Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama: August 2011 Archives

Perhaps you have heard about the upcoming Girl's Guide 2 Girl Scouting (GG2GS), which will be available in September.  If you have, we know you have plenty of questions, so we have a document that answers most of them.  Every level will have their ownGG2GS which will encompass the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, including badges and journeys.  Read all about it in this document, and get ready for a great new year!

Are there outgoing people in your troop who would like to inform others about why Girl Scouting is important to them? Then submit an 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.

I recently was invited to attend a Bronze Award Ceremony.   Always a welcome invitation in my world, as I enjoy having an opportunity to see what girls can do.   It was a great evening. The girls had done three different projects, demonstrating their troop leader was clearly sensitive of affording girls the opportunity to chase their own passions.     Each of the projects were about giving back to the community and being grateful for what they had.   It was great to see the mayor and other dignitaries from their community were there. The most poignant part of the event, however, was not the slide show, not each one acknowledging their accolades, but each of the girls thanking their troop leader and giving her a gift.   I'm sure she was surprised, but each thanked her for what she had given to them.   This is the type of gift to these girls that is never forgotten.   The gift cards are transitory, but giving your time and caring to others is permanent.   Thank you to all our volunteers for sharing their wealth with the girls of this council.

Come join the Fun! Learn to sail and have an AWESOME time. This program is to teach girls to grow in confidence, courage, and character through the skills of Sailing! Out of council Girl Scouts welcomed! Any girl 6^th grade or higher (C,S,A), who can swim 50 yards, and loves the water!

The weekends will cover introduction to sailing and sailing safety for the class 1 sailors, while more experienced (those who have attended Summer Sail Away or past weekends) will learn more advanced skills to possibly move to a higher class.

All other classes will be grouped by the level of experience each sailor has had. All classes are taught basic water rescues, parts and rigging a sail boat, points of sail, weather, knots and hitches, and navigation.

Class 1- Beginners Single Sailing and safety (tandem)

Class 2- Intermediate Sailing Open Water (tandem & single)

Class 3- Dingy Sailing (Mainsail, Jib,)

Class 4- Sloop Sailing (Flying Scot,)

Max. Enrollment 24 girls, Leaders come and help where needed

Cost: $35.00 per person attending 

For more information check out the specific weekend info:

October 21-23, 2011

May 4-6, 2012

KARMA- Kids Against Ridicule, Meanness and Aggression
Anti-Bullying Patch

For: Girl Scout Brownies, Juniors, Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors

Objective: To develop an understanding of the different types of bullying, how to prevent bullying and how to build a safe environment. To build self-respect and confidence to help girls overcome a bullying situation.

Guidelines: Brownies and Juniors will complete one activity from each session. Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors will complete two activities from each session, one of these must include the starred (*) activities.

Cost: $2.00 per patch

Read all of the requirements and activities in Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama patch book, and purchase the patches in our online shop!

For Girl Scouts Registering for the National Convention not through Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama
 
Phase 2 of convention registration is open! If you are interested in attending GSUSA's National Convention without going through the council, visit https://girlscouts.wingateweb.com/portal/newreg.ww.
 
Prior to actually registering, you may want to learn more about the convention program.  Details on the content, as well as information about Houston and housing, is available on the Girl Scouts convention website - www.girlscouts.org/convention.
 
During Phase 2, the general public or individuals or groups (e.g., troops, etc.) who do not register through their Girl Scout council may register themselves for any of the following: Official Visitors who are not Alternate Delegates, Day Passes, Hall of Exhibits Only Passes, 100th Anniversary Parties, Girl Scouts University @ Convention Tracks 1 and 2, and the History Conference.  These individuals must meet the Girl Scout membership and minimum age requirements.
 
These registration categories must continue to register via Council Group Registration: Delegates, Official Visitors who are Alternate Delegates, Girl Scout Leadership Institute (GSLI) registrants, and Girl Scouts University (GSU) @ Convention: Track 3 - Board Governance registrants.  Anyone who registers for any of these packages must do so through their Girl Scout council.
 

After summer camp is over, we take some time to catch our breath and start planning for fall.   The time between camp and school beginning isn't long, but we have been busy, working toward everyone having a fantastic 100^th anniversary year!   The membership staff had their retreat, and they are off and running, working to increase the number of girls whose lives are changed through interaction with our wonderful volunteers and opportunities being a Girl Scout has to offer.   The council goal for girl members is 9,500 this year.   Although secretly, the membership staff is aimed at 10,000!

We have made some positive changes in our fall product sale.   For starters, we've added a component for those who have new troops, so they can sell magazines after the sale to raise funds if they are formed after fall product is completed.   We've also changed the vendor and added incentives for girls who are top sellers to that program.

The cookie program is moving to a direct sale, which we hope will be easier on our volunteers.   We made this change to cut steps out of the sale process, and the majority of the feedback we've received on that discussion has been positive.    We have worked to address the comments that shared concerns about that change.   For that program, we've added incentives for adults who work with this, since many of you do a great deal of work to make that program a success.

We are fortunate to have both purchased and received lots of equipment this summer to enrich the girls' experience.   We have a bass boat, sailboats, stand up paddle boards and GPS units.   The next task on my list is to get that out, so the girls can use these items during the course of the year.    All of this was used during the summer, and the girls gave all of it rave reviews.   So those who didn't get a chance to attend summer camp should have an opportunity to test their skills, as well.

This is the year of the 100^th anniversary.   As usual, we have great programs planned for the year, but there are added programs because of the 100^th anniversary celebrations, making it even more special.   We hope you are as excited as we are for a fantastic year for the girls!

Auburn University Athletics invites Girl Scouts to the September 3 football game against Utah State!  There are only 500 tickets available!  Update: Auburn has increased our tickets to 700!!

Registered Girl Scouts (including leaders and the designated number of registered adults) get in FREE!

All the details are available on the events calendar

All you War Eagles -- come and support your team!

All you Crimson Tides  -- come and support your fellow Alabamians (at least until the Iron Bowl), or maybe root for Utah!

The council has three advance copies of the new Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting, which integrates with the Journey books. The council staff who have read these new materials LOVE them!   They come as a notebook with age level materials, new badges and badge requirements.   The books are colorful and include some fun things.   The Brownie book has fun paper dolls in the back and money so they can learn how to grocery shop.   We will be previewing the books at fall kick-off.   Kick-off is Saturday, August 13, for the Mobile area and Sunday, August 14, in Montgomery for the River Region/Wiregrass area.   We hope you can attend, so you can learn about our new fall product vendor, QSP/Ashdon Farms and see the new books. They are scheduled to be in the council shops in mid September!

Check out our post from June 23, 2011 about the Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting for more info, and be sure to watch the video produced by Girl Scouts of the USA!

Last chance to RSVP for GSSA Kickoffs in Mobile and Montgomery
RSVP by Friday, August 5, 2011

It's never too early to start planning Girl Scout activities and programs, and GSSA is ready to jump start the 2011-2012 year with kickoffs for volunteers in both Montgomery and Mobile. 

During these fun events, we will have Fall Product Sale training with our new vendor, QSP/Ashdon Farms, tell you all you need to know about the new Girls Guide to Girl Scouting and give you plenty of time to share best practices and ideas with your peers. 

All volunteers are welcome to attend either the Mobile Kickoff, Saturday, August 13, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m., or the Montgomery Kickoff, Sunday, August 14, from 1-5 p.m.