World Centres / Nuestra Cabaña / About Nuestra Cabaña / Story of Nuestra Cabaña
About Nuestra Cabaña
Nuestra Cabaña, located in the “City of Eternal Spring”, Cuernavaca, Mexico, is one of the five WAGGGS World Centres. Since opening in 1957 Nuestra Cabana has welcomed guests from all around the world and offered a range of activities and programmes from environmental activism to girls’ leadership.
A Dream Coming true
On Febuary 22, 1956 the dedication for Nuestra Cabaña with the presence of Lady Baden-Powell was celebrated. It was on that day, that Lady Baden-Powell donated the iconic blue door that greets every Girl Guide and Girl Scout to Nuestra Cabaña (The Chief’s Door) and welcomes them to the start of a wonderful adventure. Behind this door lies a place with beautiful gardens where friendships start and strengthen. Our Cabaña was officially open in July 1957. Since then we have received more than 70,000 Girl Guides and Girl Scouts from all over the world.
The first participants attended a “Juliette Low” event. It was during this event that the Nuestra Cabaña song was written, using the melody of a Mexican traditional birthday song: Las Mañanitas.
As time went by, more and more things were added to Nuestra Cabaña: new dormitories; a conference room; a pool; a campfire circle; camping areas; volleyball and tennis courts, and even ramps to facilitate access to everyone. Right now Nuestra Cabaña is designed to hold up to 108 guests, which makes it the biggest World Centre.
Our World Centre Managers
- Ángeles Cardeña, México, 1958-1960
- María Laura Aviña, México, 1960-1986
- Beatriz González, México, 1986-1989
- Harriet Edmond, Canadá, 1989-1994
- Sally Robinson, Reino Unido, 1993-1997
- Judi Gardiner, Canadá, 1997-2001
- Beatriz González, México, 2001-2008
- Magdalena Rubio, México, 2008-2014
- Esmeralda González, México, 2014
- María José Proaño, Ecuador, 2014-2018
- Susana Mendoza Lavín, México, 2018-2020