Tales From Camp: Activities and Special Visitors

Hi everyone,

Rapunzel here. Welcome to sessions 2 and 3! Our session 2 campers arrived on Monday and session 3 on Wednesday. We have some great programs going on again with awesome activities.

There were a lot of trips outside of Camp Menzies with these sessions. Aqua Explorers went creek stomping at Big Trees and kayaking at Arnold. Dare To Do It went zip lining and wild water rafting! Running Wild went on a hike at Big Trees, and Beads, Jewels and Rhinestones went to a neat bead store in town.

There were also many fun activities happening back at camp. Menzies Mountain Riders and Horse Lovers got to feed the horses, went horseback riding and did a ground lesson. They also made cowgirl hats. Savvy Sleuths created a mystery which involved both C.I.Ts and staff. They also got to do a scavenger hunt. Our nature-loving girls in the Naturalist program went bug hunting and did hot air experiments. And the Menzies Master Chefs were busy helping our kitchen manager Measuring Cup!

Of course all the groups get to visit the nature hut, canoe, swim, do arts ‘n’ crafts, and the older girls also get to do archery. 

Wednesday we had our all camp event, where we had different stations in the meadow where the girls got to get their nails painted and play games. We also had a face painting station. 

When we were all in the meadow the lake got a little visit from some deer! 

Our theme meal followed right after. The dining hall was decorated with blue and white balloons for our #underthesea theme. All the tables had paper and paint and the girls got to be creative during dinnertime.

Last night was closing campfire for session 2 and Game Show Night for session 3. This summer has already been packed with outdoor fun and adventure, and it’s awesome seeing the campers enjoy their moments here at Camp Menzies. It’s been a great week!

Until next time,

Rapunzel 

Internship Insider: It All Begins

Hey blog readers,

SCHOOL IS OUT! I still can’t believe it! We are finally one grade closer to graduation. Before I get ahead of myself and go off on an anecdote about school, let me introduce myself. I am currently a marketing and communications intern at Girl Scouts Heart of Central California. I just finished tenth grade, I've been a Girl Scout for 10 years, and my passions include dance and sports. I have been on competitive dance teams and multiple sport teams. The sports I play include basketball and golf. I know, I know—golf, the most awkward sport on planet Earth. Well I actually think it is fun! Okay, on to the more interesting information: the internship.

This year's internship includes 14 dedicated and hard working Girl Scouts that have all come together to work on projects with the council and make Hear&Now, our Girl Scout teen magazine, a success. We have just finished our first couple weeks of meetings and there is so much to do. Get ready, because we have some amazing articles being created right now. We will be creating a "vintage-themed" magazine, connecting Girl Scout’s past to its present. I am really excited!




Through this blog series, you will be getting first hand experiences of what it's like to be an intern and work on projects for GSHCC. You will be meeting all of the other girls working here with me through our video blogs as well. Spread the word and check back soon.

Your Insider Girl,
Nikita

Tales From Camp: The First Week!

Hi everyone!

This is Rapunzel from Camp Menzies. I am from the Netherlands and one of the international staff here at camp. This summer I’ll be taking a lot of photos at camp and keeping you all updated weekly on the blog. Our first session started on Monday and it has been so much fun! We have a lot of awesome groups: Night Owls, All About Animals, Kickin’ it at Menzies, Comic Artists, Engineers, Space Cadettes, Horse Lovers, Globetrotters, Take Aim, and Star Girls. And our travel group this session left to go to Yosemite on Tuesday.

We’ve also had many great activities happening at camp. On Monday we had a unit campfire and yesterday we had an all-camp campfire. All the counselors got to introduce themselves with funny skits and songs. Stitch and Sunflower were our MCs—they were really funny. At the end of campfire, Bones played her guitar and sang a song.

All the groups participate in activities related to their program. Comic Artists draw cartoons of heroes and villains. Globetrotters were interviewing our international staff for badgework. I also got interviewed. They asked me what I eat in the Netherlands, and that is one of my favorite questions! In the Netherlands, I eat for breakfast and lunch plain white bread with chocolate sprinkles. Whenever I tell people that in America they look at me funny, but it is honestly good. Our sprinkles aren’t really the same as American sprinkles though. :)

Kickin’ it at Menzies played soccer and got to do archery, and a lot of the campers hit the bull’s-eyes. 

The Star Girls had a tea party with the Space Cadettes! It was really fun. The Engineers made bridges out of lollipop sticks and cars out of basic materials. In the afternoon they tested the bridges to see which one was the strongest, and after putting all their materials on the bridges two still survived. They also raced the cars!

Last night was our All Camp Event.  This session the Camper Council decided on a nature-scavengerhunt-carnival@menzies #extravaganza. Awesome, right? It has been great so far and the fun is not over yet.

Until next time,

Rapunzel

Event Spotlight: G.L.O.W.

GSHCC's first annual Girls Leading Our Way (G.L.O.W.) Conference was a great success! G.L.O.W. was designed to bring older Girl Scouts together and give them resources to enhance their leadership skills. On Saturday, May 31, 2014, a total of 46 Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador Girl Scouts participated in workshops and discussions where they learned valuable info, such as how to boost public speaking skills and prepare for college, to what it takes to succeed. In the evening, all of the girls came together to bond, have fun and reflect on the day.

G.L.O.W.  was an amazing experience that Girl Scouts Heart of Central California was proud to host. If you missed the conference this year, be on the lookout for G.L.O.W next year!  

Girl Scout Award Highlights

Girl Scout Silver Award Ceremony, Girls Who Inspire Award Ceremony, bridging ceremonies, and Court of Awards—there are SO many Girl Scout accomplishments to celebrate this time of year. And we couldn't be more proud! Here are a few highlights...

This pic collage is from a recent Court of Awards Ceremony. The girls worked so hard during the cookie season and reached their cookie goal, so they wrote a letter to What's the Scoop? Ice Cream sharing their story and the Sacramento hop donated ice cream for their party.

The Girl Scout Silver Award Ceremony was held on June 7 at the Sacramento Convention Center. This year, 190 girls from GSHCC received their Silver Award... amazing!

On June 8, we held the Girls Who Inspire Award Ceremony at Crest Theatre, honoring girls who received the highest awards in Girl Scouting. This year, 52 girls received their Girl Scout Gold Award, 14 received their GSHCC Rose Award, and 20 girls received their Bridge to Girl Scout Adult Award. Great job, Girl Scouts!











Congratulations to all Girl Scouts who received an award or celebrated an accomplishment this year! And a big thank you to all the volunteers, advisers and parents who supported their Girl Scout and her journey.

BIG Day of Giving on May 6, 2014

On May 6 we are trying something NEW: Girl Scouts Heart of Central California is participating in an online crowdfunding campaign for Sacramento Region called the BIG Day of Giving (#givebigdog), which aims to inspire and unite the community in supporting hundreds of local nonprofits (nearly 400!).

For 24 hours, you will have the opportunity to give where your heart is. Starting at midnight on Tuesday, May 6, 2014, online donations to GSHCC will be accepted through this link: http://givelocalnow.org/girlscouts. One of the best parts? There’s an incentive to BOOST all donations! Thanks to awesome community foundations and businesses, every donation will receive a prorated match from a pool of matching funds.

GSHCC’s BIG goal: 

Our #givebigdog goal is to receive 102 individual donations on May 6—a donation for each of the 102 years that Girl Scouts has been building girls of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place.

YOU can help! Here’s how:

• Give: Please consider making a donation to GSHCC. Programs for girls receive only 6% of philanthropic dollars in the U.S. By donating to GSHCC—the premier leadership development organization for girls—you’re helping to empower girls to develop their full potential… which in return will help create a brighter future for all of us. And with the matching incentive, your donation will go even further on May 6.

• Share: Our social networks will be active with #givebigdog content between now and throughout the BIG day. Please share the content with your friends, family and personal networks to help get the word out! If you don’t already follow us on Facebook and Twitter, please do so:
• GSHCC Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GSHCC
• GSHCC Twitter: https://twitter.com/GirlScoutsHCC

Thank you for your continued support of Girl Scouts! For more information on #givebigdog, visit givelocalnow.org or email funddev@girlscoutshcc.org.

Two New Cookie Incentives!

GSHCC's 2014 Girl Scout Cookie Program is off to a great start... and it just got sweeter. We're excited to announce two new incentives are being offered: one for #cookiebosses and the other for service units.

Exclusive incentive for cookie bosses: Girl Scouts who sell 1200+ packages of cookies will now receive a V.I.P. Cookie Boss Overnight!

Sweet incentive for service units: The top five service units that boost cookie sales over their 5% goal will be awarded a custom patch made especially for them.

Here's to a great cookie season!

What's your cookie goal this year? Which recognitions are you most excited about?