February 2015 - Girl Scouts of Central Maryland

02.2015
VINE
In This Issue:
Spring Forward Food Drive
Important Information about Me2 Magazine sale
New Events and Activities for our girls!
New items at Juliette’s Closet
p.2
p.3
p.4
p.5
Harvest for the Hungry
Submitted by: Violet M. Apple, Chief Executive Officer
GSCM will partner with AARP, Safeway, USPS, WBAL and the Maryland Food Bank for
this critical food collection initiative, the Spring Forward Food Drive, beginningFebruary
28. I know that many troops collect food for local food pantries all year long. I, and
the thousands of families who receive your donations, are very grateful for your
support. Last year the Council donated 9,500 lbs. of food to the Maryland Food Bank
because of your efforts! We thank all that participated last year and invite everyone to
participate again this year. We want to collect at least 10,000 lbs. of food this year and
I know that our caring Girl Scouts’ efforts make this goal possible.
Food insecurity is something that affects families and individuals in every zip code in
Maryland. I am asking everyone in the GSCM community to support this effort and
make a positive impact in our communities. The food you collect will help families
throughout central Maryland. To learn more about food insecurity in Maryland, check
out the Harvest for the Hungry Patch packet ( see p.2 for more food drive information).
Thank you for being a part of this annual food donation effort.
Yours in Girl Scouting,
Me2 Magazine Sale
Begins February 18
Submitted by: Terry Mercer, GSCM Staff
New this year: A magazine product
sale with the opportunity to earn a
personalized patch! Starting February 18,
girls will be able to go online, create Me2–
an avatar that looks like them–and send
emails to friends and family asking them
to support their troop and GSCM by
purchasing magazines. It’s easy, fun, and
your troop will earn 15% of sales. Girls can
earn patches too: the
“Be Extraordinary”
patch for sending 12
emails, the “Mags”
patch for sending 15
emails and the “Mags
Super Seller” Patch
for sending 20 emails.
Continued...p.3
1 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
Upcoming Programs
Harvest for the Hungry...continued from p.1
February 28
thru
March 1, 2015
Submitted by Kelly Rhodes, GSCM Staff
Harvest for the Hungry is GSCM’s Council-wide service project,
and it’s going on all the time! Every March, GSCM partners with
AARP, Safeway, USPS, and the Maryland Food Bank for a week long
effort that has come to be called the Spring Forward Food Drive.
You can get involved! It’s as easy as dropping off non-perishable
food right here at the office. There will be a collection bin in the
front lobby for all of February and into March. All donations will
go to the Maryland Food Bank and will count towards our total
donations for the year. In 2014, our Council collected over 9,500
pounds of food!
There are lots of great GSCM
programs coming up over the next
few months. Use the events calendar
links below to discover available
program opportunities.
Please note: New programs and events are added all
the time, so be sure to visit the events calendar often!
Click for February
Programs/Events
Click for March
Programs/Events
Click for April
Programs/Events
How you can get involved...
Staff Donation Tables: troops can work with AARP in Safeway
stores during the week to encourage people to donate food. You
and your troop can sign up here.
Come to the Spring Forward kick-off on Friday, February 27 at
4:30 am. Join us at the Canton Safeway store at 2610 Boston
Street in Baltimore and be a part of the WBAL morning news
kick-off encouraging everyone to be a part of this important
food drive. RSVP to: [email protected].
Earn the patch! GSCM’s Harvest for the Hungry patch is available all year, but now is a great time to work on it! Once you’ve
completed your activities, return the report form to receive
the patches for free! The packet can be found online or in the
Volunteer Resource Center.
Questions? Email: harvestforthe [email protected], or call Kelly Rhodes,
Program Specialist, at 410.358.9711, ext. 243.
Click for May
Programs/Events
Event Planning
Workshop
Submitted by: Valerie Brooks, GSCM Staff
Learn the ins and outs of coordinating
a multi-troop or Service Unit event by
participating in this adult workshop. Topics
include forming a team, budgeting, safety
and evaluation. Register for this workshop via
online registration; go to Enrichment under the
Learning and Training category.
Questions? Contact Valerie Brooks, Adult
Learning Specialist at [email protected] or
call 410.358.9711 ext 220.
2 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
Girl Scouts of Central Maryland 4806 Seton Dr. Baltimore, MD 21215 P: 410.358.9711 F: 410.358.9918
New Magazine Sale Begins February 18...continued from p.1
Plus, if you sell 5 magazine subscriptions you will earn a personalized patch with your name and
Me2 avatar on it.
Parents, as well as Service Unit and troop level volunteers are encouraged to learn more about
the magazine sale and how girls can earn the patches. Please register for one of following
webinars:
•February 16, 2015 at 6pm
•February 18, 2015 at 6pm
•February 21, 2015 at 10am
Please note: the site for girls to create their storefronts opens on February 18, 2015.
Important Information about the Me2 Magazine Opportunity
Why should girls participate?
It’s FUN and it’s easy! Girls send emails
to family and friends and all sales are
conducted online via the girls secure
web page that she develops.
Girls learn and build SKILLS – such as
marketing and web page development
as well as social media skills.
Troops will earn 15% of girl sales.
The percentage earned will be paid
directly to the troop via a GSCM check
in April 2015.
Girls will earn patches based on the
number of emails they send:
Be Extraordinary – send 12 emails to
family and friends.
Mags Patch – send 15 emails to family
and friends.
Mags Super Seller Patch – send 20
emails to family and friends.
PLUS girls who sell 5 magazine
subscriptions earn a personalized Me2
Avatar patch.
Troops who have girls participating
with a total of $150.00 or more in
sales will be eligible to be entered into
a weekly drawing to have the chance
to win:
Week 1: Drawing held on 2/23/15 – A
free GS411 program of your choice for
your troop. *subject to availability
Week 2: Drawing held on 3/2/15 –
Pizza and Ice Cream party for your
troop.
Week 3: Drawing held on 3/9/15 – Free
troop camping weekend at a property
of your choice for your troop. *Subject
to availability
Week 4:Drawing held on 3/16/15 –
Lunch with GSCM Chief Executive
Officer, Violet M. Apple.
Week 5: Drawing held on 3/23/15 –
Free tickets to the Baltimore National
Aquarium for your troop.
Week 6:Drawing held on 3/30/15 – an
IPAD for your troop.
Note: Troops can join the weekly
drawings at any time upon reaching the
$150.00 or more in sales. Once troops are in
the drawing they continue to be eligible for the
duration of the drawings.
What types of magazines are available?
There are nearly 600 GSUSA approved
magazine subscriptions available, all popular
magazines that many people enjoy every day!
Customers can renew current subscriptions
or purchase new ones.
How many magazine subscriptions can a
girl expect to sell?
That’s up to her creativity in marketing and
promoting the opportunity. On average our
vendor shared that three to four subscriptions
is typical but the sky is the limit!
Does the entire troop need to participate?
No, one girl, two girls or your entire troop can
participate.
This is a very user-friendly, safe and easy
online system for girls to use. Troop Leaders
can access the system to see the progress of
girls but there is NO work for the Troop Leader
other than to encourage girls and families to
participate.
ATTN: All girls who sold 175+ boxes of
Girl Scout Cookies...you’re invited to the
1st Annual Cookie Jam!
You should be receiving a postcard invitation in the mail very soon
with more information and your special participation code. In the
meantime, Save the Date -- March 22, 2015, 4-7 pm, for this
exciting new event created just for you!
3 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
Girl Scouts of Central Maryland 4806 Seton Dr. Baltimore, MD 21215 P: 410.358.9711 F: 410.358.9918
Just Added --New Events and
Activities for our Girls
Submitted by: Kelly Rhodes, GSCM Staff
Some new events have been created that aren’t in the GS411! Check ‘em out!
Design Day with Ayers Saint Gross
Who: Seniors, Ambassadors $25 (max 50) Adults $10
When: Saturday, May 2 9am-4pm.
Location: Ayers Saint Gross. 1040 Hull Street, Ste. 100, Baltimore, MD 21230
Girl Scouts in grades 8th–10th and their parents are invited to a day of handson activities with local architects and designers to explore how buildings are
made by making models, designing homes and rooms, and learning more
about the education of an architect. SPACE IS LIMITED. BE SURE TO SIGN UP
FOR THIS EVENT SOON! For more information and to register, click here.
Bowie Baysox 9th Annual Girl Scout Sleepover!
Who: All Girl Scouts
When: May 29, 5:45pm - May 30, 7:15am
Location:Bowie Baysox Stadium, 4101 NE Crain Highway, Bowie, MD 20716
Gates open at 5:30pm Parade begins at 5:45 pm First pitch is at 6:35pm
Join in all of the fun: a pre-game parade on the field, followed by a great
baseball game featuring the Bowie Baysox (Class AA Affiliate of the Baltimore
Orioles) as they take on the Harrisburg Senators (Class AA Affiliate of the
Washington Nationals). Following the game, leaders, parents and girls, who
have pre-registered, will grab their gear and head back into the stadium for a
sleepover on the field that will include dancing, arts and crafts, a movie, and
more! For more information and to register click here.
Garden Day at the Star-Spangled Banner Flag House
Who: Girl Scouts of all levels and their adults
When: Sunday, June 7, 10am-4pm
Location: Star-Spangled Banner Flag House, 844 East Pratt Street
$10 per girl, $5 per adult
Help the Star-Spangled Banner Flag House prepare for Flag Day! In the
morning, you’ll explore the flag house and museum, learn about the history
of the flag that inspired our national anthem, try on costumes from the time
period, and then join us for a special flag ceremony. After lunch, we’ll go to
work on the garden. There will be something for everyone to do: plant flowers,
add mulch, and get the garden ready for the summer. All girls who participate
in this fun, service project day will receive a special patch (and maybe even
a piece of the garden to take home!) **Bring a bagged lunch, we will provide
drinks. To register or for more information click here. If you have questions
about any of these events, contact Kelly Rhodes at 410.358.9711, ext. 243 or
email : [email protected]
4 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
Early Bird Snapshot
Plans are already in place to make
the 2016 Early Bird process easier
for everyone! New for this year is the
troop SNAPSHOT. This “picture”
of your troop roster will help in the
verification process for troops earning
the fall product sale incentives. More
details about Early Bird 2016 will follow
in March, but Troop leaders can begin
getting their troops ready by:
1. Logging into the registration data base;
2. Checking your troop roster to
confirm that all girls participating in
the troop are registered; and,
3. informing your Membership
Specialist of any girls who have not
been active so they can be removed
from the troop roster. This should be
completed by March 26 so inactive
girls can be transferred out of the
troop roster.
Questions? Check in with your
Membership Specialist.
Adult Recognitions
Due February 28, 2015
Submitted by: Valerie Brooks, GSCM Staff
Reminder - nominations for Adult
Recognitions are due February 28, 2015. Don’t
miss out on this opportunity to recognize the
outstanding volunteers you work with. For
more information, visit the Adult Recognitions
page on our website.
Girl Scouts of Central Maryland 4806 Seton Dr. Baltimore, MD 21215 P: 410.358.9711 F: 410.358.9918
Brownie Quest Project Brings Smiles to Kennedy Krieger
Submitted by Shiree Southerland,Troop Leader
For their Brownie Quest Take Action Project, Brownie Troop
945 decided they wanted to work with sick children in the
hospital. They designed and created get-well cards for
pediatric patients as well as decorated gift bags for them.
There were 19 items on the hospital’s wish list and through
generous donations from parents, the Brownies were able to
provide all items on the list. The Brownies implemented their
project at Kennedy Krieger Institute by delivering the gift bags,
assisting with decorating the playroom, and visiting with some
of the children.
Want more Journey ideas? Click here or check out our webinar.
Juliette’s Closet
Submitted by: Jennifer Moumane, GSCM Staff
S’mores & More, the GSCM alumnae advisory committee, will
be hosting a networking event on Thursday, May 14, 2015 at the
GSCM Urban Program and STEM Center! Bring your business
cards or SWAPS -- Special Whatchamacallits Affectionately
Pinned Somewhere. Bring a friend and be ready to network and
mingle with former Girl Scouts just like you!
The next advisory committee meeting is March 26. If you
are looking for some fun and would like to join the advisory
committee, please contact Jennifer Moumane, Director of
Annual Giving, [email protected] or call 410-358-9711.
Submitted by: Katie Pedersen, GSCM Staff
Looking for something warm to wear around the house or on
quick errand runs? We just might have the answer. Both stores
are now stocked with these cozy comfy pajama bottoms,
available in sizes XS to 3X, in pink, purple, blue and, of course,
green. Now just $20 each! They make great gifts for your
favorite Girl Scout or volunteer. Be sure to check out these new
"There's no place like camp" t-shirts as well, just $12!
We look forward to seeing you soon, or you can shop online.
Juliette’s Closet
GSCM’s Urban Program
& STEM Center
4806 Seton Drive
Baltimore, MD 21215
410.358.9711 ext.202
Hours of Operation:
TUE: 10am - 7pm
W-TH: 9am-5pm
FRI: 9am-3pm
SAT: 9am-3pm
SUN-MON: CLOSED
Juliette’s Closet
Clementine Peterson
Activity Center
5042 Ilchester Road
Ellicott City, MD 21043
410.455.0542
New Hours of Operation:
Click to see what’s being
offered this summer!
5 VINE: Volunteer Information & News Electronically
TUE& THU: 9am-4pm
WED: 10am - 7pm
FRI: 9am-3pm
SAT: 9am-3pm
SUN-MON: CLOSED
Girl Scouts of Central Maryland 4806 Seton Dr. Baltimore, MD 21215 P: 410.358.9711 F: 410.358.9918