The leader conducts a processional of 10 members to their positions. Each one is assigned a number and takes her position. The leader carries a large lighted candle; the girls carry unlighted ones.
(Each member steps forward and lights her candle from the leader's candle before giving her part in the ceremony.)
Leader: It was a colonial custom to place a lighted candle in the window to guide absent loved ones home. Today let us revive the custom and place in the windows of our hearts a candle to guide our own thinking in understanding the many bounties God has given us in this world. As we review some of these bounties, we shall add 10 candles to brighten the beacon and help impress upon our hearts the trust which is placed upon us. #1 G S: I light this candle for the community we live in and for the power we have of striving together to make it better for all of us.
#6 GS: I light this candle for the homes of our community, for the homes lived in, loved, and for the unafraid affection of mothers and fathers for each other and their children.
#2 GS: I light this candle for this troop; for the leaders, skilled, devoted, kindly, and for the free, inner growth that we as youth find here.
#7 GS: I light this candle for the open doors of our places of worship, and the free faith of all who may stand with an uplifting song in their hearts.
#3 GS: I light this candle for our Girl Scout troops, and other youth organizations, for their service to our community and for the general welfare of all.
#8 GS: I light this candle for the good and holy earth, and for the working hands of free men and free women who sow, cultivate and reap the harvest we enjoy.
#4 GS: I light this candle for the long rows of freely chosen books, old and new, in libraries everywhere, and with the hope that their words of wisdom, courage, and delight may be more widely used.
#9 GS: I light this candle for the right to free discussion, the right to say what we as loyal Americans believe so long as our words do not endanger the welfare of our community or our nation.
#5 G.S.: I light this candle for a hope that some day every man, woman, and child in America and in the world will have adequate food, clothing, shelter, and opportunity for creative growth. We hope that all may have the right to follow their own desires.
#10 GS: I light this candle for a hope that the time will come when the American dream of respect and justice for all the people of the world will come true, when we will not hurt one another by word or deed because of differences we may have.
LEADER: These candles symbolize the many bounties God has given us. There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or to be the mirror that reflects it. Let us make our candles a lighthouse on the hill, a beacon to guide us in appreciating the many things God has given us; let us be worthy trustees of these bounties.