JUNE, 2016
GirlFriends is a publication of Girl Scouts of Nassau County
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It’s Official! temporary GSNC has found a new home! In the August issue of Girlfriends we announced that the Board of Directors approved the renovation of our Council Office. As part of the renovation process we have been looking for temporary space to relocate the Shop, Volunteer Resource Center, Cookie Cupboard and staff. Well, we found it!
Membership Challenge
We are pleased to announce that we will be moving to:
A special thank you to the
325 Duffy Avenue Hicksville, NY 11801
the “2016 Membership Challenge.”
Although our new home is smaller and will not have all the creature comforts you have come to enjoy at our current location, we will be there to offer service to all our members and volunteers. We are planning to start our move on July 1, 2016 and should be in place by July 5th! We do ask for your patience with us as we unpack our boxes and set up our office in the first week or so. Throughout the renovation process we will be keeping you up to date on the progress, especially on social media. Although we don’t know exactly how long we will be at this new location it is our hope to be back in our newly renovated and modern Council Office within the next nine months. So check our website and social media sites, GirlFriends and e-newsletters for the latest news on our progress to a new home for all the Girl Scouts of Nassau County. Questions about the move or renovations can be emailed to building@gsnc.org. Brownie Troop 2570 from East Rockaway orchestrated a food drive in the month of March for a local organization called “C the Difference: Corey Cares” which will distribute the food to a local food pantry.
A Big Thank You to Those Who Accepted the
leadership teams who accepted
The success of this year’s campaigns opened the doors for 256 new girls into 177 Troops between December 1 and March 31. Not only will 2,191 girls be wearing a new patch on their uniforms, more importantly, these new girls will now be given the opportunity to develop their leadership skills to be successful in their lives and to make a difference in their communities. We have surpassed last year by having 53 more participating Troops, 69 more girls taken off the waiting list, and 603 more girls wearing a new patch. Thank you all for participating and making this a banner year.
On Sunday, April 17th, the sun was out, the sky was blue, and almost 700 girls ARE YOU A NEW TROOP LEADER?
and their families enjoyed our 7th Annual Girls Go the Distance Walkathon & Activity Fair, with this year’s special Scavenger Hunt - which proved to be a fun-filled celebration of all things Girl Scout! Special thanks to all our sponsors and volunteers for their support and assistance in making the day so special!
Did you just move up from a Troop Committee
Corporate Sponsors:
position to become a Leader or a Co-Leader?
Arrow Transfer & Storage Astoria Bank Bethpage Federal Credit Union Connoisseur Media, LLC News12 Long Island PSEG Long Island
If this sounds like you, then don’t forget to complete your paperwork process! All Troop Leaders MUST fill out an Adult Volunteer Application, a Background Check authorization form, and take the Welcome to Girl Scouts and Girl Scouting 101 trainings. You can’t be appointed as a Leader until you complete these steps. Don’t delay! Girls are waiting on YOU!
Inside the VRC (Volunteer Resource Center)
New! Brownie Journey in a Weekend Kit Are you a Brownie Troop Leader thinking about doing a Journey with your Troop? Save time by reserving the Wonders of Water Journey in a Weekend Kit now available for loan from the Volunteer Resource Center. The kit includes an easy to follow guide so there’s no need to plan! Throughout the Journey, girls will learn to love, save and educate others about water. They will participate in fun activities like conducting experiments and take part in a relay race. If you are interested in reserving the kit, email cicconec@gsnc.org or call 516.741.2550. ext.244.
Community Sponsors: Adelphi University Apple & Eve Juice Cook Maran & Associates DeMatteis Family Foundation Femcho* Hofstra University In-Tents Party Rentals Little Brownie Bakers Long Island Academy of Fine Art Long Island Ducks Morgan Stanley Mutual of America New York Mets NYCB Theatre at Westbury Olive Garden Italian Kitchen Rosicki, Rosicki & Associates, PC Stop & Shop Whole Foods Market of Jericho Yorkshire Food Sales Corp.
It was a wonderful year for the Cookie Program in Nassau County. We ended the sale up almost 4% over last year, and Operation Cookie donations topped 70,000 boxes! Our Cookie “Professionals” found it was fun to sell on weekends that weren’t sub-freezing… and the Academy Awards publicity provided by Chris Rock helped give us all a marketing push. Thirty five girls sold over 1000 boxes of Cookies, with five of those girls selling over 2000 boxes and one selling over 5000 boxes! Association
Troop #
Girl
# of Boxes
Massapequa
2185
Isabella I.
5000+
Roosevelt
1643
Zaria H.
2000+
Hardscrabble
3166
Maya T.
2000+
ELLM
2563
Jaida M.
2000+
Hicksville
3242
Grace R.
2000+
Five Towns
724
Shannon E.
2000+
Isabella I. from Massapequa
Board Member Carol Ransom, with Donna Ceravolo and Grace R.
Congratulations to all of our participants who reached their goals.
3
Troops amazed us all by selling over
Manager for Troop 2495, said “I want to let you
7000 boxes: Valley Stream Troop 2495,
know that our Girl Scouts have grown so much
Hardscrabble Troop 3178 and Massapequa
this Cookie season. They took into account
Troop 2185. What did these Troops have in
previous years’ experience and really took
common? They had strong initial orders and
charge of their Cookie business this year. I
each Troop followed up with more than 20
can truly see those 5 skills taking strong shape
booth sales! In a note to the Entrepreneurial
this season! Thanks again to Girl Scouts for
Programs staff, Sharon Ramnauth, Cookie
providing such a character building program. “
THANK YOU to our Association Volunteers! Running a multi-million dollar program over just 3 months can’t happen without the motivation, dedication and follow through of all of our Troop Cookie Managers. And their job would be even tougher if they didn’t have the support and encouragement of our Association Cookie Chairs, Cupboard Managers, Drop Site Coordinators and Booth Sale Organizers. GSNC would like to give a special thanks to our Association Volunteers: ASSOCIATION COOKIE VOLUNTEERS Baldwin ................................... Tricia Keskinen Bay ............................................. Michele Myers Bellmore ....................................... Lynn Spahn ................................................ Pam Brochhagen Central Park ....................... Jessica Gleicher ...................................................... Tracy Gorman East Meadow ...............Nancy Rosenbaum ELLM ......................................... Rhona Barbieri Elmont ..................................... Jennifer Marsh Five Towns ......................Tammy Maddaloni Floral Park ................................. Lydia Becker ..................................................... Mary Goldberg Freeport ...........................Colleen Haithman ....................................................... Eric Robinson Garden City ...........................Kerry Couture
Great Neck ...........................Meewon Chong Hardscrabble .......................... Carolyn Bove Herricks ......................Khin Mee Wong Chan Hicksville ............................. Deborah Herder Island Beach ........................... Lisa Schwartz Jericho/Syosset...................Fran O’Connor Manhasset ..................................Maria Iovine Massapequa .......................Suzanne Murray Merrick ..................................... Lori D’Antonio Oceanside...................... Jayne Zimmerman .................................................. Christie Venezio ........................................................ T Maria Vitale Park ............................................Christine Rago Plainedge ...................................Marie Ferrara Port Washington ....................... Lisa Ramos
Rockville Centre .......................Eileen Ward Roosevelt .....................................June Holder ................................................... Meshell Mencer Seaford/Wantagh .............. Kathleen Festa ........................................................ Kerri Stallone Shore .......................................Emilee Samtani The Plains................................ Tara Mc Devitt ................................................... Cheryl Denecke Uniondale ........................... Sonja Aanensen Valley Stream............................Jo Ann Scala .................................................. Lorraine Pergola W Hempstead ..........................Terry Bodnar WARM.......................... Lauri Testani Palmieri ........................................................Allyson Moyal
CONGRATULATIONS to all of our Robotic Teams! As always, with much gratitude we thank the coaches and mentors for their dedication and for the example they set for the girls. Because of them the girls had another wonderful season! Here are the results: Junior FIRST LEGO League (Jr. FLL) 6-9 years old: The WECYCLERS attended the SBPLI’s Jr. FLL EXPO where the girls showcased their LEGO robot design and their research. There they won the JOURNEY Award! FIRST LEGO League (FLL) 9-14 years old: We had NINE teams this season! They were: Awesome Velmenni Girls, Cliffsiders, Digital Darlings, LEGO Lovelies, LEGO Chicks, Smart Cookies, Soaring Rockettes, Supernovas and Robo Scouts. All of these teams competed in the School Business Partnership of Long Island’s (SBPLI. Inc.) FLL Qualifying Tournaments, here the girls showcased their LEGO robot design, their research and invention. The LEGO Chicks won the coveted CHAMPION’S AWARD and moved on to the Championship Competition where they gave it their all and won the PROGRAMMING Award! FIRST TECH Challenge (FTC) 9-12 grades: The LEGOtronettes hosted their Second Annual FLL Scrimmage Event at The Cradle of Aviation, during which they did another amazing job mentoring the girls to prepare them for competition. The LEGOtronettes themselves had a fun final season attending several competitions. During the season they won 1st Place INSPIRATION Award, WINNING ALLIANCE Award and the MOTIVATE AWARD! ALL of our teams worked hard and persevered! We congratulate them and thank them for representing Girl Scouts of Nassau County with courage, confidence and character. We are very PROUD of them all!
For additional information, please contact: Patricia A. Donohue-Brown STEM Program Specialist Brownp@gsnc.org
THANK YOU and Best Wishes! We are sad to report, but happy for the girls, that this was the last robotics season for the LEGOtronettes as the majority of the team members are graduating high school and going off to college! Congratulations to Alexa I., Lauren C., Natalie B., Lauren C., Katharine C., Katie L. and Lucy P., we wish you all the best and much success as you pursue your college degree!! We will miss you all!! Also Good Luck to Lily G. and Jillian I-R. as you continue on with robotics. THANK YOU to Michelle Iannuzzo, Paul Iannuzzo & Jim Colwell for the 7 years you coached the girls!! You went above and beyond as coaches, because of you the LEGOtronettes were always available to help other teams and to showcase their robot for GSNC at CAV meetings and GSNC events such as the Cookie Celebrations. Your dedication to Girl Scouting has been and will always be greatly appreciated. THANK YOU to Barbara Bloniarz and Constance Conroy for helping the girls organize and run the LEGOtronettes 1st & 2nd Annual FLL Scrimmage Event at The Cradle of Aviation. Michele, Paul, Jim, Connie & Barbara through your dedication you provided the girls valuable lessons and showed them through your actions how to help others and how to be leaders with Courage, Confidence and Character!
Girl Scouts of Nassau County, Inc. Board of Directors 2016 - 2017 Officers Wanda Jackson President and Chief Volunteer Officer Anthony J. Edelman Exec. Vice President Christopher J. Pendergast Vice President Deborah Schiff Vice President Brian Rothschild Vice President Erica Rice Treasurer Lisa Burke Secretary Donna Ceravolo Executive Director/CEO Members-at-Large Joanne Antun Christine Bonczyk Lizabeth Bustamante Austin Cannon, Jr. Elizabeth Choi Andrea Elder-Howell, Esq. Mark Florio Lisa Gardner, Esq. Margaret Iamunno Debra Ieraci Christina Mendoza Carol Ransom Brandon V. Ray Kelly Ann Poole Reed Eric Rogers Barbara Murphy Schwaner, LCSW, BCD Reema Sultan, Esq. Valerie Terzano Dermond Thomas Chloe VanDorn Irene Villacci, Esq. Allison Bishop White Deborah L. Wortham, Ed.D
Awards Corner Attention: High School Juniors- Thinking About Going for Gold?
THE GOLDEN FLIGHT TO LEADERSHIP
COURAGE, CONFIDENCE & CHARACTER the Golden Evolution Saturday, November 12, 2016 is an important date for Girl Scouts of all ages. Please mark your calendars! In honor of the 100th Anniversary of the Gold Award, GSNC is hosting a Leadership Conference in partnership with LIU Post, titled, “The Golden Flight to Leadership.” The day will be filled with ways to empower yourself to be the leader you know is inside of you. Does being a leader mean being the captain of a team, president of your class, club or PTA? Or can it be that you are the leader of your life, inspiring others to get things accomplished around you? What parent doesn’t do that everyday? Girls and adults who attend this conference will boost their leadership skills in ways that will provide lifetime benefits. Girls and adults will have the opportunity to sign up for workshops that will empower them to be the best they can be, developing courage, confidence, and character as the foundation of a life well lead!
Sample of the Adult Workshops: z Finding Balance – Work life balance – how to achieve it z Back to Business – This workshop helps women to re-enter the workforce
after off ramping or can help to sharpen current skills
Samples of Girl Workshops: z Life After High School - what are your choices? z Applying for college isn’t a scary thing
Celebrate with us after the conference is over; there will be a mocktail/cocktail reception with a special guest. More details to come as we get closer to the start of the new Girl Scout year!
If you will be a high school senior in the fall of 2016, your deadline to submit a Gold Award Proposal to Council is October 1, 2016. By submitting your proposal earlier, you benefit by being interviewed and getting your project approved sooner. This will give you maximum time to complete your Gold Award Take Action Project.
THANK YOU! In light of this very special year, the 100th Anniversary of the Gold Award, GSNC would like to thank all of our Gold Award Mentors for their continuing commitment to the Gold Award committee. The following women offer their time to help Girl Scouts achieve the highest award in Girl Scouting, the Gold Award. Behind every empowered Gold Awardee, there is a Gold Award mentor! GSNC is proud to acknowledge these wonderful volunteers. Charlotte Armstrong-Naugaus Stephanie Bartoldus Basia Damsker Patti Etienne Alexis Greaves Dienamarie Giaquinto Janet Gordon Sharon Haley Kathleen Holleran
Suzie Jockel Lisa D’Anna-Johnson Sandy Messina Joanne Meyer-Jendras Kathleen Murphy Bonnie Parente Monica Pavlidis Terry Soto Colleen Stark Susan Young
This is an impressive list of volunteers, but we need more mentors to help carry the volume of girls. Let GSNC know if you are interested in joining the Gold Award committee. It is a very rewarding experience guiding Girl Scouts on their journey to the highest award a girl can earn. Please contact Patte Conway at conwayp@gsnc.org with questions and interest.
Tribute FUND In Memory of:
110 Ring Road West Garden City, NY 11530 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to GirlFriends, 110 Ring Road West, Garden City, NY 11530 GirlFriends (USPS 135-280), is published quarterly with a special issue in August. Girl Scouts of Nassau County, Inc. 110 Ring Road West, Garden City, NY 11530 Periodicals Postage Paid at Garden City, NY 11530.
to remember
Wanda Jackson President & Chief Volunteer Officer Donna Ceravolo Executive Director/CEO Deborah Goldsmith Chief Operating Officer
June 27 Gold Award Ceremony Merchant Marine Academy, Kings Point
Donna Rivera-Downey Chief Marketing and Communications Officer
July 1-4 Office Closed
Anna Lenz Judith Etienne Graphic Design and Production Coordinators
July 5 325 Duffy Avenue Hicksville Location Opens!
Designed by Anna Lenz Girl Scouts of Nassau County, Inc., an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Agency, is a member of Long Island’s United Way, Village of Freeport CDA, United Community Fund of Great Neck, and The Community Chest of Port Washington.
Melissa McHenry (2015 Gold Award recipient, former member of Troop 2188, ELLM Association and Lifetime Member of Girl Scouts) GSNC Staff & BOD Larry Botcowsky ELLM Association
September 25 Bowling Bash Kick-Off
George Rafferty (husband of Janet Rafferty, former GSNC staff member) GSNC Staff & BOD; the Lunch Buddies; Fran & Bill Monahan; Doris Reilly
October 1 Mags&Munchies…&Memories (Fall Products Program) begins
Angelo Caruso (son-in-law of Martha Naples, former GSNC staff member) GSNC Staff
June, 2016
• Issue 3
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Laura Balk (mother of Fran McAllister, GSNC Staff) GSNC Staff & BOD
Girl Speak Goes to Albany Have you ever wondered how to influence lawmakers’ decisions about issues you are passionate about? Girl Speak did exactly that. Girl Speak is our advocacy group for 6th-12th graders. We’ve been working this year to raise awareness about Animal Welfare, Treatment of Children in Adoption and Foster Care, and Saving Monarch Butterflies. This past May, we went to Albany to meet with Senators and Assemblymen/women, professional female advocates, and a reporter.
Girl S ak pe gs
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Here is some of what our girls had to say: • You can have an impact, no matter who you are or what you do. • As someone who is a non-voter, it is hard to have a voice in the government and what goes on in the world. My favorite part of the trip was talking about the issues I care about in the world. It’s my world too, not just the adults. • I learned to use my voice and not to be nervous about speaking in front of everyone.
Special thanks to Melissa Connolly, our volunteer trip leader. She helped girls find their voices and share them with people who can help them make a difference. Girl Speak helps girls build confidence and friendships while finding their voice. Interested in participating in this amazing experience next year? Girl Speak officially begins in the fall, but summer opportunities may be available. Contact Eliza Zipper at zippere@gsnc.org or sign up on our website www.gsnc.org this fall.
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