A few GSEMA Program Highlights

Adventures in Storytelling. Girls are invited to meet Kara LaReau, the award-winning author of the Infamous Ratsos series and Rise of ZomBert (coming July 2020), on February 22! The registration fee is $18 per girl, and includes a copy of Infamous Ratsos. Daisies and Brownies can register for the 3 PM–5 PM session, and Juniors, Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors can register for the 10 AM–2 PM session. Volunteer supervision is required.   
Winter Online Journeys. Seniors and Ambassadors can learn exciting new STEM skills through online Journeys in January and February! In the Think Like a Programmer Online Journey, girls will join together to learn coding and computer science skills. Registration is $25 per girl. 
Winter Vacation Camp. Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors are invited to spend their winter breaks at Camp Wabasso! At Winter Vacation Camp, campers can enjoy cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, downhill skiing, snowboarding, tubing, and more from February 17–21. Registration is $425/girl, and includes heated lodging, equipment rentals, lessons, meals, and transportation to/from Waltham, MA. This is a drop-off event.
Winter Vacation Adventures.  Daisies, Brownies, and Juniors can escape the winter blues by joining their Girl Scout peers for winter break at Camp Cedar Hill! At Winter Vacation Adventures, girls will make new friends, go on adventures, and participate in games, crafts, STEM experiments, and more. Groups will spend the majority of their time in indoor heated spaces, with occasional outdoor activities (weather permitting). New for 2020: busing is available and included in the registration fee. Registration is $60/girl, and financial aid is available.

Troop 71901...

Friday March 6^th is a professional development day in North Reading. Troop 71901 would like to host a drop-off event for younger Girl Scouts that day. They are still in the planning stages and would like to gauge interest so please ask your troop parents if they are available that day.

Troop 71901 is still collecting new and gently used shoe donations to help fund their trip to Europe this June. There is a donation box at Flint Memorial Public Library. Please email kellys@majekelly.com with any questions.

Cookie Update

Hopefully the December cookie booths went well. There are still plenty of slots open for January and part of February. Contact Lisa Ayer (lisa.ayer7@gmail.com) if you'd like to schedule another booth sale.  There are no longer any gluten-free cookies available so please do not take orders for them. 

Disney On Ice presents Celebrate Memories

Will play the SNHU Arena in Manchester from January 9^th – 12^th and there will be a very special scout night on Friday, January 10^th at 7pm! Tickets are $20 and are being sold directly through the Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains Council and the Daniel Webster Council ONLY. For more information on how to purchase your tickets, please click on the council you’re affiliated with below to be directed to the purchase page. If you are a registered scout and do not know which council you belong to, but would still like to purchase tickets, please call one of the councils below directly.

Each scout ticket comes with a commemorative patch being distributed through each council AND there will be a POST SHOW CLINIC just for Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and any friends and family attending the show! To participate in the clinic, please stay in your seats following the show as a cast member will come out on to the ice to reveal tons of behind the scenes Magic!

Disney On Ice presents Celebrate Memories Info Page: https://www.disneyonice.com/celebrate-memories

Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains Purchase Page: https://www.girlscoutsgwm.org/en/events-repository/2020/disney_on_ice_presen.html

Daniel Webster Council Purchase Page: https://nhscouting.org/event/disney-on-ice/

Check out discounted ticket options for other shows and sporting events here: https://www.gsema.org/en/programs/program-list.html?q=&regions=choose&startdtRange=&enddtRange=&dateAdded=none&tags=girlscoutseasternmass%3Acategories%2Fmemberbenefits&_ga=2.256591499.1269275838.1568039782-842946843.1567530417

Caroling Event - Big Success!

The caroling event was a big success with about 50 girls singing for the seniors at Care One!! A huge Thank You to Kristen Pemberton and Michele Reyen for organizing this great event. The oldies love the interaction with the kids.

Program Highlights

Here are some new and interesting program highlights:

Adventures in Storytelling. Girls are invited to meet Kara LaReau, the award-winning author of the Infamous Ratsos series and Rise of ZomBert (coming July 2020), on February 22! The registration fee is $18 per girl, and includes a copy of Infamous Ratsos. Daisies and Brownies can register for the 3 PM–5 PM session, and Juniors, Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors can register for the 10 AM–2 PM session. Volunteer supervision is required.  

Cybersecurity Badge Day. Brownies and Juniors can earn the Cybersecurity Basics badge on January 19, by taking part in exciting workshops taught by professional women in the cybersecurity industry. Girls will learn about pending cybersecurity legislation, engage in exciting discussions and debates, and explore potential cybersecurity careers. The registration fee is $20 per girl, and includes a badge. Volunteer supervision is required. Register.

Winter Online Journeys. Seniors and Ambassadors can learn exciting new STEM skills through online Journeys in January and February! In the Think Like a Programmer Online Journey, girls will join together to learn coding and computer science skills. Registration is $25 per girl.

Winter Vacation Camp. Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors are invited to spend their winter breaks at Camp Wabasso! At Winter Vacation Camp, campers can enjoy cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, downhill skiing, snowboarding, tubing, and more from February 17–21. Registration is $425/girl, and includes heated lodging, equipment rentals, lessons, meals, and transportation to/from Waltham, MA. This is a drop-off event.

Winter Vacation Adventures.  Daisies, Brownies, and Juniors can escape the winter blues by joining their Girl Scout peers for winter break at Camp Cedar Hill! At Winter Vacation Adventures, girls will make new friends, go on adventures, and participate in games, crafts, STEM experiments, and more. Groups will spend the majority of their time in indoor heated spaces, with occasional outdoor activities (weather permitting). New for 2020: busing is available and included in the registration fee. Registration is $60/girl, and financial aid is available.

Getting your troop activities in the Transcript

If you'd like to let the North Reading community know about some of the great stuff you do with your troop, consider sending it to the North Reading Transcript. Whenever you do something community related, outdoors, STEM related - anything really, you can send a pic and a blurb. The girls love to see their picture in the paper + it promotes girl scouts in our town.

Here are some tips:

- send a ready to print article of 200 words or less 

- include who, what, when, where and why

- always send hi-res photographs with captions (always make sure you have permission from parent/ guardian to publish)

- add a quote if you can (but not necessary)

- send it to nrtranscript@rcn.com

- please reach out to Jo Gibson (joanneg@gmail.com) if you want help.

Resources - Did you know?

There are several information and event resources for North Reading Girl Scout and their Families such as:

Two Facebook pages: 

1. Parents and Guardians of North Reading Girl Scouts

2. North Reading Girl Scout Leaders

This Blog:

www.northreadinggirlscouts.blogspot.com

Cookie Update

1. This week kicks off our booth sales! Still plenty of December slots available if you want to get a jump start before the holidays!

2. You can also start placing order for cookies through ABCSmartCookies.com. Make sure your order is in by Sunday 10pm to pick up that week.

3. Don't forget to add your scheduled booth sales into ABCSmartCookie so that you can use the new credit card and booth divider options.

4. January COBS deadline is Dec 12th. Don't miss it!

5. Please note that all cookie cupboards will be closed for the holidays December 22–January 2. Deadlines for planned cookie orders are Sundays at 10 PM throughout cookie season, and the final day for cookie-selling is March 31, 2020.

Caroling Event

Don't forget to get your forms in for caroling! This is a great, free event the girls love where they will make cards for the residents, sing carols, and have cookies and chocolate milk. This year it will be on Thursday December 19, 2019, 4pm- 5pm at Care one in Wilmington (750 Woburn St). Girls can wear their Christmas jammies/holiday attire/ hats etc. Forms can be dropped off to Kristen Pemberton: 9 Bishops Way, by December 10th. Flyer is attached to the Monday email.

 

Future Service Unit (SU) events

Our amazing service unit has several events planned for this scouting year including a Lego challenge, DIY Race car event, Archery/Canoe/S’mores and more! If you have an idea for an event or would like to be part of the planning committee for an event please reach out to Rebecca or Jo. Thank you for being part of North Reading Girl Scouts!   

Volunteer Recognitions

GSEMA is now accepting nominations for volunteer recognitions! Show appreciation for volunteers you know and love by nominating them for formal awards. Nominations are due by February 15. Plus, check out our tips for other fun and easy ways to say thank you to volunteers who are making the world a better place.

Cookie Program

Get ready, get set, mark your calendars for the 2019–20 cookie program! Girl Scout Cookies fund adventures and help girls empower themselves through goal-setting and entrepreneurship—not to mention fun! Girls can begin selling cookies online on November 21, and in person on December 3. Troop Cookie Coordinators can get a prepared by submitting their required paperwork now. You can explore our online resources, and email us with your troop number if you need to be introduced to your Service Unit Cookie Mentor.

Fall Product - Final Count

From Denise Kung- “We had 13 troops participating and total sales just over $16,000. Incredible job by everyone! We had 11 troops sell over $750, which I believe means we earned a service unit bonus of $220. We did better in total sales and in troops breaking the $750 mark over last year.”

Program Highlights

Check out some of the programs offered by Girl Scouts..
 1. Cyber Challenge - In GSEMA’s first ever Girl Scouts Cyber Challenge (October 19, from 8:30 AM–5 PM, at UMASS Lowell), Girl Scout Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors will work together to rescue a hacked moon colony. Girls will learn cryptography, forensics, social engineering, and ethics skills while empowering themselves and one another through STEM. This competition is a drop-off event; busing is available from Middleboro, Roxbury, and Waltham for $5 per girl. Registration is $10 per girl, and includes lunch, a shirt, and a patch.
2. Critter Camp - Girls can meet the furry friends that live at Camp Cedar Hill, make fierce and festive animal crafts, and take action as conservation superstars on Monday, November 11, from 9 AM–4 PM. This is a drop-off event; cost of registration is $50 per girl and includes a patch.
3. Challenge Accepted Overnight - During this exciting overnight experience on November 16–17, girls will gain confidence and learn team-building skills together on the low and high ropes courses at Camp Runels. This is a drop-off event; cost of registration is $60 per girl and includes a patch.
4. Journey Overnight - Seniors and Ambassadors are invited to work together to complete the Sow What (Senior) and Justice (Ambassador) Journeys in an action-filled overnight experience on November 2–3. Girls will explore their “food prints” and learn how everyday actions affect the environment as they prepare the next steps of their Take Action projects. This is a drop-off event; cost of registration is $55 per girl.
5. Journey Overnight - Cadettes are invited to “Think Like an Engineer” with their peers from all over eastern Massachusetts on November 9–10. Girls will complete the “discover” and “connect” steps of this exciting STEM journey, work together to find innovative solutions to engineering challenges, and take the first steps of preparing for their Take Action projects. This is a drop-off event; cost of registration is $35 per girl, and volunteer supervision is required.
6. Girl Scout Day at the MIT Museum - Girls are invited to the MIT Museum on November 2, for a day of hands-on, state-of-the-art engineering. Girls will use modern technologies including computer-aided design and laser cutting to engineer their own boats and take their design ideas to the next level. Cost of registration is $15/girl, and volunteer supervision is required.

Facebook pages & blog

Please invite parents to join this blog and our private Facebook page "Parents and Guardians of North Reading Girl Scouts". We also have a private leader Facebook page "North Reading Girl Scout Leaders". All  have loads of information about upcoming events, interesting GS articles, and a forum for asking any GS-related questions. 

 

Registration

Please make sure that:
1. All your girls are registered before having them attend meetings for the new membership year.
2. All girls sign a new annual permission form for 2020 (found here: https://www.gsema.org/content/dam/girlscouts-girlscoutseasternmass/documents/Annual-Girl-Permission.pdf 
3. Volunteers are registered and CORI’ed (you can check this on your MyGS account on GSEMA.org.
4. All leaders sign their online volunteer agreement (found here: https://form.jotform.com/GirlScoutsEMass/OVA2019-20)   

Caroling Event - Save the date!

Caroling Event - Thank you to Kristen Pemberton & Michele Reyen for organizing our annual caroling event. This will be an after school event on Thursday, December 19th, 4-5pm at Care One, Woburn St, Wilmington. More details will follow in the next week or two.

Fall Product Updates & Reminders

From Denise Kung (our Service Unit Fall Product Coordinator):

October 21 is a big day for the Fall Product Program. It is the deadline for:

-Renewing or registering girls for Fall Product Program participation

-Submitting a Troop Fall Product Coordinator Agreement

-Submitting a Troop Bank Account Form

-Submitting a Recognition Opt-Out Form (extra 5% in proceeds for Junior troops and up!)

October 23 is the last day to enter paper order card sales into Unify. No late orders will be accepted. 

But girls can still sell online (directly to customers through their website) through October 28.

Troop bank account ACH debits will occur a couple of days after the sale ends. Please be sure to have enough money in your account to cover in-person sales.

Don't forget to select your recognitions as well! The recognition levels and options are described on the paper order cards, as well as in Unify.

 

THANK YOU DEBBIE NEARING!!

We would like to express a huge thank you to Debbie Nearing for over 16 years of service to North Reading Girl Scouts. Debbie will continue to serve on a number of boards, and will also be just an email or phone call away should we wish to draw on her wealth of Girl Scout knowledge. Thank you, Debbie!!