Published for the volunteers of Girl scouts of colorado Winter 2011

coloradoLEADER

InsIde thIs Issue:

Leader to Leader Learning to let girls take the lead proves very rewarding. page 3

helping hits home Hometown Hero program gives girls insight into issues. page 6

Celebrate 100 with serviceGirl Scouting has always been about making the word a better place and there’s no better time than now to do so. page 6

1. All direct-sale. Girls will sell with cookies in hand from the start. Your starting inventory order should have already been placed.

2. Get ready to rally in January. Cookie Rallies will be January 2–21. The door-to-door sale begins January 22. Booth sales begin February 10.

3. Now accepting credit cards! See the website for more info.

4. New cookie: Savannah Smiles, a crisp zesty lemon cookie.

Read more about Cookies Now!, pages 4-5

Cookies Now!A new Colorado Girl Scout Cookie experience!

CEO resigns, Foote appointed interim President and CEO Megan Ferland is resigning effective Dec. 31 to accept the position of President and CEO of Girl Scouts of Western Washington, based in Seattle. Ferland has led Girl Scouts of Colorado for two and a half years; and under her leadership, the organization has made significant progress including achieving a 4.3 percent increase in membership last year.

Board Chair Stephanie Foote has been named interim CEO and a national search for Ferland’s replacement will begin in January.

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Girl’s Guides to Girl Scouting arriveMost preorders for the Girls Guide to Girl Scouting books have been filled, and girls and volunteers alike are thrilled. We also have Daisy, Brownie and Junior books available at all council shops. Girl Scouts of USA still has the Cadette, Senior and Ambassador books on back order, so we have very limited stock of those books. Please watch our website and our social media outlets—Facebook and Twitter—for updates on availability.

We have a great stock of the Journey Books and the Skill Building Activity Sets for all age levels available in the retail shops to use in planning your winter programs. All shops are also carrying 100th Anniversary merchandise and will have items to help you promote the Cookie Program in January as well.

Join us for a virtual service unit meetingWhat: A meeting for any volunteers in the state, covering the items on the statewide service unit agenda, including council updates, news, and answers to your questions. Staff from membership, product sales and program will be available. With busy schedules, days and times of service unit meetings don’t always work for everyone. And, in areas where we may not have an active service unit team, this allows an additional way to connect with GSCO and get the information you need.

NOTE: These meetings are designed to support volunteers, but don’t replace local service unit meetings. Information specific to a geographic area or service unit will not be covered. Please contact your service unit manager or membership manager for this information.

Who: For leaders, co-leaders and assistant leaders or any volunteer who wants to join in via “Live Meeting”—on their computer and/or phone (toll free) for communication and dialogue on items from the statewide service unit agenda.

Where: Join us from wherever you are—it’s a virtual opportunity! Check the website for the latest schedule.

100th Anniversary holiday bonusEach membership director in Colorado has accepted the challenge to add 100 new girls to existing troops in December. We can’t accomplish this without your help! As a special holiday bonus, every new girl who registers with an existing troop from November 24 – January 3 will have her GSUSA $12 membership dues paid for by Girl Scouts of Colorado. This will result in an extra $12 per registered girl in the troop treasury! December is a great time to introduce new girls to Girl Scouts: just in time to sell cookies, have fun with holiday service projects, and set goals for the new year!

Save the date: February 2 in metro DenverDine Out for Girl Scouts is a great opportunity for you to enjoy a meal out and support Girl Scouts of Colorado. The event will run during each restaurant’s regular business hours. Participating restaurants will contribute 20% of sales (excluding alcohol), and our goal is to secure 100 restaurant partners in honor of the landmark anniversary. Check the website for the latest list of participating restaurants.

We will also have opportunities for girls to sell cookies at participating restaurants and to serve as hostesses. Email Jordan Alvillar at jordan.alvillar@gscolorado.org to let her know you are interested.

Colorado delegates ‘Renew the Promise’ at 52nd National ConventionNearly 10,000 Girl Scouts gathered in Houston in November to Renew the Promise and usher Girl Scouting into its second century. Colorado’s delegation was in the middle of the action, which included musical performances, an inspiring speech by Katie Couric, the organization’s business meeting and hundreds of seminars and exhibits.

The Colorado delegates kept every-one informed by posting live Tweets and sharing their experience with Girl Scouts of Colorado membership.

Some quotes from their coverage: Kathy O’Brien unilever VP: “Don’t forget that what you want, you have the power to ask for.”

Connie Lindsay, GsusA new Board chairwoman: “Stand up for what is right, even if you are standing alone.”

Marlee Matlin: “Courage + dreams = success.”

Ambassador swanee hunt: “If we don’t have enough failures, it means we’re not pushing hard enough.“

Read all about it, watch videos, see photos and more at girlscoutsofcolorado.org.

COUNCIL NEWS

Winter 2011 3

As a leader, watching my girls take over has been an amazing journey

LEADER TO LEADER

By Terry Cadwallader

In 2002, I joined Girl Scouts again (after having been a Girl Scout as a girl) as a co-leader for my eldest daughter’s Brownie troop. I loved picking her up from her Daisy meetings and hearing all the exciting things they had been doing. I knew immediately that Girl Scouts was a great organization for my daughter to be involved in—the sky was the limit for what she could experience.

When my youngest was starting kindergarten I gladly signed up to be the leader of her Daisy troop. What was I thinking? I had 13 kindergarteners— all with very different personalities. What chaos!

Today, the troop contains 12 strong 5th graders who I am proud to be leading, including eight girls with us since kindergarten.

I wear many hats as a working mother of two girls. I have always been one to plan and organize. My co-leader and I usually meet for coffee at the beginning of the school year with our calendars and map out the entire year. We split the meetings down the middle and select what badges we want to work on, drawing from our own personal interests and strengths.

I had been hearing about how Girl Scouts was changing—Journeys to earn badges and girls leading their own meetings. My thought was that the girls in our troop would not do well without structure. This was going to change everything I knew about being a leader. When my co-leader and I sat down with our calendars this year, we scratched our heads wondering if this was going to work. That meeting was the shortest we ever had as we only blocked out the meeting times and dates on our calendars.

At our first meeting I showed up with a flip chart and markers. I took a deep breath and looked around the room and said, “Ladies! You know how Mrs. C. always has a plan? (They all nodded their heads and rolled their eyes). Well, I don’t have a plan; I have no idea what we are doing this year as a Girl Scout troop. You all are in charge now. You tell me what you want to do and I’ll help you get there.”

You could have heard a pin drop in that room. I asked them to brainstorm on what they would like to do. I started writing vigorously on the flip chart as they were yelling out ideas.

Before I knew it, one girl took the marker away from me graciously and another was running the voting process. I sat back and was amazed at how the girls took over. The ideas they were coming up

with were also fresh and new. Some were grand ideas and some were small ideas. They unanimously agreed they wanted to work on the Bronze Award and voted on a Journey.

Are the meetings nice and tidy and well planned out? No! Do I often wonder where our next meeting will be? Yes! One of the biggest things I have had to learn was to lighten up and trust that I had taught them something in the six years we have been together.

Girls today have so many challenges that women my age and older never experienced. Today’s girls are a part of the technological age. I see both my girls communicating via text messaging with a friend they are sitting right next to.

Girl Scouts still provides personal interaction and experiences that modern technology is rapidly taking away from our children. Girls need to have a place where they know they are safe to be who they want to be and nobody will judge them. Girl Scouts provides that place.

As a Girl Scout leader, I can only say that I am on a journey with my troop. I have no idea where this journey is going to take me, but I have faith in my girls and it’s going to be one adventurous ride!

Terry Cadwallader, pictured at right, and co-leader Kelli Bolcato have been amazed with their Girl Scouts throughout their years together. The troop is based out of Summit Cove Elementary in Dillon Valley.

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This year, instead of taking pre-orders and waiting for cookies to be delivered, girls will sell cookies to customers with cookies in-hand from the start. Cookies Now! starts with girls selling door-to-door, then adds Booth Sales to the second part of the sale.

Cookies Now! A new Colorado Girl Scout Cookie experience

We’re taking credit cards this year, here’s how it works• Use your smartphone to accept credit card payment on the spot using Sage

Mobile Payments. GSCO provides the scanner, you use your own data plan.

• Money is deposited directly into the troop bank account, and GSCO pays all transaction fees assessed by Sage Mobile.

• If your troop wants to participate, your troop leader or TCM should take the training available on our website at For Volunteers > Cookies. Registration instructions included in the training. It’s too late to sign up for door-to-door credit card sales but you can still sign up to take credit cards at Booth Sales.

Jan. 1-21: Attend a service unit cookie rally or hold a troop rally

Jan. 6: Booth Sale sign-up begins

Jan. 17-21: Starting Inventory delivery and pickup for troops and cupboards

Jan. 22: Cookies Now! sale begins

Jan. 22- Feb. 9: Girls sell door-to-door

Feb. 10: Booth Sales begin

March 4: Cookies Now! sale ends

DATES TO KNOW

Winter 2011 5

Rally tipsWhat better way to kickoff this year’s cookie season than with a rally fit for a 100th birthday party? Have more fun and get more results using rally resources provided by Little Brownie Bakers.

Check out littlebrowniebakers.com > Volunteers for “Five Steps to a Successful Rally” for great tips, sample

letters, activities and more.

Hometown HeroesThe Hometown Heroes/Gift of Caring Program is an important part of the Girl Scout Cookie Program. It gives girls the chance to learn philanthropy and community service. It also gives customers who might not want cookies for themselves the opportunity to support Girl Scouts and giving to others at the same time. Teach girls to ask every customer to buy an extra package for their heroes!

Setting goals with your girlsThe first step to a successful cookie season is setting goals. One of the most important lessons you can teach a girl is how to set a challenging goal and reach it.

Here’s an example of a fun goal-setting activity from the Little Brownie Bakers website. You

can find plenty more at littlebrowniebakers.com > For Volunteers > 5 Steps to Success.

Idea Hunt: Girl Scout Daisies are hide-and-seek experts! Help them to use their expertise to discover ideas and choose a cookie goal. Based on the interests of the girls, generate some ideas of exciting activities they can do with their cookie proceeds and write them on sticky notes. Also generate service project ideas and write those on a different color note. Hide the notes around the meeting area. After they find a note, they return to the circle. Once all the notes are found and the ideas discussed, let the girls vote using cookie cutouts.

Be sure to set group goals and personal goals. Your girls will be well on their way to a great cookie season.

Keep moving!With the new direct-sale model, it’s important for Girl Scouts to remember they must keep moving in the door-to-door portion of the cookie sale.

Pack up a wagon for a walkabout, decorate a car, but please don’t set up a table in any location. You’ll need to keep moving.

Sign-ups for council-approved Booth Sale locations begins on Jan. 6!

Visit the NEW girlscoutsofcolorado.org for more tools for cookies and all of your Girl Scout business

• Share your cookie stories and photos through our new site. Posting news and photos of your girls is easier than ever.

• Learn how to use Social Media to promote the Girl Scout Cookie Program.• Need to know who does what? Check the blog post about the Girl Scout Cookie structure to see

it all mapped out.• Find activities for your girls, adult learning opportunities, camp sessions and more—all in one powerful Finder Tool.• Check out the new Forms, Publications and Resources library—the place for everything you need.• Don’t miss the new online shop for a seamless shopping experience.

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Helping really hits home for these girlsBy Denver Metro Area Troop 640 leader, Crystal Ellis

Our Girl Scout Cadette troop of six girls decided to acknowledge the volunteers at Habitat for Humanity as our Hometown Heroes through the 2011 Cookie Program. The girls felt that the organization contributes to the community by helping people have a home of their own and that made them heroes. The troop collected 61 boxes of cookies and delivered them last spring to a building site, where they met with the volunteers working on the house. The girls were given a tour of the “home,” and a brief overview on blueprints and carpentry.

The troop did not want to stop at collecting cookies, and the girls expressed interest in contributing more to Habitat for Humanity. However, due to age restrictions, helping to build a home was not an option. So the girls investigated what Habitat needed and decided to try their hand at carpentry. They chose to build flower boxes. They spent their troop funds on supplies and a Saturday afternoon in the garage. They learned about carpentry and picked up a few power tools! The troop built five flower boxes.

“It was great to do something for all of the volunteers who work so hard to help other people. I am happy we could help and make a difference in the life of another person.”

This fall, our troop was invited to participate in a home dedication on Sept. 11, 2011 in Aurora. The girls went shopping for flowers and potting soil so the homeowner could plant the flowers in the boxes. The troop toured the finished home. They were amazed to see the finished product, thinking back to the building site they visited in the spring. All this started with blueprints and wood, combined with the hard work and dedication of the many volunteers at Habitat for Humanity!

The troop was very proud to be a part of the dedication ceremony and have our troop cookie director say a few words. The girls placed the finished flower boxes on the porch railing to give the homeowners something to add to their new home.

“It was great to do something for all of the volunteers who work so hard to help other people. I am happy we could help and make a difference in the life of another person,” explained Rachel, a Girl Scout and member of Troop 640.

Our troop discovered many things about themselves, the community and the world through this service project. But the thing that stood out the most for them is that there really is no place like home.

COMMUNITY SERVICE

Tie community service to 100th anniversary celebrationsIt only comes around once every century so Girl Scouts in Colorado don’t want to miss this opportunity to show their community service roots. The official birthday of Girl Scouting is March 12, 2012, but we’re celebrating all year long.

Girl Scouting has always been about making the world a better place, and there’s no better time than now.

Below is a list of ideas from the 100th Anniversary Activity Guide (available at girlscoutsofcolorado.org) that might serve as a springboard for your girls. Before planning a community service activity, consider the girls’ interests and skills, resources available and the community’s needs.

• Donate 100 cans of pet food to a local animal shelter.

• Plant 100 bulbs or trees.• Collect 100 children’s books or toys

for an organization.• Donate 100 boxes of food to a

food pantry.• Gather 100 pairs of socks and

mittens for a local shelter.

Also, Girl Scout troops and councils will honor every girl born on March 12, 2012. Troops can “adopt” a local hospital and honor the babies born there. Email judy.sylvester@gscolorado.org to sign up.

Be sure to share your girls’ 100th anniversary plans with us by submitting stories and photos on our website and posting on our social media channels.

Be a part of something big!

GIRL SCOUTS IN ACTION

Winter 2011 7

Colorado Girl Scouts canoe Boundary WatersA group of teen Girl Scouts from Colorado and Nebraska canoed the Boundary Waters of Minnesota Aug. 3–8. Canoeing in the Boundary Waters is considered one of the ultimate canoe trips that one can take. The girls all took canoe classes from Girl Scouts of Colorado to prepare for the trip, which was a primitive camping trip as well as a test of skills and strength. The girls portaged (or carried) their 60-pound canoes on nine portages with distances of a quarter mile to a mile in length. They also carried all of the camping and personal equipment too. The trip was 44 miles in length, following the US-Canadian Border for most of the trip. The weather was great, the scenery gorgeous and a great time was had by all.

Gunnison girls cross swinging bridge to become SeniorsFour girls crossed over the Gunnison River on a swinging bridge on Sept. 18 as they bridged from Cadettes to Senior Girl Scouts.

Spotlight on Gen Wow! Girl Scouts at Denver, Colorado Springs eventsMore than 500 guests gathered to celebrate the achievements of 100 young Girl Scouts—Generation Wow!—during an annual Girl Scouts of Colorado Women of Distinction event Oct. 12 at the Denver Marriott Center.

On Sept. 14, hundreds of supporters of Girl Scouts of Colorado gathered at the Antler’s Hilton in Colorado Springs for the Girl Scouts’ Women of Distinction and Generation Wow! breakfast.

Brownies donate 180 pounds of foodThe 2nd grade Girl Scouts in Troop 4117 donated 180 pounds of non-perishable food to Care and Share for their Send Hunger Packing program.

non-Profit org.u.s. Postage

Paiddenver, co

Permit no. 271Girl Scouts of ColoradoP.O. Box 9407Denver, CO 80209-0407

Address Service Requested

To earn their Bronze Award, 5th grade Junior Troop 1947 of Steele Elementary in Colorado Springs, aimed to get a crosswalk at a dangerous intersection near their school. Neighbors had tried for years and suggested maybe the city would listen to Girl Scouts.

The four members—Kalyana, Alexa, Chloe and Lauren—divided up the responsibilities—school, neighborhood, city and media— and when a city traffic engineer gave them a flat out “no,” it didn’t stop them. They researched options and built a support team; made a PowerPoint presentation and a video of the intersection; they collected signatures on a petition and even found funding with a grant. Alexa Huesgen Hobbs said, “It was so exciting to see how everyone wanted to help us—most of the things we found out just by talking to people.”

Their advisors suggested they take it to the citizen’s forum at City Hall, but first meet one-on-one with a couple of key City Council members. One of the City Council members they worked with was Jan Martin, a former Girl Scout and Girl Scout

Woman of Distinction. To create buzz, the troop placed signs at the dangerous intersection, invited neighbors to attend and contacted the local media.

The Council not only gave the Girl Scouts a “yes,” but praised them for their well prepared and thorough presentation.

Colorado Springs Girl Scouts take on City Hall and win

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