July 2011 - Girl Scouts of Central Maryland

07.2011
VINE
In This issue:
You are a Girl Scout Recruiter
Christmas in July Auction
It’s Your Project—Share It!
SHARE Update
p. 2
p. 2
p. 3
p. 5
It is What You Make of It
down in their toes,” the more fun and
exciting the program can be for all Girl
Scouts, adults included!
The Girl Scout experience is a reflection of you. Whatever Your image of Girl Scouting is showing.
you think Girl Scouting is, that’s what it is. And it shows.
It shows up at every meeting: troop,
Your Vision
Before you begin Girl Scouting, we
encourage you to take a moment to
think about what Girl Scouting looks
like to you. What do you envision
when someone says Girl Scouting?
Do you picture girls walking door-todoor with cookie order forms? Do you
see girls in a platform tent at camp?
Do you see them at Space Camp?
Do you see troop meeting activities
or singing songs? Do you see girls
representing Girl Scouts at the White
House? Do you see adults enjoying
themselves as they work with girls?
1 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
Or do you see adults arguing? A pile of
work ahead? Tired faces?
Girl Scouting is what you make of
it. The things about which you are
passionate, from songs to space to
solar-powered cooking, will influence
your Girl Scouts and inspire or
discourage them.
Service Unit, Council…during all your
activities, on all field trips, and at every
event. What image of Girl Scouting do
you pass on?
There’s a lot more to be said for the
Girl Scout song “I’ve Got That Girl
Scout Feeling.” The more Girl Scouts
have that Girl Scout Feeling, “up in
their head, deep in their heart and
Photo: Girls show off their funky side after a troop project.
You are a
Girl Scout
Recruiter
You have one of the best
tools in recruitment readily
at your disposal – you. Your
experience and passion
for Girl Scouting are a great
assets when speaking with
others about why they should
get involved with Girl Scouts.
Recruitment is year-round,
not seasonal. Service Team
members should view all
the people they meet in the
course of a year as potential
recruits. When recruitment
is on-going (not seasonal)
positions are filled as they
arise.
Tips for Successful Recruiting
Generate Interest
Make girls aware that Girl Scouting is available to and for them.
Offer Options
Make sure girls and adults are aware of all the Pathways for participation. Troops
are only one way to get involved in Girl Scouts, remember the others.
Adults Need to be Recruited Too!
Remember to recruit Troop Leaders, Group Leaders and Troop Committee
members. You might need to help leaders form a troop committee to support the
cookie manager, first aider, troop camp adult or SHARE parent.
Secure a Meeting Place
Work with leaders to help find a meeting place. Connect with community
partners to determine meeting site availability.
Place Girls
This part of the job never ends. Girls can register at any time during the year. Get
to know other troops in your area/service unit to help make this process easier.
Facilitate Parent Meetings
Assist new leaders with parent meetings to get troops established.
Remember: These tasks may be delegated to other Service Team Members, not
just the Recruiter. Example – Someone could be tasked to handle meeting sites
for the Service Unit.
It’s Summer Outside, but a Holiday in Your Heart
Christmas in July Online Auction to benefit the Girl Scouts of Central Maryland
from July 25, 2011 (8 am) to August 1, 2011 (9:30 pm).
What better time to shop for holiday gifts than while she’s away at Camp! Girl Scouts of Central
Maryland is giving you the opportunity to shop for an assortment of great gifts when your loved ones
least suspect it. Starting July 25, 2011 at 8 am we’ll begin another fabulous round of competitive gift
bidding on biddingforgood.com.
christmas
in July
We’ve made some new partnerships and reinstituted some old ones to make our Christmas in July
auction inventory stellar. Trust me when we say, it’s not the typical Girl Scout online auction – we
might even have a tropical vacation in store…so, get ready to bid and support Girl Scouts in central Maryland!
Have an item that would make a great auction addition? Contact Meghan Cornely at mcornely@gscm.org or 410.368.9711.
Check It Out
Looking for great videos showing Girl Scouts in Action and info about the Girl Scout program, visit:
www.youtube.com/user/GirlScoutsCentralMD for videos from Girl Scouts of Central Maryland
www.youtube.com/girlscoutvideos for videos from Girl Scouts of the USA
2 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
Girl Scouts of Central Maryland 4806 Seton Dr. Baltimore, MD 21215 P: 410.358.9711 F: 410.358.9918
Going for
Girl Scout Gold!
Welcome to
the Volunteer
Resource
Center
Girl Scout Seniors
and Ambassadors
aren’t letting the
summer heat
stop them from
working on their
Girl Scout Gold
Award projects!
There are already 18 Girl Scout Gold Award
recipients for 2012 and it is only July!
Barbara Waller, VRC Coordinator
Greetings and Tips from the VRC
In order to provide you with the best customer service, here are some tips:
•
If you need more than 15 copies of any resource, please notify the
Volunteer Resource Center (VRC) a week in advance. This gives us time
to ensure your copies will be available.
•
A Certificate of Insurance (COI) is usually required by most
corporations or organizations that loan or rent the use of their facilities
(building or property). The COI is proof that GSCM has Liability Insurance
coverage. To request a COI you will need to complete a request for
Certification of Insurance (form number 02-228), which can be
downloaded from our website at www.gscm.org or contact the VRC at
vrc@gscm.org.
•
Mutual of Omaha is another Insurance plan Girl Scouts of the USA offers.
This insurance covers non-registered participants for events and also
offers extended insurance options for troops particularly when traveling.
There are five plans ranging from $0.11 to $3 per person. Detailed
information about these plans and the application form are available
from the VRC. Completed forms must be returned to GSCM for approval
two weeks prior to the event. Checks should be made payable to United
of Omaha Life Insurance Company for the total premium. Minimum
premium is $5 however, several enrollment forms included in one
submission may be combined to meet the minimum.
Questions?
Contact the Volunteer Resource Center at vrc@gscm.org or 410.368.9711 ext
201. Of course you are always welcome to visit the Volunteer Resource Center
in person for your resource needs.
3 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
Three of the 2012 recipients are from Troop
1927. Girl Scouts Ashtin Price, Holly Cardwell,
and Claire Yokum all completed three very
admirable and unique projects. Ashtin’s
project involved working with less fortunate
women; Holly improved the cognitive skills
of local senior citizens; and Claire created a
walking trail for members of her community
to enjoy and use for exercise.
Stay tuned for more 2012 Girl Scout Gold
Award updates and highlights!
It’s Your Project
—Share It!
Are you currently working on your Girl Scout
Silver or Girl Scout Gold Award project?
Keep us updated about it! Send us pictures,
stories, highlights and more so that we can
share your “Take Action” story with other Girl
Scouts in our Council.
It doesn’t matter if you are in the beginning,
middle, or end stages of your project…we
want to know about it! And don’t forget to
check out past stories on our blog at
http://blog.gscm.org!
Got an Award Story?
Contact goldaward@gscm.org or
ajakubczyk@gscm.org.
Girl Scouts of Central Maryland 4806 Seton Dr. Baltimore, MD 21215 P: 410.358.9711 F: 410.358.9918
Volunteer Trainings
Here is a listing of courses for late July and August. The schedule of courses can be found on our website – go to
Volunteer, then Training. As courses are added, they will be listed on the website. This site also lists a description
of each of the courses. Please register by using our online registration link or use our training registration form
(08-1466). Please be sure your information is legible. Registration closes a week before the scheduled class. If
you have to cancel out of a course, please be sure to notify us as soon as possible so that anyone on a waiting list
can be offered the spot. To receive the quickest confirmation, please provide your e-mail address. You will receive
confirmation a week before the class. If a course is full, we will notify you immediately.
Leadership Essentials
Pre-requisite – Meet & Greet
August 15
7 pm – 10 pm
Clementine Peterson Activity Center,
Camp Ilchester, Ellicott City
Teen
Pre-requisite – Leadership Essentials
August 15 7 pm – 10 pm
Clementine Peterson Activity Center
Camp Ilchester, Ellicott City
August 22
6:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Slavie Bank, Bel Air
August 25
6:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Slavie Bank, Bel Air
August 24
6:30 pm – 9:30 pm
St. John’s United Church of Christ, Catonsville
Let’s Go Camping
August 31
6 pm – 10 pm Planning Session,
Clementine Peterson Activity Center,
Camp Ilchester, Ellicott City
Mandatory overnight September 10 (8:30 am) to
September 11 (10:30 am) Camp Whippoorwill, Pasadena
Daisy Grade Level
Pre-requisite – Leadership Essentials
July 26
7 pm – 10 pm
Clementine Peterson Activity Center,
Camp Ilchester, Ellicott City
August 24
6:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Slavie Bank, Bel Air
Date Change
The Daisy Grade Level training originally scheduled
for September 14 at Slavie Bank has been changed to
September 12. The change has been made to the online
registration calendar.
Brownie Grade Level
Pre-requisite – Leadership Essentials
July 26 ( wait list)
7 pm – 10 pm
Clementine Peterson Activity Center
Camp Ilchester, Ellicott City
Get an E.D.G.E
October 1, 2o11
Camp Ilchester
Make plans now to attend Get
an E.D.G.E. This fun-filled day
of enrichment workshops will
be held on October 1, 2011 at
Camp Ilchester in Ellicott City.
Registration and workshop
4 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
information will be available
in early August. A link to the
registration information will
be available on our Events
Calendar
www.gscm.org/
eventscalendar.html
and registration will be
available through our online
registration system. Mark your
calendars now!
Girl Scouts of Central Maryland 4806 Seton Dr. Baltimore, MD 21215 P: 410.358.9711 F: 410.358.9918
SHARE Update
Summer is upon us and many troops are on a seasonal hiatus,
but Girl Scouts of Central Maryland is still plugging away at
our 2011 SHARE goal of $160,000. Through June, Girl Scout
families have donated $117,617.59 in support of SHARE, with
28% participation. We have $42,385.41 to go and there is still
time to raise the additional funds needed to support Girl
Scouting in central Maryland and the nearly 29,000 girls and
10,000 volunteers we serve.
So how does GSCM provide quality, values-based programs for only $12?
The simple answer is— we can’t. Our Council spends about $194.15 per girl
member annually to offset the real costs of the Girl Scout program!
Of 76 Service Units, 25(34%) have met and exceeded their 2011 community
family SHARE goal. CONGRATULATIONS to the following Service Units: 04,
08, 18, 20, 29, 37, 39, 40, 42, 43, 44, 47, 52, 53, 58, 66, 67, 74, 76, 78, 84, 86, 87,
89, and 91.
Hot on their trails, with less than $100 to go, are the following Service Units:
02, 06, 09, 10, 11, 13, 15, 16, 30, 31, 49, 56 and 75. A good way to close these
gaps would be to ask any troops that have not yet participated to make a
troop gift to SHARE. There is still time to support THIS YEARS’ CAMPAIGN.
2011 SHARE
Appreciation Dinner
Special “thanks” to all who attended the
2011 Appreciation Dinner held June 1st at
Jerry’s Restaurant. Attendees discussed
their SHARE successes and generated
ideas on how communities can strengthen
their participation in the annual fund as we
head into our anniversary year. Volunteers
also received special recognitions for their
individual fundraising efforts in support of
the 2010–2011 campaign. A sad, yet happy,
part of the evening was wishing SHARE
Coordinators, Carol Weir, Karen Meyers,
and Gwen Moore a fond farewell. All have
done a wonderful job supporting SHARE
and have helped raised more than $5,000 in
their respective communities. Even better
than this, each has recruited and trained a
new SHARE Coordinator to continue their
fundraising legacies. Three cheers for Carol,
Gwen and Karen.
Does Your Team Have a SHARE Coordinator?
Successful SHARE
Coordinators have
the following
qualifications:
•
Good motivator
•
Good communication
skills
•
Organizational skills
•
Is at least 18 years old
•
Is a registered Girl Scouts
A Coordinator serves as
a liaison between GSCM
and the Service Team they
represent. He or she receives
monthly correspondence
from the Annual Fund
Manager, along with reports
and other pertinent
information. During your
meetings he/she would give
a financial update, discuss
Council SHARE news and
advocate for SHARE in the
community. Communities
with a SHARE coordinator
do considerably better than
those without a dedicated
point person for SHARE.
Currently only one half of all
communities have a SHARE
Coordinator. Please pass this
volunteer opportunity along
to parents and leaders. Don’t
forget to ask dads! All it takes
is one person willing to make a
difference and help generate
support for our girls.
Reminder to all Service
Unit Managers: the ontact
information for your 2012
family SHARE Coordinator is
due to Niakia Cheese, Annual
Fund Manager at
ncheese@gscm.org or
410.358.9711 ext 225, no later
than July 31, 2011.
Duration:
September 1, 2011 to
August 31, 2012
Location:
Throughout Central Maryland
Time Commitment:
Evenings and some weekends
5 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
Girl Scouts of Central Maryland 4806 Seton Dr. Baltimore, MD 21215 P: 410.358.9711 F: 410.358.9918