Join us for our annual Girl Scout Day at Dinosaur Ridge on Saturday, Oct. 14, 2017! It’s also National Fossil Day, so come learn about fossils and celebrate. All Girl Scouts, friends, and family are invited. We’ll have representatives from area STEM organizations with hands-on activities for the girls. The event will start at 9 a.m. and Girl Scouts have until 3 p.m. to complete activities. Troops and families should allow at least two hours to complete activities and plan to arrive by 1 p.m. Cost is $6/Girl Scout and $5/other adults and youth. Children under 3 are free. An optional National Fossil Day patch is available the day of the event for purchase for $3. Save time in line and preregister at https://goo.gl/hLFL8o . Registration Deadline: Thursday, Oct. 12. We will accept walk-ups the day of the event until 1 p.m. Questions? Please contact Lori Thompson at lori.thompson@gscolorado.org. #Golden #DinosaurRidge #GSCOevents #STEM #MetroDenver

What did you do for your Gold Award project? In rural Namasale, Uganda, water was scarce. There was no form of clean water in the near distance forcing over 150 children to risk their lives in search of a water source. Girls would travel dangerous lengths in the dark at the risk of rape, just trying to provide their family with the necessity that was not accessible to anyone. My project addressed this issue at the root. In addition to the one tank that was provided to the Global Leaders Primary School (GLPS), I provided them with three more 10,000 liter tanks to be placed at every corner of the school to ensure the ease of having clean water while at school and to take home to their family. I hoped to give these children not only clean water, but a sense of inspiration. I didn’t want to stop at the tanks. The lack of education was also an issue to be addressed, which is why I designed posters for every classroom making certain the children know the importance of clean water and the right ways to use and conserve it. The students, staff, and their families have all benefited from the addition of three water filtration tanks and an addition to their curriculum adding more depth and complexity to these children’s education. Here in my own community, I designed a curriculum that emphasized the importance and awareness that students here need to recognize in regards to clean water. Curriculum binders that were placed at high schools in Lakewood and Golden, Manning Middle School, and libraries in Golden and Lakewood included information about my project and activities that helped children reflect on their own water use. This was a great way to connect the dots from 3,000 miles away. How did you measure the impact your Gold Award project made on your target audience? Because records are not kept as efficiently as they are in the United States and the Global Leaders Primary school is only one year old, the measurability was forced away from the numbers and into smiles. I measured the impact of my Gold Award through personal accounts, pictures, videos, and the joy that was given to the children along with my tanks. I believe this is more powerful than statistics or analytical data that live on a piece of paper. I find comfort in knowing that my project reached beyond the paper and into these children’s lives. Maybe one day when the government of Uganda is more established and the school has been there for a longer amount of time, I will find the statistical impact of my project, but a smile goes way further than numbers. How is your project sustainable? How will your project continue to impact after your involvement? These 10,000 liter tanks are designed to last more than 50 years, which is sustainable in itself. In addition, the educational resources placed in every classroom at GLPS will also be sustained by not only the children, but the teachers will also learn the true importance of the water tanks. These posters will be referred to and taught for years to come. This, in addition to the curriculum, will add a great component and feature to the primary school as a whole and add another reason to increase enrollment and attendance. In my own community, the curriculum binders that I have designed and placed in local libraries and schools in my community along with an electronic version, will be placed and used by future generations with the desire to learn about the connections of clean water to third world countries and the important features of clean water locally as well. What is your project’s global and/or national connection? My whole project went beyond the local boundaries of my community. Designed to target students of GLPS, my boundaries were outstretched all the way across the world to Namasale, Uganda. I had to work with many liaisons working in Namasale, which added another global layer to my project. On the other hand, the national link to my project came to fruition in my educational component in my own community. In the educational binders was information that discussed states here in the United States that were struggling to maintain clean water. This link brought my project full circle in a way that brought the importance of helping locations with a limited access to clean water closer to home because the purpose of my project was to instill my passion for this project into other people in hopes that it will spark a project within their minds to create. What did you learn about yourself? Coming into this project I took pride in being a strong leader, but this project took that term to a whole new meaning. I lost the stigma that I previously had against delegation, which helped along the way throughout my project. Most notably featured in my delegation to Far Away Friends to deliver the tanks and all of the materials that I created to GLPS. This was also seen in my delegation to my team members to deliver the curriculum to the neighboring libraries and schools to further the education of my project. In addition, my communication skills were improved in the sense that I had to hone in my patience awaiting responses that were coming from halfway across the world. This was extremely difficult as I wanted to maintain an efficient timeline and always be hands-on throughout my project. I did a project bigger than myself and bigger than I ever could’ve imagined and from that, I learned that I was a lot stronger than I was. To put the amount of work a yearlong project needed proved to myself that my leadership goes farther than I could see. With being such a busy student, this determination and efficiency improved my leadership skills immensely. How will earning your Gold Award impact you in the future? This project allows me to draw conclusions from the lessons I learned along the way. I took away so many valuable aspects of how to create a sustainable goal and how to carry this out effectively that will be even more viable to my future. As I desire to go into the leadership field of study, I plan to take everything I’ve learned through my Gold Award and apply it into my future profession as they both parallel with the importance of leadership and hard work. Why do you feel the Gold Award was an important part of your Girl Scout experience? This Gold Award is the culmination of all the cold hours outside selling cookies, all the ropes courses, service outings, Silver Award, etc. This project is everything that I have worked hard to be able to do. The toolkit that Girl Scouts has provided me through countless leadership strengthening activities to individual self introspection, all have been utilized in my Gold Award. This was a way to utilize everything that I’ve learned in the past 12 years of my Girl Scout career. How did earning your Gold Award help you become a G.I.R.L. (go-getter, innovator, risk-taker, leader)? To be honest, I was always a G.I.R.L. What I’ve come to learn about myself is now, I am a W.O.M.A.N. Wiser- Doing a project with so much room for perspective, I took this opportunity to improve my empathy. To find small ways to humble my life in retrospection of the lives these children were given. Optimistic- Trying to find the light in a project like this was easy, just because of the impact I was making. It was hard to put that into context of the multitude of other villages that I couldn’t help. This initial thought was hard to process, but by the end of my project, it just proved as motivation for the next one. Motivator- One of the many goals of this project was to radiate my passion in hopes of someone else finding that same motivation to help people in need. That if one person out of the many that heard a speech of mine or read a curriculum binder left and said, “I could do something like that.” Adaptive- By doing a project from halfway across the world, I needed to learn how to roll with the punches. Because there is such a cultural difference between us, I needed to adapt to their customs and empathize with the ways in which they lived. Natural- I was born a leader. With tenacity and determination, I have always tried to find activities that catered to these aspirations which in turn, strengthened my leadership. By the time of this Gold Award, I discovered that all of these activities I chose to surround myself with, created a sense of security whether I was on stage giving a speech, creating posters, or campaigning my project, I felt right at home. I was in my natural habitat and comfort zone. I feel very real, honest and natural. **IMPORTANT NOTE: This blog represents only a small fraction of the hard work, dedication, and requirements that go into earning a Girl Scout Gold Award. It is simply a brief summary, which is meant to inspire Girl Scouts to Go Gold in the future. For more information on earning your Gold Award, please email highestawards@gscolorado.org. #Golden #GoldAward #HighestAwards #uganda #Namasale #LakewoodHighSchool #MetroDenver #TakeAction

Troop leaders, will your troop qualify for an early Cookie Booth selection opportunity? The S’mores Club booth selection reward is back for the 2017-18 Girl Scout year and you don’t want to miss it! To qualify for the S’mores Club, your troop must sell at least $350 in online sales during the 2017 Fall Product Program. The in-person delivery portion of the program ends Oct. 15 and the online portion of the Fall Sale Program ends on Oct. 30. If your  troop sells $350 or more online during the 2017 Fall Product Program, you will be notified in December via the email provided through the Troop Fall Sale Manager agreement and permitted to select one Cookie Booth in eBudde ahead of the council booth selection process. If you have questions regarding the requirements or details for the booth selection opportunity, please reach out to your SUFSM or PSS. For full details on the S’mores Club Reward, visit www.girlscoutsofcolorado.org/smores #2017FallProductProgram #VolunteerNews #SmoresClub #2018GirlScoutCookieProgram #cookievolunteers

Submitted by Staci Calderon Pikes Peak Colorado Springs Girl Scout Cadettes in Troop 4636 lead by example in volunteering their time at Explorer Elementary. On September 19, 2017, our girls watched 28 kids while their parents attended the Ruler Orientations. Games and storytime kept the kiddos entertained for the evening. What a great leadership opportunity and experience for our girls! How has Girl Scouts helped you become a G.I.R.L. (go-getter, innovator, risk-taker, or leader)? Share your Girl Scout story and photos using the Share Your Stories form. #ColoradoSprings #ExplorerElementary #GIRLstories #PikesPeak

Submitted by Bella K., G.I.R.L.  Media Star Northern & Northeastern CO Windsor Girl Scouts has helped me become a risk-taker because when I was at Sky High Ranch I rode a long zip line. I was very nervous to do it, but once I got on I had so much fun! I was one of the few girls who actually let go of the rope when I was riding it. Girl Scouts has also helped me to become a leader because at troop cookie camp, we were going on a hike and the girls in my troop were getting discouraged. I started to sing and the girls sang along. This helped the hike go better and the girls had fun. This is one of the many ways Girl Scouts has helped me become a leader. Girl Scouts has helped me to be a go-getter because last cookie season my goal was 1,000 packages of Girl Scout Cookies. I wanted to meet the goal I met last year, but instead I went 1,053 packages beyond! How has Girl Scouts helped you become a G.I.R.L. (go-getter, innovator, risk-taker, or leader)? Share your Girl Scout story and photos using the Share Your Stories form. #SkyHighRanch #Windsor #NorthernampNortheasternCO #leader #risktaker #GIRLstories

Submitted by Eva Bauer Metro Denver Denver Join us Monday, October 9, 2017 from 5 – 7 p.m. at The GrowHaus (https://www.thegrowhaus.org/) for a program, tour, and hands-on service project at their indoor farm. Learn about food networks, nutrition, and local farming. Cost is $7 per Girl Scout. There are 12 spots available. Senior Troop 1096 is working on their “Sow What” Journey and arranged a field trip to The GrowHaus, which has worked with GSCO in the past. The tour can accommodate 20 Girl Scouts and we only need eight slots, so we want to open this opportunity to other troops or Juliettes. This story was submitted using the Share Your Stories form. You can share your Girl Scout moments too. #GSCOevents #oldergirls #TheGrowHaus #Denver #SowWhatJourney #badge #MetroDenver

Join us for our annual Girl Scout Day of Dance with Colorado Ballet on Sunday, Nov. 5, 2017. Girl Scouts of all ages are invited to come learn and will try three different dance genres: ballet, creative modern, and Brazilian World Dance. Dancers will be exposed to the specific techniques as well as improvisation and dance concepts. Brownies can also earn requirements towards their Dancer Badge. The event will run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. with a lunch break. Cost is $12/girl and includes an event patch. Register at https://goo.gl/EqTMsu . This is a popular event and has filled quickly in the past. You’ll want to sign up soon to reserve your Girl Scout’s spot. Girls will want to bring comfortable clothes, water, and lunch. Ballet or jazz shoes are encouraged, if you have them. There will be a parent lounge onsite for use while girls are in class. Questions? Please contact Lori Thompson at lori.thompson@gscolorado.org. #GSCOevents #ColoradoBallet #Communitypartnerships #Denver #MetroDenver #DayofDance

From Girl Scouts of the USA Your troop may already be up and running, but that doesn’t mean it’s too late to welcome new members! Adding new girls to your troop—even midyear—can help energize your group, showcase the Girl Scout spirit of sisterhood and inclusion, and demonstrate by example how Girl Scouts is the best leadership development experience for girls in the world. Period. After all, Girl Scouts is all about trying new things, building new skills, and getting to know new friends in a safe and supportive all-girl environment—with guidance from caring troop leaders like you, of course! To smooth the transition for your newbies, incorporate these fun activities into your meetings, and new girls will feel at home in no time at all! 1. Set up a storytelling meet-and-greet! One of the absolute best ways to connect with others is by swapping stories. Introduce newcomers at their first meeting, then have everyone else introduce themselves, covering the basics, like their first name, age, and years in Girl Scouts. Encourage your seasoned Girl Scouts to go a little more in-depth by sharing something about their families, pets, or interests. Maybe each girl can pick three things about herself she’d like her new Girl Scout sisters to know. Once all troop members have introduced themselves, ask new girls to share some of their own stories. Be sure to build in time for questions so the girls have even more opportunities to connect and share. Make it super interactive and fun by finishing up the meeting with a cool trivia game to see how much they remember about one another! 2. Showcase what your troop loves to do most!  At a new girl’s first or second meeting, work with the other girls to plan an activity around things the troop loves to do most, whether that be community service, outdoor adventure, photography, or science experiments. What better way to get a new Girl Scout’s experience off to an exciting and memorable start than to head straight into the action? At the beginning of the meeting, have a couple girls take the lead and explain the activity and why they love it so much. For subsequent meetings, give new girls the opportunity to choose activities they love most and help them plan something special to share with the troop! 3. Encourage her to take the lead! Girl Scouting is all about taking the lead and making things happen, so let newcomers do so early and often. You can start small, having them lead a simple activity, or go big by encouraging them to teach their Girl Scout sisters about an issue that really matters to them. You might also go around the room and have everyone share what taking the lead like a Girl Scout means to them, complete with real-life examples to help new girls really get a grasp of leadership and everything they have the power to accomplish as Girl Scouts. Allow them time to ask questions, too. Learning and leading, that’s how we Girl Scouts do it! #GirlScoutsoftheUSA #VolunteerNews #recruitment #VolunteerTips #volunteer

Submitted by Rose Rundell Pikes Peak Colorado Springs When: March 22, 2018 from 6 – 8 p.m. Where: Skate City 4575 Austin Bluffs Pkwy. Colorado Springs, CO 80918 Girl Scouts are taking over Skate City on Austin Bluffs! We’re having a party to celebrate Girl Scouts’ 106th Birthday and the end of  the Girl Scout Cookie Program. The girls and adults worked hard! This is a private event, only open to Girl Scout individuals, troops, friends, and family. (Sorry, no drop offs. Girls need to bring their own adults to look after them.) SU13 will be collecting non-perishable food to donate to Care and Share.  The cost is $5 for admission and $2.50 for skate rentals (if needed) We will have cake and door prizes! Special custom patches will be available that night to purchase or order. Please try to RSVP to Rose sometime between March 1- 20. We would like to make sure we have enough cake for everyone. email: froggerrr@hotmail.com We would love to see all the Girl Scouts, so try to wear green and your GS swag! This story was submitted using the Share Your Stories form. You can share your Girl Scout moments too. #ColoradoSprings #GirlScoutCookieProgram #PikesPeak #SkateCity

Submitted by Molly McPherson, 2017 Gold Award Girl Scout Durango Southwestern Colorado I am excited to share where my Gold Award project, “Saving the World One Bottle at a Time,” has taken me. I was contacted by Polar Bottle and they have recruited me as a brand ambassador. I am now sponsored by the company, and they have shared my information on their website, which is really cool and some extra good publicity.  Here’s the link if you want to check it out: https://polarbottle.com/ambassador/molly-mcpherson-insulated-water-bottle-ambassador/ Secondly, I finished the video that I was planning to make! It took a considerable amount of time, planning, and energy. I have had fairly good success with the promotion of it!  Here is the link for it on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv9Pow5mXKE&t I am now living in Durango, and going to school at Fort Lewis College, but I am hoping to do more presentations about the harmful effects of plastic bottles, as well as team up with our environmental center and do some more projects! I am looking forward to where this project will be taking me, and I will keep you updated with the success of it! This story was submitted using the Share Your Stories form. You can share your Girl Scout moments too. #GoldAward #HighestAwards #Durango #SouthwesternColorado #TakeAction

Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador Girl Scouts: It’s time to challenge yourself!  What better way than adventuring in true Colorado style, and hiking a “13er” with Girl Scouts! The Outdoor Adventure Club still has openings in our trek up the mountain October 13-14, 2017.  Girls will arrive at Keystone Science School on Friday night to enjoy an overnight with other older Girl Scouts from all across the state.  Then, wake up Saturday with the fresh mountain air and an amazing hike up the mountain.  All levels of hiking experience are accepted.  The registration deadline has been extended to October 2 at 2 p.m.  Visit our event posting for more details at http://www.girlscoutsofcolorado.org/content/girlscoutsofcolorado/en/events-repository/2017/outdoor_adventure_cl_606420463.html. #OutdoorAdventureClub #CadetteGirlScouts #GSCOevents #AmbassadorGirlScouts #oldergirls #KeystoneScienceSchool #SeniorGirlScouts

From Girl Scouts of the USA “Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver, the other gold. A circle is round, it has no end. That’s how long I’ll be your friend.” Every Girl Scout knows this song. It’s sung across the country at troop meetings, friendship circles, campfires, and more. Why does it mean so much to Girl Scouts? Because it solidifies our more than 100-year history of sisterhood, inclusion, and shared adventure. Not to mention, Girl Scouts is the perfect place to make new friends who help nurture one another on the path to leadership and success (and often last a lifetime)! We know that bringing those silver and gold friends together might sound overwhelming at first, but did you know there are some surprising benefits to having your girl’s friend groups mix? Here are four of ‘em! 1. She’ll bridge her worlds. One of the best things about Girl Scouts is that girls can incorporate the skills they learn, the experiences they enjoy, and the lessons they reap into their everyday lives at home, in school, and in their community. So, why not bring all of that Girl Scout awesomeness into their friend groups, too? By bringing a close neighbor or schoolmate to a Girl Scout meeting, your girl can see two of her worlds collide in an amazing way as she realizes Girl Scouts isn’t just an activity, but a unique experience she can use and share every day and weave seamlessly into many parts of her life. 2. She’ll practice her leadership skills. By introducing a close friend to the world of Girl Scouting, your girl has a chance to take the lead and show her friend the ropes (and maybe even how to tie a few!). She’ll teach her friend the Girl Scout Promise; show off the latest badge troop members earned and explain how they did it; encourage her friend to try something new; and, most importantly, share what Girl Scouts means to her. Not only does this give your girl a confidence boost but it also gives her a chance to inspire others to unleash the leader in them! If Girl Scouts is something she loves and believes in, what better way to take the lead than to offer that same experience to someone she cares about? 3. She’ll gain a new perspective. Have you ever looked at a giant painting too close and missed the bigger picture? Sure, you’re having so much fun admiring the details—from each delicate brush stroke to the thoughtful coloring—but sometimes taking a step back to look at something from the outside in can help you appreciate what you’re really seeing. By watching her friend experience Girl Scouting for the first time, your girl will also see the experience from new eyes, reinvigorating her love for Girl Scouts as well as her appreciation for the magnitude of what she is learning and doing every day to empower herself and make the world a better place. Talk about seeing the bigger picture! 4. She’ll understand the importance of sisterhood. Being a sister to every Girl Scout may be intuitive to most, but seeing it in person as her troop accepts a potential new member can be eye-opening for a young girl. It helps her appreciate the benefits of having a band of sisters who will have her back no matter what and will inspire her to always do the same for others—it’s the Girl Scout way, after all! So, next time you notice one of your girl’s friends asking about what she does in Girl Scouts, contact your troop leader to see if you can cohost an “Bring-a-Friend” meeting—one that let’s new girls and their parents participate in Girl Scout activities and possibly join in on the fun as they discover what Girl Scouts could bring to their own lives. #GirlScoutsoftheUSA #recruitment