Weekend Run-Down

From The Power of Girls to a Gift of Caring, there are many examples of Girl Scouts doing great things all over the country:

• Oklahoma's Tulsa World reports that Sixteen year-old Kelsey Parrott has done created a sustainable reading program that encourages parental involvement for Elementary students in her community. At the launch of her project, Parrott hosted a pajama party at the school. She brought together teachers, school administrators and Tulsa librarians to participate. "She's wise beyond her years," said Stephan Sargent, a reading methods professor in the College of Education at Northeastern State University in Broken Arrow and Kelsey Parrott's Gold Award sponsor.
• The Knoxville News-Sentinel, TN, reports on program called The Power of Girls - Girl Scouts partnership with CARE, Seventeen Magazine and The Documentary Group. Through The Power of Girls, girls are connected worldwide and mobilized around important global issues, including the critical role that education and leadership play in addressing poverty. At the heart of The Power of Girls is a pledge that places particular focus on raising awareness of the barriers that prevent girls from going to school in developing countries, including lack of funding for school and supplies; gender discrimination; and chronic poverty that pushes girls into the work force at an early age. The goal is to collect 50,000 pledges by International Women's Day on March 8.
• North Carolina's jdnews.com reports that Girl Scout troops in Onslow County took in the sights, sounds and tastes of all 50 states Saturday - all without leaving Jacksonville.
  The 50 scout troops within the county, nearly 500 girl scouts, came together to celebrate Girl Scout World Thinking Day, an annual tradition celebrated by scouts worldwide to learn about other places.
• In Texas, Montgomery High School junior and Girl Scout Ambassador Katy Balli held a camp to teach elementary school children tennis to earn the Girl Scouts of San Jacinto Council Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can achieve. Ultimate Conroe reports.
• Alabama's Atmore Advance reports that local Girl Scouts are hoping that the sale of cookies this year will help send them to camp. This year the Girl Scouts are asking the public to share a “gift of caring,” that will be delivered to the Girl Scouts and donated to local senior citizen centers, women’s and children’s shelters, food banks, family crisis and abuse centers, and other charity organizations.

Enjoy!

Turning Challenge Into Opportunity

The Drucker Exchange (the Dx), a platform for bettering society through effective management and responsible leadership, reports on the connection between Peter Ferdinand Drucker's management practice of "planned abandonment" and the Girl Scouts recent Super Six Pilot Program. Peter Ferdinand Drucker (November 19, 1909 – November 11, 2005) was a writer, management consultant, and self-described “social ecologist.” He is the man who invented management and was called "Father Of Modern Management".

The article pinpoints that Drucker would have liked best the practice “To teach girls confidence and business basics, the nonprofit is holding seminars and so-called cookie colleges to explain to schoolgirls why the changes make business sense.” In other words, the Girl Scouts have figured out how to turn an operational and marketing challenge into a teaching opportunity. “In a period of upheaval, such as the one we are living in, change is the norm,” Drucker wrote. “To be sure, it is painful and risky, and above all it requires a great deal of very hard work. But unless it is seen as the task of the organization to lead change, the organization - whether business, university, hospital and so on—will not survive."

The Drucker Exchange is now designed to stimulate a discussion of current events that is illuminated by Peter Drucker’s timely and timeless teachings. It is produced by the Drucker Institute, a think tank and action tank based at Claremont Graduate University that was established to advance the ideas and ideals of Peter F. Drucker.

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What are creative ways that Girl Scouts in your community turn challenges into opportunities?

Gold Award Project Focuses on Negative Body Image Solutions

The Spokesman-Review, WA, reports that Girl Scouts Courtney Ramsey and Sadie Perry recently earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor given by the Girl Scout organization. The prestigious award required a minimum of 90 service hours for each girl and the project’s purpose was to benefit the community.

The University High School graduates used life experiences for their project, focusing on the traumatic effects that the media plays in young girls’ lives, especially in regard to their body image. Eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder – the preoccupation about real or perceived flaws in one’s appearance – are at an all-time high among middle school girls.

For their project, Ramsey and Perry created an educational video and lesson plan that can be used by middle school health instructors, Girl Scout troop leaders and youth pastors to introduce the causes and health risks associated with poor body image. The girls mailed packets, including DVDs with instructional material and self-awareness questionnaires, to 25 middle schools in the Spokane area. The goal of the project was to build confidence in young girls by starting a dialog about the issue so girls are more likely to seek help, assist a friend and spread the information beyond the classroom.

A timely project, last year The Girl Scout Research Institute reported that the increased scrutiny of the fashion industry and its use of ultrathin models isn't without validation, as nearly 9 in 10 American teenage girls say that the fashion industry is at least partially responsible for "girls' obsession with being skinny," according to Beauty Redefined.

The nationwide survey, which included more than 1,000 girls ages 13 to 17, finds many girls consider the body image sold by the fashion industry unrealistic, creating an unattainable model of beauty. Nearly 90 percent of those surveyed say the fashion industry (89 percent) and/or the media (88 percent) place a lot of pressure on them to be thin. However, despite the criticism of this industry, three out of four girls say that fashion is "really important" to them.

Kudos and Congrats to Courtney Ramsey and Sadie Perry! Do you know any Girl Scout Gold Award recipients you would like to congratulate?

Super Six a Hit in the Blogosphere

Yesterday, The Wall Street Journal reported that to cut costs and delivery times, a dozen Girl Scouts councils are testing a plan to sell only the six most popular cookies that makes up more than three-quarters of sales. The "Super Six" pilot program is the Scouts' latest way to increase profit.

As a result of post article outreach, The Wall Street Journal article has appeared in an abundance of blogs including Gawker, Vanity Fair, Jezebel, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Seattle Post Intelligencer, Woman’s Day, Slate, New York Daily News and many more. Moreso, girlscoutcookies.org saw the highest traffic in its history over the past 24 hours. Exciting!

It's Your Story, Tell It!

As you know, Girl Scouts of the USA and Dove®, the leading personal care brand, partner to deliver Girl Scout leadership and self-esteem programming to millions of girls nationwide and abroad with the latest Girl Scout leadership journey It's Your Story-Tell It!. It's Your Story-Tell It! uses a storytelling theme in a fun and relevant way for girls to better understand themselves and their potential.

It's Your Story-Tell It! also has a very comprehensive website that allows you to get involved in a number of awesome activities! It has quizzes and games, video examples and templates plus a whole lot more! I've actually taken some of the quizzes and learned quite a bit.

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My favorite aspect however is the inclusion of personal "storytelling" videos. Definitely check out the video of Navajo Storyteller, Geri Keams - it's absolutely beautiful.

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How important is storytelling to you?

Canada's Montreal Gazette reports that Girl Scouts in the United States are tested with intellectually intense activities that require them to explore their world, while their counterparts in the Boy Scouts focus more on rote answers and following orders, according to a new study examining the century-old organizations.

Kathleen Denny, a sociology graduate student at the University of Maryland, combed through the handbooks for the two programs to examine the activities and badges aimed at children typically around nine and 10 years old. The most striking difference between the two groups is Girl Scouts are asked to complete challenging research and critical-thinking tasks to earn badges, while the Boy Scouts seemed to emphasize "intellectual passivity," she said.

"The Girl Scout handbook required a lot of the girls intellectually. It asked them to go out and survey people and synthesize what they find," said Denny. "If I were a Boy Scout, I just didn't need to look up too many other resources, I didn't really need to exercise a lot of critical thought."

For example, Denny reported that Girl Scouts were asked to interview people in their communities, research and craft a list of citizenship responsibilities, while Boy Scouts only needed to flip their handbook and see the answers provided for them.

Very interesting. Definitely check out the entire article. In other news, Montreal is one of my favorite places.

Wall Street Journal Spotlights the Super Six

The Wall Street Journal reports that to cut costs and delivery times, a dozen Girl Scouts council are testing a plan to sell only the six most popular cookies that make up more than three-quarters of sales. The "Super Six" pilot program is the Scouts' latest way to increase profit.

By focusing on business approaches, and on skills and lessons the program teaches girls, the Girl Scout Cookie Program enjoyed profit gains from $700 million to $714 million.

The article states that this experiment is the latest example of how the Girl Scouts have been increasingly applying savvy marketing tactics to the effort. The organization is even going as far as to hold seminars to explain to girls why the change makes sense as a way to teach them some business basics. Video of that below:

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There is also a fun interactive game provided by the Wall Street Journal - Check it out! What are your thoughts on the "Super Six" pilot program?

Toledo Talks Tagalongs and More

It's Girl Scout Cookie time in Ohio! Traci Curth talks about the sale in this edition of FOX Toledo Talk Back - Check it out:

Your favorite girl scout cookie?: foxtoledo.com

What's your favorite Girl Scout Cookie?

Follow Girl Scouts of the USA on Twitter!

For daily updates on Girl Scouts in the news, follow the Girl Scouts Blog. Join in the conversation and follow us on Twitter @girlscouts and Facebook.

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Pic via I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER.

Turkish Marbling in South Carolina

South Carolina's Greenwood Today reports that Girl Scout Troop 172 recently had the pleasure of working with award winning artist Dot Moore. Moore worked with the scouts to create a one-of-a-kind Turkish marbling paintings.

Paper marbling is a method of aqueous surface design, which can produce patterns similar to smooth marble or other stone. The patterns are the result of color floated on either plain water or a viscous solution known as size, and then carefully transferred to an absorbent surface, such as paper or fabric. Through several centuries, people have applied marbled materials to a variety of surfaces.

One method of marbling more familiar to Europeans and Americans is made on the surface of a viscous mucilage, known as size or sizing in English. This method is commonly referred to as "Turkish" marbling, although ethnic Turkic peoples were not the only practitioners of the art, as Persian Tajiks and people of Indian origin also made these papers. The term "Turkish" was most likely used as a reference to the fact that many Europeans first encountered the art in Istanbul.

I've never attempted Turkish Marbling - have you?

Spotlight on a Famous Former: Chita Rivera

Former Girl Scout and theater legend Chita Rivera is an American actress, dancer, and singer best known for her roles in musical theater. She is the first Hispanic woman to receive a Kennedy Center Honors Award. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009. For a comprehensive list of famous formers, look here!

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Who is your favorite former?

Reminder! Doodle 4 Google

Girl Scouts of the USA has partnered with the fourth annual Doodle 4 Google contest. Open to K-12 students in the U.S., Doodle 4 Google is an opportunity of a lifetime: design the Google.com homepage doodle for millions of people to see, and while you’re at it, take home a $15,000 scholarship and a $25,000 technology grant for your school or your Girl Scout troop/council. This is the first time that Google is opening up their annual art and design contest to After School Programs, and the Girl Scouts of the USA is one of their premier pilot partners. In the spirit of thinking big, the theme this year is “What I’d like to do someday...” - giving all of the talented young dreamers an opportunity to flex their creative muscles.

Once scouts have been registered online by a Troop leader and submitted their doodle artwork via mail by March 16th, Google employees and Guest Judges, including Whoopi Goldberg, gold medal ice skater Evan Lysacek and “Garfield” creator Jim Davis, will narrow down the submissions. The top 40 regional finalists will not only receive a trip to New York City and a visit from Google in their hometown, but their artwork will be featured in a special exhibition in partnership with the Whitney Museum of American Art.

For more details, check out Doodle 4 Google, including full contest rules. To get started, whether you’re a Troop leader, a teacher, a school educator, or a parent, you must register your student(s) by March 2, 2011. Then get out the crayons, paints and markers and throw your own doodle party. Please note that all entries must be postmarked by March 16, 2011. Check out suggestions specific to Girl Scouts - see the Info for Participants page (blue box on the right).

Green Bay Gold Award Earned Abroad

Wisconsin's Green Bay Press Gazette has a fantastic column by Jess Radke titled, "Girl Scouts make the world a better place". Although it's something everyone in Girl Scouting knows, Radke drives the point home with a wonderful Girl Scout example: Girl Scout Ambassador Nikhitha.

Nikhitha is a Girl Scout from the Girl Scout Council - Northwestern Great Lakes that truly lives the Girl Scout mission of making the world a better place. Last summer, she traveled to India with two goals in mind: to help a village in need, and to earn her Girl Scout Gold Award.

Nikhitha’s project included organizing a health camp for residents of Pallampaakum, a rural Indian village. Her first step was to find contacts to get the project off the ground; she connected with two Rotary clubs in India and a nonprofit organization called the East West Foundation of India, and met an area doctor who assessed the villagers to find the most prevalent medical conditions.

“Some conditions were easy to fix, like skin infections from going barefoot. I found that the best thing was a preventative camp to show villagers how they can do easy things to make a lasting impact on their health,” Nikhitha said.

Nikhitha’s next step was to raise the necessary funds. Her main fundraiser was a raffle through her school’s student council. They contacted various businesses for donations - like Super Bowl XLV hopefuls the Green Bay Packers - which donated tickets, a high-selling item. She collected roughly half of the necessary financial resources through the fundraiser.

After the funding and materials were in place, Nikhitha left for Pallampaakum to prepare for the day-long camp. Each of the 203 attendees visited doctors: pediatricians, gynecologists and dentists, and everyone left with a care kit of slippers, mosquito nets, toothbrushes and toothpaste, and medications that from her local drugstore that Pallampaakum residents do not have access to.

Nikhitha is applying for pre-medicine programs at Columbia University, Yale University, the University of Chicago and Brown University, and intends to study neuroscience. Impressive.

Do you know anyone who has made a difference in communities abroad?

Sports-A-Thon Gets Girl Scouts Physical in Tennessee

Gomocs.com reports that The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Athletics Department hosted the Girls Scouts Sports-A-Thon over the weekend. Over 100 girls in grades K-8 from the Girl Scout Council of the Southern Appalachians attended the afternoon event.

The Sports-A-Thon was a day of physical fun on the campus of UTC and gave Scouts an opportunity to be instructed by Mocs coaches and student-athletes. Participants took part in volleyball, soccer, golf, softball, tennis, basketball and spirit.

"Essentially, one of the things that Girl Scouts is focused on is healthy living for girls," stated Booth Kammann, CEO of the Girl Scout Council of the Southern Appalachians. "We are really thrilled to have this partnership with UTC where girls can come try sports that they have never really tried before. They have the opportunity to be taught by actual college athletes. We know that girls look up to older girls and want to learn from them."

Athletics definitely played a role in my life growing up. Are you involved in sports?

Can-Do-Kids Club Gets New Library

California's Pasadena Star News reports that for their Girl Scout Gold Award project, Kate Battaglia and Samantha Smith built a library at the Can-Do-Kids Club, a Pasadena after-school program for disadvantaged children. The girls pulled together more than $4,000 from friends, relatives and local charities. With the money, they built a custom out-building, then filled it with books. It replaced a dilapidated structure that had become over-run with weeds.

The building holds more than enough books to accommodate the children at the after-school program, exceeded Can-Do Kids Club Director Jennie Wiebe's expectations. Reporter Brian Charles relates that "listening to Kate Battaglia and Samantha Smith speak, one might confuse the pair for interior decorators or architects. Battaglia, 16 and Smith, 15, talk about light fixtures and floor plans with as much ease as they send text messages."

Awesome! Do you have any Girl Scout Gold Award stories to share?

Weekend Run-Down

Let's take a look at weekend Girl Scout media stories:

• Ohio's Chillicothe Gazette spotlights longtime Girl Scouts volunteer, cookie manager, troop leader and service unit manager Debbie Cade.
• Paparazzi Journal takes a look at Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Season 8 Episode 14 ‘Graham Family’ Edition.
• Through the efforts of Junior Girl Scouts in Troop 70181 of McKinleyville, CA, the children of Rehauhetsoe Primary School in Butha Buthe, Lesotho, Africa, will have a school library.
  Working on their Bronze Award, 10 girls helped to gather, sort and pack 585 pounds of books into 12 boxes for shipping in time to catch the December container ship destined for southern Africa. California's Times-Standard reports.
• Massachusetts's 22News reports that Holyoke teenager Allison LaPointe hopes to reach the highest goal a Western Massachusetts Girl Scout can attain. Allison conducted a recycling program for kids on Saturday at the Holyoke Children's Museum. She told 22News, her goal is to earn the Girl Scout Gold Award for high achievement.
• The Northwestern, WI, reports that an Oshkosh girl was recognized for reaching the highest award a Girl Scout can receive, the first from the city to earn the award since 2003. Sarah Benish, 17, spent about 60 hours building bluebird houses, benches and planting trees at the Coughlin Nature Area as a way to earn her Girl Scout Gold Award.
• Suburban Journals reports that Troy, IL, High School senior Michelle Meloche recently earned the Girl Scout Gold Award for her efforts to help middle school girls with self-confidence issues. She created a workshop, "God Doesn't Make Junk: Loving Yourself is Divine," that focused on life skills. Meloche said it was motivated by her Christian faith and memories of how she struggled with low self-esteem.
• Nevada's Action 13 News reports that The Girl Scouts of Southern Nevada are promoting healthy living with the first ever Thin Mint Sprint 5K and 1-mile Shortbread Shuffle.

Enjoy!

Extreme Home Makeover: Girl Scout Edition

Tune in to ABC’s Extreme Home Makeover this Sunday, January 23, and watch the Home Makeover team build a home for a single mother of two who divides her time among family, work, college, and volunteering for the Girl Scouts. In December, The Augusta Chronicle, GA, reported that Earnie Graham was surprised by the crew of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition at the Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia's Augusta office, where she works. Earnie has a full schedule, balancing her time between her job at the Girl Scouts of Historic Augusta, where she puts in extra time to mentor the girls, her schoolwork as a student at University of Phoenix, and her dedication to her church, Mt. Calvary Baptist.



In addition to the new cedar log cabin that was constructed at Camp Tanglewood, a Girl Scout camp in Martinez, Little Brownie Baker made a one-time only special variety of Girl Scout Cookie for the show. It is not available to the public and is served as a prop to highlight the Girl Scout Cookie Program. The selection process is exclusive to the show’s producers.

Prom Dresses Courtesy of California Girl Scouts!

The Reporter in Vacaville, CA, reports that local Girls Scouts and the Fairfield Youth Commission have collected more than 125 prom dresses and will disperse them soon to young women in need. Some of the dresses are brand new and accessories, including vintage purses, are also available. The goal is to provide dresses for prom, but young ladies may choose a dress for another special event instead.

The event will be held in two parts. A morning session will be by invite only and designed to serve the most deserving or in need. The afternoon boutique, beginning at 1 p.m., will be open to the general public. VIP invites are being sent out now by the Girls Scouts - however, organizers want to reach out and make sure that any young lady who could benefit is invited to the special day. There will also be color consultations, hair and make-up clinics and more. Sounds pretty awesome!

My prom date made her own dress and it was quite fabulous! Do you have any prom stories to share?

Local Community Fundraiser to Aid Girl’s Leukemia Treatment

The Olympian, WA, has a call for donations to help the family of a girl who is battling leukemia help pay a $7,000 medical insurance deductible and other hospital-related expenses. So far, the Tumwater Hill Elementary School’s PTA and Girl Scouts troop have raised more than $1,100 for Heather Schlindwein’s family. The fourth-grader was diagnosed with leukemia in December and is on her second round of chemotherapy at Children’s Hospital in Seattle.

Donations will be collected during Tumwater Hill Elementary School’s Family Fun Night from 7-8:30 p.m. today to help a South Sound girl who is battling leukemia. If you are in the area, please help spread the word.

Volunteer of the Month: Girl Scout Leader Tammy Lanham!

Congratulations to Ohio's Tammy Lanham, volunteer for the Girl Scouts, who has been named the United Way Volunteer of the Month for January. The Coshocton Tribune reports that Lanham co-leads a troop in the Rocowa Service Unit in the River View School District area and chairs the sales program for the service unit. She is also the Coshocton County Girl Scout fair representative and coordinates the Girl Scout display booths. She has volunteered for the organization for 13 years along with being a mother and holding a full-time job. Congratulations to Tammy Lanham!

Do you know any volunteers you would like to give a shout out to?

On the Move in Western Oklahoma

The Oklahoman reports that reports that Girl Scouts-Western Oklahoma will be moved into its new headquarters in northwest Oklahoma City by the end of this week. The $2 million office building is twice the size of the nonprofit’s former headquarters, said Deborah Gooding, spokeswoman for Girl Scouts-Western Oklahoma. The new building has 21,000 square feet for offices, a retail shop, a computer lab and a community area for group activities. There’s also a bit of room to grow, she said.

Congratulation Girl Scouts-Western Oklahoma on your new digs!

Argos All Girl Sports Day

Florida's Pensacola News Journal reports that The University of West Florida is hosting the third annual All Girls Sports Day on Saturday at the UWF Field House. In partnership with the Girl Scouts Council of the Florida Panhandle, members of the UWF women's athletic program will conduct the event from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday to help enhance female participation in sports.

UWF women athletes in soccer, softball, tennis, cross country, basketball and volleyball will work with youth coaches in various skills specific to those sports.

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Does your community offer similar activities?

Thalia Invites Girl Scouts of Tropical Florida CEO On Air!

Maria Tejera, CEO of Girl Scouts of Tropical Florida had the opportunity to talk about Girl Scouts nationally through Conexion Thalia, a weekly syndicated Hispanic talk radio show hosted by platinum selling recording artist and actress Thalia. The interview can be accessed here - To date, media impression behind the new brand campaign have totaled 148,676,563 with $464,070 in media value.

Make sure you give it a listen! What did you do today?

Doodle 4 Google + Girl Scouts = Awesome

Today, I’m extremely excited to announce the partnership of Girl Scouts of the USA with the fourth annual Doodle 4 Google contest. Open to K-12 students in the U.S., Doodle 4 Google is an opportunity of a lifetime: design the Google.com homepage doodle for millions of people to see, and while you’re at it, take home a $15,000 scholarship and a $25,000 technology grant for your school or your Girl Scout troop/council. This is the first time that Google is opening up their annual art and design contest to After School Programs, and the Girl Scouts of the USA is one of their premier pilot partners. In the spirit of thinking big, the theme this year is “What I’d like to do someday...” - giving all of the talented young dreamers an opportunity to flex their creative muscles.

And now, Girl Scout Troop leaders can register their troops online and get their scouts doodling. Parents or legal guardians can also register their children directly, as well as educators from public, private and home schools. There’s no limit on the number of doodles that can submitted, however, Google only allows one unique doodle entry per child.

Once scouts have been registered online by a Troop leader and submitted their doodle artwork via mail by March 16th, Google employees and Guest Judges, including Whoopi Goldberg, gold medal ice skater Evan Lysacek and “Garfield” creator Jim Davis, will narrow down the submissions. The top 40 regional finalists will not only receive a trip to New York City and a visit from Google in their hometown, but their artwork will be featured in a special exhibition in partnership with the Whitney Museum of American Art. (Amazing)! Just imagine one of our scouts could be amongst the 40 Regional Finalists. So get the word out and get your troops doodling!

For more details, check out Doodle 4 Google, including full contest rules. To get started, whether you’re a Troop leader, a teacher, a school educator, or a parent, you must register your student(s) by March 2, 2011. Then get out the crayons, paints and markers and throw your own doodle party. Please note that all entries must be postmarked by March 16, 2011. Check out suggestions specific to Girl Scouts - see the Info for Participants page (blue box on the right). Good Luck and have fun!!
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Last Year, I reported on a Girl Scout Finalist in the Doodle 4 Google Contest! Her name was Indira and she was eight years old at the time...

Chicago Tribune's Cookie Selling Etiquete!

Head over to the Chicago Tribune for a light hearted run-down of Girl Scout Cookie selling etiquette. Author Nara Schoenberg asks the very important question, "Is there anyone, anywhere, who, having sampled those amazing little donut-shaped sugar bombs, would opt for any other treat?" - she then lists tips on how to do this thing right from Beverly Langford, author of "The Etiquette Edge: The Unspoken Rules for Business Success." Enjoy!

Girl Scouts on Wendy Williams Show Today!

Hey Girl Scout World! Check your local listings because a group of Girl Scout Brownies will be appearing on The Wendy Williams Show today! Check your local listings and tune in!

In the meantime, here's a tutorial on the pronunciation of Wendy William's famous question:


How You Doin'?

Girl Scouts and Dove Deliver 'It's Your Story - Tell It!'

Girl Scouts of the USA and Dove®, the leading personal care brand, partner to deliver Girl Scout leadership and self-esteem programming to millions of girls nationwide and abroad with the release of the latest Girl Scout leadership journey It's Your Story—Tell It! It's Your Story—Tell It! uses a storytelling theme in a fun and relevant way for girls to better understand themselves and their potential. “Through girls hearing stories, sharing their stories, trying out new roles and creating their own stories, they gain confidence and see that they can make a difference in their own lives and the lives of others” says Andrea Bastiani Archibald, Ph.D. Developmental Psychologist at Girl Scouts of the USA. Building a strong sense of self is an underlying goal of the series, which was made possible in part by a generous grant from Dove.

The collection of six age appropriate publications or "leadership journeys" have been developed for girls grades K-12 and is accompanied by corresponding adult guides. These resources center on a different theme at each Girl Scout grade-level and encourage girls to take the lead in planning their leadership activities and projects.

The Journeys are central to the Girl Scout Leadership Experience. Each level of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience takes girls on a journey - a voyage to someplace new, with adventures and discoveries along the way. These adventures strengthen a girl’s ability to discover herself and her values, connect with others locally and globally and take action to make the world a better place.

"Girl Scouts of the USA believes that girls develop confidence and self-esteem through taking action," said Kathy Cloninger, CEO, Girl Scouts of the USA. "With this new journey, we saw an excellent opportunity to equip girls with the tools necessary in developing courage, confidence and character – three keys to leadership."

In fact, a national survey of girls’ use of social media released by Girl Scouts of the USA (Who's That Girl: Self Image in the 21st Century, 2010) finds that girls with low self-esteem are more likely to be susceptible to negative experiences on social networking sites than are girls with high self-esteem. They are also more likely to fall victim to hurtful behavior online and to engage in risky behavior. Building self-esteem does not happen overnight, but research shows that one way to accomplish this is through the development of leadership skills and competencies. Our national leadership journey program equips girls with these skills now and throughout their lives.

Moreover, increased self-esteem is a natural outcome of It's Your Story—Tell It! because, through storytelling and creative expression, girls gain a better understanding of themselves, learn how to reach their full potential and develop the confidence to become leaders in their own lives and in the world.

“The Dove® brand is proud to support the efforts of Girl Scouts of the USA on this creative and powerful programming, which will help girls to reach their full potential,” said Rob Candelino, Marketing Director, Dove® U.S., Unilever. “The purpose of the It's Your Story - Tell It! leadership journey is aligned with the Dove® Movement for Self-Esteem, which invites all women to join us in creating a world where beauty is a source of confidence, not anxiety.”

The Girl Scouts’ partnership with Dove® began in 2002, with the creation of "uniquely ME!", a program designed to foster self-confidence among girls. Dove® continues its support of the Girl Scouts through the It's Your Story – Tell It! leadership journey series. The Girl Scouts of the USA official online shop offers a full assortment of uniforms, program materials, awards, patches and accessories! Each purchase helps support Girl Scouts across the country and around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.girlscoutshop.com/

A Tribute to Gabrielle Giffords From Tucson Girl Scouts

On January 8, 2011, United States House of Representative Gabrielle Giffords was a victim of a shooting near Tucson, Arizona, which is alleged to have been an assassination attempt on her at a Safeway supermarket where she was meeting publicly with constituents. Giffords was critically injured by a gunshot wound to the head; six people were killed, and another thirteen people were injured in the shooting.

Gabrielle Giffords, a former Girl Scout herself, has also been a Girl Scout supporter for many years. On April 21, 2007, Giffords hosted her third "Congress on Your Corner" in Tucson, Arizona and kicked things off by speaking to the Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona, Sahuaro Council.

On May 18, 2010, Giffords congratulated a Tucson high school student who has been honored by NASA for a project explaining her interest in becoming a planetary geologist. Zoë Bentley, 13, an Arizona student and member of the Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona, Sahuaro Council, was the second-place winner in a national contest to market careers at NASA to teens. The No Boundaries competition was sponsored by NASA and USA Today. She stated:

“As a former Girl Scout myself, I am so proud to have this honor presented to Zoë – a girl from my hometown who was working on a Girl Scout project... And as a member of the House Science and Technology Committee, I know how critical it is to have young people – especially young girls – interested in science careers at an early age.”

Giffords, who also serves as chairwoman of the House Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee, called Bentley an inspiration to students in Arizona and across the nation.

In the aftermath of the tragedy in Tucson, the Arizona Daily Star reports on a project by the Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona, Sahuaro Council, who put together tribute posters for Giffords. The posters feature pictures of Giffords at age eight, when she was a Girl Scout. Current Scouts and community members are encouraged to write notes of well wishes to Giffords. Tamara McKinney, director of development at the Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona, Sahuaro Council, says,

"We wanted to do something that gives our membership, our girls, an opportunity to send a personal message thanking her and telling her that we're thinking of her and love her."

The posters will be delivered to Gabrielle Giffords at the hospital and another will be sent to her office. Our thoughts and well wishes are with victims and their families…

Weekend Run-Down

With Cookie Sales and school underway across much of the country, Girl Scouting is in the news:

• Colorado's Longmont Times-Call has a fantastic story about Carbon Valley Girl Scouts selling cookies for South Korean orphanage through the Gift of Caring/Hometown Heroes program, troops can designate an organization to receive cookies. People who pass up buying for themselves can buy boxes in honor of that group. The girls also hope to establish a relationship with the orphanage and become pen pals with the children, many of whom are learning English.
• Kentucky's Courrier-Journal reports that The Girls Scouts of Kentuckiana's fifth annual fundraiser January 27 will feature an assortment of desserts and appetizers created by area restaurants using Girl Scout cookies - Thin Mints, Trefoils, Do-Si-Dos, Samoas, Tagalongs, Dulce de Leche, Thank U Berry Much and Lemon Chalet Cremes. A favorite is the Cafe Samoa, a Consumers Choice Coffee concoction of Seattle Roast coffee topped with whipped cream, caramel, coconut and a crumbled Samoa Girl Scout cookie.
• Missouri's St. Louis Today reports that Laurie Roberts, Kathy Rayand about a dozen other Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri district chairwomen recently met the organization's new CEO and shared their experiences from volunteering as Girl Scout leaders. One chairwoman talked about how the girl members in her Girl Scout troop were more like her children in many respects, and how they were able to help each other live more successful lives because of the respect and friendship developed over years.
• New Jersey's Republican Herald reports that Hannah Sawicki, a Girl Scout from New Jersey traveled to Pottsville on Monday to donate a trunk-load of used musical instruments to a local non-profit group. Sawicki, a musician who plays flute and piccolo, came up with a way to give the gift of music to needy children. In early 2010, she started collecting used instruments and donating them to organizations promoting music education. This is her Gold Award Project.
• New York's Riverhead News-Review reports that The Riverhead Garden Club has continued its educational outreach with the Girl Scouts at Roanoke Avenue School. The program has been designed with activities that earn the students both pins and certificates of achievement as Junior Master Gardener (a 4-H Youth Program), as well as badges that meet scouting goals.

Enjoy!

Oklahoma Girl Scouts Participate in History

As reported last year, both candidates in Oklahoma’s recent race for governor were Girl Scouts. Both candidates stated that the leadership skills they learned to get them to such an important moment in the state’s history could be traced directly to the experiences they had as Girl Scouts.

This week, The Kingsfisher Times and Free Press, OK, reports that members of Kingfisher Girl Scout Troop 500 traveled to the state capitol on Monday to see the inauguration of Oklahoma’s first female governor, Mary Fallin. The day started with an unofficial tour of the capitol and a visit with State Representative Mike Sanders. Troop members then made their way outside the capitol where they were asked to help distribute inauguration programs as visitors arrived for the event.

Girl Scout Trail Mix by Molly Parris

Colorado's KWGN News recently ran a segment with Girl Scout Molly Parris who stopped into the studio to make some trail mix with Girl Scout Cookies - video below! I tried the recipe and it is fantastic - I added shredded coconut... Do you have any creative Girl Scout Cookie recipes?

Beautiful New Lodge at Camp Four Echoes

Congratulations to The Girl Scouts Eastern Washington & Northern Idaho Council, who is currentlu erecting a $1.2 million lodge at Camp Four Echoes, on Lake Coeur d'Alene, to replace a 70-year-old structure there.

The new two-story, 11,500-square- foot lodge will have about three times as much floor space as the former one-story lodge, which was razed in September to make room for the project, says Pam Lund, CEO of the Spokane-based council. Via The Spokane Business Journal.

Keep Your Eyes Peeled for the New Girl Scout Campaign!

A tipster sent in some photos of new Girl Scout PSA's now appearing in public places:

These shots are from San Diego International Airport...

Have you seen the new PSA's in your area?

Soldier Thanks Girl Scouts in St. Louis

In St. Louis, MO, Fox 2 News reports that a soldier wanted to thank some Girl Scouts for sending his base in Afghanistan a care package. Sergeant Jerry Blankenship returned the gesture, presenting an American flag that flew over his base in Afghanistan for a day in honor of the Girl Scouts. Watch the video below!

Have you sent Girl Scout Cookies to Soldiers serving abroad?

Future Engineers

PBS Kid's Design Squad Nation asks the question - What do you get when you put 200 teenage girls in a room with 60 female engineers, and add a few of our hands-on engineering challenges? The answer: Future engineers.

This past November, Design Squad Nation partnered with the Society of Women Engineers and Girl Scouts of the USA to host an event in Orlando, Florida called Invent It. Build It. The goal was to give girls an opportunity to learn more about the engineering profession. Judy Lee gave the keynote speech and challenged the girls to get their engineer on with Pop Fly, Kick Stick, and Electric Gamebox. Society of Women Engineer's professional and collegiate members were on hand to advise when needed and share stories and experiences from their work.

The match-up was a huge success! The girls worked side by side with talented female engineers, asked them questions, and learned about different kinds of engineering jobs. At the end of the day, there were wild cheers for the great project designs created, but the excitement ran deeper than that. The girls' perceptions of engineering actually changed and we saw just how powerful the mentor/mentee relationship can be.

Do you know of any girls aspiring to be engineers? Are you a girl aspiring to be an engineer?

Girl and Boy Scouts of Iraq

California's Redwood City Patch has a fascinating look at the Girl and Boy Scouts of Iraq today. The article relates that scouting exists in more countries than the number of countries in the United Nations, and it is currently spreading like wildfire in an unlikely place - among Iraqi children. While the leaders struggle to establish a working government and harmony within their war-torn country, the children of Iraq are learning to live by scout law.

Responsible for this is Redwood City scout leader Keith Blackey, a Vietnam veteran, who has been involved in scouting for 58 years, in several different states and countries. He has been working to promote scouting in Iraq since 2004, when American and Allied troops reintroduced scouting to the country. Since its inception, the program has grown to approximately 150,000 scouts in all 18 provinces of Iraq. However, there have been incidents of violence surrounding the scouting program and its rapid spread.

The article is definitely worth reading. Two points that I find very interesting; First, Iraqi management of the program has resulted in a unique difference between Iraqi scouts and the American scouts - Iraq does not separate itself according to gender. The kids on their own decided to make the organization multi-denominational, and co-ed. Second, the troops are very well defended and well guarded with the help of American and Allied soldiers.

Kate Middleton: A Royal Brownie!

Hello Magazine uncovered some childhood photos of Kate Middleton recently and it appears she was a Brownie under Girlguiding UK!

Middleton is the fiancée of Prince William of Wales. On 16 November 2010, the office of the Prince of Wales at Clarence House announced their engagement. On November 23, 2010, it was announced the wedding will take place on April 29, 2011, at Westminster Abbey, with the day declared a bank holiday in the UK.

Are you excited for the next royal wedding?

Gold on Ice

St. Louis Today is reporting that Amanda Kennedy used ice skating in her Girl Scout Gold Award community project. Called A Century Celebration of Music, the event featured performances from more than 100 skaters from seven different ice skating clubs in the area. There was no fee, but those who attended were asked to bring items to be donated to residents of children's homes in the metropolitan area. The effort brought in 6,755 items such as diapers, shoes, socks and other apparel.

Organizations benefiting from Kennedy's efforts are Epworth Children and Family Services of Webster Groves, Every Child's Hope of St. Louis, Child Center-Mary Grove of Florissant, Missouri Baptist Children's Home of Bridgeton and St. Vincent Home for Children of St. Louis.

Kennedy actually began her project of collecting items for St. Louis children's homes at the start of the school year and it will continue for the remainder of the school year. The ice show was the centerpiece of her effort. a determined athlete, having to travel at least a half hour to get to either one of the rinks where she practices. She aspires to become a professional skater with the Haydenette Synchronized Skating Team in Boston after she graduates from high school.

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Below is a video of American figure skater Dorothy Hamill - 1976 Olympic champion in Ladies' Singles, 1976 World Champion and Girl Scout Alumnae.

Thriving Urban Programs are Impacting Kids' Lives

The Florida Times-Union reports that Girl Scouts was something that Brittany Price never got to do, but she encouraged her daughter, 8-year-old Kiara Goodman, to join. Since then, Price said, Kiara has been doing better in school, in her behavior and grades. And mom likes the guidance that the volunteer troop leaders give to the girls.

The article is about Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops that are flourishing in Jacksonville's subsidized apartments, urban churches and even homeless shelters. Scouting is reaching kids who wouldn't otherwise have the opportunity to be a part of it through two outreach programs that focus on urban and underserved communities. The programs are known in North Florida as the Girl Scouts' Niamoja service unit and the Boy Scouts' Mohawk District.

While their circumstances might be different, the ultimate goal is for Niamoja and Mohawk scouts to have the same experiences as their counterparts in the suburbs. Just as it would be in Mandarin or Orange Park, the Sulzbacher Center troop's December pinning ceremony was well-attended by parents and volunteers, some of them former Scouts themselves.

Definitely read the entire article here - Does your community have any similar outreach programs?