Council News

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Girl Scouts can do anything and everything they set their hearts and minds to! You’ll find it all here.  From members sharing their adventures to Highest Award honorees describing their projects and news from council, cookie updates, travel opportunities, volunteer tips and much, much more.

Don’t forget the GSCO Classifieds too! Looking for Girl Scout materials or have some to sell or share, browse the Classifieds. Have a service to offer or need an expert for your next troop meeting, place an ad.

Events, Travel

Spaces still open for Costa Rica 2020

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Submitted by Jody Clair

Pikes Peak

Colorado Springs

Hello, I am a 16 year leader and looking to fill six spaces for Girl Scouts. These prices will go up any day. The girl can be 6th grade-12th grade at travel time. Since it is summer, graduates may attend as a their senior trip. We will leave out of Denver. The dates are in flux until EF Tours sets us with another group. We are looking at the second and third week of June 2020. Please feel free to share with families, troops, and more! This does NOT have to be the whole troop. Individual Girl Scouts are welcome. Please email me at girlscoutjody@gmail.com and I will send you an itinerary and more information.

This story was submitted using the Share Your Stories form. You can share your Girl Scout moments, too.

Volunteer News

Volunteer View: May 2019

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Be an Early Bird

What’s next for your girls in Girl Scouts? Reserve your spot for the 2019-20 membership year today! Girls and adults renewed by June 26, 2019, are eligible to earn an Early Bird Patch. Troops with at least two Troop Leadership Team members and three girls renewed and an Annual Troop Report submitted by June 26, 2019, are eligible to earn a $25 shop credit.

Also, invite new girls to join your troop with the Extended Year Membership. For $35, girls get to participate for the remainder of this membership year (summer fun, anyone?) and enjoy a full year of troop activities for the 2019-20 membership year. These girls will also receive an Early Bird Patch.

Learn more

Outdoor Adventure Club for 2019-2020

Attention girls going into 6th grade and up, now is when Girl Scouts gets really exciting! Step your adventure up a level and get your adrenaline pumping at an Outdoor Adventure Club event. Troop leaders for Cadettes and up: Tell your girls about this awesome opportunity. Girls in 6th grade can participate in the Explorers events and girls in 7th and up go to Trailblazer events. Outdoor Adventure Club is a great way to give girls an added dose of outdoor adventure and keep girls engaged in Girl Scouting!

Sample activities include:

  • Ice climbing
  • Boating, paddling, and sailing
  • Camping trips
  • Trail running and more
  • Check the website for the full details on fall and winter events.

Volunteer Training

New eLearning platform launches in July

In July, Girl Scouts of Colorado will have a new, interactive online learning site that will host a variety of required and enrichment training to support your Girl Scout volunteer experience. In the meantime, Nuts and Bolts, Overnight Trips and Extended Trips are on our interim eLearning site. Each class page also has links to forms and additional resources. All classes are mobile-friendly and are an hour or less in length.

Volunteers can access the site by going to the Volunteer page -Training and Online Support, and clicking on “Visit Our eLearning Site.” Volunteers will receive credit for taking the class by completing a survey on the class page.

If you have questions or need assistance, please contact Emily Speck, mission delivery manager, at (303) 607-4811 or email her at Emily.Speck@gscolorado.org.

Outdoor Programs

Girl Scout Camp

Camp registration is still open! Visit our camp website for more information and to find available sessions.

Equipment Reservations

We have outdoor gear you can reserve for a very small fee! Check our website for more information.

Reservations must be made 15 days prior to when you need equipment (or the system won’t let you reserve it).

Please make reservations starting on the day you need to pick and return your equipment, not just the days you are using it. Equipment charges are priced per item not per day.

Girl Scouts Love State Parks: July 13 and 14

GSCO is joining Girl Scout councils across the country in partnering with our local state parks to encourage Girl Scouts, troops, and families to get outside and visit their local state park on July 13 or 14. We encourage Girl Scouts to visit state parks in each of their regions where there will be opportunities for hiking, environmental education, ranger programs, and special activities unique to each park. Park entrance fees of $8 per car apply, and a national “GS Love State Parks” patch will be available for purchase. Check out the GSCO event calendar for more information coming soon! Questions? Contact Anna Danila atAnna.danila@gscolorado.org

Upcoming Events

Junior Designing Robots Badge Workshop with Arrow Electronics

June 1, Centennial

Girl Scout Juniors are invited to earn their Designing Robots badge with Arrow Electronics. Arrow Electronics is an American Fortune 500 company headquartered in Centennial. The company specializes in distribution and value-added services relating to electronic components and computer products.

Civics Education: Preparing the Next Generation of Informed and Engaged Citizens

June 3

Girl Scouts of the USA is proud to join bipartisan leaders, including Chelsea Clinton, to discuss the importance of educating and engaging today’s youth in civics to preserve and strengthen our country’s democracy. This nonpartisan event is an opportunity community leaders, public officials and education experts to discuss how out-of-school civics programs can prepare the next generation to be involved citizens with a deeper understanding of their government-both now and for the rest of their lives. Register for the livestream of this special event.   A recording will be available for those unable to participate the livestream. A discussion guide will also be provided for girls and troops to engage in the conversation.

World Environment Day

June 16, Meadow Mountain Ranch, Allenspark

In partnership with the Colorado State Forest Service, Girl Scouts of Colorado is excited to offer members a way to focus on and celebrate the environment. Girl Scouts of all ages, families, and friends invited to this free, exciting event. This event is hosted by the GSCO Global Action Committee.

Girl Scout Days at Water World

June 17 – 30, Federal Heights

Girl Scouts of all ages, friends, and family are invited to take advantage of special discounted pricing for Water World June 17-30, 2019.

World’s Largest Swim Lesson at Water World

June 20, Federal Heights

Girl Scouts of all ages are invited to Water World to celebrate the World’s Largest Swim Lesson! Swim lesson 8 –10 a.m., park opens to all at 10 a.m.

Women’s Week at MMR

July 15-18, Meadow Mountain Ranch, Allenspark

Women 18 years of age or older are welcome at Women’s Week. You don’t have to be a current or past Girl Scout, you just have to want to come and play in the outdoors with other like-minded friends. Some of the best experiences were had by a few women who had never been to camp before. Mom and daughter and granddaughter groups have had great family experiences and come back every year to be sure they don’t forget what it’s all about.

Girl Scout Days at Elitch Gardens

July 19, 20, & 21, Denver

Join us for our annual Girl Scout Days at Elitch Gardens on July 19, 20, and 21! Girl Scouts of all ages, family and friends are invited to take advantage of discounted tickets. Each Girl Scout participating in our special Girl Scout days will receive an event patch. We are looking for creative Girl Scouts to submit their best design  by May 31 for the 2019 patch.

Colorado Rockies – Girl Scout Day

August 4, Coors Field, Denver

All Girl Scouts, family, and friends are invited. Cheer on the Rockies as they take on the San Francisco Giants. All Girl Scouts attending are invited to participate in pre-game parade and will receive a special event patch.

Save the Date: Cyber Challenge

October 19, Littleton

Brought to you by Raytheon, Girl Scouts in 6-12 grade are invited to detect, decode, and defend! They will test their cybersecurity skills, team up with other girls, and meet with cybersecurity professionals! All day event at Arapahoe Community College. Email aimee.artzer@gscolorado.org to be added to the email interest list.

Save the Date: Secrets to Success

November 9, Colorado Springs

What is your Secret to Success? Girls will have the unique opportunity to ask that question and many more of top local women leaders at the 2019 Secrets to Success event. Girl Scouts of Colorado believes every girl has the power to become what she dreams to be. We are helping today’s girls overcome the challenges they face, and giving them the tools they need to become successful leaders. All girls in grades 6 – 12 are invited to Secrets to Success. Email aimee.artzer@gscolorado.org to be added to the email interest list.

Alumnae News, Girl Scout News, Girl Scouts News

Girl Scout fashion show

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Submitted by Mike Werner

Northern & Northeastern CO

GSCO History Center in Loveland

Girl Scout Troop 01410 from F. E. Warren AFB, WY recently held a Girl Scout fashion show using vintage Girl Scout uniforms provided by the Girl Scouts of Colorado History Center. These Girl Scout Daisies thru Cadettes learned about uniforms over the past 107 years and what Girl Scouts did during those periods and shared what they learned with their families and community.

Your troop or service unit can also check out parade or fashion show tubs from the GSCO History Center by e-mailing  gscohistory@gmail.com.

For more information, contact troop leader Amy Jo Martinson at starletajm@gmail.com or Mike Werner, GSCO History Center, at wernermj@comcast.net.

This story was submitted using the Share Your Stories form. You can share your Girl Scout moments, too.

Camp, Events, Volunteer News

Register NOW for Women’s Week 2019 at Meadow Mountain Ranch

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Submitted by Penny “Pan” Roberts, Very Informal Camp Director, Women’s Week at Meadow Mountain Ranch

Northern & Northeastern CO

Meadow Mountain Ranch

Women’s Week at Meadow Mountain Ranch (MMR) is the most fun you can have at camp since you were 11-years-old! I promise! Even if you have never been to camp before you will “Make New Friends” (there’s me singing!) and do new things.  If you are a seasoned veteran of this or all or any other camps, I promise a unique mountain experience of fun and adventure of our own making.

Registration is now open for 2019 and we hope you can join us July 15 – 18.  Scroll to the bottom of this post for the flyer with all of the registration information. Camp cost is $200 per person and the deadline to register is June 20.

Besides a huge variety of activities possible, we always have great food, thanks to Susan Baker and her food service team who help us experiment with cooking in the out-of-doors.

If you have a favorite activity, craft, hike, song, etc., you’d like us to include in the time at camp, just let me know and we’ll get it scheduled.  If you can offer a special craft, music, ceremony, or other fun program, let me know that, too, and we’ll set it up for you.

All of MMR is open to us this year, including the Pinecrest Unit for the folks looking for a different view or a little more solitude.  The flyer below also mentions a variety of new offerings if interest is there.  Opportunities for service projects for the camp can be arranged as well.  Of course, if you are hoping for some true get-away time from your usual hectic lives, this is the opportunity.  Chill, rest, relax, play, enjoy.  Immerse yourself in the beauty and unique mountain environment.  Water, grass, trees, sky, flowers, rocks – – – even dirt if you’d like to play in it!

The event is open to any woman at least 18 years of age.  Some of the multi-generational teams who have come like moms and daughters (mine included), aunts, grand-daughters have had the best bonding time imaginable.  I’d highly recommend it.  Bring your old camp friends, bring your stressed-out co-workers, all are welcome and the more the merrier! Having just ladies there gives us a special liberating experience from most anything else in our lives today.  Sharing our huge variety of lives and experiences helps us all gain truly long-lasting perspective and lets us return home anxious for next summer already!

Gals have come from all over the country from Maine to Washington, including Arizona, California, Hawaii, Connecticut, Utah, Kansas, Texas, and many other states. The word is spreading about how much fun Women’s Week is and we’d love to have you join us.

Special needs can usually be accommodated easily. The camp is glorious and truly one of our favorite places on earth. My contact information is at the bottom of the flyer and I serve as director, registrar, and I’ll even do dishes when my patrol’s turn comes up!

2019 WW publicity flyer

This story was submitted using the Share Your Stories form. You can share your Girl Scout moments, too.

 

Camp, Volunteer News

Longing to get back to camp? GSCO has a great opportunity for you!

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The fourth annual Women’s Wilderness Summit Sisters event is at Meadow Mountain Ranch June 7 – 9, 2019. GSCO will once again be offering one adult member the opportunity to attend the camp for FREE, a $399 value. In addition, all Girl Scouts of Colorado adult members who would like to attend are able to receive a discount of $75.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summit Sisters is an immersive weekend retreat and a safe space for anyone 18+ who identifies as a woman, to connect with others, with nature, and to reconnect with herself. The Summit Sisters Retreat gives you the space…and it’s up to you how you want to fill it. Learn new outdoor skills. Try your hand at plein air painting. Find inspiration and motivation to grow. You can do as much – or as little – as you’d like. Enrollment includes all workshops and activities, camping or tent cabin, and meals. Summit Sisters is great for women of all experience levels, from those who are new to camping to the seasoned outdoorswoman.

Some of their amazing workshops include:

  • Thai massage for mind-body freedom
  • Taking the road to lasting change
  • Own your power
  • Sun salutation yoga
  • The Way of the Line – Cultivating a Moment of Pure Awareness

If you would like to apply for our grant, please complete the following form: https://gscolorado.formstack.com/forms/grantforsummitsisters06072019_06092019. The winner will be chosen anonymously by committee vote. Previous winners of the grant are not eligible to receive the spot, but are more than welcome to attend using the special Girl Scout code. If you would like to register, claim your space today for $75 OFF (only $324) when you sign up and use your Girl Scout promo code GIRLSCOUTGALS  at check out. Find all the details and register at www.summitSisters.org.

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Camp, Girl Scout News, Girl Scouts News

Glenwood Springs Girl Scout awarded Mary Jo Jacobs, M.D. Memorial Girl Scout Adventure Fund

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Girl Scout Allie A. of Glenwood Springs in the Mountain Communities region is headed to Girl Scouts of Colorado summer camp after receiving the Mary Jo Jacobs, M.D. Memorial Girl Scout Adventure Fund. Allie will attend “Intro to Cowgirl Mountain,” a five-day camp at Sky High Ranch in the summer of 2019.  She wrote in her application for this award, “Next year, I will start middle school. I am scared and nervous. I am excited, but I do not feel like I have the confidence I need. I feel going to an overnight camp by myself, without my family, to be around other girls who are already in middle school will get my confidence up.”

Mary Jo’s four children established the scholarship in December 2014 to honor their mother’s extraordinary legacy. As an 8-year-old girl growing up in 1937, Mary Jo wanted a new pair of roller skates. She wanted them more than anything in world— until she learned her Brownie troop was going to be able to go to summer camp. Mary Jo had to make a choice: spend the $8 she had worked so hard to earn on roller skates or Girl Scout camp? For Mary Jo, the decision was simple. She was going to Girl Scout camp. Mary Jo’s mother walked her to the local Girl Scout office, so she could be the first to register. A reporter for the Artesia Daily Press in New Mexico even wrote a story about Mary Jo and her decision.

After returning home from camp, Mary Jo continued to participate in Girl Scout activities, including going to camp. Eventually, she became a doctor and worked tirelessly to serve the people of Eagle and Garfield Counties, Colorado.

The Mary Jo Jacobs, M.D. Memorial Girl Scout Adventure Fund provides Girl Scouts from Eagle and Garfield counties in Colorado with a scholarship so they can experience the learning opportunities, joy, and camaraderie of attending Girl Scout Camp. “Our hope is that that many girls will have the same positive experience, education and adventure that mom had through her involvement in Girl Scouting and her opportunity to attend Girl Scout camp,” said Dr. Patricia VanDevander, daughter of Dr. Mary Jo Jacobs.

Girl Scout News, Girl Scouts News

24 Girl Scouts learn about watershed conservation and the environment

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In partnership with Colorado Trout Unlimited (CTU) and Anadarko, two dozen Girl Scouts had the opportunity to serve as citizen scientists, anglers, and artists on Saturday, May 11, 2019 at Kassler Center in Littleton. The goal of the event was to help girls develop an appreciation for watershed conservation and the environment. This outdoor watershed experience employed STEM-education (science, technology, engineering, math), plus recreation and arts to explore a local stream. CTU volunteers led Girl Scout Juniors and Cadettes in observing a stream, collecting flow data, sampling macroinvertebrates (aka aquatic bugs), fly tying, and fly casting. Girls also explored the natural area around Kassler Center and recorded their thoughts and observations.

Colorado Trout Unlimited is dedicated to conserving, protecting, and restoring Colorado’s coldwater fisheries and their watersheds. With a grassroots base comprised of nearly 12,000 members in 24 local chapters across the state, CTU works both locally and statewide through advocacy, education, and on-the-ground restoration projects. For more information visit www.coloradotu.org.

Bronze Award Honorees, Girl Scout News, Girl Scouts News, Gold Award Honorees, Highest Awards Archive, Silver Award Honorees, Take Action/Highest Awards

Bronze, Silver, and Gold Award Girl Scouts honored at Highest Awards Celebration in Silverthorne

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Nearly 30 Girl Scouts, along with their friends and family, gathered at Silverthorne Pavilion in Silverthorne on May 9, 2019 to honor the more than 1,200 Girl Scouts from across Colorado who took the lead in their communities and earned one of Girl Scouts’ Highest Awards, the Bronze, Silver, or Gold Award.

The Gold Award, which is the highest honor in Girl Scouts, is presented to girls in grades 9-12 who demonstrate extraordinary leadership through a project that makes a difference in their community. The Silver Award is the highest award a girl in 6th – 8th grade can earn. The Bronze Award is the highest award a girl in 4th or 5th grade can earn. For the 2018-19 Girl Scout awards program year, 26 Girl Scouts in the Mountain Communities region earned the Bronze Award. 18 girls across the Mountain Communities region earned the prestigious Silver Award. 42 girls across Colorado earned the prestigious Gold Award.

Girl Scouts of Colorado President and CEO Stephanie Foote applauded the girls for having the courage and confidence to try new things and make their world a better place.

“Highest Award recipients are perfect examples of girls who lead the Girl Scout way. Taking the lead like a Girl Scout means being a go-getter who is bold, honest, and determined to succeed; an innovator who thinks outside the box; a risk-taker who is willing to try new things; and a leader who leads with empathy,” she said.

2018 Gold Award Girl Scout and winner of the Stephanie A. Foote Leadership Prize for Gold Award Excellence Riley Morgenthaler served as the celebration’s emcee. She talked briefly about how earning the Girl Scout Gold Award has impacted her life.

“Every time I think that the Gold Award has given me everything it possibly can, I get a new, amazing opportunity; use the tremendous number of skills it taught me; or receive unexpected feedback from the community I targeted with my project. I am so amazed to see how my project has continued to grow wings and impact even more people, ” she said.

The focus of a Gold Award project is identifying and researching a community issue she is passionate about, developing a plan to address it in cooperation with her team and community members, establishing a global connection with others, and providing sustainability for the project. Of the skills learned through Girl Scouts’ Highest Awards, leadership, organization, and critical thinking are the fundamentals of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience. Some universities and colleges offer scholarships unique to Gold Award recipients, and girls who enlist in the U.S. Armed Forces may receive advanced rank in recognition of their achievements.

Girl Scout News, Girl Scouts News

Who wants to organize a 5th year and running, 5K fun run!?

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Submitted by Judy C.

Metro Denver

Arvada

Maria C. is a Girl Scout who has organized and facilitated a 5K fun run for the last four years and is graduating this year. She is not able to facilitate this event anymore, and it has been a benefit to a local elementary school through Community Table in Arvada to provide birthday cake, frosting, and candles for every kid in the school on their birthday. This elementary school is a low-resource school and has backpacks they give away on the weekend with food and the cake is to ensure that every kid gets a cake on his/her birthday! The event was called Run for Cake and ran on Van Bibber Creek sidewalk open space for the last four years. Are there any Girl Scouts or troops out there interested in continuing to organize this fun run, which could help benefit this elementary school, so they can continue to receive cakes from the Arvada Food Bank?

Contact Judy, assistant Girl Scout leader of Troop 3301, at             (303) 524 – 5838.

This story was submitted using the Share Your Stories form. You can share your Girl Scout moments, too.

Girl Scout News, Girl Scouts News, Volunteer News

Your Next Step: Renew your Girl Scout Membership TODAY

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What’s the next step for your girl in Girl Scouts? Will she earn a Highest Award, travel the world, get her adrenaline pumping on outdoor adventures, explore the world of STEM, or all of the above? The sky’s the limit! Check out the Badge Explorer with her to see all the possibilities for your next Girl Scout adventure.

And as a massive bonus, the longer you stick with Girl Scouts, the more you’ll get out of it. Studies show girls who participate in Girl Scouts for three or more years are significantly more likely to:

  • have a positive sense of self,
  • be civically engaged,
  • achieve higher education and income,
  • practice leadership,
  • have healthy relationships,
  • and feel satisfied with their lives.

Who could want more? Secure your spot for the 2019-20 Girl Scout year now!

  • Girls renewed by June 26 will receive a FREE Early Bird patch, which will be mailed directly to their address in myGS.
  • Troops that renew at least two unrelated adults, three girls, and complete their Annual Troop Report by June 26 will earn a $25 credit to the Girl Scouts of Colorado Shop.

Starting this year, service units can earn up to $200 in Early Bird renewal prizes to support their local Girl Scout community!

Service units that retain 35 percent of their 2018-19 members by May 30 will earn $100 to put toward service unit activities.

Service units that retain 45 percent of their 2018-19 members by June 26 will earn an additional $100 to put toward service unit activities.

Question? Contact your local volunteer support specialist. Don’t know who your volunteer support specialist is? Call 877-404-5708 or email inquiry@gscolorado.org.

Girl Scouts of Colorado