Welcome from our Board Chair

After a wonderful year of growth and accomplishment for our council, I’ve never been more excited for us to assemble for Annual Meeting! The whole weekend is special: we come together as members to weave together our love for Girl Scouting with important official business for our future. Together we celebrate our accomplishments, dream for the future, and rededicate ourselves to our Mission.

Our two-day gathering is filled with fun opportunities to be together. On Friday night at Camp Shantituck, you can reconnect over shared food and laughter as you relive memories from this past year with your Girl Scout friends. You’ll also have chances to convey your ideas to strengthen our council and deliver our Mission for Girl Scouts to our Board Chair and CEO. You can also browse our mobile council shop, silent auction, and a yard sale from our archives committee. Older girls can look forward to a special optional activity we have in store. Friday evening, we’ll also have experts on hand to lead a discussion of how we as Girl Scouts shape our dedication to supporting diversity, equity, inclusion, and racial justice (DEIRJ) in ways that foster a true sense of belonging—and opportunity for access—for all Girl Scouts, no matter where your comfort level along your own journey toward diversity and inclusion. All of us will grow and contribute in meaningful ways. Each of us will learn something. This discussion is part of our commitment in the Girl Scout Law to be a sister to every Girl Scout.

This year’s Annual Meeting weekend is somewhat unique because it leads up to our movement’s 56th National Council Session (NCS) and Convention held in July. Every three years, the NCS, consisting of hundreds of elected Girl Scout delegates (including our own delegation), meets to conduct a large-scale business meeting and vote on decisions that impact the future of our movement. You may remember we approved our council’s NCS delegates by vote during last year’s Annual Meeting (view them on page 13 of this workbook). To this end, our Council Area Chairs and Vice Chairs felt that our priority this weekend for our open forum discussion topic should be to vocalize our hopes and preferences regarding two of the many proposals that will be considered and voted upon at the NCS, so that our NCS delegates will hear your feedback before they cast votes and represent GSK on the national stage. The two official proposals we’ll discuss are found on pages

14 through 21 of this workbook. Separate from these two detailed proposals, we’ll also begin an ongoing conversation about a third discussion topic that was proposed for the NCS regarding ways we might leverage council resources to achieve maximum results for our council. Refer to page 22 of this workbook to read more and join a task force on this topic. We have a full agenda for Saturday’s meeting! For Saturday’s annual business meeting, here are a few details:

Registration begins at 7:30 am and will end at 8:45 am EDT. The meeting itself will start at 9:00 am EDT. Voting delegates MUST check-in by no later than 8:45 am to receive voting credentials for the meeting. (In some cases, your Area Chair may have set an earlier deadline for your area’s delegation.) I hope this year’s annual meeting renews your Girl Scout spirit and passion for this amazing organization. Of course a successful annual meeting requires a lot of hard work behind the scenes, so be sure to thank the team of volunteers and staff who planned this enjoyable weekend. Consider joining the committee next year. I know that you are coming because YOU want to make our piece of the Girl Scout world better. See you there!

Sharon Handy Board Chair of Girl Scouts of Kentuckiana