Halloween is a time for ghosts, goblins and…Girl Scouts?

On October 31 in 1860, Girl Scout founder, Juliette Gordon Low, was born in Savannah, Georgia. "Daisy," as she was affectionately called by family and friends, formed the first Girl Scout troop in 1912. Every year, Girl Scout councils around the nation celebrate October 31 as Founder’s Day. Troops from every state hold celebrations to honor Juliette and her passion for Girl Scouting.

Pocatello troop 564 celebrated this year with cupcakes and a history of Juliette Gordon Low. Troop Leader Autumn M. dressed up as Juliette complete with authentic 1900’s attire and 100 year old shoes. Service Unit 55 in Meridian held a 1912 style birthday celebration complete with period costumes.

Some troops used Founder’s Day to honor one of the core tenants of Girl Scouting: community service. Twin Falls troop 47 and Service Unit 19 collected more than 100 pairs of new and gently used pajamas to donate to the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program and Valley Health. Seventy Girl Scouts brought their donations to a pajama party where they made ghost lollipops, crafts and played a variety of games.

How did your troop/Service Unit celebrate?

Did You Know?

• On Juliette’s wedding day in 1886, a piece of rice thrown in celebration became lodged in her ear. When the doctor tried to remove it, he permanently damaged her left ear drum.
• Money was needed to keep Girl Scouts afloat so Juliette sold the pearl necklace her husband had given her as a wedding present.
• Juliette was 52 years old when she created Girl Scouts.
• In childhood, Juliette was known for taking in stray dogs and cats which earned her the nickname, “Crazy Daisy”.
• In 1979, Juliette was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.

Girl Scouts give back to their community and complete the Daisy Flower Garden Journey!

Daisy Troop 602 have been busy bees in the garden completing their Welcome to the Daisy Flower Garden Journey! 

Over the course of the Journey, the troop from Three Creek, Idaho not only learned how to care for a garden, but also learned leadership, teamwork, responsibility, and the importance of community service. 

The first part of their journey involved planting lettuce, parsley, and peas in their mini-garden. Daisies quickly learned that if they didn't water their plants, they wouldn't sprout. This taught girls to be responsible for what they do, which in turn helped them earn the Watering Can Award. 

To earn the Golden Honey Bee Award, the girls had to take action through a gardening effort to make the world a better place.  One of the Brownies suggested planting apple trees at Three Creek School as a community service project. A portion of the troop’s cookie money supported the project and the girls planted 2 gala apple trees. "I learned how to plant and water apple trees," said Daisy Katie. "And I learned how deep the hole needs to be."

The girls also worked with teacher Dena Pollock to implement a community garden at Three Creek school. They learned about permaculture and worm composting with Rusty Bowman of Earthen Exposure as well as grew ladybugs for the Three Creek School community garden.

They also took a field trip to Tubbs Berry Farm in Twin Falls to learn about apiaries where the Daisies discovered the importance of honey bees, which is crucial in a Daisy Flower Garden.

To complete the journey and earn the Amazing Daisy Award, the Daisies planned their garden party at the end of our Court of Awards. They requested veggies, honey butter sandwiches (cut with a Daisy cookie cutter), apples, and V8 Splash Berry Blend juice. The troop leaders also decided to host an ice cream party with the girls making ice cream in a bag.

The Color Run Returns to Boise on August 24, 2013

 

 

 

 

The 2012 Color Run in Boise was a blast for runners and volunteers from the Girl Scouts of Silver Sage. We were chosen as the charity partner again for the 2013 event on August 24th. All Girl Scout members, families and friends get a $5 discount off the registration price and the Silver Sage Council gets a portion of the funds raised from the event. How cool is that? No wonder The Color Run is the Happiest 5K on the Planet! Visit our web page at www.girlscouts-ssc.org for information.

With no winners or official times, The Color Run celebrates healthiness, happiness, and individuality. It brings the Boise community together to create a 5K canvas of colorful FUN in which thousands of participants are doused from head to toe in different colors at each kilometer. Visit their website at www.thecolorun.com and be sure to like them on Facebook and follow them on You Tube too. Then, sign up as an individual or team runner or event volunteer. You'll be glad you did!

Girl Scouts of Silver Sage Donates Cookies to Area Nonprofits

Girl Scouts of Silver Sage Donates Cookies to Area Nonprofits

Girl Scouts of Silver Sage cookie manager Clint Kofoed and
Idaho Foodbank driver Terry Kindall load 250 cases of donated cookies.

The Girl Scout Cookie season wrapped up in May and now the Silver Sage Council is busy delivering remaining cookies to area churches, schools, and nonprofit organizations such as the Boys & Girls Club of Ada County and of Nampa, Ronald McDonald House, Interfaith Sanctuary, Life’s Kitchen, and The Arc. Altogether, 1,023 cases (12,276 boxes) will be donated to 20 organizations by the end of this week.

The Idaho Foodbank and American Red Cross will receive 250 cases and 200 cases respectively. The Girl Scouts of Silver Sage also partnered with the American Red Cross during the spring cookie season to offer “Cookies from the Heart.” Through the program, Girl Scout cookie buyers can donate cookies they purchase to the American Red Cross of Boise and Treasure Valley. These donations benefit disaster victims, military members and their families, blood donors, and domestic disaster relief efforts. 

Each year, the Silver Sage Council orders about 700,000 boxes of cookies from Little Brownie Bakers. Girls and troops take orders from friends and family in February, then fulfill those orders in March. In April, troops blanket the community to sell cookies to the general public. They set up education and sales booths outside high traffic stores, such as Albertsons, Walgreens, Paul’s Market, Walmart and Fred Meyer.

The annual Girl Scout Cookie season usually lasts only three months, but was extended through May this year due to poor weather in April. Most years end with some excess inventory, and these delicious boxes of Thin Mints, Samoas, Tagalongs, Do-Si-Dos, Trefoils and Savannah Smiles are donated to local organizations that help families and communities in need.

The Girl Scout Cookie Program is designed to help girls grow into leaders of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place.  The five skills the girls learn through cookies sales – goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills, business ethics - are a key ingredient in the Girl Scout Leadership Experience.

Girl Scouts of Silver Sage serves more than 5,000 girl members, 2,300 adult volunteers, and 400 troops in southern Idaho and parts of eastern Oregon and northern Nevada. The Girl Scout Leadership Experience includes several pathways for participation, including summer camps, series programs, travel opportunities, and troop activities for girl members and adult volunteers. To learn more, visit www.girlscouts-ssc.org.

Girl Scouts Honored with Two AEP Awards

Girl Scouts Honored with Two AEP Awards

Maureen O’Toole Named CEO of Girl Scouts of Silver Sage Council



Maureen O’Toole Named CEO of Girl Scouts of Silver Sage Council

The Girl Scouts of Silver Sage has selected Maureen O’Toole to serve as the Council’s new Chief Executive Officer. She brings expertise in team building, training, strategic planning, business systems, public speaking, and organizational mission, vision and values alignment.

“We are excited to welcome Maureen to this important leadership position,” said Icon Credit Union CEO Connie Miller, who is chair of the Girl Scouts of Silver Sage Board of Directors. “She brings tremendous drive and a passion for helping youth identify and develop their potential.”

A retired military intelligence officer and public school teacher, O’Toole created and taught teen leadership classes and partnered with Idaho youth organizations to provide training. “Girl Scout programs are designed to help develop girls as leaders and build confidence by learning critical skills for success in the real world,” she said. “I can’t imagine a better place to be.”

O’Toole earned a BA in Anthropology from The College of William and Mary in Virginia, a BA in Bilingual Elementary Education from Boise State University, Idaho, and a Master’s of Organizational Leadership from George Fox University, Idaho campus. She is also certified as a Franklin-Covey facilitator.

She served in the U.S. Army and U.S. Army Reserves for 25 years, holding two command positions and earning the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. While in the military, she studied organizations and systems in depth in order to predict behavior.

Maureen’s 17 years as a teacher included private tutoring, private music instruction, K-8 curriculum and Spanish instruction. Leveraging off civilian and military teaching experiences, she created a leadership curriculum and instruction program to teach individual and group leadership and soft business skills.

Specifically, her program helped youth:  Identify gifts, talents and potential; set specific goals to creating powerful, positive lives; and participate in small group problem-solving and teamwork. She partnered with local youth-centric organizations to build leadership boot camps and, over the course of four years, these programs impacted over 700 Boise youth.

In her role as CEO of the Girl Scouts of Silver Sage, O’Toole will provide strategic and tactical direction to achieve the organization’s critical goals, which include outreach and collaboration with community partners, increased visibility and financial sustainability, membership recruitment and retention, and constituent engagement.

Maureen started at the Girl Scouts of Silver Sage on April 29, 2013. “I see this position as a perfect intersection of my professional background and passion for helping youth reach their potential with the Girl Scout mission to build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place,” she said.

Girl Scouts of Silver Sage serves more than 5,000 girl members, 2,300 adult volunteers, and 400 troops in southern Idaho and parts of eastern Oregon and northern Nevada. The Girl Scout Leadership Experience includes several pathways for participation, including summer camps, series programs, travel opportunities, and troop activities for girl members and adult volunteers. To learn more, visit www.girlscouts-ssc.org.

Having it All: Girls & Financial Literacy

While lack of financial literacy is a growing concern for everyone today, relatively little research has been done on how young people think about and experience money and finances, with even fewer studies focusing on girls specifically. To address this gap, the Girl Scout Research Institute conducted a nationwide survey with over 1,000 girls ages 8−17 and their parents to better understand girls' level of financial literacy and their confidence about, attitudes towards, and experiences with money. Having It All: Girls and Financial Literacy reveals that girls need and want financial literacy skills to help them achieve their dreams, with 90 percent saying it is important for them to learn how to manage money. However, just 12 percent of girls surveyed feel "very confident" making financial decisions. Learn more about the financial literacy study. You'll find the summary and full report, along with the Girl Scouts Financial Empowerment Program materials here: http://www.girlscouts.org/research/publications/financial_literacy/