one minute left. But in one minute, what would you say is your vision and your hope for the future of American Heritage Girls?

Patti Garibay: My vision and hope is to be in exactly in the center of God's will, whatever that looks like. I want us to always be following his lead. He started this thing. He's going to end it when he sees fit. But meanwhile, along the way, we will not tarry. We will follow the Lord and we will go wherever he opens those doors. And I pray that this blesses your listeners and that now they know more about American Heritage Girls and the benefits of it.

Dr. Jessica Peck: He who began a good work will be faithful to complete it. And Patti thank you so much for sharing your encouragement with you today. And as you listen to those words of encouragement, I pray as I always do, that the Lord will bless you and keep you and make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. I'll see you right back here tomorrow.

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Jeff Chamblee: opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.