Man Enough to Be a Girl Scout Kickoff Event

It was an afternoon of fun and friends as more than 70 people gathered for the Man Enough to Be a Girl Scout kickoff event hosted by Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast on June 28 at Smartmouth Brewing Company in Norfolk.

During the afternoon, guests enjoyed playing cornhole, networking with friends and other volunteers and taking tours of the brewery, which were led by Jimmy Loughran, lead brewer at Smartmouth. Guests also enjoyed Girl Scouts Cookies that had been specially paired with the beers on tap at the brewery.

Man Enough to Be a Girl Scout is a campaign designed to attract a whole new group of supporters to the organization—men. Girl Scouts wants more men to see themselves as part of the movement and to discover how they can be a positive influence in a girl’s life by volunteering with the organization.

Man Enough to Be a Girl Scout was sponsored by WTKR NewsChannel3, VEER Magazine, Geese Logistics and Yelp.

For more information about volunteering with Girl Scouts or joining the Man Enough to Be a Girl Scout campaign, visit www.gsccc.org.

View more photos from the event here.

Gold Award Spotlight: A Child's View of Open Heart Surgery

Jennifer, a Girl Scout from Chesapeake, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

When Jennifer was young, her stepfather had open heart surgery. It was a difficult time for her family, and at her age, it was difficult for Jennifer to understand what was going on. For her Gold Award project, Jennifer created a book for children about open heart surgery so that others will not endure the same confusion during an emotional time as she did. Jennifer’s book, “Why Daddy Bear is Having Surgery,” follows a family of bears through the process of illness, diagnosis of heart disease, surgery and recovery.

After her book was published, Jennifer donated 70 copies of her book to local hospitals and doctor’s offices to hand out to children of patients scheduled to have heart surgery.

“More people are starting to develop heart disease at a young age, and families are being affected while children are still young,” Jennifer said. “With my book, children will have a better grasp on what is happening and will not be so confused and scared throughout the process of heart surgery.”

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than 6 percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Jennifer to an elite group of females across the country with the honor.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

Everyone knows that it’s important to reduce, recycle and reuse—but do people really know what that entails? This week, 70 Girl Scouts have been spending their time at Camp Imagimazing Summer Fun, a Girl Scout day camp in Chesapeake, discovering fun ways to recycle and reuse everyday goods to make the world a better place. From learning about energy conservation to turning trash into treasure, the girls have been immersed in a variety of activities designed to teach them about caring for the environment.

As part of the camp session, Girl Scouts had the opportunity to hear from special guest Kathy Russell, who works as the educational outreach coordinator for TFC Recycling. Russell, along with TFC Recycling Intern Janine Lancke, work to educate people about the benefits of recycling and empower people to help protect the natural world. Russell brought the Girl Scouts on a virtual field trip of the recycling center, talked to them about the dos and don’ts of recycling and explained how littering can have a large negative impact on the earth.

“Not only should you recycle things that you’ve used, you should also precycle,” Russell told the girls. “You need to think about where items are going to end up before you buy them.”

In addition to learning about recycling and waste management from Russell and Lancke, Girl Scouts spent the week making their own paper, creating new items out of plastic water bottles and making skits about caring for the earth. They also enjoyed traditional camp activities, including canoeing, swimming and archery.

Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast is hosting nine weeks of Camp Imagimazing Summer Fun, and there is still time to register for upcoming sessions. Girl Scout camp is open to all girls, whether or not they are currently registered members of the organization. For more information about joining Girl Scouts or attending camp, visit www.gsccc.org.

Bryan Stephens is Man Enough to Be a Girl Scout

At age seven, Bryan Stephens’s daughter loved science and math. When she told a teacher at school she liked science and wanted to help people, the teacher told her she could be a nurse. This didn’t sit right with her, and when she told Bryan about her day at school that evening, she announced, “I don’t want to be a nurse, I want to be a doctor.” Bryan says he was never so proud, and he encouraged her to do just that. Today, at age 30, she’s a doctor who works as a family practitioner.

Bryan Stephens, the president and chief executive officer of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce, encouraged all three of his daughters to do what they wanted to do in life and find their passion. He also taught them to be diligent, determined and dedicated in whatever they set their mind on achieving. They listened and today all three are accomplished professionals. And, all three were Girl Scouts! According to Bryan, Girl Scouts reinforced the values he worked to instill in his daughters. He also says that Girl Scouting was an important part of his daughters’ lives as a military family. Moving several times during his career, having Girl Scouts at each destination was a real benefit. That’s one of the reasons he continues to support Girl Scouts, and why he recently joined as a Girl Scout volunteer through the “Are You Man Enough to be a Girl Scout” campaign.

“I think it’s important to support women in leadership positions,” Bryan said. “Having a sound foundation and years where girls are encouraged to be leaders can make a big difference in the careers they choose and their potential to succeed.”

Throughout his career – as a Colonel in the U.S. Army and president of leading corporations – Bryan has given time as a leadership mentor to both men and women. Today, as the lead of a chamber who has a goal of building a healthy business community in Hampton Roads, he continues to be a role model and remains enthusiastic about remaining a curious learner who seeks opportunities.

“We need more people, and that certainly includes women, who are interested in making our communities thrive,” Bryan said. “We need problem solvers who are ready to take on big challenges that will result in a better economy, better schools and a well-trained workforce for our future. I see Girl Scouts and other community organizations part of the solution and part of those we call the problem solvers.”

Whether it’s a dad like Bryan encouraging his daughter to follow her dreams or a volunteer helping a girl face her fears on the high-ropes course, men can play an important role in the lives of girls and help them believe in themselves as leaders. Through the Man Enough campaign, Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast hopes to have at least 100 men step up and show their support for the next generation of leaders. For more information about how to join, visit www.gsccc.org.

Mother Daughter Dinner Show

To close up the troop year, many service units host award ceremonies and special events. Last month, Girl Scouts from the Cape Henry Service Unit put their creativity to the test and constructed outfits and accessories using duct tape or newspaper for a Mother Daughter Dinner Show. Girls invited a special woman in their lives— a mother, grandmother, aunt or other significant adult female— to enjoy the meal and show with them.

Girl Scout Daisy Alanna

Creating a dress out of duct tape or newspaper is no simple feat, as many girls learned firsthand in the weeks leading up to the Mother Daughter Dinner Show. Girls spent hours working on outfit designs and figuring out how to make their ideas a reality. They folded and crimped newspaper, layered rows of colorful duct tape and put together bows, flowers and hats to make their outfits stand out.

“It took a long time to make my dress,” Girl Scout Junior Hunter said. “The hard part was making sure that what I made would actually fit me so that I could wear it in the show.”

While the girls had fun preparing for a fashion show, they were also gaining important life skills for the future. As they took part in the engineering design process, they were developing problem solving and critical thinking skills, as well as learning about adaptability and practicality. In today’s world, where women hold only about 25 percent of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) careers, it is important to give girls unique and creative opportunities to pursue their interests in building things and solving problems.

Jen Lewis, Girl Scout Junior Ivy and Deanna LeBlanc

All of the entries into the Mother Daughter Dinner Show were judged by WAVY-TV Reporters Deanna LeBlanc and Jen Lewis, as well as Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast CEO Tracy Keller. Prizes were awarded for creativity and judge’s choice.

Although many Girl Scout troops take a break for the summer, the fun doesn’t have to stop. Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast offers fun and adventure at Girl Scout camp, including a session all about engineering and design, which will take place July 19 to 24 at Camp Skimino in Williamsburg. For more information about joining Girl Scouts or attending Girl Scout camp, visit www.gsccc.org.

From Volunteer to Career

This post was written by Tammy Carlson, human resources director for Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast.

"Volunteers aren’t paid, not because they are worthless, because they are priceless." —Anonymous

I recently met someone and asked, “What do you do?” They responded, “I’m just a volunteer.” They then proceeded to share the myriad of positions they hold. I was overwhelmed with the amount of commitment and responsibility of this one person. Just a volunteer?!?! My mind was racing with the experience this volunteer was acquiring. I stated they must have an impressive resume with all that experience and they replied, “I don’t list volunteering on my resume.” What! Why!

As a human resources director, I’m looking for EXPERIENCE. However, notice I didn’t say paid experience. Experience can come in many forms: education, previous employment, training, and especially volunteerism.

Volunteerism is a great way to gain skills that will assist or advance with your career exploration. Looking for skills in the field of education consider a troop leader or series advisor position. Interested in finance, product sales or troop finances is for you. Find something you love to do!

Here are some quick things you can do to maximize your volunteer experience:

• Find the right volunteer position. If you are not in the right position, try something else.
• Treat your volunteer experience as a job—remember it is! Be on time, don’t overcommit, and be professional.
• Lead, lead, lead!
• List your volunteer title and duties on your resume. Don’t bury it at the bottom. Have a category called experience that includes both paid and unpaid history. 
• Don’t just list experience, list results: lead a troop of XXX girls, managed XXX troop accounts, coordinated product sales resulting in XXX of sales.
• Know you are valuable. The current value of a volunteer is $23.07 per hour!

Try these few things and you will quickly move from volunteer to career!

"We make a living by what we do, but we make a life by what we give." -Winston Churchill

Tammy Carlson will be facilitating free workshops on how to use your volunteer experiences to grow professionally this fall. She will provide tips on building your resume and getting the most out of your volunteer experience to find a great job. The workshops will take place: Saturday, August 22 at Great Bridge United Methodist Church in Chesapeake Saturday, September 19 at Church of the Holy Family in Virginia Beach Saturday, October 10 at Shiloh Baptist Church in Yorktown Registration for each workshop is required. More information can be found here.

Gold Award Spotlight: Blazing a Trail to Success

Emily, a Girl Scout from Chesapeake, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

Emily noticed that the trails at Indian River Park were unmarked and difficult to navigate. For her project, Emily decided to mark the outer trail at the park. She placed trail signs on over 100 trees along the 6.4 mile trail by removing a small patch of bark from each tree and painting the bare patch a bright color.

After she finished blazing the trail, Emily created QR codes on stickers that she placed on the signs at the trailheads to direct users to the park map. She hopes that the updated trails will encourage more people to visit the park and be active.

“I chose this project because I saw a lot of potential in the park while hiking there with my family,” Emily said. “I also wanted to make a difference in the Indian River community.”

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than 6 percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Emily to an elite group of females across the country with the honor.