Friday, December 18, 2015
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MESSAGE FROM THE CEO
GSCV Property Update
As part of our continuing effort to provide meaningful engagement and communication to our members, we offer this update on the Girl Scouts of the Commonwealth of Virginia (GSCV) property portfolio, which includes the service center and camp properties. Please know the goal for Girl Scout property is to deliver and support program experiences with purpose and fun, while remaining girl-centric and true to our mission.

We are pleased to share the following as the most current information on GSCV properties:
  • The building in Mechanicsville was sold. Proceeds of the sale have been deposited into proper and secure financial accounts.
  • The Augusta Avenue headquarters is welcoming with pictures of girls and volunteers in action, an open invitation to visit (tours can be scheduled through Membership Consultants or calling the office). Calls are answered live and members are greeted by our receptionist. Best of all, we extend an invitation to have your troop meetings in the training rooms or board room with kitchen, technology and workroom access.
  • Pamunkey Ridge Girl Scout Camp has scheduled winter troop camping with plans to host larger, council-wide program events. Resident camp sessions will include new and improved programming activities and girl friendly improvements to property. 
  • Camp Kittamaqund will host training sessions this spring and some select camping opportunities this summer.

To read the full article, please click here

COOKIE CRUMBS
Cookie Communication for 2016 Cookie Program
This year Cookie Crumbs will be a part of Friday News on a weekly basis! All the information you need to know regarding the happenings of GSCV will now be located in Friday News!
eBudde is Ready!
Please take a moment to log into your eBudde account and verify that all the girls are showing in your Girl Tab. Remember that you will need to use the default password to access eBudde: 8872@RahRah
Payment Due Date Update
The Product Sales team has spent the past few weeks training new leaders and collecting feedback during those sessions. We have heard from numerous leaders regarding a concern with the March 2, 2016 date as a first payment date for initial order amounts. We do recognize that this is a short time frame for the entire initial order amount to be due to GSCV. Please note that we will not be penalizing any troops that do not pay their entire initial order amount by this date. Troops will still receive the full incentive as long as some payment is sent by March 2. We would request that troop leaders send what they have collected on March 2, 2016.  This will enable us to meet our important payment deadline to our vendor.  Please contact [email protected] for any assistance with payments or deadlines.
Important Update: Online Cookie Training
Ready to get started on the 2016 Online Cookie Training? A link taking you directly to the training has been sent to your email inbox from [email protected]. If you did not receive it or would like to get started now, follow the instructions below.
  1. Follow this link: http://kramdeo.coursesites.com and select the 2016 Cookie Program course.
  2. From there, select the Login button.
  3. Click on Sign-up as a student under Don't have an account on the right hand side.
  4. Create your account and then you'll be ready to login and get started!
This course is designed to provide you with all the latest updates and information, such as important dates, Digital Cookie 2.0, program updates, parent involvement and other information needed to help every girl have a successful experience with the 2016 Cookie Program. Anyone who completes the online cookie training will be entered into a drawing to win one of four $50 GSCV Shop gift cards!
Strike Up the Band and Gear Up for Cookie Season!
Girl Scout Cookies Across America (January 9, 2016 at 11am at littlebrownie.com) - the latest ready-to-go virtual cookie rally from Cookie Live - is just around the corner! With a lineup that includes selling tips, 'pitching' puppets, cookie floats, rapping cows and a whole lot more, the cookie parade is all about having fun and building skill  s.
Cookie Rally Dates
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Office/Shop Holiday Hours
The office and shop will be closing December 18 at 11:30am for a Staff Holiday Celebration. The office and shop will be closed December 23 - January 3 for the winter break and will reopen January 4. As always, you can shop online 24/7 at comgirlscouts.org/shop
GSCV Scholarships
The 2016 Girl Scouts of the Commonwealth of Virginia scholarship application is now available online. Ten graduating seniors will be recognized for their community service, academic success as well as Girl Scout involvement. To complete the online application, click here
GSCV SHOP
New Winter Shop Hours
Effective January 4, 2016 the GSCV Retail Shop will have extended hours Monday through Friday to accommodate our customers needing to shop after work. The new hours will be as follows:
 
Monday - Friday: 9am - 6pm
Saturday: 10am - 2pm
Sunday: Closed 
Semi-Annual Clearance Sale
The semi-annual clearance sale begins December 26! Shop online 24/7 at comgirlscouts.org/shop.  
January Promo
Spend $75 in-store or online during the month of January and receive $10 coupon to use in February towards your purchase of $25 or more.
Cookies, Cookies, and More Cookies! 
The GSCV Retail Shop will be in attendance at each Cookie Rally in January for all your cookie selling needs! If you are in need of badges or uniforms, please place your orders the Wednesday prior to your Cookie Rally to pick it up the day of the rally. 
PROGRAM OPPORTUNITIES
5th Annual STEM Essay Contest
To be eligible, one must be a female who resides in Virginia, be enrolled as a junior or senior in high school and hold at least a 2.5 GPA. Applications and guidelines are available online at: www.commonwealth.virginia.gov/council-on-women/. Entries must be submitted by February 8, 2016.  Essays will be judged by a panel of Council members and women who hold a degree in or work in STEM fields. Winners will be notified by March 28, 2016. The scholarship awards will be presented at a reception at the Executive Mansion on April 20, 2016.
 
Here's a quicker link (than above) to the application and details: commonwealth.virginia.gov/council-on-women/stem-essay-contest/
 
Essay Prompt:
  • Write about your vision for a future STEM (science, technology, engineering, math, or health) career and why you are considering the field for an area of study or possible career path.
  • Write an original 700 to 1,000-word essay created exclusively for the 2016 Council on Women Essay Contest.
  • Quotes and any ideas that are not your own should be attributed within the body of the essay and bibliography. Do not use footnotes or endnotes. Do not include the bibliography in your word count.
  • Your essay will be judged on topic content, creativity, spelling, punctuation and grammar. Do not include illustrations, graphics, or diagrams.
ADULT TRAINING & EVENTS
Invite A Friend Update
Congratulations to all of our staff and volunteers! This year's Invite A Friend campaign was an enormous success with 45 new volunteers recruited!! We are continuing to verify all entries and are sending out coupon codes as we get them from GSUSA. We hope to have all coupon codes sent out to existing and recruited volunteers by December 22. Thanks for all that you do!