US Contact lists - Councils within the US

 

Girl Scout 

verb

Being a Girl Scout is something you DO, and it is an EXPERIENCE that no girl should miss!

Welcome!  One of the biggest hurdles for new leaders is who to contact, and how.  We are working on a complete list of councils within the US - scroll down and see if we have yours. 

*If you dont see it, feel free to drop us a comment!

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• District of Columbia
• Girl Scouts of the Nations Capitol
• Florida
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Girl Scouts of Central Illinois
• Indiana
• Girl Scouts of Northern Indiana - Michiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Maryland
• Girl Scouts of the Nations Capitol
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• Girl Scouts of Southern & Central New Jersey
• New Mexico
• Girl Scouts of the Desert Southwest
• New York
• Girl Scouts of Suffolk County
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Vermont
• Virginia
• Girl Scouts of the Nations Capitol
• Washington
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming
• Puerto Rico
• Guam
• US Virgin Islands
• American Samoa
• Northern Mariana

Covid-19 and Girl Scouts: Meetings

 

Girl Scout 

verb

Being a Girl Scout is something you DO, and it is an EXPERIENCE that no girl should miss!

Welcome.  In this time of world wide pandemic, girl scouts is suffering. The socialization and education that girl scouts, as an organtization, brings to young womens lives is remarkable.

Covid started, for my family, one day last march.  One day, my children were in school, with rumblings of having to take some time off.  That day, they came home from school, with no idea that they would not be back in a classroom for almost a year.  It was a friday afternoon, and life was as usual.

That weekend, we watched our country fall.  We watched our schools close, one by one, and there was an air of uncertainty.  We assumed this would be under control shortly and life would resume as normal.  We joked about the hurricane like response to flood the stores and over buy everything one could imagine.  We laughed at the idea of people hoarding toilet paper.  We put on our masks, and we waited.  And we waited.  And we waited. 

Eventually, we realized that this covid life is now life as we know it.  We settled in.  We stayed home.  Our kids learned how to zoom meet for class - which was exceptionally hard for my kindergartener.  

My girls suffered.  A lot.  All of my scouts lived within a few blocks of each other. They were used to running the neighborhood, and slipping in and out of all of our homes and it came to a sudden halt.  It was hard for them to not see each other.  And as we entered this extended time that requires masks, and 6 feet, I reached out to our parents to get their opinions.  More recently, I reached out to other leaders to ask how they have managed it so far, and how they have addressed it within their troops. I have compiled this information here, in a few installments, and hope that leaders and parents alike find use in it.

MEETINGS 

Many leaders expressed frustration with the limitations placed on meetings these days. Kids are burnt out from zoom/google meet/etc at school, and it can be a real strain for them to the have one more committment to screen time.  This was also VERY council specific.  As always - please consult with your council prior to making any decisions about how to meet. 

Virtual meetings - 

    These meetings are easier to facilitate - especially during the colder months. Some of the most common ideas were the following:

**Pre meeting prep**  Many leaders have put together supply packs for their girls containing items not generally found in the household needed for patches, or just something fun to make them smile, and distributed prior to the meeting.

1.  Open with something fun - a social time for the girls just to catch up; a scavenger hunt for supplies for the meeting; etc - some variation on a purely enjoyable activity. 

2.  Focused work - badge work that is planned for the day to work with each other, or alongside of each other.

3. Closing with something positive - saying nice things about their neighbor, their life, etc.  

Many leaders have given feedback on what they found to be fuctional with a zoom meeting.  Some easier things to try are:

- Reformulating badge programs to fit the online or distanced forum that is so essential today.

- Offering the girls a time to socialize.  The lost socialization our children are missing with Covid is an enormous loss to their generation, and its important to fit it in wherever we can.

- Fun badge or fun meeting ideas, such as:

    1. Scavenger hunt

    2. Recycled material fashion show

    3. Healthy Habits

    

In Person meetings - 

    These meetings are more difficult to facilitate as they require a larger space, and more necessities.  Further, many councils DO NOT allow meeting in person of any kind, so as always, please contact your council prior to any decision making. 

**Pre meeting prep** Please make sure you have additional supplies with you.  Extra masks, hand sanitizer, and lots of space.  Remember - 6 feet is the best distance WITH masks, and 10 feet without. 

In closing, we will continue to share our knowledge and experience as we continue to navigate this worldwide pandemic. 

Girl Scout songs are an integral part of being a girl scout.  These are some of my favorites! Please enjoy them.  I grew up in the midwest, so if you are from a different region, you may have slightly different lyrics!  I've included links to YouTube videos, but they are not *my* videos - enjoy them, and let the artists know if you loved them!

Kookaburra

Link to Kookaburra on Youtube

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree, 

Merry, merry king of the bush is he, 

Laugh, Kookaburra! Laugh, Kookaburra! 

Gay your life must be. 

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree, 

Eating all the gum drops he can see, 

Stop, Kookaburra! Stop, Kookaburra! 

Leave some there for me. 

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree, 

 all the monkeys he can see, 

Stop, Kookaburra! Stop, Kookaburra! 

That's not a monkey that's me. 

Kookaburra sits on a rusty nail, 

Gets a boo-boo in his tail, 

Cry, Kookaburra! Cry, kookaburra! 

Oh how life can be.

 Girl Scout songs are an integral part of being a girl scout.  These are some of my favorites! Please enjoy them.  I grew up in the midwest, so if you are from a different region, you may have slightly different lyrics!  I've included links to YouTube videos, but they are not *my* videos - enjoy them, and let the artists know if you loved them!

The Ash Grove

Link to the Ash Grove on YouTube

The ash grove how graceful, how plainly 'tis speaking
The wind through it playing has language for me.
Whenever the light through its branches is breaking,
A host of kind faces is gazing at me.
The friends from my childhood again are before me
Each step brings a memory as freely I roam.
With soft whispers laden the leaves rustle o'er me
The ash grove, the ash grove alone is my home.

Down yonder green meadow where streamlets meander
When twilight is fading I pensively roam
Or in the bright noon tide in solitude wander
Amid the dark spaces of that lonely ash grove.
‘Twas there while the black bird was cheerfully singing
I first met my dear one the joy of my heart
Around us for gladness the blue bells were springing
The ash grove, the ash grove that sheltered my home

My lips smile no more, my heart loses its lightness;
No dream of the future my spirit can cheer.
I only can brood on the past and its brightness
The dear ones I long for again gather here.
From ev'ry dark nook they press forward to meet me;
I lift up my eyes to the broad leafy dome,
And others are there, looking downward to greet me
The ash grove, the ash grove, again is my home