Girl Scout Junior Troop 845 “Caches in, Trashes Out”

Hey troop leader's for Girl Scout Junior troops: Have the girls earned their Geocacher badge yet? Here’s how one troop combined a Take Action project with their favorite pastime—geocaching!

Cache In Trash Out  (CITO) is an ongoing environmental initiative supported by the worldwide geocaching community. Since 2002, geocachers around the world have been dedicated to improving parks and other cache-friendly places.

Geocaching is an activity that involves the out-of-doors and technology. “Caches” or containers with  tracker logs are hidden at GPS coordinates and others try to find them for sport. At each cache, trackers can log that they found the cache and sometimes they trade swag—little trinkets left behind.
Girl Scout Junior Troop 845 has been geocaching for a few years and has attended other CITO events. When they noticed trash along a local bike path and creek, they decided to plan one in their own town.
Guided by their troop leader, Roger, who has organized CITO events in the past, the girls did all the planning and talked with the park and recreation department to organize the event, which they called “Girl Scouts Giving Back.” With their leader’s help, they were able to post the event on the geocaching website to invite the public. On March 3, more than 100 geocachers and Girl Scouts attended the event—one person even drove in from San Jose, another Girl Scout troop came from Novato. Great job, girls!

Want to be adventurers too? The Geocacher badge is in the The Junior Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting. Geocaching tools are available for purchase at The GS Shop in Sacramento and Salida. 

GOT MILK? ®-Girl Scouts Photo Contest Finalists

The finalists of the statewide GOT MILK? ®-Girl Scouts Photo Contest have been chosen!

Girls from GSHCC submitted their photos with captions answering the prompt: How have Girl Scouts and milk helped me become strong, healthy and confident?

Here are the three finalists from GSHCC. Each received a $350 camp scholarship, funded by the California Milk Processor Board.

Elyssa G: “How have Girl Scouts and milk helped me become strong, healthy and confident? By providing me strength to achieve new heights!”

 

Julianna L: “Girl Scouts are confident and milk is healthy!”

 

Anna R: "Milk feeds my body, Girl Scouts feeds my soul."

 

Everyone who knows me knows that I love change. I think sometimes it is a curse but life is always interesting and, hey—changing. I should have started this blog when I started at Girl Scouts but it seems fitting to start it at the end and work backwards.

I leave an organization I love – one that helped me as a girl and that still inspires me today. I have been able to accomplish so much with the help and support of a lot of people. We have a new Program Center, new office in Modesto, and best of all an almost new Camp Menzies. If you believe things can happen – they do. All of these steps, supported by generous donors, have resulted in a refreshed look and feel for GSHCC. While we have consistently remained committed to one mission—to build girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place—we have made it a priority to remain innovative and relevant. And this is reflected in our new Program Center. Our digs are very industrial and cool; we just look like a place where amazing girls would want to go.

One of the nice things about retiring is the kind words from many of the volunteer. I guess I was a breath of fresh air when I arrived and I of course didn’t know that until now. I remember driving around in a golf cart at camp and just yelling to the heavens, “I love my job!” Who wouldn’t after leaving a 25-year career in the insurance industry?

-Pam Saltenberger

Roseville Older Girl Lounge gets crafty at Anthropologie

Hear&Now staff and MarComm interns Riley and Gianna recently joined up with 16 girls from the Older Girl Lounge in Roseville to learn more about Anthopologie’s artistic side. At the event, they discovered that many employees have art degrees and both conceptualize and hand-make all of the displays throughout the store. Here’s Riley’s recap:

On Sunday, Sept. 9, Gianna and I went to Anthropologie in Roseville for an older girl outing. We learned about the crafty side of clothes! Not only does Anthropologie sell adorable clothes, and house ware, but they do so many DIY (Do It Yourself) projects for their different displays in the store! While we were there we got to paint tree logs for a new window display that Anthropologie is putting up soon. Also, we looked at all their displays, and different areas of the store, and saw how they made each one themselves. One of the displays was a paperclip piece of art, and they linked 40,000 paperclips together to make it! Wow! My favorite display was the one behind the cash register, where an artist outlined a city scape in pencil and then hammered in nails over her drawing. After, she hung string across all the nails to create a beautiful picture behind the counter. Gianna’s favorite was a chandelier made out of dyed mop heads! The artist at Anthropologie who dyed the mop heads had green hands for days when she was done! All in all, Gianna and I had such a fun time, learning, playing, painting and meeting girls from different troops during this amazing Older Girl Lounge event.

The Older Girl Lounge in the Sierra Creek and Sierra Rose service units brings together Girl Scout Cadettes, Seniors and Ambassadors (grades 6-12) for unique and fun events. Girls can sign up for events with their troops or individually. Older Girl Scouts and their parents can contact Lounge organizer and troop leader Beth Martin to find out about upcoming programs: bnrmartin@surewest.net.

 

 

Best Friends for LIFE

Hi, my name is Alana and I love being a Girl Scout because it provides me with an outlet where I can be myself and make a difference in my community. Having a Girl Scout troop also gives me a group of life long friends that I can continually rely on. I don’t have to fear being judged by them for the clothes I wear or the way I style my hair because I know they embrace me for me.

Throughout my 11 years as a Girl Scout I have made friendships that have lasted. I first moved to Sacramento when I was in 1st grade and the first thing my mother did was enroll me in a Girl Scouts. It made the transition to a new town much easier because I knew that I had a group of girls that would help me through the first day.

I met my best friend Jane through Girl Scouts. She was in my troop and we happened to live in the same neighborhood. Our parents enrolled us in many of the same Girl Scout day camps and we went to many of the same Girl Scout events. After about a year I started attending the same school Jane went to and we were in the same class. Being able to spend time together in school and outside of school really allowed us to see every side of each other. As time went on our friendship grew stronger and stronger, and today I know that she’ll always be there for me. I never have to fear going through everyday life without someone whom I can confide in and whom I know has my back. Without Girl Scouts we would never been able to make such a deep connection and maintain our friendship for so many years.

Jane and I as young Girl Scouts.

Jane and I today.  BFFs!

Susanne wrote to GSHCC about a trip her troop took to Washington, D.C. for the Girl Scouts 100th Anniversary celebration on March 12.  This troop saved their cookie money in order to make the trip possible. 

Well, we did it—and thank goodness we were prepared!
A huge thank you is owed to our supporters for helping us on our journey to Washington, D.C. We pack a lot in during our short trip, and saw so many things. I think, if given the opportunity, we could all sleep for the next day-and-a-half straight.

Each night, after the girls were showered and in their PJs, we gathered in one of the dorm rooms in a circle and each shared one highlight of the day. The highlights varied from the hamburger at Johnny Rockets, the orangutan on the zip-line at the national zoo, meeting Congresswoman Matsui at the capitol and meeting the women Girl Scout astronauts at NASA. But for me, I have to say, one of the greatest highlights was seeing those girls take it all in, and seeing Girl Scouts and Girl Guides from all over the world swarming into the city on droves as the big 100th event approached. By Friday, walking down the street in Washington, D.C. was impossible. We couldn't get on the Metro without running into several troops of Girl Scouts. Girls everywhere were wearing Girl Scout shirts, either self designed or from the GS Shop. A lot of girls were also wearing their vests and pins.

We were "SWAPed" out within an hour of the event on Saturday, because we had been trading SWAPS all week long.  Everyone we met was so kind and thoughtful, both Girl Scouts and others that saw that we were Girl Scouts.

As I looked across the Washington Monument grounds on Saturday at the "thousands upon thousands" of Girl Scouts, I was in awe. It brought tears to my eyes, and still does today...and you know that each and every girl on that mall was there because someone bought a box of cookies from her.

With warmest regards,
Troop leader of troop 54, Susanne

At the mall on March 12.

Girl Scouts join Sacramento Women’s Chorus for “Sisters, Sing Out!” concert, May 12

Enjoy the collective voices of over a dozen Girl Scouts at the Sacramento Women’s Chorus (SWC) spring concert, “Sisters, Sing Out!,” May 12 at 7 p.m. The event takes place at Christ Unity Church,* 9249 Folsom Blvd. in Sacramento.

To prepare for the concert, Girl Scouts in sixth grade and above have participated in workshops with SWC, a community-based nonprofit that often partners with other groups whose mission aligns with their own. This year, SWC selected Girl Scouts Heart of Central California (GSHCC) as its collaborating partner. As a result, SWC provided singing workshops and bolstered the girls’ performance during the big 100th anniversary event at Cal Expo in April. SWC also performed with 300 Girl Scouts at “Singin’ on the Steps” at the California State Capitol in March.

SWC uses music to build community, honor peace, justice, equality, and tolerance, and celebrate the lives of women. Come show your support and share a love of singing by attending “Sisters, Sing Out!” on May 12.

Tickets are $7 for children 12 and under; $15 for adults. Advance tickets are available at www.sacramentowomenschorus.org. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

*Please note: SWC rents performance spaces. They are not a religious choir and are not affiliated with Christ Unity Church.