Girl Scouts Tech Team

[Charlene Domschot]

The Flying Monkeys earned a $20,000 grant, obtained a patent, visited the White House, met the president, changed the life of a little girl, and are now taking their one-of-a-kind invention all the way to Brazil!

There is no stopping the Flying Monkeys, a Girl Scout FIRST® LEGO® League team, comprised of 8th and 9th grade Girl Scouts from Ames and Gilbert, IA, who have been invited by the U.S. Department of State to present BOB-1, a uniquely designed prosthetic hand device, at the International Conference on Science in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The girls say they are thrilled they have been invited to the event, which serves as a lead in to the Rio+20 Earth Conference, and can’t wait to present their invention, which helped a little girl learn how to write after its creation in the fall of 2010.

“The Flying Monkeys are incredibly honored,” Coach Melissa Murray said.

“The girls are very excited and are trying to learn some Portuguese before this rare opportunity to share the BOB-1 Project with the world!”

The team is being sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, FIRST® LEGO® League and Rockwell Collins, and is one of three youth groups in the entire nation invited to present at this prestigious event.

“The Flying Monkeys are a great example of the wonderful work Girl Scouts can do,” Anna Maria Chávez, CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA said. “Expertise in the STEM subjects is essential to our nation’s future, and these girls are leading the way.”

The girls have been asked to present their project on June 15 and on June 17 at two different venues and will also be meeting with officials from the Embassy. Murray said the girls plan to do some sight-seeing as well, making for a once in a life time experience for these young women.

According to the Girl Scout Research Institute study Generation STEM: What Girls Say about Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math, 74 percent of girls — and even higher percentages of African-American and Hispanic girls — say they’re interested in STEM fields of science, technology, engineering and math.

The Flying Monkeys are a true testament of the amazing feats girls can accomplish and the wonderful opportunities provided by Girl Scouts and FIRST® LEGO® League.