Outer Banks Service Unit Bridging Ceremony

Bridging is an important transition in a Girl Scout's life. It is a defining moment when a girl becomes aware of her achievements and is ready for new adventures and responsibilities.

On June 6, the Outer Banks Service Unit hosted their bridging ceremony to celebrate the accomplishments of nearly 30 Girl Scouts, as well as the volunteers who give their time and talents to Girl Scouts. Carolene Goodwyn-Harris, chair of the board of directors for GSCCC, was excited to attend the special celebration.

“I had a wonderful time meeting the girls and volunteers in the Outer Banks Service Unit,” Carolene said.

Carolene cheered for each of the Girl Scouts who bridged to the next level of Girl Scouting as they crossed the stage at the Wanchese Community Building.

Rylee and Carolene

As part of the celebration, Rylee, a Girl Scout Cadette in Troop 2432, was recognized for earning the Silver Award, which is the second highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting. Rylee worked with the Outer Banks History Center to earn the award.

Amanda Grubbs, leader of Girl Scout Troop 2109, and Julie Tortelli, leader of Girl Scout Troop 2512, were recognized with Volunteer of Excellence Awards.

In addition to recognizing current members, the service unit was eager to welcome two new members to Girl Scouts. Peyton and Remington, who will be starting kindergarten in the fall, became Girl Scout Daisies during the ceremony.

Still need to renew your membership? Keep the adventure going! Renew now.

Adventure Awaits in Costa Rica

By Girl Scout Senior Kilani from Moyock

This summer I’ll be attending the international trip to beautiful Costa Rica. I’m looking forward to the memorable moments that I’ll have and all the stunning views. I chose to travel with Girl Scouts because the opportunity came up, and I made the adventurous decision to go.

Quite frankly, at first I never even thought about going to Costa Rica. But then I saw the flier and decided that I had to go. It honestly still surprises me to hear that I’m actually going. Imagine going on about your day and then someone brings it up and you just sit there stunned because it’s actually going to happen. 

This is my first ever international trip. It’s exciting to anticipate what this trip will bring me. I’ll meet new people, eat new foods and see new places. It’ll be like a whole new world with new culture and adventures. 

The trip will be here before I know it, so I have to prepare myself. We’ve already discussed some items that we should pack including some very odd items, such as doggy bags. You may be wondering why, and the answer is simply that in Costa Rica you cannot flush toilet paper. You’re probably wrapping your mind around the idea of not being able to flush toilet paper and instead disposing it, but we’ll see how it goes when we get there. I’m not to worried about it though. It’s hard for me to worry about anything when I’m so ecstatic to just go.

Girls Rule the World

The 9th Annual Hampton Roads Conference for Girls and Young Women: Girls Rule the World was held on Saturday, May 20 in the Webb University Center at Old Dominion University. During the conference, which aims to inform and empower girls and young women to become productive citizens and leaders, Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast held a STEM (science, technology, mathematics, and engineering) workshop, Girls Go Techbridge: Power it Up!.

During the Girl Scout workshop, Thalessa Billups, a community outreach coordinator with Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast, led the girls in an activity with snap circuits to help them learn about electronics and circuitry. Working in pairs, girls chose circuit board projects out of an instruction book and snapped together plastic modules to create a flow of electricity. One pair of girls created a flow of electricity to power a radio.

"One of the most beneficial things about STEM activities is that they allow girls to work together to accomplish the same goal while having fun," Billups said.

According to How Girl Scout STEM Programs Benefit Girls, a report by the Girl Scout Research Institute, 77 percent of girls said that after participating in STEM activities with Girl Scouts, they want to know more about careers in science, math and the arts. Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast is committed to providing opportunities for girls to engage in hands-on STEM and scientific reasoning activities, allowing them to apply concepts learned in school in new ways. Check www.gsccc.org for information about an annual STEM event, Science Alive, scheduled for September at Norfolk State University.

2017 Gold Award Celebration

Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast recognized the 41 local Girl Scouts who earned the Gold Award during the past year at a celebration on June 4 at Virginia Wesleyan University. The Gold Award is the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

Gold Award recipients and guests were welcomed by Heather Lowe, a Girl Scout alumnae and former Gold Award recipient from Chesapeake, who served as the emcee for the event. Jordan Thomas, a 2013 Gold Award recipient and a student at Virginia Wesleyan University, delivered welcoming remarks from the university. Carolene Goodwyn-Harris, chair of the board of directors for Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast, congratulated the awardees on their accomplishments.

“I am inspired every time I reflect on the leadership opportunities offered through the Girl Scout Movement, especially the opportunity to earn the Gold Award,” Goodwyn-Harris said.

Lea, Angela and Shannon were recognized as the three local Girl Scouts nominated to be honored as National Young Women of Distinction. Every year, Girl Scout councils from across the country nominate exceptionally inspiring Girl Scout Gold Award recipients to be selected as one of the 10 National Young Women of Distinction.

Each Gold Award recipient was then recognized, and Tracy Keller, CEO of Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast, pinned each recipient with the Gold Award pin. A summary of each girl’s project was shared with guests in attendance. This year’s projects addressed a number of issues in the community, including: food insecurity, bullying, childhood obesity and literacy rates.

In her closing remarks, Keller congratulated the girls for the hard work they put into earning the Gold Award.

“You have made meaningful, sustainable change in your communities,” Keller said. “You are changing the world.”

Since 1916, the best and brightest Girl Scouts have completed projects to improve their community and the world while earning the highest award in Girl Scouts. Girls who pursue the Gold Award aspire to transform an idea and vision for change into an actionable plan with measurable, sustainable and far-reaching results. The experience of earning the Gold Award gives girls great lifetime benefits. In fact, the Girl Scout Research Institute has found that Gold Award recipients soar when it comes to providing service to others through volunteerism and positive attitudes about themselves and the lives they lead. Gold Award recipients are courageous go-getters, visionary innovators and confident leaders.

STEM Fun Day

Nearly 100 Girl Scouts took part in a day of fun and learning under the sun during a STEM Fun Day, a science, technology, engineering and math event at Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head. The day was designed to teach girls about marine life, ecosystems and energy through hands-on experiences at the beach.

Girls learned casting and reeling skills while they fished from the pier, as well as proper catch and release techniques. At the other end of the pier near the parking lot, girls put their STEM abilities to the test as they raced the solar powered cars that they had built.

Inside the program center, girls learned about ocean currents through a density experiment. Each girl tested ocean, brackish and fresh water for density. They then mixed the waters from three different sources and made observations about what happens when the waters interact.

”It was very exciting to host the Girl Scouts for STEM Fun Day at Jennette’s Pier,” Christin Brown, education curator at Jennette’s Pier said. “It is always great to work with young girls who are the next generation of female leaders.”

In today’s world, women hold only about 25 percent of STEM careers. According to the Girl Scout Research Institute, 82 percent of girls see themselves as smart enough to have a career in STEM, but only 13 percent say it is their first choice. Girl Scouts is working with community partners, such as Jennette’s Pier, to give girls access to fun, hands-on and engaging ways to explore the STEM fields. 

Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast is committed to giving all girls the opportunity to participate in STEM experience. This summer, Girl Scout camps across the region will offer STEM activities. In the fall, Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast, in partnership with Norfolk State University, will host Science Alive. Girl Scout camps and events are open to all girls, whether or not they are currently registered members of the organization.

We are Camp Skimino, the Mighty, Mighty Camp Skimino!

By Elizabeth Coyne, GSCCC Communications Intern and Camp Staff Member

GSCCC Outdoor Adventures Manager Tesi Strickland and
CEO Tracy Keller accepted the Bronze Award on behalf of the Council

Camp Skimino, a GSCCC camp located in Williamsburg, was recognized with a Bronze Award for Best Summer Camp by Coastal Virginia Magazine. The magazine held a reader’s choice contest from January 1 to the end of March. The camp will be featured along with other reader’s choice awards in their July/August issue. Yesterday, GSCCC CEO Tracy Keller and Outdoor Adventures Manager Tesi Strickland were on hand to receive the award certificate from Kathy Talmage, a representative from the magazine.

Elizabeth at camp last summer.

It was no surprise to me that votes from the public brought recognition to Camp Skimino. As someone who worked as a camp counselor there, I totally agree that Camp Skimino is awesome! Camp Skimino has everything a camper could dream of, from belaying 25 feet off the ground on the wobbly bridge of our high-ropes course to water fights from canoes on Skimino’s man-made lake, Lake Adahi. Camp also has a nice, big swimming pool to cool off in after playing capture the flag on the field on a hot, sunny day. And, you can’t forget about the Camp Skimino amphitheater that sits right on the lake that we use for our opening and closing campfires, which are filled with friends, camp songs and of course s’mores! Camp Skimino is the perfect place for girls and their families to experience the outdoors.

Camp Skimino is full of tradition and history that we share with campers each summer. The local Girl Scout council purchased the 98 acres that is now Camp Skimino in 1955, and it officially opened for camping in 1956. Skimino, a Native American word meaning “smooth creek” was used to name the Girl Scout campsite after the first human inhabitants of the area.

This summer, Camp Skimino is hosting a week of resident camp for registered Girl Scouts and their families for only 25 dollars per person, per night and children under five stay for free. Families may stay for one to five nights and choose their daily camp activities, including archery and arts and crafts, or pick to go explore Williamsburg. Located only 10 minutes away from historic Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens, Water Country USA, and all that the area has to offer, Camp Skimino is the perfect family holiday trip. Your family will be staying in platform tents, which is a large canvased wall tent with a wooden floor, complete with cots, mattresses and bug nets. Modern shower houses, complete with flush toilets and hot water for showers, are located near the tents. Meals are not provided. Families plan and cook their own meals or eat at one of the many family and fast food restaurants in the area. For more information, or to book your family for camp, contact customercare@gsccc.org. Come enjoy this beautiful camp that is full of history.

Camp Skimino provides year-round activities for Council girls and adults. It also provides lodging to Girl Scouts from all over the country as they visit the historical Williamsburg area. Other youth groups, businesses, and organizations utilize the site as well for retreats, employee events, and weddings.

Coming Soon: New Journeys for G.I.R.L.s

How will you take the lead like a Girl Scout in the 2017-18 Girl Scout year? New Journeys for G.I.R.L.s (go-getters, innovators, risk-takers, leaders) of all ages can help you do just that– all while making your world a better place!

Girl Scouts of the USA will roll out seven new Journeys in the Volunteer Toolkit (in MyGS) in July 2017. Each Journey (whether new or old) is topic-specific, includes hands-on activities and incorporates Discover, Connect and a Take Action project. Depending upon the content, some Journeys are shorter and some are longer. They are:

It’s Your World—Change It!

• Available for purchase in council stores (adult guide and girl book) for Daisies through Ambassadors
• On the Volunteer Toolkit for Daisies only as part of a 15 meeting Year Plan

It’s Your Planet—Love It

• Available for purchase in council stores (adult guide and girl book) for Daisies through Ambassadors
• On the Volunteer Toolkit for Daisies, Brownies and Juniors as part of a 15 meeting Year Plan

It’s Your Story—Tell It!

• Available for purchase in council stores (adult guide and girl book) for Daisies through Ambassadors
• On the Volunteer Toolkit for Daisies, Brownies and Juniors as part of a 15 meeting Year Plan

Outdoor

• Available on the Volunteer Toolkit for Daisies as six sessions in total, which includes two outdoor badges plus two Take Action meetings and is part of a 15 meeting Year Plan
• Available on the Volunteer Toolkit for Brownies and Juniors as nine sessions in total, which includes three outdoor badges plus three Take Action meetings and is part of a 15 meeting Year Plan
• Available for multi-level Daisy/Brownie/Junior troops
• Available for Cadettes, Seniors and Ambassadors  for Back to Troop as PDFs on the Volunteer Toolkit

Think Like an Engineer

• Available on the Volunteer Toolkit for Daisies, Brownies, Juniors and multi-level troops. The Journey is six sessions in total, including three Take Action meetings, and is part of a 15 meeting Year Plan.

Think Like a Programmer

• Available on the Volunteer Toolkit for Daisies, Brownies, Juniors and multi-level troops. The Journey is six sessions in total, including three Take Action meetings, and is part of a 15 meeting Year Plan.

Think Like a Citizen Scientist

• Available on the Volunteer Toolkit for Daisies, Brownies, Juniors and multi-level troops. The Journey is six sessions in total, including three Take Action meetings, and is part of a 15 meeting Year Plan.

Haven’t renewed your membership yet? What are waiting for? Registration for the 2017-2018 Girl Scout year is now open! View membership renewal incentives and rewards here.