Leading the Way

Early Bird Registration for the 2020-21 Membership Year May 1 – June 30

We welcome Troops and Service Units to renew their memberships in the spring. They receive special perks for doing so! Here’s the breakdown this year:

Troops

(who renew two adults and five girls, or more)

• Eligible for the Early Cookie Booth Selection Round • Entered into a drawing for the chance to win 1 of 5, $500 program credits • Spring Registration Patch

Service Units

(who renew 60% or more)

• Receive 50% off 2021 encampment fees for building reservations

Visit girlscoutsaz.org/renew for more details. If finances are a barrier for you or a member of your troop, please request financial assistance at girlscoutsaz.org/financial-assistance.

EXCELLENT AT-HOME ASSIGNMENT: Design the 2020-21 Early Renewal Patch

Create a unique patch design and submit it to us online - the winning design will be used as the patch everyone earns for renewing early. The designer will also receive a $25 gift card to the Council Shop. Open to all girls who register for the 2020-21 membership year during Early Bird Registration. Visit girlscoutsaz.org/renew for details.

Virtual Girl Scouts

We invite you to take part in virtual Girl Scouting while staying at home. Explore outside from inside, experiment with coding, create beautiful art, and much more, all while earning badges! Visit girlscoutsaz.org/virtual-gs to get started!

Troop 485 saved their cookie earnings for two years to visit two of their dream places last summer, Greece and Italy!

Explore the World!

Girl Scouts Destinations are the ultimate adventure for individual girls ages 11 and older (for troop opportunities, check out Getaways or International Events). With different destinations and itineraries, there’s something amazing for everyone. Pack your bags and experience a life-changing experience! Here are some upcoming trips you could plan for:

JUNE 8-11, 2021

Savannah, GA Birthplace of Girl Scouts

JUNE 14-21, 2021 Explore Iceland: North and South

JUNE 27-JULY 6, 2021

Explore Japan & Studio Ghibli Museum

JULY 9-18, 2022 Scotland & Ireland

Keep Your Troop Connected: Ways to Host Virtual Troop Activities

With new precautions being put into place locally, statewide, nationally, and by our Council, we hope that troops can stay connected and participate in Girl Scouts virtually! We encourage Troop Leaders to lead parents and girls into a variety of online troop activities and encourage parents to explore programming girls can do at home.

Hosting Virtual Troop Meetings The best way to keep Girl Scouts in touch over the summer and through times where it is safer to stay home is by hosting virtual meetups. When planning a virtual meeting, remember to test your equipment, set meeting expectations, have an agenda, agree on a schedule/time, and find ways to make them engaging. We encourage you to host meetings your troop would typically have in-person, online!

Try some of these meeting topic ideas and resources in addition to our new Virtual Girl Scouts resources!

Use free digital tools to host virtual meetings, hangouts, or discussions - group text messages, Google Hangouts, Facebook Messaging (which offers text), video Zoom webinars, and WhatsApp. • Zoom Meetings – video meetings for 40 min with a free account • Google Hangouts – video and chat with a Google account

• Facebook Groups – create a private group where you can communicate and collaborate in one place • Skype – free online call, video, and chat with a Skype account

Troop Meeting Topics • Post-Cookie Season Celebration: host a recognition ceremony to acknowledge achievements and season highlights • Take-Action Projects: discuss, research, and plan projects you want to tackle in the future • High Awards: learn about the different

High Awards and outline the steps needed to achieve it for your level • Show and Tell: Assign an activity or badge work that everyone completes on their own and then shares their part at the meeting

Virtual Girl Scouting GSACPC’s source for virtual programming. Get started on badge work by visiting girlscoutsaz.org/virtual-gs.

• Tip: Program books and supplies are available through the Council Shop, which is taking phone and email orders with free shipping!

• Get Outdoors Challenge: Review the Challenge details and get activity ideas at girlscoutsaz.org/getout.

• Stay at Home Challenge: Get the details at girlscoutsaz.org/virtual-gs

• Guide to Giving Back: Get the details at girlscoutsaz.org/give-back

Additional Activities • GSACPC on social media: Follow us @GSACPC on Facebook or Instagram for daily activities! We’re featuring things that you can do at home. We also invite you to explore GSACPC's Pinterest for a wide variety of ideas and resources like outdoor skills activities and recipes.

• Health/Fitness: A great addition to a daily routine is being active! With tons of free videos online, girls can participate, independently or through a virtual meetup, in fitness activities like stretching, yoga, Zumba or dance – and perhaps earn a patch or badge along the way! • Book Club: Start a new book and host check-in meetings to discuss learnings. Digital books can be found on public library websites.

Have an idea you’d like to share?

Share how you’re keeping active by submitting a story to stories@girlscoutsaz.org!

Leader Share: Here’s How Our Troop is Girl Scouting Virtually

From Troop 655 in Payson

troop Leader: Jessica Kjellstrom co-leaders: Denise Blanchette, Alexis Kjellstrom

We got our girls busy on virtual patch-earning in mid-March – we completed Random Acts of Kindness and Keep Calm, I am a Girl Scout patches. Here is what we did if you would like to do it with your troop:

Random Acts of Kindness

The girls learned what it meant to live the Girl Scout Promise and Law over eight days to earn the first patch. Every day they were asked to do something to exemplify a section of either the Promise, the Law or a combination. Each night they and their parents posted a picture, video or confirmation of what the girls did through our private online group. We were proud of their responses and feel this experience has helped them to understand GS values, not just memorize and repeat them.

activity sheet/instructions example

Complete a listed action each day based on the Girl Scout Promise or Law. Have a parent post it in the online group each day, using a photo, video or drawing. It has to be done the same day it was posted. Suggest keeping this requirement so all patches can be earned with honor.

We will start on Questions? Contact Leader and continue for 8 days. or Leader

Day 1. Girl Scout Promise: What did you do to serve your God or Country?

Day 2. Girl Scout Law: What did you do to be honest, fair, considerate and caring?

Day 3. Girl Scout Law: How were you responsible for what you did or said, to show respect for yourself and others?

Day 4. Girl Scout Law: In what ways were you courageous and strong?

Day 5. Girl Scout Promise and Law: How were you friendly and helpful to at least one other person? Now, come up with an idea that would make a person smile. A card? A poster? A video? A song? Your funniest face?

Day 6. Girl Scout Law: What did you do to respect authority?

Day 7. Girl Scout Law: How did you use resources wisely?

Day 8. Girl Scout Law: In four sentences, what does it mean to be a sister to every Girl Scout?

Troop 655 on Main Street trash pick-up day. Leader Jessica pictured in front right, and co-leaders Alexis and Denise in back row on the right, respectively.

Keep Calm, I am a Girl Scout

The second patch we worked on was Keep Calm, I am a Girl Scout. This one was designed for family participation and ran for ten days. Since school started again, via the internet, we gave the girls two days for each project. Origami was our theme, starting out simple with a cat and dog face, we progressed to more difficult designs each day, ending with a pony that flips.

Since not everyone had origami paper at home, and we did not want anyone going out for supplies, the girls were given several ideas of what they could cut into 6- or 7-inch squares. Magazine pages, Sunday comics, wrapping paper, copy paper that they colored, drew on, marbled, textured with water color and salt, or anything they could come up with.

We miss our girls but have had a great time coming up with ways to stay in touch through troop-specific activities, as well as the Get Out Challenge and Stay @

Home Challenge on girlscoutsaz.org/virtual-gs.

Arizona’s Inspirational Women Patch Program Returns – Honoring Four Additional Women

Arizona’s Inspirational Women is an interactive patch program for girls to learn about women who have demonstrated a lifetime of courage, confidence, and character and made Arizona and our world a better place.

The program aims to connect girls to generational stories of Arizona women who have demonstrated the Girl Scout Promise and Law in their life. It was created in partnership with United States Secretary of the Airforce Barbara Barrett and philanthropist Kathrin Parsons to annually highlight women who helped shape our community and country.

We introduced the program last year and committed to recognizing four admirable women annually. This year through this patch program, we recognize the following inspirational women: • Jean Fairfax – American educator, civil rights worker, community organizer, and philanthropist whose efforts have focused on achieving equity in education, especially for underserved African Americans.

• Isabella Greenway – Democratic National Committeewoman and state campaign chairman for Franklin D. Roosevelt, who later became Arizona’s first congresswomen in 1933.

• Susie Shizue Sato – Arizona native and renowned scholar of Japanese American history who was a longtime proponent of Mesa and Arizona history. She was also deeply involved with GSACPC, the Mahnah Club, John Rhodes Rehabilitation Institute, and earned Mesa’s first Pride in Mesa award in 1998.

• Dorothy “Dot” Elsie Wilkinson – Renowned catcher for the Phoenix Ramblers who won three national championships and played in the first Women’s Softball World Championship Game. Inducted into the National Softball Hall of Fame and Museum, Arizona Hall of Fame and International Bowling Hall of Fame.

Learn more about the women being recognized and earn the patch at home! girlscoutsaz.org/councils-own

April = Volunteer Appreciation Month

Volunteers – You bring the power of Girl Scouting to girls, thank YOU! National Volunteer Month is one of the most important months we celebrate. It’s no small feat to open the eyes, hearts, and minds of girls to a world of possibilities. You help them transform their fears into courage, doubts into confidence, and experiences into character. You’re the heroes behind service projects, voices behind successful cookie seasons, and the heart of what we do. With your mentorship and support, girls grow into the leaders and change-makers the world needs. We celebrate and thank you for being a Girl Scout Volunteer and so much more to our girls and community.

You still have time to formally recognize those special volunteers that go above and beyond. Fill out an Adult Awards & Recognition form at girlscoutsaz.org/adult-awards to recognize volunteers at the Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon in November.

We Our Volunteers!

Every April, we celebrate the powerful, lifechanging contributions our volunteers make to Girl Scouts all year long. Girl Scout Volunteers go above and beyond to provide girls with enriching experiences, opportunities, and love.

Additionally, every year on April 22—Girl Scout Leader’s Day—we give extra kudos to our Leaders. Troop leaders: we love you, and we’re forever grateful to you for being the role models girls look up to, especially in challenging times like these.

Thank you for all you do.

To honor all our volunteers, GSACPC Staff created a Kudoboard of images and messages to let our volunteers know for what and how much we are thankful. View all the messages and kudos online at bit.ly/GSKudoboard.