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Troop CamperCommitted to keeping all of GSNEOs camps open

October 2011 VOL. # 1 ISSUE #

Camp Spotlight:

Sugarbush

Lovers of Camp Sugarbush have everyright to be happy because GSNEO hasannounced that this camp will join

Timberlane and Ledgewood, and will notbe sold!

This comes as welcome news in thefight to do what is right for our girls andsave our camps!

And there are plenty of reasons to behappy that Sugarbush will remain inGSNEOs property portfolio. This 200acre camp in Kinsman, Ohio has recentlybeen given ACA accreditation and there

are a variety of sites for troops to explore.Those looking for a gentle camping

experience will enjoy Shadynook, a year-round site which features indoorplumbing and showers. Those on thelook-out for a unique camping trip shouldopt for a weekend at Woodland, GSNEOsonly Covered Wagon camp site!

In November and DecemberSugarbush will host GSNEOs Stargazing1 and Stargazing II programs. Cost ofthe program is $8 per participant andregistration information can be found athttp://www.gsneo.org/programs/search.aspx?search=true&focus=PR_STEMSo take some time and explore this camp.

You wont be disappointed!

I was a Scout years ago, before the movement started, when my father took me fishing, camping and

hunting. Then I was sorry that more girls could not have what I had. When I learned of the [Girl Scout]

movement, I thought, here is what I always wanted other girls to have.

-Lou Henry Hoover

Contents

Camp Spotlight: Sugarbush .p.1

Vote for the Amendment.p.2

The Sugarbush Decisionp.3

How You Can Help.p.4

Announcements...p.4

*Please note: the article on handicapped

accessibility at GSNEO camp properties will

appear in an upcoming issue of Troop

Camper. Were currently negotiating with

council to be able to pass that information

along in a public forum!

The Woodland Unit at Camp Sugarbush
http://www.gsneo.org/programs/search.aspx?search=true&focus=PR_STEMhttp://www.gsneo.org/programs/search.aspx?search=true&focus=PR_STEMhttp://www.gsneo.org/programs/search.aspx?search=true&focus=PR_STEMhttp://www.gsneo.org/programs/search.aspx?search=true&focus=PR_STEMhttp://www.gsneo.org/programs/search.aspx?search=true&focus=PR_STEM


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endangered animals and plant species are at our camps (why

would we base our decision on that), research alternative

energy sources - wind power, gas wells (shouldn't that be done

by an expert?). All monetary figures were provided by

GSNEO. Camp valuations were based on tax value of several

years ago. Valid tax records were not available for

Timberlane. There were no records at council as to what

equipment was at each camp - canoes, life jackets... , they

didn't even have accurate capacity information.

3.The Property Committee, made up of a smaller subset of the

Board of Directors is the group that came to the decision to sell

the five properties. Just like our delegate voting is pretty much

a rubber stamp, that is how the Board votes. The property

committee gives its recommendation, and the Board votes on

it. Rarely do they question the recommendation, they assume

that the committee reviewed the information and came to the

right conclusion. Until recently. Questions have started being

asked and decisions have been challenged, and as you see,

decisions are being reversed. More time is needed to make

sure the remaining decisions are sound.

4.There is no urgency to selling the camps. In fact, with the

market still in the dumps, this is abuyers market, not a sellersmarket. Why not wait until we really know what our plan is

and get more money for the camps when the market bounces

back.

5.Lastly, if you haven't seen the letter from the Renkert family

who donated the land for Camp Great Trail, find it and read it.

Excerpt: "We believe the board of directors of GSNEO is not

acting in good faith and urge you to stop all plans to close or

sell the Great Trail Camp... Future support for GSNEO by my

family, our company and countless others in our community

will hinge upon your actions. It is my opinion, and that of

many other family, business and community leaders, that if you

can't respect the gifts that were made to the organization in the

past then there is no reason to support GSNEO in the future."To lose the support of the community is certain death of Girl

Scouting in that area. The Great Trail legacy council has

already lost Camp Lycopodia in the first round of camp sales.

Losing Camp Great Trail will leave them with no camp within

their region's borders.

Camp Crowell/Hilaka, Camp Great Trail, Camp Lejnar and

Camp Pleasant Valley are being put on the market within days,

if they have not already been. There is no time to wait, we

must stop the sale of the camps until we have a fully vetted

plan. Otherwise we may be kicking ourselves in a few years.

If anyone is wondering - my home camp is Crowell/Hilaka, but

they are all wonderful camps, each with their own

personality that all deserve to be saved.

Sincerely,

Jan Larsen

October 2011 VOL. #1 ISSUE #

As a lifetime member of Girl Scouts, one of only two

volunteer members of the Realignment committee

formed to prepare for the merger of our five legacy

councils, a member of the Vision 2012 committee, aformer council and national delegate, and the wife of a

board member of GSNEO, I urge you to vote for the

amendment this coming Saturday morning. Nothing

could be more important to our council at this time.

These are the reasons why:

1. It is clear that the plans for the premier camps have notbeen developed enough to know for sure if they will

work. Case in point - the reversal of the decision to sell

Camp Sugarbush. Per the Plain Dealer, that decision

was made because it was determined that there was not

enough viable land at Camp Timberlane and Camp

Ledgewood to create enough sites to accommodate ourcampers. What other problems will be found with the

assumptions that were made about these premier camps

that might change the decision to sell some of the other

camps? Once they're sold it will be impossible to

replace them. This proposal is asking for more time to

be sure that the new plan will really work.

2. Based on the survey that was conducted, it wasdetermined that camps should be within a 1-hour

driving distance for weekend camping and a 2-hour

driving distance for resident camping. The property

committee used the 2-hour distance as their criteria,

even though troop camping is more popular and reaches

more girls. With all the personal and troop gear that hasto be carted to camp, it takes many parents to help drive

the girls out to camp. With many families having both

parents working, a two hour round trip to drop off girls

and drive back home on a Friday nightand again on aSunday afternoon is pushing the limits for a family.

Stretch that to a 3 or 4-hour round trip and that becomes

impossible.

3. The Vision 2012 process has been misrepresented to theGSNEO membership. Yes, volunteers were asked to

help pull information together to help make a decision

on the camps, but that is as far as it went. We were not

asked for our opinion on what should be done, we were

not even given choices to critique. Granted it was not

our place to come to a decision, but some input would

have been appreciated, after all we were the volunteers

who were involved in gathering the information. We

were all shocked at the announcement to sell 5 of the 7

camps. There is no way the research we did, pointed to

such a drastic reduction of property. And the research

we were asked to do, was busy work - find out what

Vote for the AmendmentFrom a

Vision 2012 Member

The letter from the Renkert family, referenced by Jan will be available in a Troop CamperNews Blast

shortly. Stay tuned!


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The Sugarbush Decision: A Step in

the Right Direction

Take a deep breath and pat yourself on the

back. Chances are, if youre reading this, you, orsomeone close to you had a hand in the activism

that saved camp Sugarbush from the chopping

block.On October 20, 2011, GSNEO announced

that it would not sell Sugarbush, leaving us with 3

camps instead of 2, if the proposed property

changes proceed as planned.This is great news, especially for girls from

our Eastern region, but while we celebrate, we

must be cautious not to let this decision lull us into

a false sense of security.After all, now Sugarbush and its supporters

face other challenges. There are still 40,000+ girls

in our council, and even with a third camp openspace will be tight for those looking for a weekend

to experience the great outdoors. This has the

potential to leave those who love Sugarbush, andfought so hard to keep her open, fighting just for

the opportunity to get into the place they value so

highly.

Similarly, consider the fact that GSNEO

stated that one of the reasons they decided to keepSugarbush was that it is in an area with the

potential for growth. In the first place, a quick lookat the most recent census figures proves that there

are areas growing more quickly, but more

importantly, this statement indicates that the board

are once again looking to the needs of mythicalfuture members rather than their current

membership base.

Ultimately then, this issue boils down to

the fact that GSNEO hasnt really changed their

behavior here. This decision was made in ourfavor, but it was still made via a unilateral board

decision. The board seem to have acknowledged

the fact that we want our camps, but theyvecompletely side stepped our points about

transparency, accuracy, the democratic process,and a fair and thorough re-evaluation of our needs.

So take a moment and celebrate the

good fortune of Camp Sugarbush. By all

means, we deserve a moment or two oftriumph and happiness. But make sure that

once youve taken that moment you regroup

and come back ready to ensure that all our

camps get a fair shake, and GSNEO is not ableto sidestep accountability and transparency by

simply throwing us a bone once in a while.

And if saving Sugarbush feels good toyou, think about how good it will feel to save

all 7 of our best resources.

October 2011 VOL. # 1 ISSUE #

A message to GSNEO written in chalk at a

Camp-in

Before caption goes here

Girls show their support for all the camps at the first camp-in

at GSNEO headquarters in Macedonia. A Sugarbush banner

is displayed prominently over the GSNEO sign.

It has always seemed strange to me . . . the things we admire in men, kindness and generosity, openness, honest

understanding and feeling, are the concomitants of failure in our system. And those traits we detest, sharpness,

greed, acquisitiveness, meanness, egotism and self-interest, are the traits of success. And while men admire the

quality of the first they love the produce of the second. John Steinbeck


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How You Can Help

*If you have registered, attend the special meeting and the October general assembly

meeting at GSNEO Headquarters in Macedonia beginning at 8 am 10/29/11

*If you are a delegate, vote for the amendments under discussion at the special meeting

and the amendment set for a vote during the general assembly meeting.

* If you are not a delegate, encourage your delegates to support the pro-camp measures

up for a vote at the special meeting and general assembly meeting.

*Send a delegate a message of support. Theyre working hard for us and we need their

votes!

*Join the gathering on the hill outside the Macedonia office in support of camps onOctober 29, 2011. Ceremonies will begin at 7 am.

Troop Camperis part of the Trefoil Integrity

Coalition. For more information please visit

www.trefoilintegrity.org

T-shirts supporting all 7 of our camps are now

available! Contact Lucy Hanigosky at

[email protected] to get yours today!

Proceeds from the sales of these shirts help todefray the cost of camp-saving activities and are a

perfect way to tell GSNEO that all our camps

matter!

To see the shirt visit

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=17595

7035816385&set=pu.109731739105582&type=1

&theater

Help spread the word!Forward this newsletter to

all your Girl Scoutcontacts!

WWW.WEBADDRESS.COM

MONTH YEAR VOL. # 1 ISSUE #3
http://www.trefoilintegrity.org/http://www.trefoilintegrity.org/https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=175957035816385&set=pu.109731739105582&type=1&theaterhttps://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=175957035816385&set=pu.109731739105582&type=1&theaterhttps://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=175957035816385&set=pu.109731739105582&type=1&theaterhttps://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=175957035816385&set=pu.109731739105582&type=1&theaterhttps://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=175957035816385&set=pu.109731739105582&type=1&theaterhttps://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=175957035816385&set=pu.109731739105582&type=1&theaterhttps://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=175957035816385&set=pu.109731739105582&type=1&theaterhttp://www.trefoilintegrity.org/

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