Girl Scouts Heart of the South: The Promise - Fall/Winter 2015

Volume 1

No. 2

Fall/Winter 2015

GSHS Launches CEI Meet the CEI Team!

2015 Girl Scout

Gold Awards Record Number of GSHS Girls Earn the Highest Award in Girl Scouting in 2015

Celebrate National Stand Beside Her Week October 25-31, 2015

The Official Publication of Girl Scouts Heart of the South

Incredibll PPzz Lovee Girr Scoutt!

The Girl Scout Promise On my honor, I will try: to serve God and my country, to help people at all times, and to live by the Girl Scout Law. Girl Scouts Heart of the South Promise Magazine Team Chief Executive Officer Melanie Schild Editor, Senior Art Director Alison Coons Associate Editor, Art Director Kristen Posey-Russell Contributing Editors Kimberly Crafton Lori Gilmore Jenny Jones Advertising Sales Representatives Lori Gilmore, Greater Memphis Area Jenny Jones, North Mississippi & West Tennessee

P.O. Box 240246 | Memphis, TN 38124-0246 | (800) 624-4185 www.girlscoutshs.org 2015-2016 GSHS Board of Directors

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ann receivv Free patcc RESERVE YOUR

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901-462-0024 memphisg memphisgroups@incrediblepizza.com www.MemphisIncrediblePizza.com

Kathleen Webb, Chair Dr. Pamela Evans, 1st Vice Chair Lori Patton, 2nd Vice Chair Claire Barnett, Secretary David Vance, Property Chair Nancy Cochran, Treasurer/Finance Chair Ahsaki Baptist Karen Bowyer Cathy Fitzpatrick Deborah Harris R. Brian Lowery Pat Moody Adrienne R. Morris

Mary Kay Runyan Jenniffer Stephenson Laurie M. Thornton Rev. Cheryl Penson Vicki Sneed Melanie Schild

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The Girl Scout Mission Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place.

GSHS Sr. Director of Community Engagement and Marketing Jenny Jones and National JA President Amanda Knauer are excited about the new partnership between GSHS and the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries, Inc. Turn to page 15 to learn more about this great new endeavor guaranteed to give our girls more opportunities to build courage, confidence, and character and make the world a better place!

the Promise | CONTENTS

Fall/Winter 2015

perfect Partners

program Profiles

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National Stand Beside Her Week

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2014-2015 Girl Scout Gold Award Recipients Record number of GSHS girls earned their Girl Scout Gold Award in 2015 Chosen to Pilot 31 GSHS “Engineer Your Journey” Program

council Cares Launches CEI 16 GSHS New Customer Engagement Initiative makes working with the council easy and fun!

27 GSHS Hosts MPLOY Youth Interns 34 Making the Case for Girl Scouts On the Cover: 2015 Girl Scout Gold Award Recipient Alexandra Cornell of Shelby South Service Unit Troop 10186. Learn more about Alexandra and our other Girl Scout Gold Award Recipients on page 10.

and National Association 14 GSHS of Junior Auxiliaries Forge New Partnership

Partnership Continues 25 Exciting with Kappa Delta Sorority

20 troop Tales iss n’t m o d d an ur fun o side” “flip

The Official Publication of Girl Scouts Heart of the South

Want to see your troop featured in a future edition of the Promise? Get creative! Send a picture of your group making the Girl Scout Promise to news@girlscoutshs.org. See page 26 for guidelines.

council Cares

Girl Scouts Heart of the South Proudly Stands Beside Girls and Women Everywhere

o

Thoughts from our GSHS Council CEO

n a car ride home with my daughter and her friend, I overheard them talking about a class election where a girl and a boy were both running for president. The boy won, and my daughter and her friend commented on how some of the girls in the class didn’t vote for the girl simply because they didn’t want her to be president and not them.

I sat there and thought back to how many times in my life, personally and professionally, I had seen the same situation where women did not support other women, seeing them instead as competition. How many missed opportunities, ideas squashed, futures deterred have there been due to a lack of encouragement and support from a fellow female?

The Girl Scout Law I will do my best to be honest and fair, friendly and helpful, considerate and caring, courageous and strong, and responsible for what I say and do, and to respect myself and others, respect authority, use resources wisely, make the world

Thus the National Stand Beside Her Movement (www.standbesideher.org) was formed. What if instead of competition and comparison, we collaborate and support one another? Isn’t that what Girl Scouts is all about? Last year, GSHS rallied Girl Scout councils from across the country, along with the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries, Inc., to encourage women and girls to band together and support one another, and we are thrilled to say that even more councils and Junior Auxiliary Chapters have signed on to help us celebrate National Stand Beside Her Week this year! Visit the National Stand Beside Her website at www.standbesideher.org to find out how YOU can get involved!

And there are so many ways you can get and stay involved at Girl Scouts Heart of the South! Be sure to check our activities calendar (www.girlscoutshs.org/calendar) regularly as new programs and events are being added all the time!

As you and your troop start to plan your year, don’t forget to talk to your Service Unit Community Relations Coordinator to find out about getting local PR for your events and service projects. Also send pictures and stories to the council (news@girlscoutshs.org) for inclusion here in the Promise or our other digital and print publications. Girls gain a sense of pride and their confidence grows exponentially when they see their name in print! Your efforts on the local level go a long way to promote Girl Scout pride and awareness council-wide. Remember, recruitment is year-round! We are always looking to reach and connect with girls, so share your Girl Scout experiences and help show the world just how amazing Girl Scouts really is!

I am also grateful for your support of our new CEI business model. This new structure and the digital tools that go with it provide help and flexibility to volunteers and make all of our processes easier and more fun for everyone involved!

to every

In closing, thank you to all of our parents for supporting the mission of Girl Scouts and for sharing your amazing girls with us! Thank you to all of our volunteers for your tireless dedication to helping Girl Scouts build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place. We are working together to change the world of tomorrow by empowering girls today. Thank you for everything you do!

Girl Scout.

All my best,

a better place, and be a sister

MELANIE SCHILD | Chief Executive Officer Girl Scouts Heart of the South melanie.schild@girlscoutshs.org 4

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The Girl Scout

Gold Award Since 1916, Girl Scouts have been making meaningful, sustainable change in their communities and around the world. The Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor a Girl Scout can earn, acknowledges the power behind each recipient’s dedication to not only empowering and bettering herself, but also to making the world a better place for others.

To achieve the Girl Scout Gold Award, girls must plan and execute sustainable Take Action projects in response to pressing community needs. This year, Girl Scouts Heart of the South was pleased to present the Girl Scout Gold Award to a record 39 recipients. Enjoy meeting our 2015 Girl Scout Gold Award winners and reading about their inspiring projects. These young women are courageous leaders and visionary change makers.

They are our future, and it looks bright!

Girl Scouts Heart of the South Proudly Presents our

2014-2015 Girl Scout Gold Awardees The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest achievement in Girl Scouting. While earning the Girl Scout Gold Award, girls create their own personalized leadership journey through self improvement, leadership development, career development, and by improving their communities through service. Earning the Girl Scout Gold Award is a major accomplishment in a girl’s life and is a culmination of all that a girl has learned in Girl Scouting.

Representing several years of exhaustive but passionate work, the value of the Girl Scout Gold Award and what it signifies is recognized nationwide. Gold Award Recipients’ dedication and determination is acknowledged and valued by many universities and colleges that offer scholarships unique to award recipients. Girl Scouts Heart of the South was proud to honor many of this year’s recipients and present them with their Girl Scout Gold Award pins, scholarship offers, and numerous other recognitions at a special reception following our Annual Meeting on April 25, 2015. Girl Scouts Heart of the South is proud of all our Girl Scout Gold Award winners, and we hope that these outstanding young women and their exciting projects will inspire more girls to take action and Go Gold! in 2016!

Amethyst Adams Monarch Butterflies: Milkweed and Migration

Anna Bennett “A.G.E” Anna’s Garden for the Elderly

Alexandra Cornell Don’t Text your Life Away

Amethyst wanted to tackle the large environmental issue facing Monarch Butterflies around the world of threatened migration due to failing ecosystems and loss of habitat. She partnered with Lindenwood Christian Church, Wolf River Conservancy, Butterflies of Memphis, Lichterman Nature Center, and Rose Franklin’s Perennials to develop a recovery plan to help restore milkweed habitats for Monarch Butterflies migrating through Memphis, TN. Amethyst planted over 160 seeds in two separate locations and conducted two educational workshops for the community touching on the importance of sustaining Monarch habitats. Amethyst also created program kits for local troops to use.

Anna’s project, AGE (Anna’s Garden for the Elderly), was created to help the elderly feel independent while encouraging them to accomplish a new project. Anna partnered with Camellia Hospice and Future Farmers of America to assist senior citizens in building their own personal window box flower gardens. Anna also created a “how-to” garden care book for each resident to keep in their rooms. Anna’s project helped to create a sense of independence and accomplishment within the community. Anna hopes her project will inspire others to volunteer at Camellia Hospice and encourage more involvement from residents.

Alexandra’s project, Don’t Text Your Life Away, was designed to target drivers age 15 - 18, as well as other community members, to promote awareness about the importance of not texting and driving. After facing a near death experience while a friend was texting and driving, Alexandra felt the call to educate her peers about its dangers.

To do this, Alexandra created a blog and presentation to get the word out.

In her presentation Alexandra offered real scenarios, jaw dropping facts, and interactive videos. After her presentation many participants admitted to texting in the past. Alexandra had all participants partake in an anti-texting and driving promise to not continue. Alexandra hopes her blog has a global reach and inspires other young people to start a movement against texting and driving.

above left: GSHS CEO Melanie Schild presents Elisa Russell with the Girl Scout Gold Award at the 2015 GSHS Gold Award Reception on April 25

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Raven Harmon Be F.A.B. (Fighting Against Bullying)

Laura Horn Immunization Importance

Adrianna Jackson Playing it Safe

Bullying has become a big issue for many kids in school and can lead to harmful actions by the victims. Raven wanted to combat this issue by holding a seminar about bullying at Willow Oaks Elementary School in hopes that by educating very young children about the dangers of bullying, fewer children will grow up to be bullies themselves. She began by asking all the students to define “bully” then had a Memphis Police Department representative speak to the students about the risks caused by bullying.

After the presentation, Raven had the students to take a pledge to be FAB! The signed pledge is now on display to inspire and encourage others to be FAB too!

Laura’s Gold Award project targeted senior citizens and educated them on the importance of immunizations. Her goal was to increase knowledge of the importance of the need for specific immunizations such as flu, pneumonia, and shingles - especially as they pertain to senior citizens. Laura’s goal was to shorten the senior’s sick time and improve his or her quality of life. To help her accomplish her goal, she created a pamphlet and used that to inform her target audience of the importance of immunizations. Because of Laura’s project, over 40 of the 60 senior citizens she reached made the decision to get a new immunization.

Adrianna noticed that the Booneville City Park church league teams were not prepared to address injury prevention and proper first aid. To assist with this need, Adrianna developed “Playing it Safe,” an accident preparedness and injury prevention day for coaches and athletes using the city park. She partnered with Booneville City Park, American Red Cross, and Rural Metro Ambulance Service. During the event, participants learned about AED locations, first aid techniques, and the importance of sun block, pre-game stretching, and proper hydration. Most all of the participants reported an overall increased awareness of sports safety.

Ariel Lawrence Painting to Change the Future

Emily Marshall Free Mini Library Box

Kayla Moore Brain Injury Awareness Walk

Ariel’s project targeted the children of Tupelo’s Life Church. She felt that when her church relocated to the Children’s Mansion campus, the Sunday school classrooms were no longer inviting; leaving children hesitant and unwilling to attend Sunday school or church youth programs. In response to this need, Ariel researched items, colors, and activities that would create a more inviting atmosphere and worked to remodel the classrooms. As a result of her efforts, 75% of Sunday school students reported that they were happy with the change.

Attendance and approval of the Sunday school program has risen thanks to Ariel’s project .

Emily’s project, Free Mini Library Box, is located on the Tanglefoot Trail in Pontotoc, MS. The objective of her mini library is to offer different types of books for all ages to increase awareness of the importance of reading, improve literacy rates in the Pontotoc community, and provide a free alternative for readers in the area. Emily built this mini library box by hand and collected all of the donated books to go inside. The library allows anyone to exchange books from this box for free - without a library card. The mini library is now a permanent fixture on the Tanglefoot Trail and will serve the Pontotoc community for years to come.

Kayla’s project was designed to bring awareness to brain trauma caused by sports injuries, violence, vehicle-related collisions, and falls. After a close friend was affected by a traumatic brain injury, Kayla felt that by educating the community, she could help prevent accidents like this from happening again.

She hosted a Brain Injury Awareness Walk and created awareness in her community by passing out pamphlets and hanging up posters. After attending Kayla’s workshop, all participants surveyed reported that they are not only more confident in their abilities to recognize brain injuries but they could also now identify all three signs of a concussion.

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Janai Patterson Hoop Dreams

Briana Phillips Homework Helper

Breuna Phillips Buckle Up, Every Trip, Every Time

After noticing a lack of affordable, lowcost athletic programs in her community and a rise in childhood obesity, Janai decided to take her love for basketball and start a youth basketball camp.

Janai’s goal with her project was to offer a free basketball skills camp to kids in her community who could not otherwise afford to attend a sports camp. As a result, she was able to serve over 30 kids in need. Janai hopes to inspire others in her community to start offering free or low-cost programs to youth in an effort to get more young people being active and having fun!

After seeing some of her classmates fail to seek extra homework help, Briana was inspired and created her own homework help program for students in her community. Homework Helper provides free after-school tutoring, study, and work habit training for children in the 1st-8th grade. Briana partnered with the Education Ministry at Brown Church and recruited volunteers with subject specific knowledge areas for specialized tutoring. Brown Baptist Church plans on continuing the program Wednesday nights as a part of the Education Ministry.

According to the CDC, non-fatal crash injuries resulted in more than $50 billion in lifetime medical and work-loss costs in 2012. Motor vehicle crashes are also the leading cause of death among teens in the United States. Partnering with Brown Baptist Church and the DeSoto County Police Department, Breuna Phillips hosted a seatbelt safety and awareness workshop for her community.

Community members who attended the workshop learned about the importance of wearing a seatbelt and took a safety pledge. Breuna hopes through the continuation of her project by the Brown Baptist Health Ministry, the community will be a safer place for everyone.

Nathalie Prior The Monarch Butterfly Project

Starla Rogers Helping Hand

Natalie Runyon Walk Across Columbus

Nathalie’s project, The Monarch Butterfly Project, was designed to increase awareness of the importance of maintaining Monarch habitats and to encourage local gardeners to plant native plants, including milkweed, for a healthier ecosystem. She partnered with the Wolf River Conservatory, Strawberry Plains Audubon Center, Shelby Farms Park, and Riverdale Elementary. Nathalie created a new butterfly habitat at the Wolf River Restoration site, classroom resources for teachers, and coordinated the replacement of Strawberry Audubon Center’s plants with more native perennials. As a result, field trips to the gardens have increased and teachers at Riverdale are using her materials in their day to day lesson plans.

Having been stranded on the side of the road herself due to a flat tire, Starla thought it would be helpful to teach teenagers and others how to change a tire. That way, everyone would feel empowered and know how to handle the situation themselves and not have to depend on strangers - which is often unpredictable and never ideal in any situation. Starla created a video and a brochure on how to change a tire. In partnership with the driver’s education class and the schools, she presented the video and handed out the brochures. In addition, she put the video on YouTube and the community website in hopes that others might be more prepared for the road.

A resident of Columbus, MS, Natalie has enjoyed learning about the history of her community, especially the historic homes. She wanted other community members to be able to see these historic, aging homes and learn about Columbus’ history including their community’s relevance to the Civil War. Working with Columbus Public Library, Local Historian Rufus Ward, and Columbus Arts Council, Natalie developed materials to guide an historical tour to share the community’s rich history in an enjoyable way. The Columbus Arts Council and Arts Center committed to sustaining her project and are offering the tour and the walking tour pamphlet year round.

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Elisa Russell The Beauty of Flight

Avery Shappley Heart Start

NaKia Strickland Girls to Women Health Fair

When elderly people go to live in assisted living facilities or somewhere similar, they can become lonely, and possibly depressed by not having as much social interaction or things to do during the day. Elisa realized this and created a project to benefit these men and women. To engage the residents, Elisa built 30 birdhouses and hung them in trees around the facility. In addition, she created bird identification cards so residents could not only watch the birds but learn about them, too. Elisa received positive feedback from several of the employees and the residents were happy to see this project and the people who made it possible.

70% of Americans may feel helpless to act during a cardiac emergency because they either do not know how to administer CPR or their training has lapsed. Avery wanted to tackle this issue in her community after CPR saved her life in a sudden cardiac arrest emergency.

She became a community CPR advocate in hopes that her target audience would walk away with a sense of urgency to become CPR certified. Avery spoke at various civic organizations, and through her great community involvement, Avery became the poster child for Bill No. 432, a law requiring all future high school students to learn CPR. This bill became a law July 1, 2014.

NaKia’s project, Girls to Women Health Fair, targeted girls ages 6 and up with information about health and beauty.

NaKia felt that a majority of women are not only unaware of their food intake but also do not pay enough attention to their overall health. She partnered with the Essence Ladies Club, Alzheimers Association, Health Department, Mary Kay, Breast Cancer Awareness, and many other organizations to provide a free health fair for the women and girls in her community. Participants surveyed stated they were planning not only to get health screenings but that they also learned a lot of new information about the importance of health.

Pictures were not available for the following 2015 GSHS Girl Scout Gold Award Recipients:

Shelby Adair The Children’s Place

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Katherine Tackitt Clean It Up Kids Day

Zoe Thornton Moving Motor Skills

Katherine’s project, Clean it up Kids Day, was designed to increase awareness in children of the importance of taking care of the environment. Katherine noticed that not only did local children not respect the environment, they didn’t know how to take advantage of its resources. Katherine partnered with Master Gardeners of Mississippi, 4H, and the Exypnos Christian Learning Center to teach students about agriculture and gardening all while cleaning up the school grounds. After the program was finished not only were the campus grounds revitalized but the students had a newfound respect for the environment and the skills they needed to grow their very own gardens.

Zoe Thornton partnered with Anchor Club and Booneville High School Special Education Program to create a motor skills workshop for special needs students at Booneville High School. Zoe chose different holiday themed crafts specifically designed to fine tune motor skills and worked with the special needs students over the course of a month.

At the end of the program, not only did the students have holiday crafts to bring home to their parents, but the special education teachers reported an improvement in their students projects the following month. Zoe created a motor skills workshop guide so that any student at Booneville High wishing to host their own program could.

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Shelby’s project, The Children’s Place, was designed to create more safe spaces for the children in her church and community to play. She set out to beautify/childproof the nursery at her church with new rubber flooring, beautiful artwork on the walls, and less rigid corners on countertops. Before the installation of the new floor, the church nursery saw 2 to 5 floor-related injuries per week. Since the installation, no floor-related injuries have been reported. Shelby hopes the nursery’s improvements will attract more participants to the nursery program and inspire others to take action in their communities.

Amber Baldwin New Life to New Prospect Amber noticed that a local cemetery was in bad shape. It was overgrown and did not have a place where families could sit and visit with loved ones. With help, she cleaned up the trash and installed a new

GSHS Gold Award Winners are recognized at the 2015 Gold Award Reception, April 25, 2015

sitting area with a stone bench, flowers and gravel, so the rain would not affect the area. She also worked with New Prospect Church to develop a plan to take care of the cemetery in the future.

She hopes through working with others and presenting to her troop that other girls will be inspired to help make their community beautiful and comfort those who have lost a loved one.

Brooke Ann Benson A Place in the Sun Small traditional downtowns all across the country are being abandoned due to big box stores moving in and taking over. Brooke Ann hoped to increase the activity in downtown Ripley by renovating the (then empty) First United Methodist Church grass lot to encourage traffic and commerce in the area. Brooke Ann partnered with Benson Home Supply, Stokes Construction, Ripley United Methodist Church, and various master gardeners to turn the empty grass lot into a garden complete with a gazebo.

Now the gazebo garden is enjoyed by all members of the Ripley community and has been incorporated into the preexisting downtown events.

Catherine Buffington UNITY In 2014, Oktibbeha County and Starkville City schools were merged; as a result, the newly grouped students hardly knew each other. It was Catherine’s goal to form new friendships between the students and create lasting relationships during this uncomfortable time, and what better way than to connect students through service?

Catherine created the student program UNITY so all students within the Starkville community can participate in community service projects together and bridge the gap in the newly unified Starkville School District. Since its inception, the new friends in UNITY have completed over 30 service projects in the Starkville area.

Ansley Burns P.A.W.S. (Pet Awareness We Serve) For her project, PAWS (Pet Awareness We Serve), Ansley organized a community awareness day complete with pet show, donation drive, and guest speaker to help more animals be adopted and the local animal shelter get the supplies it needed. Ansley used social media, newspapers, radio stations, project boards, national boards, and linked the ASPCA to her project to get the word out about the importance of pet adoption. As a result of her project, the Corinth Animal Shelter reported an increase in adoptions for the month of March and Mayor Tommy Irwin proclaimed Saturday, March 7th Pet Awareness Day in Corinth.

Faith Bullock Operation Blue Bird With the increased use of ecosystem damaging pesticides, Faith Bullock noticed a decrease in the surrounding blue bird and other bird populations.

Not only did they have nothing to eat but they did not have enough safe places to live. Faith set out to tackle not only the problem of the lack of bird-friendly habitats in her community but also the insect infestations - in a natural way.

Faith worked with the National Audubon Society to plant flowers, bushes, and shrubs in the area of the bird houses that naturally ward off insects. Faith also designed, constructed, painted, and installed over 30 bird houses in her community.

Mallory Chapman Because They Are Worth It! Mallory noticed the number of students in her area who did not have the proper skills to be ready for kindergarten. In response, she partnered with a local Head Start program to help the teachers learn more about phonemic awareness, one of the main skills the children needed to succeed. Using a book she learned about, Mallory built phonemic

awareness kits for each teacher to use in his or her classroom. The director then trained the teachers on how to use the kits. She also prepared information to be given to parents, so they could do some simple things at home to improve their children’s skills. The kits will remain in the teacher’s classrooms for future use.

Emily Coggins The Birthday Club Emily’s project provided birthday parties for the youth at the Methodist Children’s Home in Jackson, MS, a licensed therapeutic facility that serves youth with psychological or behavioral issues keeping them in state custody. Many of the children come from backgrounds of abuse, neglect, and sometimes criminal behavior. Emily wanted to address the low self-esteem and satisfaction with life faced by these young people. Emily organized her youth group, Girl Scout troop, and church to raise funds and supplies to provide a personalized “party in a box” for each child at the children’s home on their birthday to help them feel valued and important.

Mikayla Correll Eating Right to be Healthy for Life Mikayla’s project focused on the issue of healthy eating and obesity. She felt that there was not enough emphasis put on healthy and appropriate ways to maintain a well-rounded, nutritional diet and that more education was needed. Mikayla created a webpage and pamphlet to advocate for ways to have a healthy diet and address the potential dangers of preservatives, artificial ingredients, and additives that can lessen the benefits of a seemingly healthy diet. The pamphlet was distributed to several places in her community. She launched the webpage with a presentation at her school in front of about thirty peers. Students who attended her presentation have shared her webpage with others to spread awareness about eating healthy.

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Rachel Dees The Helping Paw Rachel’s project, The Helping Paw, targeted therapy dogs and their handlers by creating a dog therapy team for her local community. Therapy dogs are in high demand and her community did not have a therapy dog team before her project. To promote this team and her project, Rachel visited many clubs, nursing homes, and teachers to talk about the need for service dogs in the community. Rachel had her family dog, Willy, become certified as a member of the therapy team. Rachel and Willy even spent time with an autistic child who had been attacked by his own service dog.

Happily, after many visits with Rachel and Willy he is no longer afraid of dogs.

Ashley Flowers Clear Air for Iuka Ashley’s project, Clear Air for Iuka, was created to make Mineral Springs Park in Iuka, MS smoke-free. Ashley wanted to educate the local city officials about the importance of clean air as well as kids at the local Boys & Girls Club about the dangers of smoking. To complete her project, Ashley set up a booth at the Heritage Day Festival and handed out awareness brochures that she had created around the community. Ashley also personally spoke with the Board of Alderman about her cause. As a result of her hard work, not only did Mineral Springs Park become smoke-free, all of Iuka, MS is now smoke-free as well!

Alice Gleadhill St. Michael’s Miracle After visiting a rundown local park, Alice saw the potential in the St. Michael’s community for a safe and inviting school play area. Alice cleaned up the park, added a sitting area, and revitalized the old, broken playground equipment at both the St. Michael’s Elementary and Middle schools. Since Alice’s project, the park’s visitors have vastly increased.

Alice hopes her project inspires the St. Michael’s community to get outdoors and play!

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Victoria Hurt Music Library Electronic Cataloging

Kimberly Michael American Pride

An active member of the Collierville band, Victoria wanted to address the lack of organization in the music department’s library. Sheet music pieces would often go missing, forcing the band to use the valuable resources from their fundraising campaigns to purchase additional copies. Victoria developed a music cataloging system for the band to use. Using an Excel spreadsheet, music librarians are now able to check pieces in and out for students and keep tracking of the entire catalog with one simple sheet. In addition to developing the system, Victoria personally entered 868 music pieces into the new system and reorganized the library for the band.

Kimberly’s project, American Pride, was created to restore respect of the American Flag and patriotism particularly within youth culture.

Kimberly held a workshop for the community to teach them about proper flag retirement and American history.

At the beginning of her workshop, a majority of the participants didn’t have a flag at their homes, did not know the meaning of the stripes, or the meaning of the 13 folds. When Kimberly finished her workshop, 98% of the participants not only could recall the history but now knew how to properly retire a flag.

Kimberly concluded her day with a celebration of her community veterans.

Meg Lambert Ready in a Heart Beat

Sydney Savage Let’s Sit and Visit

Meg was well aware of the importance of being CPR/AED certified but realized that most of her peers weren’t given the opportunity to learn the skills. Meg set out to start Ready in a Heart Beat, a CPR/AED class specifically for 14-18 year olds in Tippah County. Meg partnered with EMS Director and Paramedic Shelly Garrett to host a CPR/AED training class at Tippah County Hospital. Through her efforts, Meg’s workshop was able to serve 17 people. Meg hopes the publicity of the workshop will help inspire others in her community to get CPR/AED certified and potentially save a life one day!

Sydney’s church built a great playground last summer but left out one crucial element, a place for parents to sit!

This new playground had no picnic tables or benches. Sydney noticed that the playground, in the center of her community, was hardly being used. In response, Sydney made major repairs to the park and constructed a massive 6-sided picnic table - complete with umbrellas - to seat 14 adults. Sydney noticed an immediate increase in traffic once her project was completed.

Now the park is enjoyed by parents, teenagers, and college students alike!

Adreanna M. Michael Anna’s Vision

Tetra Tyes Dressing for the Grade

Adreanna set out to address the chronic hunger problems resulting from the high unemployment rate in her community.

Rather than conducting a simple food drive, Adreanna made the connection between economic struggle and unhealthy eating habits and partnered with Biggersville First Baptist Church and Baptist Hospital to address nutritional issues in her community. She created a workshop for community members that addressed budgeting, nutritional education, and meal planning. 96% of participants said they would now use a budget, and 99% of participants said they would share the knowledge with others. Adreanna’s troop and church has agreed to continue to hosting the workshop four times a year!

After speaking with a close friend who had left home and was trying to get a job, Tetra decided to tackle professional attire for homeless and underprivileged teenagers. More often than not, teenagers in her community must work to contribute to the household. Many lacked the appropriate professional work outfits and social skills necessary to have a successful job interview. Tetra partnered with the Little Zion Missionary Baptist Church to set up a sustainable closet for teens that needed access to professional attire for interviews. Tetra also assisted patrons of the closet with interview practice.

Alissa Ann Williams Live Long & Live Strong: REJECT Tobacco

Open to girls in high school, this prestigious award challenges you to change the world—or at least your corner of it, and be eligible for college scholarships at the same time.

By the time you put the final touches on your seven-step Take Action project, you’ll have solved a community problem—not only in the short term, but for years to come, Join us at one of the upcoming trainings to learn about the requirements, necessary paper work, timing of your projects, and deadlines.

Training is MANDATORY for any girl who wishes to pursue earning the Girl Scout Gold Award.

This year, Girl Scouts Heart of the South was honored to send council representatives to many local Court of Awards ceremonies to personally recognize the efforts of our volunteers, and to let them know just how much they mean to us and to our girls. To all our volunteers -thank you.

Do you long to make a difference in a young girl’s life? If so, I encourage you to join us in the exciting future that is Girl Scouts Heart of the South! Not able to volunteer? You can still help Girl Scouts Heart of the South fulfill our mission to build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place by “Investing in Girls.”

With your help, we can continue to provide these experiences of a lifetime to so many more girls in our area.

Investing in Girls is simple, just visit us online at www.girlscoutshs.org/donate or return the enclosed envelope with your donation. We truly appreciate your support.

And in addition to the satisfaction of knowing that your contribution is making a difference in the life of a local girl, GSHS will send you our lively “Proud Supporter” window cling so you can show everyone just how much Girl Scouts means to you!

Invest in Girls. Change the World

Thanks and best wishes,

gsh

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KATHLEEN WEBB | 2014-2015 Board Chair Girl Scouts Heart of the South www.kathywebblaw.com

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If you would like more information on how you can volunteer or how you can help financially, please call Girl Scouts Heart of the South at (800) 624-4185.

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Visit our website to learn more about how you can Go Gold!

We can’t wait to feature you and your inspiring project in an upcoming issue of the Promise.

As both a parent and as Girl Scout volunteer, I have spent my life working to help girls share in the benefits of Girl Scouting. I can only hope that I have, in some small way, impacted a young girl’s life in the same meaningful way that I know our Girl Scout Gold Award recipients’ leaders have impacted theirs. There is nothing like the feeling of knowing that you have helped a young woman experience new things and give her opportunities to become her best self. That’s what Girl Scout volunteers do each and every day.

GIRL SC

At the training, you will learn about the proposal submission process for your Take Action project, the cornerstone of your Girl Scout Gold Award journey. Girl Scouts Heart of the South’s Girl Scout Gold Award project proposals are reviewed and approved

by GSHS board members together with a committee of other local female leaders who see the benefit and value that the Gold Award adds to a girl’s life.

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n behalf of the Girl Scouts Heart of the South Board, I want everyone to know how proud we are of these amazing girls! The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest achievement a girl can receive in Girl Scouting. It takes amazing courage, exceptional confidence, and stellar character to earn this prestigious award.

These young women are the embodiment of Girl Scouts’ mission, and I could not be more proud of them and of our organization.

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GSHS is ready to help you Go Gold!

A Message from our GSHS Board Chair

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Alissa partnered with the Lighthouse Foundation, Alcorn County Schools, and the Mississippi Tobacco Free Coalition to bring an after school tobacco prevention program to her community. Her project targeted school-aged students with little to no access to anti-tobacco educational resources in hopes that students would make the educated decision to say, “NO!” to smoking and encourage their peers to do the same.

After the completion of her project, Alissa became an advocate for the antitobacco movement, sharing her project at the iFly Conference, MTFC Education, and the LEAD Conference.

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http://www.girlscoutshs.org/goldaward GIRL SCOUTS HEART OF THE SOUTH

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perfect Partners

Kappa Delta Continues Program Opportunities for Girl Scouts

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ince 1998, Kappa Delta Sorority has partnered with Girl Scouts to offer programs, interest groups and exposure to college campus life. Girl Scouts Heart of the South partners with Kappa Delta Chapters throughout the 59-county area and girls are reaping the benefits through learning and fun!

Kappa Deltas at Mississippi State University offered a Teddy Bear Tea for International Girls Day (pictured above right).

Girls created ornaments, played games and decorated the KD Christmas Tree. They also hosted an “I Can Be Anything” event where girls learned about many different careers. Older girls were treated to “Get Ready, Get Set, Go State” where they learned about campus life at MSU, had an exciting scavenger hunt, and painted their own cowbell.

At Delta State University, Kappa Deltas presented a “Holiday Paint Party” where girls enjoyed a festive evening with face painting (pictured middle right). They also painted a huge community Christmas tree mural to represent friendship. In February, the Chapter hosted “DSU Loves GS” where girls were able to send heartfelt letters to people they care about.

At the University of Mississippi, Kappa Deltas opened the world of art for girls during the “Artrageous” event. Older girls also enjoyed “Kickin’ It on Campus” where they learned about the campus’ history and all the university has to offer through an afternoon of competitive games.

Kappa Deltas at the University of Memphis hosted the “Daisy Fall Festival” where girls learned about confidence and made candy apples (pictured middle left) and participated in activities celebrating International Girls Day. Kappa Deltas at Union University and Rhodes College also presented programs for International Girls Day complete with events focusing on Healthy Self Esteem with activities from Dove’s Free Being Me curriculum and a fun “Spa Science” event where girls learned about the science of beauty products, made lip gloss, made facials and received manicures. What a treat! Kappa Deltas at Rhodes also hosted a “Making Friends Tea” for Brownies where girls earned the Making Friends Badge and enjoyed afternoon tea (pictured bottom right).

In 2014-15, over 600 girls in our council participated in Kappa Delta-sponsored programs and GSHS is looking forward to another great year of programs like “Fit for Life” at Union University on October 18th! To find out more about upcoming Kappa Delta partnership programs, check out our website at www.girlscoutshs.org/calendar.

For more information on our partnership with Kappa Delta or information about Kappa Delta-sponsored programs, contact Rebecca Day at rebecca.day@girlscoutshs.org or 901-334-3445.

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GSHS-Area Kappa Delta Chapters Alpha Mu Chapter of Kappa Delta University of Mississippi (Ole Miss); Oxford, MS Delta Omega Chapter of Kappa Delta Mississippi State University; Starkville, MS Gamma Psi Chapter of Kappa Delta Delta State University; Cleveland, MS Zeta Beta Chapter of Kappa Delta Union University; Jackson, TN Zeta Omega Chapter of Kappa Delta University of Memphis; Memphis, TN Alpha Delta Chapter of Kappa Delta Rhodes College; Memphis, TN

perfect Partners

GSHS and the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries

New Partnership Opens New Opportunities for Girls

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irl Scouts Heart of the South has established a new partnership with the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries (NAJA). Junior Auxiliary Chapters throughout the council can offer support to local troops and Service Units through program events, workshops, troop activities and more!

Girls at Heritage Academy, in Columbus, MS, participate in a program offered for National Stand Beside Her Week by the Junior Auxiliary of Columbus.

NAJA Board of Directors pose with their favorite Girl Scout cookies after officially approving the partnership with Girl Scouts Heart of the South.

GSHS-Area Junior Auxiliary Chapters Amory, MS Batesville, MS Booneville, MS Clarksdale, MS Cleveland, MS Collierville, TN Columbus, MS Corinth, MS Crittenden County, AR DeSoto County, MS Greenville, MS

Greenwood, MS Grenada, MS Humboldt, TN Indianola, MS Lauderdale County, TN Louisville, MS Macon, MS Milan, TN New Albany, MS Obion County, TN

Oxford, MS Savannah, TN Starkville, MS Tate-Panola, MS Tipton County, TN Tishomingo County, MS Tupelo, MS Water Valley, MS West Point, MS Winona, MS

Junior Auxiliary Chapters encourage women “to be active and constructive participants and to assume leadership roles in meeting community needs.” Each chapter oversees local, community projects that further the organization’s slogan of “Care Today, Character Tomorrow.”

GSHS was excited to partner with NAJA for our inaugural National Stand Beside Her Week last October. Several JA Chapters participated, including the Columbus, MS Chapter.

“We kicked off the week with one of our featured women, Principal Cindy Wamble, hosting a local minister, the Rev. Raigan Miskelly of First United Methodist Church, to lecture to 4th through 6th graders at Heritage Academy. After being nominated and selected as one of [the Chapter’s] featured women, Principal Wamble was inspired by the ideals of the project and organized the program for her students.” said Bethany Hairston, Chapter President.

Girl Scout Service Units and Associations are encouraged to explore ideas on how they could partner with their local JA Chapter and begin the conversation for partnering and meeting the needs of local girls. Need help with recruitment?

Your local JA Chapter might be willing to deliver flyers to the schools or assist with girl activities at a recruitment event!

Need a program or badge workshop? Your local JA Chapter might be the perfect resource!

There are tons of ways to partner. Contact Jenny Jones to connect with your local Junior Auxiliary Chapter. You can reach Jenny at jenny.jones@girlscoutshs.org or 662-350-6041.

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GSHS’S CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT INITIATIVE Girl Scouts Heart of the South Puts Girls & Volunteers First!

New CEI Business Model Makes Working with GSHS Easy and Fun!

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magine a world where girls and volunteers join Girl Scouts with ease; new volunteers are recruited and confirmed in a matter of days (instead of weeks); volunteers receive the support they need when they need it; and girl and volunteer retention is on the rise.

THAT TIME IS NOW! Get ready for a new and improved customer-centric experience! Who is our “customer,” you might ask? YOU are - our valued volunteers and the amazing girls we serve. GSHS is in the “business” of serving and supporting those who choose to help deliver our Girl Scout mission to build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place. It’s our desire to give you - our “customers” - the best experience possible. You are our valued customers, and we are committed to putting you first!

Girl Scouts Heart of the South is joining with GSUSA and councils across the nation in a new way of engaging and communicating with our awesome volunteers, caregivers, and girl members. This new way of work focuses on aligning people, processes, and systems to effectively ensure both recruitment and service/retention functions are providing a quality, customercentric, and consistent experience resulting in girl and volunteer membership growth and satisfaction.

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Meet the

This Customer Engagement Initiative (CEI) is a two-part strategy (organizational and technological) that hopes to provide better customer service and dynamic technology, both to ease the processes of joining our Movement, leading a troop, serving as a volunteer, engaging in programs, receiving information, communicating with colleagues and staff, and so much more.

Girl Scouts Heart of the South is realigning our staff structure to create an improved volunteer and membership experience.

The new structure will provide more specialized task-focused functions for staff so that questions and concerns can be managed in a more effective way.

The goal is to be faster, easier, and fun! After the realignment and training, you can expect improvements in customer service, response time, information availability, and more.

We’re so excited to share information about CEI with you!

This initiative will expand our capacity to support our girls and families and will provide volunteers the information and resources they need - when and how they need it.

We’re proud to introduce you to several of the outstanding members of our CEI team! Enjoy getting to know them and learn just a bit about why each and every one of them are committed to Girl Scouts and our mission to build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place!

Venus Chaney Chief Officer of Operations and CEI Business Lead Favorite Quote: “The best use of life is to spend it for something that outlasts it.” – William James

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mary ellen GSHS CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT TEAM The GSHS Customer Engagement consists of the Lead Generation and Lead Conversion Teams.

Essentially, these teams are responsible for bringing people into Girl Scouts and getting them started on their journey.

Mary Ellen Rogers Director of Customer Engagement “Through my new role with the council, I hope that we are able to grow our membership and allow more girls and families to reap the benefits of being Girl Scouts.”

LEAD GENERATION TEAM (GIRL & ADULT RECRUITMENT) The Lead Generation Team members are responsible for identification and recruitment of girls, adults, and community partners for membership, volunteerism, and community collaborations.

Annie Roby, Recruitment Specialist “My favorite thing about working for the council is - just like the girls - it gives me the opportunity to meet new people and to make a difference in young girls’ lives, one girl at a time.”

Caroline Skelton, Recruitment Specialist “If I could give girls one thing, I would give them opportunity.

I want to provide girls with any opportunity possible to learn that they can reach for the stars!”

LEAD CONVERSION TEAM (GIRL & ADULT PLACEMENT)

Santana Brown. Outreach Specialist (GSISD)

The Lead Conversion Team assists girls and adults in the process of becoming Girl Scouts by managing their progression from the point of interest to registered member, and guiding adults through the process of becoming an active Girl Scout volunteer.

“I think the most challenging thing girls face today is gender stereotypes... but Girl Scouts helps girls overcome these stereotypes and become leaders in the world.”

Francis Brown, Recruitment Specialist “I love meeting wonderful people who value life as much as I do through Girl Scouts. Our volunteers are some of the most genuine beautiful people I have ever met!”

Dorothy Covington, Placement Specialist “I think that Girl Scouts helps girls overcome challenges by encouraging self-awareness, helping them to set goals and achieve them and by being true to our mission.”

Blair Duke, Recruitment Specialist “If I could, I would give girls the opportunity to try things they never would have been able to or even thought about doing in their everyday life - like Girl Scouts does!”

Joann Rogers, Placement Specialist Favorite Quote: “You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don’t try.” ~Beverly Sills

Betsy Mays, Recruitment Specialist

Toulasone Sivilay Placement and Operations Specialist

“My favorite thing about working for the council is seeing that we are Girl Scouts - just like our girls and volunteers. I am proud to work for a place that truly lives out its values and mission on every level of its service.”

“I am a Placement and Operation specialist. I hope to place all the girls on my list in troops as soon as possible and to provide quality service to the girls and volunteers.”

blair

Kayla Stuckey Product Sales, Placement, and Data Specialist

“I love helping girls all across our region to build confidence today so that they can become the leaders of tomorrow.”

betsy

caroline

joann

annie

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GSHS’S CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT INITIATIVE VOLUNTEER SUPPORT TEAM (TROOP & TROOP LEADER SUPPORT) The Volunteer Support Team is the direct link for troop leaders, providing guidance in the areas of leader training, Journeys, proficiency badges, troop activities, troop management, leadership, and operations.

Whitney Getman, Director of Volunteer Support “Girl Scouts is a place for all girls, a place where girls are free to be who they are and to follow their own dreams not the dreams of others. “ Michelle Blansett, Volunteer Support Specialist (Cadettes) “I really enjoy meeting new volunteers who tell me what a lifelong impact Girl Scouts has had on them and how they want to pass that experience on to their own daughters.”

Favorite Quote: “Every badge you earn is tied up to your motto.

A badge is a symbol that you have done the thing it stands for often enough, thoroughly enough, and well enough to be prepared to give service to it.” Juliette Gordon Low Stephanie Snow, Volunteer Support Specialist (Daisies) “I feel girls can accomplish anything they want, if given the encouragement, opportunities and instruction - all the things they get in Girl Scouts!”

Rosalind Davis, Volunteer Support Specialist (Brownies)

Rhonda Tennyson, Volunteer Support Specialist (Juniors)

“I’m excited to be able to provide adults with training and resources that is beneficial to their needs and will enable them to meet the needs of the girls they serve.”

whitney

Debra Martin, Volunteer Support Specialist (Senior & Ambassador Grade Levels, Multi-Level Troops, and Juliettes)

“In my new role, I hope to provide volunteers with ideas and activities that they may try, to support them with their efforts, and to direct them to available trainings that may benefit from and make them more comfortable in their role.”

CUSTOMER CARE TEAM

The Customer Care Team Provides general support to members, families and the community.

Raleigh Walker, Director of Customer Care Favorite Quote: “An arrow can only be shot by pulling it backward. When life is dragging you back with difficulties, it means it’s going to launch you into something great. So just focus, and keep aiming.”

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Ashley Minch, Customer Care Specialist “If I could give girls anything, I would give them all the opportunity to have the wonderful Girl Scout experience I had growing up. It had such an impact on my life and I think that all girls deserve that.”

Dessie Woods Product Sales & Customer Care Specialist “If I could give girls anything, I would give them opportunity. When opportunity is provided – who knows where the road of greatness will take a girl!”

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It’s all about teamwork! With CEI, not only have staff positions been redefined, but volunteer positions have changed as well to help streamline processes and lighten our volunteers’ loads!

In August and September, members of the CEI teams met with Service Unit Team Members from the newly realigned service units for informative training sessions to discuss their new roles under the CEI model. In addition to the training in their enhanced new roles, the sessions helped volunteers to know that we’re better TOGETHER! You don’t have to juggle everything alone! (pictured volunteer Buffy Porch)

sena ADULT LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TEAM The Adult Leadership Development Team provides, coordinates, facilitates, and creates professional development training opportunities for adult members and provides guidance and support to the service unit and service team members in the areas Sena Williams, Director of Adult Leadership Development “Girl Scouts can help girls learn ways to feel strong enough to think independently – regardless of the images within the media and pressure from peers. We can offer ways to show tangible and intangible benefits that they would receive by being strong decision-makers.”

COUNCIL SHOP Assists volunteers with ordering and purchasing uniforms, books, badges, patches, and gift items.

Joann Rogers, Council Shop, Tupelo Shelia Deaton, Council Shop, Jackson

Jenice Davis, Adult Development Specialist “There is never a dull moment here at Girl Scouts Heart of the South! The volunteers we have and activities we plan keep me energized!”

Alicia Washington Adult Development Specialist Favorite Quote: “There is no passion to be found playing small-in settling for a life that is less than the one that you are capable of living.” – Nelson Mandela

“If I could give girls anything, I would give them the ability to have a positive attitude in any situation.”

Janet Stone-Wade, Council Shop, Memphis “I’m here to provide excellent customer service and be a friendly and helpful voice on the other end of the phone when volunteers call.”

shelia

alicia

421

janet

422

Dyer/Lake

Gibson

Crit/Ark

176

181

stephanie

171

TN North Suburban

172

Shelby

177

178 180

Fayette 175

173

174

Piperton

Southaven 181 Walls Lake Cormorant Hernando

MS North Central

rosalind

rho

182

184

325

MS Central

MS West Central

Tallahatchie/Grenada

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329 328 Leflore

michelle

Sunflower

327

debra

236

235

Alcorn

Benton/ Tippah

238

Union/ Pontotoc

237

Prentiss/ Tishomingo

240 239 Itawamba Lee

242

Calhoun/ Chickasaw

Monroe

244 Clay

330

MS Southwest Washington

428

McNairy/Hardin

241

326

nd

TN East Central

427

Hardeman/ Chester

TN South Suburban

Marshall/ East DeSoto

426

424

Olive Branch

DeSoto

183

Somerville

Huntington

Milan

Madison/ South Gibson

170

Millington/ Tipton

Carroll

Trenton

423

179

TN North East

McKenzie

TN West Central

jenice

425

TN North Central

243

MS Southeast

245

Noxubee/ Lowndes

As part of the CEI conversion, GSHS Service Units have been realigned. For more information, contact the Adult Leadership Development Team.

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troop Tales

above left: Jackson, TN area Girl Scouts enjoy a great night at Casey Jones Village! Girls dressed up as super heroes, made SWAPS, learned songs and signed up for another super year in Girl Scouts! Special thanks to VIP Jackson Magazine, Jackson, TN, for coming out to support Girl Scouts. above right: Members of the Lee County Service Unit gather snacks for cancer patients at The Cancer Center in Tupelo during their annual Pink the Streets event. The event is a service project for the North Mississippi Race for the Cure. Girls made picture frames, and cards for hospice patients.

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above: Girls from Shelby Central Service Unit Girl Scout Junior Troop 10542 volunteering at the Firefly Glow Party at Memphis Botanic Garden.

facebook.com/girlscoutshs

pinterest.com (girl scouts heart of the south)

flikr.com/photos/girlscoutshs

twitter.com/girlscoutshs (@girlscoutshs)

instagram.com/girlscoutshs (@girlscoutshs)

youtube.com/user/girlscoutshs

FALL/WINTER 2015

above: Catholic Charities of West TN thanked Brownie Troop 13312 from Holy Rosary School by posting this adorable picture on their Facebook page. These young ladies used a portion of their Girl Scout cookie sale proceeds to purchase food products for the Catholic Charities of West TN’s homeless walking sacks. They packed 60 walking sacks for CCWTN to distribute to those less fortunate.

What a great way to demonstrate service to others!

troop Tales left: At the Fayette County Girl Scouts Court of Awards and Bridging Ceremony on May 19, 2015, GSHS Sr. Director of Community Engagement and Marketing Jenny Jones presented nine year-old Maeson Morris, Brownie Troop 10384, with the Girl Scout Medal of Honor, for her quick thinking and compassion while helping another youth and her mother who had fallen due to illness in early 2014. Presented rarely (only 29 nationally in 2014), the Medal of Honor is a lifesaving award given by Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) to girls who have saved or attempted to save a human life under circumstances that indicate heroism.

This award is reserved for those Girl Scouts who have performed heroic acts beyond the degree of maturity and training to be expected at their age. left: Troop 13255 got to experience and enjoy an early taste of college life as they participated in Dorm Dayz at The University of Memphis.

below: Tipton County Troop 13804 donated 115 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies to the First United Methodist Church’s Food Pantry, living up to our call to, “Do a Good Turn Daily!” right: Congratulations to Henderson, TN Girl Scout Troop 40186 for being featured in Southwest Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation’s The Tennessee Magazine for being energy efficient! www.tnmagazine.org

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troop Tales left: Members of Troop 13044 paid a special visit to residents at Wesley Meadows in Hernando, MS. below middle left: Brownie Troop 13203 visited and donated supplies to the Memphis Humane Society. below middle right: Girl Scout Daisies enjoyed the North Mississippi Journey Camporee. below bottom left: Girl Scout Cadette Troop 10677, from Southaven, MS, saved up their cookie profits from 14,000 boxes of cookies (2 years worth) to take a trip to the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace in Savannah, GA.

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above: Lauderdale County Girl Scouts and their families learn about fire safety during their visit to the Lauderdale County Fire Department. below bottom right: Memorial Day 2015: Alcorn Troops # 23806 & 23194 placed flags at the National Veterans’ Cemetery.

troop Tales below middle right: Bartlett Girl Scout Troop 10190 delivered Girl Scout Cookies to Tri Delta Place at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital!

above: Memphis Girl Scout Cadette Troop 10266 learned some new recipes at Whole Foods Market at their “Summer Camp Out Cooking” school! Thanks Leslie Archibald for sharing this great picture of your girls!

below middle left: Crittenden County, Girl Scout Troop 13255 recently toured the College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, MO. Girls learned about how instead of paying tuition, all full-time students work campus jobs to defray the cost of education - allowing students to graduate debt free.

below bottom right: Germantown Girl Scouts, representatives of the Germantown/Dogwood Service Unit, and GSHS CEO Melanie Schild pose with the proclamation given by Germantown Mayor Mike Palazzolo declaring August “Girl Scout Month” in Germantown, TN!

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Pat was a shy, quiet young girl. Pat’s family had its share of financial struggles – lost jobs, mortgages coming due when funds were low, automobiles breaking down at just the wrong time, and growing kids who needed clothes and school supplies. But somehow the family always managed to take care of the must have things in life.

But scraping by meant there wasn’t anything left over to give the kids any additional enriching or fun experiences outside of school. Pat, being the oldest, knew that her dream of joining Girl Scouts would never happen. The $15 needed for annual dues was not a must have but an extra her family simply could not afford.

Then one day, a neighbor - who happened to be a Girl Scout troop leader - found out about Pat’s dream. She and her family were eager and able to pay for Pat’s membership into Girl Scouts through a donation to Invest in Girls.

Today, Pat is a sixth grade school teacher and mother of two girls of her own. Her years in Girl Scouts taught her the importance of financial literacy, goal setting, and how to successfully work as part of a team. Now, she uses these essential skills every day and teaches them to her kids both in school and at home.

Last year, Girl Scouts Heart of the South had a waiting list with thousands of names of girls who desperately wanted to join Girl Scouts but couldn’t because they couldn’t afford the $15 annual dues. Nationally, 21% percent of girls ages 5 – 18 live in poverty. Poverty among Mississippi and Tennessee girls is even higher. At Girl Scouts Heart of the South we want to end the waiting list and ensure that every girl who wants to join Girl Scouts in our area can.

Almost one-third of the Girl Scouts in our council receive financial assistance to cover the cost of membership, camp, and programs. But more help is needed.

Girl Scouts Heart of the South only serves 5% of girls ages 5 - 18 in our 59 county jurisdiction. What about those girls on the waiting list? What about the other 95% who - like Pat - long to experience the joy of Girl Scouting but simply can’t afford it?

When you donate to Girl Scouts Heart of the South, you can make that dream come true. $15 is all it takes to make an investment in a girl that will alter the course of her life.

Through Girl Scouts, girls build courage, become confident, and increase their character all while learning how they can make the world a better place. Girls are the future leaders of tomorrow, so we must INVEST in them TODAY.

Invest in Girls.

Change the world.

For more information contact Kimberly Crafton, Director of Development and Advancement at 901-334-3461 or via email at kimberly.crafton@girlscoutshs.org.

Girl Scouts Heart of the South’s Invest in Girls program is designed to help fund membership for as many girls as possible. Community members LIKE YOU can make that possible with a simple gift to Girl Scouts. Invest in Girls TODAY to help all the local girls who long to experience all that Girl Scouts has to offer. You can help change the lives of more girls - just like Pat. To donate, please fill out the attached envelope and send in your investment today, or visit us online at www.girlscoutshs.org/donate.

Invest in Girls and help a girl succeed!!!

troop Tales right: Members of Lindenwood Troop 10068 had fun filling and delivering holiday gift bags for MIFA.

below: Girl Scout Troop 13450 had a great time at Owl Prowl at the Memphis Zoo! above: Members of Troops 13911 and 10677 help GSHS and Mid-South Food Bank staff load 500 cases of cookies onto a waiting truck to help with Operation Feed. below left: Junior Troop 13120 hosted a ‘Cop Stop’ to provide lunch to Germantown-area first responders (police, fire & EMT) to say, “Thank you!” for their brave and wonderful work. Way to go, girls! below right: Members of Troop 33157 enjoying their Father-Daughter Valentine’s Dance.

Want to see YOUR Troop in the Promise?

GSHS encourages you to submit professional quality, “print-worthy” photography for use in The Promise, Heartstrings, The GPS, The Juliette, the GSHS website and Facebook page and other media campaigns. Photographs should be sent in JPG, TIFF or PDF format, 300 dpi at 2550x3300 pixels (at least, preferably), to news@girlscoutshs.org. Photographs should not be date-stamped OR cropped in any way. Please note that submitted photographs may be chosen for use in a variety of publications and without advance notice. Please be sure to have a signed copy of the Girl Scout media/photo release form on file for each girl pictured. Submissions should include a brief but detailed description of the event pictured in the email body.

Submissions may be saved and published at a later date. Not all submissions will be chosen for publication.

Have questions about photography? Need some help? Contact Alison Coons, GSHS Director of Engagement, at (901) 334-3473 or alison.coons@girlscoutshs.org.

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council Cares

C OURT OF AWARD S

Service Unit Court of Awards Ceremonies Reach and Recognize More Girls and More Volunteers in 2015!

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SHS initiated a focus, in 2015, of offering council representatives to area Court of Award Ceremonies.

In recent years, the annual meeting was the only avenue for members to hear about new initiatives and programs from the council, recognize volunteers for their continuing service, and honor girls who achieved advanced awards. The annual meeting served approximately 200 members each year.

Collierville Brownies leave the nest and “fly up” to Juniors.

Through this year’s 25 Service Unit and local-level Court of Awards Ceremonies, representatives of the council were able to personally reach approximately 2,000 Girl Scout members and their families.

Taking the presentations throughout the council allowed volunteers and girls to be recognized in front of their peers, friends and family, and the local community.

Thank you to those Service Units who granted council staff the time to make their presentations and connect with members at the local level. We look forward to continuing to grow this effort and serve members in their local areas and associations.

Tippah County Girl Scouts enjoyed their colorful Court of Awards cermony.

Lee County Juniors and volunteers are recognized for their year’s achievements.

West Point Troop 23156 receives their badges and awards for the year.

Fayette County Brownies are recognized for their achievements at their Court of Awards Ceremony.

Do you know a special Girl Scout volunteer? Do you have an inspirational Girl Scout story to share in the Promise?

West Greenwood Girl Scout dad, Mr. Sammie Jones, helps Juniors bridge to Cadettes.

The Official Publication of Girl Scouts Heart of the South

Write to us at news@girlscoutshs.org and tell us all about it! We are always looking for exciting and unique Girl Scout experiences to share with the world. Help us tell the Girl Scout story by sharing yours today!

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council Cares below left: GSHS appreciates our volunteers’ many years of service to Girl Scouts! Girl Scouting would not be possible without the dedication of our volunteers. Pictured are Lee County volunteers including Juanita Valentine (center right), who received the Thanks Badge. Thank you all!

above right: GSHS staff brought Gibson’s donuts to camp staff to thank them for being so amazing! below right: GSHS welcomed the United Way of the Mid-South’s Allocation Team volunteers to the new Possibility Place to hear how Girl Scouting is impacting girls’ lives in Shelby County. GSHS is proud to partner with United Way to support our volunteers, girls and families!

If you have ever attended summer camp then you must come see The Girl Scout Heritage Center “Summer Camp” Exhibit!

This new exhibit, lovingly curated by the Heritage Center Committee, features our rich tradition of camping.

Come see historic artifacts, fun vintage uniforms and more!

The Girl Scouts Heart of the South Heritage Center, located inside the Memphis Service Center, contains memorabilia from 103 years of Girl Scout history from all regions in the 59 counties the council serves in eastern Arkansas, north Mississippi and west Tennessee. The mission of the Girl Scouts Heart of the South Heritage Center is to preserve council history and share it with former and current Girl Scouts, their families, friends, and the general public.

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Girl Scouts Heart of the South Participates in City of Memphis MPLOY Youth Program

Participants left to right: Kristian Frazier, 17, Whitehaven High School; Jherykah Swift, 17, KIPP Memphis Collegiate High School; Ariel Hall, 17, Lemoyne Owen College; Valesia Johnson, 18, Southwest Community College; Jennifer Fletcher, 16, Douglass High School; Kiyana Taylor, 17, White Station High School; Brianna Walker, 16, Mannassas High School; not pictured, Tyraniesha Nelson, Booker T. Washington High School. Also pictured (back row, far right) Jenice Davis, GSHS.

g

created surveys to pinpoint underlying causes, developed marketing strategies, and presented a step-by-step plan that could easily be implemented in a school setting. Survey results and the girls’ action steps will be shared with local schools to bring anti-violence messaging to all girls.

Eight young ladies spent June and July in the GSHS office. The interns learned about etiquette, professionalism, networking, and careers. They also contributed ideas for recruiting girls into Girl Scouting and worked on a campaign to reduce violence among teen girls that they called “Girls’ Take 10.” In developing “Girls’ Take 10,”the girls researched our school communities,

The interns also participated in “Engineer Your Journey,” a career development program developed by Techbridge and piloted by GSHS through a grant from Girl Scouts of the USA and Noyce Foundation. Girls learned about engineering careers, did hands-on experiments with electrical engineering, met female role models who work in engineering fields, and talked about personal goals and what was needed to reach them.

irl Scouts Heart of the South participated in the City of Memphis Office of Youth Services MPLOY Youth program. This six-week program employed 1,000 youth ages 14-21 from across Memphis, exposed them to various career paths, built 21st Century skills, taught entry-level interview and job skills, and introduced them to business environments.

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council Cares Tosca Nance-Jones, Director of Special Initiatives and Leadership at GSHS, said, “We are committed to creating partnerships that will enhance the community and develop youth within our council jurisdiction. MPLOY Youth gave us the opportunity to give back in service to others while maintaining our mission to build girls of courage, confidence, and character.”

MPLOY youth intern, Ariel Hall, wrote about the experience: “Upon entering the MPLOY Youth program, we had no idea what to expect. It was just another summer where our parents tried to get us involved in anything possible to keep us out of their hair, and thanks to MPLOY, their pockets also. Although it was a strenuous process, we made it through and received our job placement at Girl Scouts Heart of the South. Not knowing what to expect, we were welcomed into GSHS with open arms and bright smiles.

Ten girls, one work space, for 6 weeks. I figured it would be a total nightmare, but surprisingly, we all were able to come together and collectively share ideas and create a campaign on reducing teen violence and helping girls choose alternative ways to solve situations. We created a campaign titled, “Girls’ Take Ten: Step Back, Stand Up, and Speak Out.”

so important because one day she wants to work at a record label as a marketer. And for others that are undecided, they were exposed to so many new career options during this experience.

For many of us, this was our first job experience. We were exposed to what being an employee really means, what a nonprofit does and how it operates, and how to effectively work in a group, pair, or individually. We learned more about what GSHS really is, what they do, and the broad career paths found here.We were also Impacting lives one girl at a time. introduced to another broad career field through GSHS - engineering. Every Tuesday Take 10 seconds to… and Thursday for two weeks and for two STEP BACK. hours we spent learning more about the Value your future. different types of engineers, what they Think about your next step. do, and if that is something we would be Remember it starts with you. interested in pursuing as a career. We did a lot of hands on activities and even created STAND UP. our own game. Most of the activities we did Dare to NOT be stupid. were things an electrical engineer would do, Stop fronting. but our wonderful instructors, Ms. Claire and Be the bigger person.

Ms. Sarah were environmental engineers.

Display compassion.

One thing we learned was that engineering is SPEAK OUT. a field that does not have many women, so it Kill them with kindness. was presented to us so that in the future we End the discussion. can show that women can be engineers too.

Talk it out.

The class was very educational and we got something that we can take away from it.

We all implemented things we were good at and used skills that we wanted to pursue as careers one day to make this campaign a success. For example, Jherykah implemented her marketing skills to make girls understand why this campaign is

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Looking back on this experience, I would definitely refer the MPLOY Youth program to others because this is a great way to spend your summer. You get to learn new things, meet new people, gain experiences and get paid while doing it. I think this is a great program and I am so glad that GSHS was the place I could learn all of these new things.”

program Profiles

f

GSHS Chosen to Pilot “Engineer Your Journey” Program

rom boring, nerdy, and weird, to creative, powerful, and cool – girls changed their perspective on what describes an engineer thanks to a special “Engineer Your Journey” program. Girl Scouts Heart of the South received a grant from Girl Scouts of the USA to pilot materials that blend engineering activities with the aMuse, GirlTopia and Bliss Journeys. The materials, developed by Techbridge, provided hands-on learning and career exploration on electrical, mechanical, product, and civil engineering to 100 girls in our region. Just like all of our other exciting and inspiring Girl Scout activities, Engineer Your Journey gave girls the opportunity to do something they had never done before while learning to work with a team, building leadership skills, exploring interests, meeting mentors, problem solving, and having fun!

Girl Scout Juniors were product designers, making prototypes

EYJ participants learn just how fun engineering can be at Magic Springs Park.

for toys, pencil bags, cookie packaging, and bubbles. They learned what it takes to get a product from concept to consumer. Girl Scout Seniors “survived” a natural disaster and built a communications tower, wind-powered crank, water filtration system and a car. The EYJ experience was electrifying for Girl Scout Ambassadors as they experimented with circuits through snap circuits, conductors, soldering, and building a game. And participating girls were able to see engineering in action at Magic Springs amusement park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. They learned how velocity, pendulums, and engineering designs make lots of things fun.

Input from girls and volunteers who participated in the project was shared at a national conference and will be used to improve the Engineer Your Journey program for nationwide roll-out.

GSHS partnered with St. Agnes Academy to provide EYJ experiences during the summer.

Women of Distinction recognizes achievements of women in the community.

Campers participated in EYJ at Camp Tik-A-Witha.

GSHS’s MPLOY youth interns learned how to solder and build circuits.

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with special guest Gail Pittman A household name across the country, Mississippi artist and entrepreneur Gail Pittman is the founder and president of the iconic tableware and home accessories company that bears her name.

A graduate of the University of Mississippi, Gail was inducted into the University of Mississippi Alumni Hall of Fame, is a founding member of the Ole Miss Women’s Council of Philanthropy and is a past member of the University’s Business Advisory Council. The recipient of several business, civic and philanthropic awards, Gail routinely speaks to civic, cultural, and corporate audiences across the southeast.

Wednesday, November 4 11:30 AM First Baptist Church Fellowship Hall 800 Van Buren Avenue ~ Oxford, MS Oxford-Lafayette Co. residents can purchase tickets for $30/each.

For ticket information, please contact Jenny Jones at 662-350-6041 or jenny.jones@girlscoutshs.org.

Visit us online at: www.girlscoutshs.org/womenofdistinction

Girl Scouts Heart of the South would like to thank the following restaurants for their participation and support of our first annual

TASTIC! February 27 - March 1, 2015: Coletta’s Restaurant - Memphis Lisa’s Lunchbox - Memphis Crave - Tupelo Double Barrel Steakouse - Tupelo South Restaurant - Tupelo Steele’s Dive - Tupelo pictured is Crave’s delectable Samoa Cake

More information about Cookie-Tastic! Weekend 2016 is coming soon!

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Join Us on a Bold Adventure To Change the World for Girls As the nation’s leading girl-serving organization, Girl Scouts advocates for girls and strives to provide them with a well-rounded experience that combines critical life-skill development with activities that support academic success, all mixed together with their favorite part—tons of fun and friendship!

At Girl Scouts, girls can be themselves while discovering what they love to do. Here girls will always be safe, encouraged, and nurtured so that they blossom into the awesome young women they were always meant to be. Together, Girl Scouts, educators, and parents can help set girls up for ultimate success and happiness. And remember, when girls succeed, we all do.

CORRELATIONS TO THE SEARCH INSTITUTE’S 40 DEVELOPMENTAL ASSETS With us, learning is so much fun she won’t even know it’s happening. And with 126 direct and indirect links to the Search Institute’s 40 developmental assets, the Girl Scout Leadership

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Experience (GSLE) provides powerful benefits that can directly complement all of the great work you’re already doing in your school every day.

Direct links between our program and the Search Institute’s 40 developmental assets include compelling connections to internal assets (“personal qualities” young

people need in order to thrive and avoid negative risks) like positive values, social competencies, positive identity, and more. Indirect links include connections to internal assets around commitment to learning and empowerment—oh, what a girl can do!

DID YOU

KNOW? FACT Girl Scout alumnae

display positive life outcomes related to sense of self, volunteerism and community work, civic engagement, education, and income/socioeconomic status to a greater degree than women who were not Girl Scouts.

SOURCE: Girl Scouting Works: The Alumnae Impact Study (2012)

CORRELATIONS TO LEARNING STANDARDS

FACT Girl Scouts are more

likely to consider themselves leaders compared to their peers: 64 percent of Girl Scouts consider themselves leaders compared to 44 percent of a national sample of girls and 52 percent of boys.

SOURCE: Girl Scout Research Institute (GSRI) Ban Bossy Youth Poll (2014)

FACT Feeling empowered to

take action is difficult for girls, but going through the Girl Scout Leadership Experience can lead to significant growth in girls’ leadership skills.

SOURCE: Service Learning Capacity Building Grant: 2009–2011; More Than S’mores: Successes and Surprises in Girl Scouts’ Outdoor Program (2014)

Additionally, all Girl Scout badges and Journeys are correlated by grade level to state (and national) curriculum standards, including Common Core Standards.

This translates into a seamless partnership with robust potential to boost academic success and help build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who will undoubtedly go out and make the world a better place.

WHAT PARENTS SAY ABOUT GIRL SCOUTS When parents are asked to describe the benefits of Girl Scouts using one word, the top responses are: 1. Friendships 2. Confidence 3. Fun 4. Community 5. Leadership

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GIRL SCOUT PROGRAM BASICS: DISCOVER + CONNECT + TAKE ACTION = LEADERSHIP Through our Discover, Connect, Take Action framework, girls learn to be aware of their surroundings and scan their world for things they want to change, work together to plan that change, and take action to make it happen, becoming strong, confident leaders along the way.

DID YOU

KNOW?

The 15 OUTCOMES OF THE GIRL SCOUT LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE

Discover

Connect

Take Action

LEADERSHIP

1. Girls develop a strong sense of self 2. Girls develop positive values 3. Girls gain practical life skills 4. Girls seek challenges in the world 5. Girls develop critical thinking 1. Girls develop healthy relationships 2. Girls promote cooperation and team building 3. Girls can resolve conflicts 4. Girls advance diversity in a multicultural world 5. Girls feel connected to their communities, locally and globally 1. Girls can identify community needs 2. Girls are resourceful problem solvers 3. Girls advocate for themselves and others, locally and globally 4. Girls educate and inspire others to act 5. Girls feel empowered to make a difference in the world

Girls lead with courage, confidence, and character, to make the world a better place.

FACT Learning the “5 Skills”

delivered by the Girl Scout Cookie Program (goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills, and business ethics) has a positive impact on girls’ lives.

Girls who develop them are more likely than those who don’t to report that, while selling cookies, they learn new things that will help them in school and other areas of their lives (93 percent vs.

63 percent, respectively).

SOURCE: The Girl Scout Cookie Program: Teaching Essential Skills for a Lifetime (2012)

FACT The Girl Scout

Leadership Experience helps girls learn not to avoid things that are hard for them, and this makes them better students.

SOURCE: Linking Leadership to Academic Success: The Girl Scout Difference (2012)

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CRITICAL THINKING + SOCIAL SKILLS = A POWERFUL COMBINATION At Girl Scouts, girls learn to think critically about issues and solve problems together. We encourage teamwork and collaboration as much as we encourage independence and self-discovery. Here, she learns to believe in herself and count on her community for support.

She learns to work as part of a team, bring people with varying perspectives together to devise solutions, and respect and appreciate the viewpoints of others as much as she does her own.

BULLYING PREVENTION AND FRIENDSHIP Teaching girls how to prevent bullying behavior and providing them with a safe space for self-expression is critical in today’s increasingly complex social landscape. That’s why, at Girl Scouts, we focus so much on community, on appreciating everyone’s unique value, and on supporting one another through obstacles and conflict. We teach girls about relational aggression and about how best to develop and maintain healthy relationships and trusting friendships. Girl Scouts gives girls the tools they need to rise above bullying and champion everyone’s right to live free of it.

VOLUNTEER DRIVEN, GIRL LED Girl Scouts is made possible every day by a dedicated network of passionate volunteers who support and guide girls as they each walk their own special journey to awesomeness. Volunteering with Girl Scouts is also a great way to engage parents and encourage more parent involvement at your school.

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SO MUCH LEARNING. SO MUCH FUN. There’s so much she can do and explore with Girl Scouts. The skills she acquires with us will bolster her career and college readiness, help launch her into a lifetime of success, and leave her with countless wonderful memories.

Digital Cookie By participating in Digital Cookie, a revolutionary extension of the iconic Girl Scout Cookie Program, girls learn how to be social entrepreneurs in today’s digital world. With Digital Cookie, she can sell cookies online, learn how to manage customers, gain important email marketing skills, and play games and access cool learning activities, all while learning how to be safe online and so much more.

STEM Contrary to popular belief, girls are very much interested in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), and we’re here to help her explore these subjects and find her passion! At Girl Scouts, we encourage girls to engage in STEM activities both inside and outside the classroom, and empower them to know and believe careers in STEM fields are absolutely within their reach. Find out more by checking out our research study, Generation STEM: What Girls Say About Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.

How can we use some of our cookie funds to help?

Financial Literacy Girl Scouts helps girls become financially savvy and empowered leaders through five key K–12 programmatic components:

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NUMBERS 97 percent

of parents say Girl Scouts has been a positive activity for their daughter.

96 percent

of girls have tried

at least one new thing in Girl Scouts.

1. The Girl Scout Cookie Program, through which girls “learn while they earn” 2. The Girl Scout Cookie business curriculum, which expands and strengthens their business skills 3. The Girl Scout financial literacy curriculum, which helps them build money savvy 4. The Girl Scout entrepreneurship program, which develops their innovative thinking 5. Online learning for girls, which seeks to inspire and engage girls in the digital space

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IT’S ALL IN THE

90 percent

of parents say

that because of Girl Scouts, their daughter is more confident.

74 percent

of parents say

that because of Girl Scouts, their daughter has gained entrepreneurial business skills.

GIRL SCOUTS: FUN FACTS AND FIGURES Girl Scouts is the largest leadership organization for girls in the world, with

More than

59 MILLION

2.8 MILLION

American women

girl and adult members.

participated in Girl Scouts during childhood.

Girl Scout alumnae in the world of public service include former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.

Digital Cookie

The Girl Scout Cookie Program is the largest girl-led business in the world, with Girl Scouts selling about

200 million boxes of cookies

—nearly $800 million worth— during each cookie season.

Girl Scouts helps girls get outdoors!

is the first national digital platform in the history of the iconic Girl Scout Cookie Program. This revolutionary enhancement adds a digital layer that expands and strengthens the ways girls learn new skills like online marketing, app usage, and ecommerce.

97 percent

of girls surveyed in a study of nearly 3,000 fourth- to eighth-grade Girl Scouts said they have done at least one outdoor activity in Girl Scouts during the last year—40 percent did so every single month.

Successful businesswomen who are Girl Scout alumnae include Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube, and Virginia Rometty, CEO of IBM.

FAMOUS Girl Scout alumnae include: Taylor Swift

Mariah Carey

Gwyneth Paltrow Katie Couric Serena and Venus Williams Plus, virtually every female astronaut who has flown in space is a Girl Scout alumna!

74 percent

of girls surveyed said they couldn’t have done awesome things like archery, horseback riding, or canoeing/kayaking without Girl Scouts.

29 percent

of girls said they had overcome a fear of the outdoors through their outdoor experiences in Girl Scouts—so cool!

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The Past and the Present Girl Scout BrownieTroop 13044 visited Wesley Meadows Retirement Community in Hernando, MS as part of the A World of Girls Brownie Journey.

They read stories to the residents, made s’mores and swapped stories. Girls also met resident Donna Hall and her daughter Terri Alford. Both women were Girl Scouts and former troop leaders.

“The girls were so excited to swap scout stories with Mrs. Hall and Mrs. Alfrod. Their favorite part was being able to sing a few Girl Scout songs like The Brownie Smile Song and Make New Friends along with the women.”, said troop leader Pannay Guigley.

Hall showed the girls her daughter Terri’s uniform from 1956, as well as a few photos of Terri as a scout and herself as a leader.

Every

HERO

needs a mentor, every mentor needs a

GUIDE.

MEMPHIS

PARENT memphisparent.com

• Safety features included throughout Sample page showing how customers will be able to purchase Girl Scout Cookies online!

Girls and customers can track their Cookie Program goal progress

The Cookie Business badge is displayed once a Girl Scout completes the requirements

Customers can order cookies by variety or donate cookies through Operation Cookie Care Package

Each Girl Scout will create her own custom page with a photo/ video and tell customers more about her goals and what she learns through the Cookie Program.

Questions? Contact Product Program at ProductProgram@girlscoutsrv.org or 800-845-0787

CALLING ALL GIRL SCOUTS!

Kick off this cookie season with a high energy, activity packed Cookie Rally while you learn how to be successful in the Cookie Program. Success, friendship, learning, stories, cookies–it’s all part of the Girl Scout Cookie season and it’s all Worth Sharing!

COOKIE RALLY DATES january 9, 2016 10 - noon southaven, ms january 14, 2016 6-8 p.m. grenada, ms

Girl Scout Cookie Program Gets an Upgrade for 2016!

This annual tradition delivers delicious cookies to the public, while Girl Scouts learn five key skills to success: goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills, and business ethics—aspects essential to leadership, to success, and to life.

january 16, 2016 10 - noon tupelo, ms january 23, 2016 10 - noon jackson, tn

Again this year, girls will be able to sell cookies online through Digital Cookies 2.0, developed by GSUSA and Little Brownie Bakers, and powered by Dell and Visa Checkout. This safe and secure site will allow girls to reach even more family and friends. And these customers will have the ability to purchase cookies online to be shipped (customer pays for shipping and handling) or delivered by the girl (with your parents’ permission).

The 2016 Girl Scout Cookie Program kicks off on Saturday, January 9, 2016. The price of Girl Scout Cookies are still $4 per box , with the gluten free, Toffee-tastics at $5.

NEW! Council CEO Patch

We are excited to introduce the new council CEO Patch that girls can earn when they further the mission of Girl Scouts in their community!

Girls have tons of ideas, but here are some to get you thinking...

• Hang up posters at your school promoting Girl Scouts • Write an article for the local paper about your troop • Get a proclamation from your mayor to declare Girl Scout Month in your hometown.

• Create your own! The sky is the limit so use your imagination.

Plus, all girls who receive the CEO patch will be invited to special CEO receptions and one lucky member will even be selected to be council CEO for the day!

Request your CEO patch at www.girlscoutshs.org/ceo-patch 8

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Summer in Savannah

X Tybee Island

The girls did an ecology walk on the beach, which included using a fishnet to discover what the Tybee Island tide washes in, visited the Tybee Island Marine Science Center and took a dolphin cruise!

First African Baptist Church

Girls toured the oldest black church in North America, dating back to 1773, where they learned of its importance to the underground railroad.

Girl Scout Troop 40099 from Jackson, Tennessee had an amazing week in the birthplace of Girl Scouts this summer - all thanks to their hard work selling Girl Scout Cookies!

This seven-day, six-night adventure started on Tybee Island, Georgia, where the 10 girls and their leaders Helen York, Deborah Gompf and Mary Blanton stayed at beachside condos.

A week seems like a long time, but with so much to do in Savannah the girls had a busy schedule visiting Girl Scout founder Juliette Gordon Low’s home and taking a tour of the first headquarters of Girl Scouts . Girls got to see “Girls Writing the World: A Library Reimagined”, a newly curated and installed interactive permanent exhibit. One of the most memorable parts of the tour was the Girl Scout Ambassador tour guide.

“This was a once in a lifetime trip for the girls. They worked so hard to fund this opportunity and I could not be more proud of them. ” said York.

Spending a week in a city so rich in history the troop took full advantage of this opportunity to learn about the past.

Leopold’s Ice Cream Parlor

No trip to Savannah would be complete without a visit to this 96 year old institution of desserts! The girls also dined at The Lady and Sons Restaurant

X

The troop visited the First African Baptist Church, founded in 1770 and played an intregal part in the Underground Railroad and the Cathedral of John the Baptist, established in the late 1700’s.

They also visited Laurel Grove Cemetery, the resting place of Juliette, where they sang Girl Scout songs in her memory.

Girls also participated in a photo scavenger hunt around Savannah, taking pictures of the answers, they took a haunted carriage tour, had dinner at The Pirate House and The Lady and Sons Restaurant, enjoyed lots of local shopping and relaxed on the beach.

6

Dear Daisy is an advice column answered by Oxford, MS Girl Scout Troop 20356 last started in 2013. For the past three years Isabella, Jacelyn, Amy, Melissa and Ken’nia have received and answered questions from around the council solving the problems of prom dresses, to wearing make-up, to first time break ups!

Dear Daisy,

My best friend has a really unhealthy diet. She drinks soda at breakfast. She always complains about being tired. How can I help her?

Healthy friend in Houston, MS

Dear Healthy

You should introduce her to healthy snacks like yogurt or fresh fruit. I’m sure she would like something if she would try it. If she is afraid to try new things then cook something special for her. After she tries it and likes it then you can tell her how healthy it was. Sometimes kids are afraid to try new things, but when they take a chance they are surprised.

Daisy

NEW! Girls’ Choice Outdoor Badges After voting on new badges and selecting the badge designs, girls can now work toward the five new Girls’ Choice Outdoor badges and the new badge materials and guidelines are now available online for the first time ever.

The new Outdoor badges, as voted upon by more than 40,000 girls across the country, include the following.

Brownie: Outdoor Adventurer (a choice of outdoor activities) Junior: Horseback Riding Cadette: Archery Senior: Paddling (canoeing, kayaking, or paddle boarding) Ambassador: Ultimate Recreation Challenge (a choice five of outdoor challenges) the Promise

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Dear Daisy,

I like to wear pants and baseball caps. My mom says I need to wear dresses and skirts, especially to school. I just don’t want to.

What should I do?

Feeling Comfy in Fisherville, TN

Dear Comfy

You could make an agreement with your mom that you will dress up at least one day out of the week. The other days you can wear what you like.You could also wear pants and casual shirts and add your favorite accessories to dress it up! Hope this helps!

Daisy

Dear Daisy,

My best friend’s mom is getting married. Her soon to be new sisters are jealous of me. They don’t like it when we hangout.

What should I do?

Jealous in Jackson, TN

Dear Jealous

You should try talking to her new sisters and see what the problem is! Maybe they think that you will take their new sister away from them! Try inviting them to hangouts with ya’ll. If that doesn’t work, it’s their loss of a possible new friend. I bet all of you will end up as friends.

So you may be wondering how these activities were selected.

At Girl Scouts, girls are encouraged to decide which topics they want to explore and how they want to go about it. And the selection process for creating new Outdoor badges was no exception.

Download the new GSUSA began the polling Girls’ Choice process in November 2014 Outdoor Badge for the Girls’ Choice Outdoor guidelines for FREE at badges by inviting girls to vote www.girlscoutshs.org/girlschoice on a diverse option of outdoor badge themes. Once the themes were decided, the next round of votes were cast to pick the activities and new designs.

Exciting right?!

GSUSA partnered with councils across the country for the inaugural year of the Girls’ Choice Badge Selection process and plans to use lessons learned from this year’s pilot to help prepare for additional badge development in years to come.

FALL/WINTER 2015

National Stand Beside Her Week October 25-31, 2015

Ever notice on reality tv how the girls are always pitted against each other, made to compete for a rose, or to be popular at the expense of one of their friends.

Remember the first time you heard “girls aren’t good at math”?

You’re great at math, and science too!

And why is “you’re acting like a girl” considered an insult?

I mean shouldn’t we act like girls? Girls are awesome, right?

Girls are smart, creative, ambitious, innovative and capable! We’re funny. We dream big. And we make the world a better place.

So let’s band together!

Together we can change today’s current culture so that all girls can succeed at whatever they choose to be! No limits. No labels. Just supporting each other.

Join girls from across the country for National Stand Beside Her Week, October 25-31, 2015.

This week is the perfect time to cheer on your best friend.

Encourage your little sister. Say thank you to your teacher. Talk about your dreams with your mom.

A week to end competition and comparison, to create more collaboration and support for one another.

It’s a week to Stand Beside Her.

Ways you can Stand Beside Her:

• Say something positive to a friend.

• Tell your teacher thank you.

• Tell a friend about National Stand Beside Her Week.

• Try something different.

• Post something positive on social media. #StandBesideHer • Read about women who support other women.

• Take the Stand Beside Her pledge online.

• Share a statistic about issues facing girls.

• Be a mentor to a younger girl at school or in your troop.

• Volunteer with an organization that helps women and girls.

• Write a letter to a women who has influenced you.

• Chalk up your school with positive messages. Ask first!

• Slip secret encouraging notes in other girls’ lockers.

• Leave a positive stickey note on the girls’ bathroom mirror.

• Retweet Stand Beside Her messages of encouragement.

• Take a selfie standing beside your best friend.

• Go and talk to the new girl.

• Ask to shadow a female professional you admire.

• Collect clothes, toiletries for a women’s shelter.

• Create your own way to Stand Beside Her! www.standbesideher.org I #standbesiderher GIRL SCOUTS HEART OF THE SOUTH

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4

OCTOBER 3 3 3 4 9-10 9-10 9-10 10 16 17 17 18 18 24 24 24 24 24 25 25 25-31 31 31

HERo Day with the Memphis Fire Department Memphis, TN All About Autumn Lichterman Discovery Day Memphis, TN HealthWorks! Badge Workshop, Tupelo, MS Social Butterfly Junior Badge Workshop, Memphis, TN Autumn Adventure Weekend, Jackson, TN Go Gold Overnight, Camp Fisherville Gymnastics Overnight, Tupelo, MS Ring Riders, Kamp Kiwani Haunted Mansion, Memphis, TN Mississippi State Football Scout Day, Starkville, MS Juliette Gordon Low Birthday Tea, Memphis, TN Free Being Me, Cleveland, MS Fit for Life, Jackson, TN North Mississippi Race for the Cure, Tupelo, MS Day with Your Favorite Guy, Kamp Kiwani Girl Scout Day at the Discovery Park of America Union City, TN Gold Award Training, Saltillo, MS Delta State Football Scout Night, Cleveland, MS Spooky Skate Party, Starkville, MS Family Fun Day, Oakland, TN National Stand Beside Her Week Juliette Gordon Low’s Birthday Trail Riders, Kamp Kiwani

NOVEMBER 6-7 7 7 7 13-14 14 15 20-21 21 21

Girl Scout Weekend at Todd Family Fun Farm Dyer, TN University of Memphis Football Scout Night Memphis, TN Hide & Seek Part 1, Camp Tik-A-Witha Wranglers, Kamp Kiwani Pink Palace Camp In Extravagazna, Memphis, TN Gold Award Training, Memphis, TN International Girls Day Teddy Bear Tea, Starkville, MS Gymnastics Overnight, Jackson, TN Start Your Engines Powderpuff Derby, Memphis, TN Daisy Day at the Children’s Museum of Memphis Memphis, TN

DECEMBER 5

Gold Award Training, Jackson, TN

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JANUARY

Summer Camp Registration Opens!

Second Cookie Booth Weekend Girl Scout Week Girl Scout Sunday Third Cookie Booth Weekend Girl Scout Birthday Girl Scout Sabbath Final Cookie Booth Weekend

1 4-6 6-12 6 11-13 12 12 18-20

Gold Award Training, Memphis, TN Zoom, Pop, WOW! Engineering Day Camp Starkville, MS World Thinking Day National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend First Cookie Booth Weekend

22 26-28 26-28

2016 Girl Scout Cookie Program Begins!

Girl Scout Cookie Rally, Southaven, MS Girl Scout Cookie Rally, Grenada, MS Girl Scout Cookie Rally, Tupelo, MS Girl Scout Cookie Rally, Jackson, TN

9 9 14 16 23

FEBRUARY 6 20

MARCH

APRIL 2 16 22 29-30

MAY 7 14

JUNE

19-26

Scouts Rock! Graceland, Memphis, TN Owl Prowl at the Memphis Zoo, Memphis, TN Girl Scout Leader Day Zoo Snooze at the Memphis Zoo, Memphis, TN Nano Science Night at the Pink Palace, Memphis, TN All About Birds Lichterman Discovery Day Memphis, TN Girl Scouts Go: Washington, D.C. Trip

Family Fun Day

Sunday, October 25 2-6 p.m. Canale Farms, Oakland, TN Enjoy a day at Canale Farm with wagon rides, games, fishing, football toss, basketball hoops, volleyball, tether ball, horseshoes, big screen NFL match up, moon bounce and more. Buffet dinner served at 4 p.m. $15 per person registration: open - 10/16/15

100% of proceeds from our council shops stay right here in our community helping our girls, supporting our volunteers. Shop local.

Heart of the South Patch Represent your council with this new Heart of the South patch featuring apple blossoms for Arkansas, magnolias for Mississippi, purple irises for Tennessee, and daisies for Girl Scouts. $2

Girl Scout State Shirts Show your state pride in this council exclusive Girl Scout Comfort Color ™ shirts.

YM-L: $18, AS-XL: $21, A2XL: $24 Imported.

Barbie Loves Girl Scouts Barbie® doll loves the Girl Scouts and is ready to sell cookies for the cause.This keepsake doll wears a Girl Scout-inspired outfit with plenty of Barbie® signature style. $12.99 11 1/2” tall. Doll cannot stand alone. Ages 3+.

Girl Scouts Heart of the South Tumbler Your sweet tea will be the cutest in this council exclusive acrylic tumbler. $6 Available in green. 16 oz.

Polyester Fleece Vest Outside beckons and you’ll be ready with this soft fleece vest. With stand-up neck, zipper pockets and contrast trim. Polyester fleece. $24.95 Imported. Available in Charcoal or Raspberry colors.

1/4 Zip Pullover Sweatshirt Get the look. Whether you’re on land or on water, this sweatshirt with embroidered Girl Scout Servicemark is loved from coast to coast. $26.95 Cotton/polyester fleece.

Imported. Available in Navy or Teal colors.

three convenient locations or online at www.girlscoutshs.org/shop Memphis Service Center & Council Shop 717 South White Station Rd. Ste. 2 Memphis, TN 38117

Jackson Service Center & Council Shop 1007 Old Humboldt Rd. Jackson, TN 38305

Tupelo Service Center & Council Shop 1140 West Main Street Tupelo, MS 38801

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Volume 1

No. 2

Fall/Winter 2015

The Official Publication of Girl Scouts Heart of the South

NATIONAL STAND

Any graphic elements that are meant BESIDE New Girls’ Choice to bleed off the page need to be HER Outdoor Badges line or announcedcarried out at least to the redWEEK OCTOBER 25-31 preferably a little bit past it.

COOKIE upgrade

Digital Cookies 2.0 Improves Program

Let’s have

Girl Scouts Across the Country Unite

Dear Daisy

DELVES INTO YOUR DILEMMAS

FUN TODAY. ADVENTURE AND FUN AWAIT Girl Scout Cookies send girls to Savannah