The GSSA Weekly from Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama

October 1, 2015

 


Welcome to GSSA Weekly, the council's e-newsletter. 
 
At right, members of Troop 8189 are raring to go at Coastal Cleanup earlier this month. 

This troop partnered with Holcim and cleaned at the Theodore industrial canal and the service road on Rangeline (once the canal was clean).  They filled seven big bags of trash and corralled two piles of large junk (tires and roofing materials).
Excellent clean up, Girl Scouts!

Click here or on the image to see a bigger version. 
 
Want to see your Girl Scouts featured in GSSA Weekly?  E-mail the photo with event information to communications@girlscoutssa.org.
  
Leader License Rewards
 
Have you earned your Leader License?

If so, we have a special gift for you!  You can choose from a first aid kit, a protective case for your iPad, Kindle, or Nook, an 8-gigabyte thumb drive, or a mason jar mug filled with sweet treats.

What's a Leader License, you ask?  Click here for our Ready, Set, Go! document that spells out how to earn your Leader License.

Claim your Leader License Reward by contacting Cheryl Miller, our intrepid Volunteer Training and Communications Manager at cmiller@girlscoutssa.org or 800/239-6636, ext. 2302 
 
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Quick Links
Entrepreneur Discount -- How Does it Work?   

Proceeds from the Fall Product Sale and the Cookie Program help pay for the wonderful events and camps that our council presents for our Girl Scouts.  So it makes sense that Girl Scouts who participate in these fundraising efforts get a discount on registration fees for these programs.  We call this reduction in fees the Entrepreneur Discount.  

How it works: girls who sell either $125 in Fall Products OR 50 boxes of cookies will be entitled to a special discount for council-sponsored programs. The amount of the discount will vary, depending on the program.  This is because some programs require significantly more staff support to coordinate.   
 
New Members: new Girl Scouts will be able to register for programs at the discounted price until the end of the Cookie Sale in 2016.  If they have sold $125 in Fall Products or 50 boxes of cookies by the end of the Cookie Sale, they will then receive the discount until the end of the Cookie Sale in 2017.

Returning Members: did you earn the Entrepreneur Discount by end of Cookie Program 2015?  If so, great!  You have earned the discount through Cookie Sale 2016.  If, at that time, you have met the Fall Product or the Cookie Program goals, you will continue to receive the discount for another year (until the end of Cookie Sale 2017).

We hope your troop will enjoy the Entrepreneur Discount - it's a well-deserved recognition of the energy and time invested by our girls, as they learn important life skills in the most delicious way possible!
   
Bird & Conservation Expo in Fairhope!   

We don't often highlight "Other Opportunities," but the Bird & Conservation Expo in Fairhope this Saturday is worth it! 

The Bird & Conservation Expo, Saturday, Oct. 3,
is a free, fun family day for all ages.
The Expo is in the new amphitheater on the southeast corner of the Faulkner State College campus in downtown Fairhope.
Open 9 a.m. to 4p.m. Admission is free!!

The Expo features raptor demonstrations from Environmental Studies Center in Mobile, snake shows from 5 Rivers Delta Resource Center, and exhibits from Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, including touch tanks-plus additional exhibitors, vendors, and artists. There's an expanded children's area this year, with a birdhouse build and birdhouse giveaways, owl pellet dissection, "nest" making, suet feeder making, story telling, and more.  More information is available at their website,
http://www.alabamacoastalbirdfest.com/BirdConservationExpo.htm 
 
Children Will Listen 

I heard a story recently about a troop leader that said something to a girl in her troop so withering that she spent the rest of the day sobbing.   I heard this from the parent, who was frustrated that the adult didn't understand the power of her words over this child for whom she is an authority figure.  

Sometimes we forget that words can be powerful, and they can hurt, even though that was not the intention.   As someone who worked in higher education for a long time, I'm accustomed to older students, who frequently use humor as a form of friendship and banter, so I understand how something said in jest could be misunderstood or taken in the wrong way.   But not everyone understands that, particularly our youngest children, and we always need to be careful to recognize it when offense is taken.
 
We want girls to have a fun time.   We know the program teaches girls skills.   Our task is to build confidence, assist them with character development, and develop courage.  When I heard this story, I thought of one of my favorite Barbra Streisand songs, written by Stephen Sondheim. The lyrics resonate in this case, as well as many others.
 
Children Will Listen
 
How do you say to your child in the night
Nothing is all black but then nothing is all white?
How do you say it will be all right
When you know it mightn't be true?
What do you do?
 
Careful the things you say
Children will listen
Careful the things you do
Children will see
And Learn
 
Read more on our blog, the Virtual Volunteer.   
 
New Programs & Updates

The Council Shops (including the online shop) will be closed for inventory on October 1 and 2.  There will be a slight delay in order shipping and pickup due to the closure.

 FULL: Chem Scouts (B J) 10/17 - waiting list only

FULL: Wing It! (C S A) 11/7 - waiting list only

SAVE THE DATE: Gold Award 100th Anniversary Celebration in Mobile 5/14

SAVE THE DATE: Gold Award 100th Anniversary Celebration in Montgomery 5/21

Upcoming Deadlines 

Event
Location
Date
Deadline
webinar
10/1



10/1
FULL: ChemScouts (B J)
Mobile
10/17
10/1
Kamp Kiwanis 
10/9-11
10/2
Kamp Kiwanis 
10/10
10/2
Montgomery
10/17
10/2
Dauphin Island 
10/23-25
10/2
webinar
10/3
 
webinar
10/6
 
Mobile
10/24
10/6
CPR/FA/AED Certification 
(Volunteers) 
Montgomery
10/8
 online coursework
Elba
10/24
10/9
Archery Day (C S A)
Camp Scoutshire Woods
10/31
10/16
 
Other Opportunities
 
Because we want our girls to have many learning (and fun!) opportunities, we offer this additional calendar for programs that are not presented by our council. Some of these programs are presented by our volunteer Troops and Service Units, others are put on by groups in the communities we serve. Calendar listings do not imply endorsement by the council.  This calendar is available on our Events & Programs page 
Please contact the volunteer listed in the program for more information and program status.