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Are you an outgoing person who would like to inform others about why Girl Scouting is important to you? Then submit your application to be a Girl Scout Press Rep! Girl Scout Press Reps can be girls or adults, who enjoy public speaking or writing and would like to represent the council.

Press reps will hone their writing skills and learn about different kinds of media by participating in It's Your Story- Tell It! Journey-based activities. Press reps will be required to write at least three articles during the year about Girl Scout activities for possible publication. As part of the 100th Anniversary, press reps are encouraged to attend the anniversary celebrations and submit photos, videos, or articles.

Parents, it is very important to note that the majority of representation for the council will be internal to the Girl Scout community - through our website, blogs and newsletters.

To apply, submit the following application by September 15. Applications will be reviewed and confirmations sent by September 30. There will be a Press Rep Workshop in Montgomery and Mobile. A snack will be provided at both.
• Montgomery Workshop: October 17, 2011 from 4:30 - 6:00 p.m.
• Mobile Workshop: October 18, 2011 from 4:30 - 6:00 p.m.

You can submit applications to: communications@girlscoutssa.org or the Mobile or Montgomery Service Centers.

Girl Scouts are finding ways to help their Sister Girl Scouts in Japan!  Here are three examples:

A second grade Girl Scout started a blog titled 1,000,000 Pennies for Girl Scouts of Japan. Elisabeth has decided to start on a journey to try to collect one million pennies, by her birthday in April, to be donated to the Girl Scouts of Japan to aid in their relief efforts. While a million pennies may seem an unreachable goal, half the fun is the journey! Currently, Elisabeth has collected 20,445 pennies! Help her on her way here: penniesforjapangs@yahoo.com.

In Oregon, KTVL News 10 reports that 50 Girl Scouts in Medford helped fold and link 1,000 paper cranes Saturday night to be sent to Girl Scouts in Japan as a token of friendship. After September 11th, Girl Scouts from Japan sent over strings of 1,000 cranes. In Asian countries the crane is a symbol of happiness, and the act of stringing together exactly 1,000 is a gesture of healing. Fifteen-year-old Girl Scout Cassie P. said it takes about 25 folding steps to make the cranes, but it was well worth it.

Because of the recent devastation in Japan, the policy that prohibits Girl Scouts from raising money for other organizations has been temporarily suspended. To contribute to earthquake and tsunami relief efforts, you can make an online donation to the newly established Girl Scouts of Japan Relief Efforts.

There are so many ways we can help our Sister Girl Scouts in Japan; what might your troop do to help?

Did you know?  There are 3 Girl Scout FIRST Lego League teams in a field of over 120 teams in the FIRST Lego League Global Innovation Award competition!   The winner of the Global Innovation Award will receive a grant for up to $20,000 to fund a full utility patent for their device and start getting it out to others who need it.  The top 3 are invited to the Awards Ceremony in Washington D.C and will present their project to the US Patent and Trade Office!

Voting closes on Friday, March 18 and Girl Scouts need votes..  Please vote for them daily from every IP address available.  This would do a huge favor to the girls and show people all the wonderful things girls can do when they are empowered.   
 
The Flying Monkeys Girl Scout Team created a prosthetic hand device (the BOB-1) to help a little girl who was born without fingers. This team is now in 4th place!!!
To vote for the Flying Monkeys:
http://fllinnovationaward.firstlegoleague.org/teams/flying-monkeys/submission/bob-1-hand-device

 
The LOL Comets Girl Scout Team thought of the KAT Map- an indoor GPS for the blind they would like to build. To vote for the LOL Comets:
http://fllinnovationaward.firstlegoleague.org/teams/lol-comets/submission/kat-map-door-gps-blind
 
The Dbots,  are working on a "Shirt of Awesomeness" to build a shirt that would be a back brace to help middle schoolers with heavy backpack loads and those with scoliosis who need a  brace to correct their medical condition. To vote for the Dbots:
http://fllinnovationaward.firstlegoleague.org/teams/d-bots/submission/shirt-awesomeness
 

 

Six Cadettes from Troops 955 and 150  of Girl Scouts of Greater Iowa researched and created a prosthetic hand device to help a little girl in Georgia who was born without fingers on her right hand.  They were able to craft a device that allowed her to hold a pencil and write for the first time in her life!  

 The Global Innovation Award they are competing for is open to Lego League teams around the world.  The goal is that through on-line votes these girls can earn $ to help with patenting this device they created.  Their project needs your support and the support of Girl Scout troops in your Council.  More votes = greater chance to earn $ for the patent process. 
 
You can vote daily from home, work, smart phones.  You can vote once per IP address.  This means, if your workplace has a single server and somebody has already voted, it won't register another vote.  The upside to this is that you could potentially vote several times from your smart phones! Forward it home and vote from there, check out the local coffee shop's wifi etc...  Please take the time to vote daily, share their link with others and encourage them to vote as well.  

http://fllinnovationaward.firstlegoleague.org/teams/flying-monkeys/submission/bob-1-hand-device <http://fllinnovationaward.firstlegoleague.org/teams/flying-monkeys/submission/bob-1-hand-device>

If you are on Facebook, consider becoming a fan.  There is a FLYING MONKEYS LEGO LEAGUE TEAM page to update you on their progress and other things, too.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Flying-Monkeys-Lego-League-Team/151393361582296 <http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Flying-Monkeys-Lego-League-Team/151393361582296>

Excellent news! The Girl Scout Research Institute is celebrating its 10th Anniversary tomorrow, November, 4, with an exciting event "Who's that Girl? Self-Image in the 21st Century". This event will take place in New York City but we can join via Ustream at 5:30 p.m. central standard time when the panel begins. At the event, GSUSA will be releasing new findings from a new study on girls and social media, including this refreshing statistic:

"92 percent of girls would give up all of their social networking friends if it meant keeping their best friend." - Girl Scout Research Institute, 2010

 

On the Ustream, guests will be hearing from a panel of adult and girl culture experts including Emme, supermodel and founder, Body Image Council, Maya Enista, CEO, mobilize.org, Gabi Gregg, MTV Twitter Jockey, Peggy Orenstein, Contributing Writer, New York Times Magazine; and Janie Victoria Ward, professor of education, Simmons College. We will also hear from a panel of girls from the New York City area.

Share this Ustream link with friends: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/whosthatgirl

Girl Scouts of the USA is working with Entertainment One, the distributors of the new film "The Secret of Moonacre," to spread the Girl Scouts 2010 brand campaign messaging. We are pleased to share that the Girl Scouts' "What Did You Do Today?" campaign video has been included as a feature on all DVDs and Blu-rays of "The Secret of Moonacre" - currently available in stores.

An acclaimed adaptation of the beloved, classic children's novel The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge, "The Secret of Moonacre" is a new family fantasy spectacle directed by Gabor Csupo ("Bridge to Terabithia") that stars up-and-coming actress Dakota Blue Richards along with Ioan Gruffudd, Tim Curry and Natascha McElhone. This fairy-tale adventure - complete with magical castles, unforgettable characters and mythical beasts - is rated PG, and is Dove Family-Approved.

Visit "The Secret of Moonacre" website for more information. There you will also find a special article posted for Girl Scouts of the USA that explains "How Dakota Blue Richards became Maria Merryweather."

you put movie stars, Girl Scouts, and members of the media together to discuss how young women are portrayed in movies, magazines and on TV?

Here's what you get: you learn how much the media influences how we girls see ourselves! And you make plans to let everyone know that just because it's on TV doesn't make it so.  The Healthy Media for Youth Summit was a big success, and that's where they debuted the great "Watch What You Watch" video in our last blog entry.

If you want to read more about it, check out this link.