Marina's member updates

Member Update, December 9, 2011: $1 Million grant to improve Camp Butano!

Dec. 9, 2011

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,
 
It's an exciting time at Girl Scouts NorCal! This update includes information about:

• S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation Awards GSNorCal $1 Million Grant
• Early Bird Discount for Discoveree 2012!

$1 Million S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation Grant for Butano!

I am delighted to announce that the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation has awarded Girl Scouts of Northern California the largest grant in our council’s history – $1 million to support our camp improvement plan for Camp Butano Creek in the Santa Cruz Mountains! 
 
Camp Butano Creek is our most-used property for troop and Service Unit camping and also is home to a wonderful volunteer-run summer resident camp. It is a beautiful site – nestled in the redwoods, with old growth redwood trees and easy access to the coast.  During 2010, Butano Creek hosted over 5,000 campers, for 16,410 camper days. 
 
The Camp Butano Creek improvements are designed to improve girls’ program experiences and also to reduce our losses by increasing the camp’s capacity, making the camp more suitable for week-day rentals to other youth groups during the school year and by reducing capital repairs.  Our work and commitment to improve the financial viability of our camps was an important part of the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation’s evaluation of our grant proposal.

Tent Platforms at Butano: Improvement plan includes an additional tent platform unit and restroom upgrades so the units are “stand alone” and no longer share showers with other units.

It has been very exciting to work with one of the nation’s leading camp architecture firms – Domokur Architects – and with the volunteer leaders of the summer resident camp (who also have extensive troop camping experience at Camp Butano Creek) to develop a Master Plan for Camp Butano Creek. 
 
We know that the Master Plan will evolve as we begin work and permitting, but I wanted to share with you the vision that the S.D. Bechtel Jr. Foundation’s grant will support.  You can click here to see a map of the Master Plan. Note that the Master Plan site plan drawing includes three elements that we have not included in the current improvement plan – a covered pavilion at the south end of camp, an activity building at the north end, and additional cabins/tree houses at mid-camp. We will return to the possibility of these improvements at a later time when we have raised funds and completed priorities at other camps. 
 

The Penny Royal cabin in the “South Commons:” Improvement plan includes modifications to accommodate up to two troops and co-ed youth groups for mid-week rentals, with adjoining, accessible restrooms and outdoor cooking.

Butano improvement plan. The improvement plan calls for a 3-phase development. The total cost ($2,149,000) includes site improvements, architecture fees and a 20% contingency for each Phase. We will, of course, embark on each phase, only as we are able to raise the required funds. These improvements will increase year-round capacity by 88 campers increasing current year-round daily capacity from 128 to 216 and will also add infrastructure to support service unit camping, summer camp and week day rentals to other nonprofits and school groups.
 
Phase 1:  Increase year round capacity by 48:  replace Laurel cabin, add staff tent platforms to support use by large groups ($603,000):  During Phase I, we will build a new flexible activity center that replaces 24 of the 36 beds lost during winter and spring because the bridge to Laurel Cabin is no longer safe to use.  Estimates are that it would cost at least $250,000 to replace the bridge, and we concluded this would not be the best use of limited resources. Laurel Cabin, which requires extensive maintenance, does provide sleeping quarters during summer (when it is reached by a foot bridge). We will also add tent platforms that sleep up to 24. The total cost includes site improvements and project costs (including design fees and a 20% contingency).

• North Commons Lodge:  Flexible structure for school year troop camping (sleeps 24) and activities and summer camp infirmary, office, and staff gathering spot. ($248,000)
• North Commons Amphitheater:  Add a gathering spot outside the dining hall to enhance the camp experiences for large rental groups. ($39,000)
• North Commons Platform Tent/Yurt Village:  4 tent platforms (each sleeps 6) near the Dining Hall and North Commons Lodge for administrative and food service support at camp and service unit gatherings. The Tent Unit would also support rentals to other large non profit user groups, particularly during the school year when Laurel Cabin is not available. ($50,000)

Phase 2:  Expand number of troops and opportunities for co-ed groups ($1,177,000). The total cost includes site improvements and project costs (including design fees and a 20% contingency).

• Renovate 2 existing cabins (Penny Royal and Sequoia):  Expand use from 2 to 4 troops (current cabins sleep 24, but many troops are smaller than this and would like the option of a smaller/lower cost rental), increase beds by 16 (8 per unit) replace current uni-sex bathroom and shower house, which are located in the center of a field, with adjoining co-ed accessible bathrooms and replace separate outdoor cooking shelters with adjoining outdoor cooking shelters to free up additional open field space as well as room for the new South Commons Cabin. ($188,000  per cabin)
• Renovate bathroom (and add showers) for two tent units:  This will make these units more “self-contained” than they currently are, since they currently share showers with other units and will make them more rentable on a stand-alone basis. (Toyon: $73,000; Huckleberry: $49,000)
• Add South Commons Cabin:  This new cabin will add 24 beds.  It will  be a flexible space, to be used both for camping and for indoor program activities.  Unlike Penny Royal and Sequoia, the South Commons cabin will include a kitchenette – a very popular feature in Laurel Cabin for winter camping. ($224,000)
• Improve program experience:
  • Improve signage and materials for existing 9 mile trail system ($10,000)

Phase 3:  Improve infrastructure for year round use ($369,000). The total cost includes site improvements and project costs (including design fees and a 20% contingency). During Phase 3 we will renovate the “Saw Mill cabin” used for crafts, upgrade the camp maintenance facility and improve parking and circulation.

Butano Creek directory and redwoods.

Rental opportunities.  We generate less than $43,000 a year in rental income from Butano. It costs over $196,000 a year to operate and repair this property, so reducing this gap is a top priority for our camp sustainability program. The Butano improvement plan will help us achieve this goal by increasing utilization and rentals by two main target groups:

• Girl Scout users for weekend and summer rentals.  Increase year round capacity by 88 beds (a 68% increase). This would generate an additional $51,352 in annual rental income.
• Other non profits and school groups for week day rentals. Based on a conservative estimate of 10 rental days per fall and spring season months (Aug. 15-Nov. 1 and April 1-June 15) during the school year – the additional 50 rental days would generate $70,000. Outdoor school program season runs during fall and spring months.

The S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation’s $1 million grant will be a cornerstone of our efforts to improve program experiences and the economic viability of our camps. In addition to Butano Creek, we are working on improvement plans for our other two largest residential camps, Bothin and Skylark Ranch, and for our high Sierra resident camp, Deer Lake, and also are working with members on plans to achieve break even operations for Sugar Pine, Twin Canyon, and Two Sentinels. 
 
On behalf of all our girls – today and tomorrow – thank you to the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation for this transformational grant, which will help us build a sustainable foundation for the next 100 years of wonderful outdoor experiences for girls!

DISCOVEREE 2012 registration is now open!

Our largest training event for adults and older girls, Discoveree, will be Saturday, Feb. 4, from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. at Cesar Chavez Middle School in Union City. This is a full day of trainings for only $30 if you register before Jan. 15 (the price goes up to $35 after that. which is still quite a deal!).
 
Whether it’s learning a new craft like “Glass Etchings,” gaining a new skill such as outdoor cooking, or expanding your awareness about girls’ self-esteem through workshops like “Self-Esteem: Beauty and the Media,” there’s something for everyone at Discoveree. You can relax with yoga, visit the Girl Scout shop, pick up new troop ideas, or learn all about Girl Scout traditions. There are over 100 workshops to choose from! Bring a friend and make some new ones!

Click here to visit our website for a full description of classes and registration information. Hope to see you there!

Member Update, November 18, 2011: National Convention, Property and Jewel Reunion in Santa Rosa

Nov. 18, 2011

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,
 
Happy Thanksgiving to each of you, and thank you for all that you do to build girls of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place. This update includes information about:

• 2011 National Council Session/52^nd Convention
• Property Update
• 2011 Jewel of a Woman

2011 National Council Session/52^nd Convention. 
 
At last week’s national Girl Scout convention in Houston, we heard from amazing girls and women who reminded us why it is so important to invest our time and dollars to build girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place. GSUSA has named 2012, our 100th Anniversary Year, “The Year of The Girl.” We want to make sure that everyone knows what Girl Scouts does for girls and how building strong girls builds strong communities.

We learned, listened and launched the Year of the Girl – and, as you can see from this picture – we had fun!

Girl Scouts of Northern California was well-represented at the Convention – we had 25 delegates (including 7 girls), 10 girls who participated in the Girl Scout Leadership Institute and another 35 or so adult visitors. It was a wonderful opportunity for the 17 Northern California girls who attended. A parent wrote about his daughter, who attended the Leadership Institute:

“[She] had a great time and grew tremendously while there. She already has plans to: create a PowerPoint presentation to present at the local SU meetings and to other troops, nominate herself for GSNorCal regional delegate and has marked her calendar for three years so she can attempt to be nominated as a delegate to the National Convention in 2014!! She further said that if only other girls understood all of the opportunities available to older girls they would not drop out of Girl Scouts."

We heard from inspiring speakers, like Katie Couric (who spoke in vintage Girl Scout uniform!), Soledad O’Brien, Maya Angelou, and Robin Roberts. A favorite for many of us, were the presentations by the 10 Young Women of Distinction, who were honored for their outstanding Gold Award projects. I shared a brief summary on my SFGate blog, found online here. On Sunday morning, I asked our girls what they liked most about the Convention. Sara Bareilles’ live performance was at the top of their list – but next on their list were the Young Women of Distinction. All of the girls were inspired to hear from girls just a few years older than them, who made such a positive impact through their Gold Award projects. And the Young Women of Distinction spoke with such poise about the lessons they had learned and about their hopes for their futures. I was glad that the delegate seated next to me had Kleenex, because I needed it! 

Our 25 Delegates also conducted the business of the National Council. We voted on 3 proposals. Before the National Council session began, two of our girl delegates led a discussion about the proposals and our delegates shared input they had gathered from Service Units and at the nine town hall meetings conducted at our Council during September.

The votes were as follows:

Proposal 1:  Authorization for Annual General Program Fee for Girl Members (amendment to Blue Book).
The National Delegates voted to amend this proposal to refer, instead to “Authorization for Annual Council Service Fee for Girl Members.” With this amendment, the proposal passed. The proposal allows councils, in their sole discretion, to charge an annual service fee, not to exceed the amount charged by GSUSA for annual membership dues. The proposal passed: 837 “yes” votes and 418 “no” votes. There was quite a bit of debate, but, ultimately, the consensus seemed to be that each council should be able to decide whether and how to use this authorization to support council services while ensuring that all girls are able to participate in Girl Scouts. We will work with our National Delegates and Board to determine when and out how best to engage our members in a discussion about a council service fee for Girl Scouts of Northern California girl members. 

Proposal 2:  Constitutional Amendment: Timing for the Election of National Council Delegates in Councils. This proposal did not pass – constitutional amendments require a two-thirds vote, and this proposal did not receive a majority vote. There were 605 “yes” votes and 656 “no” votes. This amendment would have required that delegates be elected as of Sept. 30 two years preceding the National Council Session. The idea was to allow more time to prepare delegates and to enable delegates to be more engaged in developing proposals. However, many girls, in particular, spoke out against the proposal, pointing out that the two year lead time would make it very difficult for girls to plan and participate. 

Proposal 3:  Annual Membership (amendment to Blue Book). This proposal would have changed the membership year from the current Oct. 1-Sept. 30, to a membership year that “commences on the date of registration of the member.” This proposal did not pass. The delegates voiced concern about implementation and voted to refer the proposal to the GSUSA task group that is working on membership registration.

The Convention also marked the retirement of Kathy Cloninger, the GSUSA CEO who led Girl Scouts through the past 8 years of remarkable change – realignment and the new program model. Kathy passed the torch to GSUSA’s new CEO, Anna Maria Chavez, who is the former CEO of Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas. Anna Maria - shown at right with GSNorCal's own Traveling Girl Scout! - joined Girl Scouts about two and a half years ago. She is an attorney and has worked in both state and federal government, most recently as a Deputy Chief of Staff to then Arizona Governor and current U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano. I thought Anna Maria did a wonderful job addressing the Convention in her first speech as CEO – she spoke from the heart and with a clear vision about why girls and Girl Scouts matter. But don’t take my word for it. You can see Anna Maria’s speech online here.

Property Update.

At its Nov. 5 Board meeting, the Board discussed the Property Task Group’s recommendations, and voiced support for our continued efforts to reduce our losses on camp properties through a combination of rental increases, a capital campaign to raise funds for our three largest, most used camps (Bothin/ Arequipa; Butano Creek and Skylark Ranch), conservation easements on two of our largest most used camps (Butano Creek and Skylark Ranch), and ongoing work with the communities and volunteer groups that use Twin Canyon and Two Sentinels to transition these camp properties to break even operations.

As next steps, the Board has authorized me to continue to work towards completing conservation easements on two of our Santa Cruz Mountain properties. I also will be continuing to meet with members to develop solutions to improve the economics of Twin Canyon – the next Town Hall meeting is scheduled for Jan. 18, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Grace Presbyterian Church, 2100 Tice Valley Blvd., Walnut Creek. I will be meeting with both Contra Costa County service unit leaders and with Diablo Day Camp leaders in advance of the Town Hall, to help ensure that information we share and the topics we discuss will move us closer to a solution.

  Jewel Reunion in Santa Rosa.    
Last night, 75 community members joined us for a lovely reunion of eight remarkable women who Girl Scouts has honored as "Jewels" at the annual Jewel of a Woman event, held since 1992, to recognize women who have made a significant difference in their communities. Senior and Ambassador Girl Scouts interviewed and introduced each of the Jewels, sharing a few pearls of wisdom and advice that they learned from their conversation with the Jewel. Click here for a photo gallery that ran in today's Santa Rosa Press Democrat.

We also recognized two outstanding graduating Girl Scouts with the "Gem of a Girl" recognition: Grace Hamman and Victoria Leiva, and we heard from Natalie, who shared her journey over the past two years, from, as she put it, a girl who had a serious drug problem and was headed towards prison or death to a girl who wants a lot more out of life.  She has been participating in Girl Scouts since she was sentenced to a juvenile detention facility in Sonoma County 18 months ago and described Shalon, the Girl Scout staff member who leads her troop each week, as an "angel" in her life. Natalie joined us at Camp CEO this past summer, and a new Natalie emerged.  She is smart, funny, and headed in a positive direction. I loved hearing from Natalie that she hopes to attend our Lead the Way program for older girls this winter and return to Camp CEO as a girl mentor to help other girls redirect their lives in a more positive direction. That is the power of girls and of Girl Scouts! We're all pulling for you, Natalie!

And thank you, so much for our sponsors of this year's Jewel event. Their support of Girl Scouts makes it possible for us to provide programs like Camp CEO, Got Choices troops in detention centers, and older girl leadership programs like Lead the Way. 

Happy Thanksgiving to each of you. And thank you, again, for all that you do for girls and for Girl Scouts.

Yours in Girl Scouting,



Marina H. Park, CEO
Girl Scouts of Northern California

E-mail: mpark@girlscoutsnorcal.org
Phone: (510) 562-8470, ext. 1106 · Fax: (510) 633-7925
Oakland Office: 7700 Edgewater Drive, Suite 340 · Oakland, CA 94621-0149
www.GirlScoutsNorCal.org

Members Update Blog: www.marinasmemberupdates.com
SF Gate/City Brights Blog: www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/mpark/index?blogid=164 

Member Update, November 4, 2011: Program, Membership, Governance and Property

Nov. 4, 2011

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,
 
Our 2012 – 100^th membership year – is off to a wonderful start. This update includes information about program, membership, governance and property.

• Program and Membership
  • One Hundred Fun Hundred Update and AT&T Employee Matching Gift Initiative for Girl Scouts
  • Fall Festival in Whiskeytown – and, Next Up, Discoveree
  • Bothin Harvest Festival and the Rachel “Scooter” Kwong Adventure Course
  • Fall Product Sale
  • 2011 Membership Year
• Governance & Property
  • September “Road Trip” and Town Hall Meetings and Property Update
  • Regional Delegate Nominations Now Open – they must be received by Nov. 30, 2011
  • National Convention
• In a Girl’s Words: “My Girl Scout Culture”

One Hundred Fun Hundred Update! 
 
Registration opened Nov. 1 for our 100^th Anniversary celebration May 5 – a fun festival for 20,000 Girl Scouts. The first 2,500 tickets (which came with reserved seating for the grand finale), sold in 10 minutes!  As of Nov. 3, more than 4,700 Girl Scouts from 17 states have registered online for One Hundred Fun Hundred. Register now – or learn more about volunteering, by clicking here.

AT&T Employee Matching Gift Initiative for Girl Scouts' Centennial!

AT&T has announced a special matching gift initiative just for AT&T employees in honor of Girl Scouts' centennial. If AT&T employees make a gift to Girl Scouts of Northern California between now and Dec. 31, 2011, AT&T will match their gifts dollar for dollar -- AT&T is matching gifts to Girl Scouts nation-wide up to a total of $500,000. Employee gifts made to Girl Scouts of Northern California through the 2012 United Way/Employee Giving campaign will also be matched. AT&T Employees can visit the company intranet, AT&T Insider, or tSpace to learn more (search Girl Scouts Centennial) for details.  
 
Fall Festival in Whiskeytown and, Next Up, Discoveree.   
 
135 volunteers gathered Oct. 15-16 for this year’s “sold out” fall training retreat. Volunteers attended workshops on everything from Journeys to outdoor cooking. The next big volunteer development event is Discoveree: Feb. 4. Discoveree registration is now open for girls in grades 10-12 and adults – click here to register and for details. The brochure lists an amazing 130 workshops!
 
Bothin Harvest Festival and New Adventure Course.  
 
This past Sunday, 200 girls and volunteers celebrated our first ever harvest at the new Bothin Organic Garden (affectionately known as “the B.O.G”). Girls chose from a wide range of activities, including pumpkin target archery, planting and harvesting, and art with nature. Girls in 4th grade and up, who completed 6 or more Harvest Festival activities, had the opportunity to experience the new Rachel “Scooter” Kwong Adventure Course. We held the dedication of the new Adventure Course Oct. 30, with Rachel’s husband, Bob Kwong, and family in attendance. Rachel’s granddaughter, Tai, was the first girl to climb every element of the adventure course, and a lot of Rachel’s friends from the Heritage Committee also joined in the fun and tried out the “lower course” – which weaves back and forth among the trees, about 25 feet above the creek in some places.  Clearly – they are all women of courage and confidence!  At its high point, the climbing structure is 55 feet off the ground – the highest climbing structure we have at any of our camps. The Adventure Course was made possible by a generous donation from Bob in Rachel’s memory. He was delighted on Sunday to see all the girls enjoying the course!
 
Our Program and Outdoor Program departments are working out the details for program and rental opportunities for the B.O.G. and the Adventure Course. Both the B.O.G. and the new Adventure Course will also be important parts of the summer camp program at Bothin (camp registration will open Feb. 1). 
 
Fall Product Sale – Go Nuts for Girl Scouts! 
 
The fall sale is happening now!  Oct. 1-Nov. 20. The public sale takes place starting today – Friday, Nov. 4 through Sunday, Nov. 20. The fall sale is an important learning opportunity for girls and an important fundraiser for troops and for our council – an average of 50% of each product sold goes to Girl Scouts, 19% to the troop, and 30% to Girl Scouts of Northern California (the balance pays for the cost of the goods sold). Click here to learn about all our 2011 varieties and how you can find yours. Thank you for your support of the girls and of Girl Scouts. 
 
2011 Membership Year. 
 
We ended our membership year on Sept. 30, 2011, with 47,071 girl members – that is a slight (0.6%) decline in girl members, compared to 2010, when we ended the year with 47,431 girl members. The great news is that we added 182 volunteer-led troops, increasing from 3,970 troops in 2010 to 4,152 in 2011. Volunteer support is a big focus of the strategic plan the Board will review and adopt at the Nov. 5 Board meeting. I’ve included at the end of this Update, a paper we recently received from a Contra Costa County Gold Award Girl Scout about “My Girl Scout Culture” and how important Girl Scout volunteers have been in shaping who she is. Thank you to all of our volunteers for making such an incredible difference in the lives of the girls you work with.
 
September “Road Trip,” Town Hall Meetings and Property Update. 
 
During the last two weeks of September, Michelle McCormick (Chief Program and Membership Officer) and I toured our council – and held 9 Town Hall meetings to discuss with members the draft strategic plan, preliminary recommendations from the Property Task Group, proposals for the National Council Session and our council’s upcoming regional delegate elections. While in Eureka, we enjoyed attending the Mortgage Burning Celebration – a gathering of 45 community members to honor the volunteers who led the capital campaign to raise funds for the Barbara Phelps Eureka Program Center (Byrd Lochtie, Sally Biggin, Cheryl Bear, Ina Harris, and Marge Custis) and to burn the mortgage, which we paid off during 2011. Two girls spoke about the importance of the Program Center in their lives, one of them about the Silver Award project she completed to construct a fire circle at the Program Center. We, of course, saved the ashes from the mortgage, to add to the fire.
 
The best attended Town Hall meeting was in Walnut Creek where about 60 members (girls and adults) gathered to ask questions and voice concern about the Property Task Group’s preliminary recommendations. The primary concern in Walnut Creek was the Twin Canyon camp, located in Lafayette. The Property Task Group also has received many emails from members, asking questions about the camps, offering to help raise funds and/or sharing their fond memories of particular camps. 
 
Property next steps: 
At the Nov. 5 Board meeting, the focus is on improving the economics of the council’s three largest and most expensive camps:  Bothin/Arequipa, Butano Creek and Skylark Ranch. The Board will not be making any decisions about possible sales or mothballing of camps at the November meeting. The more we can focus on improving the economics of our three most expensive camps, the more flexibility and time we will have to work to improve the economics of the other ten camp and outdoor program center properties. Meanwhile, the Task Group will be working with the volunteer leadership teams for Two Sentinels and Twin Canyon, and we’ve scheduled another Town Hall meeting for members interested in Twin Canyon to share information, ideas and solutions:  Jan. 18, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Grace Presbyterian Church, 2100 Tice Valley Blvd., Walnut Creek.
 
Regional Delegate Nominations Now Open.
They must be received by Nov. 30, 2011
 
Attention all Girl Scouts of Northern California girl and adult members, age 14 and over:

• It is time to nominate yourself to serve as a Regional Delegate for Girl Scouts of Northern California. Becoming a delegate is one way for the Board and management team to hear your voice! 
• Adult members and girl members, age 14 and older, are eligible to elect and/or become Regional Delegates to Girl Scouts of Northern California. All nominations must be received by Nov. 30.  Click here for more information and the nomination form.

Regional Delegates have the opportunity to attend the council’s annual meeting, have input on important issues such as the Property Plan and other important issues facing our council. At our 2011 annual meeting, many very substantive changes were incorporated into the council’s strategic plan based on input from the delegates.   
 
The deadline for submission of forms is Nov. 30, and no write-in candidates are allowed.  Please don’t let YOUR region go unrepresented, or underrepresented! 

Please talk with people in your Region that you think would make effective delegates to encourage them to nominate themselves, and consider running yourself.  As you can see, we have room for many more nominations ... Each of the 14 Regions is entitled to elect 8 delegates, at least one of whom must be a girl. As of today, we have received just 10 nominations (from the Regions noted below): 

• Region I: North Coast (Del Norte, Humboldt, Mendocino, Lake, West Trinity Counties (1 Nomination)
• Region II North Central I (Siskiyou, Shasta, East Trinity Counties) (3 Nominations)
• Region III Sonoma (Sonoma County) (2 Nominations)
• Region IV Napa/Solano (Napa, Solano Counties) (1 Nomination)
• Region V North Bay (San Francisco, Marin Counties) (1 Nomination)
• Region VI Peninsula (San Mateo County)
• Region VII East Bay Corridor (Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, Alameda, San Leandro, San Lorenzo, El Cerrito, West Contra Costa)
• Region VIII Southern Alameda (Livermore, Hayward, Castro Valley, Fremont, Newark, Union City, Dublin, Pleasanton)
• Region IX Contra Costa I (San Ramon, Danville, Alamo, Lafayette, Orinda, Moraga)
• Region X Contra Costa II (Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, Martinez, Concord, Clayton, Pittsburg, Antioch, Brentwood, Byron, Oakley, Bay Point, Knightsen, Delta, Discovery Bay, Pacheco, West Pittsburg, Bethel Island)
• Region XI Santa Clara I (Northwest—Cupertino, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Sunnyvale)
• Region XII Santa Clara II (Southwest—Campbell, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, Saratoga, Santa Clara, Willow Glen, Branham and Almaden Valley, Central Downtown San Jose, West San Jose) (1 Nomination)
• Region XIII Santa Clara III (East—South San Jose, Milpitas, Evergreen, Gilroy, Alum Rock, Berryessa, Morgan Hill, San Martin, Monterey Highway/IBM)
• Region XIV North Central II (Tehama, Glenn, Butte Counties)

National Convention. 

Next week, I will be joining our delegation in Houston for the National Council Session and National Convention.  Our delegation includes 18 adult National Delegates, 7 girl National Delegates, 10 girls attending the Girl Scout Leadership Institute and at least 32 visitors. I am guessing that, as in 2008, Girl Scouts of Northern California will have one of the largest girl contingents. Two of our girl delegates, Kelsey Daugherty and Maddie Hartrich, will lead the Board meeting discussion of the 3 proposals that will be presented at the National Council Session – adding to our preparation to attend the national meeting “informed, but not instructed.”  I look forward to reporting back to you on this amazing gathering of 9,000+ Girl Scouts! If you'd like to keep up with GSNorCal at National Convention, sign up to get GSNorCal Tweets by clicking here.

In a Girl’s Words. 

The following school paper, written this fall by a Contra Costa County Gold Award Girl Scout, is an inspiring reminder of why we all do what we do!
 

My Girl Scout Culture

When first presented with this paper I was clueless to what my ‘culture’ was. Of course everyone HAS a culture, but mine did not seem to have anything unique or special about it that would give me 1-3 pages of things to talk about. I am a combination of English and Swedish, but have not studied, celebrated, or learned anything about my heritage that would make me feel like I am a part of that culture. My view was expanded when I learned that ‘culture’ does not strictly mean the race or heritage that you come from, but simply the background that you come from. At this point my answer was obvious of what my culture was. I come from a Girl Scout culture.

I started Girl Scouts in Kindergarten as a Daisy and continued all the way through to the present day where I am an Adult Lifetime Member. That is 15 years and counting, which makes up for 75% of my life. I would have to say it is a pretty important part of who I am. The morals and expectations of Girl Scouts have influenced every aspect of how I grew up and developed as a person. The easiest way to explain what these morals and goals are is to share with you the Girl Scout Promise and Law:

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.
 
I will do my best to be
Honest and fair,
Friendly and helpful,
Considerate and caring,
Courageous and strong, and
Responsible for the things I say and do.
And to respect myself and others,
Respect authority,
Use resources wisely,
Make the world a better place,
And be a sister to every Girl Scout.

The first thing people think of when you say ‘Girl Scouts’ is, of course, cookies. Crafts are probably a close second. But to say that that is all Girl Scouts is good for would be a HUGE understatement. Girl Scouts promotes the power of one girl to make a difference in a world that is, still for the most part, run by men. It shows girls the accomplishments they can achieve if they stay true to who they are and do not give up on their goals.

One of the most wonderful aspects of Girl Scouts is how the older members help out and inspire the younger ones. For me, some of my biggest heroes and role models did not come out of movies or TV shows, but from the older scouts that helped me at camps and events. Not only did they inspire me to continue with Girl Scouts so that I can one day make a difference in younger girls lives, like they made in mine. But it also showed me how much power and influence one person can have on the world. And not simply one person in general, but one GIRL.

Girl Scouts taught me not to be afraid to stand up for what I believe in and to never change myself for someone else. I learned that helping others is always the right choice and that little by little, my actions can make a great impact on the world and the lives of those around me. When I see injustice or unfairness in the world I think to myself, “They have obviously never been a Scout.” When you grow up in the scouting community, Boy Scouts included, you cannot help but have your whole life affected. 

Girl Scouts has been, and always will be, a part of my culture and a part of who I am. There is not a doubt in my mind that my world would be drastically different had I not had scouting in my life. I definitely wouldn’t be able to write this paper right now, and I might not even have continued onto college. Thankfully it was and I am, and I will forever do everything I can to make sure that Girl Scouts has the opportunity to change girl’s lives like it changed mine.

To all our Girl Scout volunteers, donors and families – thank you to for all that you do to change girl’s lives. 

Yours in Girl Scouting,



Marina H. Park, CEO
Girl Scouts of Northern California

Member Update, September 1, 2011: Strategic Plan, Property, 100th Anniversary, Delegate Town Hall Meetings

Sept. 1, 2011

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,

 
I hope you each are enjoying the final days of summer. At Girl Scouts summer is all about camp and getting ready for the next membership year. Click here for my August 18 Member Update on our wonderful 2011 camp season, in case you missed it.

School is back in session for most of our members, and we are heading into Girl Scouts’ 100th year! We look forward to celebrating this milestone with each of you, while also building a strong foundation for the next 100 years of Girl Scouting in Northern California.

This update includes information about:

• 100th Anniversary celebrations and events – mark your calendar!
• August 27th meeting with council-wide service unit leaders
• Strategic Plan -- update and opportunities for member input
• Property Task Group Update -- preliminary recommendations and opportunities for member input
• September town hall meetings with Regional Delegates, National Delegates and other interested members, to discuss GSNorCal’s draft strategic plan and the Property Task Group’s preliminary recommendations

100th Anniversary Celebrations and Events!

Mark your calendar for lots of fun events. The Forever Green celebrations will raise funds for outreach, reflect the unique character of our communities and honor, with the “Forever Green Award,” 100 women who are greening the future of Northern California through their contributions to health, education, the arts, economic development and the environment. Forever Green honorees will be invited to attend events in or near their communities: Chico, Eureka, Palo Alto, San Francisco, Santa Rosa, St. Helena and Walnut Creek.

• September 27, 2011: Eureka Mortgage Burning Celebration and luncheon, to celebrate the final payment on the Barbara Phelps Program Center in Eureka. Net proceeds benefit outreach. Click for more.
  
• November 1, 2011: Registration opens for One Hundred, Fun Hundred (May 5, 2011). Click for more.
  
• November 17, 2011: Santa Rosa Jewel of a Woman – honor this year’s recipients of the Gem of a Girl Award and enjoy a reunion of past Jewel honorees – an opportunity to look back and get ready for 2012! Click for more.
  
• March 12, 2012: San Francisco Forever Green Gala -- Kick-off Forever Green Celebration – an evening gala!
  
  
• March 31, 2012: Annual Meeting at Camp Bothin
  
  
• May 5, 2012: One Hundred Fun Hundred – Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton -- imagine 20,000 Girl Scouts and a full day of fun! Click for more.
  
• Dates Pending (April – November): Forever Green Celebrations in Chico, Eureka, Palo Alto, Santa Rosa, St. Helena, Walnut Creek

August 27 Meeting with Council-Wide Service Unit Leaders.

Thanks to a generous donation, all Service Unit leaders met in one place for the first time since our fall 2007 merger. Leaders from 80 of our 97 Service Units were able to attend. This was a wonderful opportunity to share ideas about our goals and how best to work together to achieve them. Among the topics, we discussed:

• The National Program Portfolio and how to use the program to achieve our mission: to build girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place;
• Updates on the draft strategic plan (2012-2014) -- delivered as a musical medley;
• The Property Task Group’s update and preliminary recommendations; and
• The 100th Anniversary Celebrations and Campaign.

Strategic Plan Update and Opportunities for Member Input.

We are nearing the end of GSNorCal’s first three year Strategic Plan (2008-2011). Thank you, to each of you, for all that you have done to help us make our council stronger today than it was three years ago! Our accomplishments include:

• More volunteer-led troops and community camps.
• Increased attendance at GSNorCal summer resident camps.
• Over 117,000 participants in Choices program events.
• Transition to the new National Program Portfolio.
• We achieved our grants funding goals for both 2010 and 2011 – to help us bring Girl Scout experiences to girls in underserved communities.
• Integration of our 5-way merger through all areas of council operations, including troop banking, adult screening, on line registration for membership, programs and camp, and on line property reservations.
• Improved finances through a combination of revenue growth (improvements in both the fall sale and cookie sale) and expense reductions – we expect 2011 to the first year since our merger that we will end the year with a surplus instead of a deficit.

GSNorCal’s Next Three Year Strategic Plan (2012-2014)

The 2012 -2104 Strategic Plan that the Board adopts at its Nov. 5 meeting, will be our collective plan to build a strong foundation for Girl Scouts’ next 100 years in Northern California. You can click here for more a detailed “August 2011 Strategic Plan Update.”

My May 20, 2011 Member Update describes the process GSNorCal is using to develop our next 3 year strategic plan, which the Board will adopt at its Nov. 5 meeting. Our Strategic Learning Team and Board, with input from members at the 2011 Annual Meeting, established five key priorities for GSNorCal’s next 3 years: Mission Delivery; Volunteerism; Diversity and Inclusion; Alumnae Engagement and Financial Health. We are working now on the plan to achieve these five priorities. We need to shift resources to membership growth, volunteer support and programs that attract and retain girls. Membership has declined during the past decade, and we are seeing a trend of girls leaving Girl Scouting at grade 4, earlier than in the past, when grade 6 tended to be the main drop out point. We also have seen a decline in Latina girl membership during a time when the Hispanic population has been growing and is forecast to continue to be the fastest growing demographic group in Northern California. For the long-term health of our programs and camps, and to achieve our mission for as many girls as possible, we need to reverse these trends.

Recommended actions and investments:

The Strategic Learning Team has recommended that GSNorCal shift more resources to support volunteer troop leaders, increase bi-lingual staff and bi-lingual materials to increase Girl Scouting among Latina girls and their families; offer engaging short-term “series” for girls in grades 4 and above and improve and simplify the volunteer experience. Investing more resources in these important areas means we need to spend less in other areas. The Board and Finance Committee both believe that we need to reduce spending on property by about 25% (or $500,000). We will achieve this $500,000 in savings through a combination of revenue growth through rental income and program fees and cost reductions.

Next steps and opportunities for member input on the Strategic Plan:

We will discuss the draft plans with Delegates and other interested members at the town hall meetings described below. The Board will adopt the final 2012-2014 Strategic Plan at its next meeting, scheduled for Nov. 5, 2011.

Property Plan: Preliminary Recommendations and Opportunities for Member Input.

GSNorCal’s Board and Property Task Group have been evaluating GSNorCal’s 29 properties since spring 2008 and are nearing some recommendations. Member input is important at this stage.

• You may click here for the Property Task Group August 2011 Update which explains in greater detail the guidelines, process, criteria and data the Property Task Group has used to develop these preliminary recommendations.
  
  
• You may click here for links to charts that show information about GSNorCal revenue trends and property usage, revenue, operating expenses and annual minimal capital repairs for health and safety.
  
  
• You may click here for past updates and video links to camp property tours.

GSNorCal is fortunate to have magnificent properties, but we cannot afford to operate and maintain all of these properties, unless we make significant cuts in other service areas. Under the Financial Health goals of the Strategic Plan:

• Establish a 6 month reserve. GSNorCal needs to raise at least $4.7 million from our properties to establish a 6 month emergency operating reserve (the minimum GSUSA charter requirement); and

• End deficit spending. To avoid unsustainable deficit spending GSNorCal needs to reduce by about 25% the $2.1 million/year that GSNorCal spends on property operations and repairs.

The Property Task Group is continuing to evaluate information and develop recommendations for the Board of Directors to consider at its Nov. 5, 2011, meeting. Member input is an important part of this process, and the Task Group is seeking member input during September on the following preliminary recommendations and proposed next steps:

• Keep open each of GSNorCal’s 16 offices, service centers and program centers and add 2 sites in 2013:
  
  • 6 offices (staff, meeting space & retail shop): Chico, Eureka, Oakland, Redding, San Jose, Santa Rosa
  • 2 service centers (staff & meeting space): Red Bluff, Ukiah
  • 8 program centers (meeting space): A Girl’s Place (Fairfield), Benicia Scout House, Carlton Corner (San Bruno), Hayward Cabin, Livermore Cabin, Lou Henry Hoover Program Center (Palo Alto), Rohnert Park Scout Hut, St. Helena Scout House
  • 2013 additions: In 2013 (when the current Oakland Office lease expires) for approximately the same amount of money that GSNorCal spends on the Oakland lease:
    
    • maintain a headquarters office along the 880 corridor;
    • add a small office/shop in Contra Costa County along the 680 corridor;
    • expand use of the Ida Smith Outdoor Program Center in San Francisco to include space for one staff member providing volunteer support and, if possible, a small shop.
      
      
• Select a portfolio of four “Tier 1” camp properties that, taken as a whole, best meet GSNorCal’s outdoor program goals. These Tier 1 camps will have top priority for council resources, and capital improvements to these four properties will be part of the 100th Anniversary Campaign for Girls. The Task Group is in the process of evaluating these Tier 1 camp properties for opportunities to increase revenue, reduce expenses and, where prudent and possible, establish conservation easements, the proceeds of which would fund a property reserve that generates income to support the Tier 1 camp properties. The four recommended Tier 1 camps are:
  
  • Bothin and Arequipa
  • Butano Creek
  • Skylark Ranch
  • TBD: Either Deer Lake or Sugar Pine
    
    
• Tier 2 Camp Properties: The Task Group has identified 2 “Tier 2” properties that it thinks with volunteer support, and resident camp fees, it may be realistic to move to a break-even operation, and one Tier 2 outdoor program center (Ida Smith in San Francisco) that would be converted to a Service Center. If the two camps cannot achieve a break even operation, then they will shift into the “Remaining Camp Properties” category. The Tier 2 properties are:
  
  • Either Sugar Pine or Deer Lake
  • Two Sentinels
  • Ida Smith Outdoor Program Center in San Francisco -- convert to Service Center upon return of “office” building by city in 2013)
    
    
• Remaining Camp Properties: Once the Task Group has determined the resources required to operate and maintain the four Tier 1 camps as well as whether conservation easements are prudent and possible on the 3 properties that GSNorCal owns (Butano Creek, Skylark Ranch and either Deer Lake or Sugar Pine), the Task Group will determine which of the following remaining camp and outdoor program center properties GSNorCal can afford to operate and which it may be necessary to sell and/or mothball. If the Task Group and Board conclude it will be necessary to sell or mothball a property that is used for a volunteer-run summer community camp (e.g., Cordelia, Twin Canyon, Two Sentinels), no action would be taken prior to completion of the 2012 summer camp season:
  
  • Remaining Outdoor program centers (near urban/suburban areas; support weekday meetings; also suitable for day camp and troop overnights): Cordelia, Rainbows End, Twin Canyon
  • Remaining Camps (most suitable for weekend and/or summer camping): Hidden Falls, The Cove, and TBD, if not able to develop a plan to achieve break-even operations: Sugar Pine or Deer Lake and/or Two Sentinels.

You can click here for the Property Task Group August 2011 Update which explains the process, criteria and data the Property Task Group has used to develop these preliminary recommendations for member input.

Next steps: Member input is an important part of the property plan, and the Property Task Group welcomes member reaction to the Update. Members may send emails to propertytaskgroup@girlscoutsnorcal.org and/or attend the Town Hall meetings described below.

September town hall meetings with Regional Delegates, National Delegates and other interested members, to discuss GSNorCal’s draft strategic plan and preliminary property plan recommendations.

As mentioned above, we discussed the draft strategic plan and property approach with Service Unit leaders at our August 27th meeting and will be discussing them at nine Town Hall meetings during September -- click here for a link to the Town Hall meeting locations, dates and times. The Town Hall meetings are directed primarily to the Council’s Regional and National Delegates, but all members are welcome to attend. I also will be posting this update on my blog, and members are welcome to post comments and questions on the blog, found online here.

Delegate Town hall topics:

• Strategic Plan
• Property Task Group Update
• Proposals for the National Council Session
• Upcoming GSNorCal Regional Delegate elections
• 100th Anniversary and the Campaign for Girls

As always, please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Yours in Scouting,

Marina

 

Member Update, August 18, 2011: Camp Two Sentinels, the 2011 Camp Season and Girl's Guides to Girl Scouting

August 18, 2011

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,

The summer camp season is winding down. It’s been a busy one, with over 10,000 girls experiencing Girl Scout camp this summer.

Thank you to all the amazing volunteers and Girl Scouts of Northern California staff who made camp possible for girls throughout Northern California.

This update includes information about:

• The 75th Anniversary of Camp Two Sentinels!
• Camp for All Girls: 2011 Camperships, UniverseQuest, and Camp CEO
• A Wrap-up of the 2011 Camp Season
• Girl’s Guides to Girl Scouting and Journey Badge Activity Sets. Coming soon!

The 75th Anniversary of Camp Two Sentinels.

Congratulations to Camp Two Sentinels which celebrated its Diamond Anniversary on Friday, August 12, with a lovely gathering for campers, volunteers, and alumni. Camp Two Sentinels has operated as a volunteer-run Girl Scout camp since 1936. Two Sentinels generates its own electricity (in small amounts) and all supplies (including propane) must arrive at camp by row boat. When new laws passed in the 1990s that prevented the camp from using lake water, volunteers dug a ditch – through granite – and laid the water pipe line so camp could remain open. This summer, a team of 60 volunteers arrived to help dig paths through the snow (including digging out the biffies which were in 12 feet of snow), so summer camp could open on time. Two Sentinels offers a wonderful progressive backpacking program. It also offers units for girls who prefer to say closer to camp and for girls who want spend their time on the lake.

I enjoyed attending Friday’s event and meeting campers, volunteers, and alumni. “Lark” (her camp name), at 85 years, was the oldest alumna in attendance – she was a camper at Camp Two Sentinels in 1939 and returned each summer for 10 years. She said Camp Two Sentinels was the most significant influence in her life.

At Friday’s closing ceremony, against the backdrop of a floating bonfire with a backlit “75,” each unit launched its wish boat, shared the unit’s wish with the full camp, and chose a song for everyone to sing. It was a beautiful ceremony and celebration, with a common theme – the wish that campers will return to Camp Two Sentinels and “live and love the adventure” for many anniversaries to come. Click here for the Two Sentinels 75th Anniversary Photo Gallery on GSNorCal's Facebook page (and click "Like" while you're there!).

Camp for All Girls: 2011 Camperships, UniverseQuest and Camp CEO

2011 Camperships: Camperships provide financial aid for camp. This summer thanks to generous donations we were able to award over $86,000 in campership aid to 386 girls. Camp Champion families donated $6,140 when they registered their daughters for camp. We were able to provide $38,875 from donations made to the general opportunity and campership funds and foundations also provided $41,260 in support for 2011 camperships. Every dollar makes a difference – click here to learn more! Thank you to each of you who helped send a girl to camp this summer!

UniverseQuest: UniverseQuest is an after school science and technology program for girls in underserved middle schools. The girls learn about astronomy and the design and programming of computer games. During camp set-up, 15 girls from the UniverseQuest program travelled to Camp Sugar Pine to help with a summer astronomy program. The UniverseQuest girls set up the telescopes and trained the camp counselors in games they thought would be fun for girl campers. And, the counselors introduced the UniverseQuest girls to camp fun! A great trade off all the way around. Here’s a blog post I wrote for SFGate about this program: 15 Girls Aiming for the Stars.

Camp CEO: In early August, 52 high school girls from underserved communities and 25 women business executives traveled to Camp Sugar Pine for Camp CEO – a program that helps each girl discover a positive future for herself – through reflection, new experiences and work with mentors. A member of our staff, who drove girls from Orland to Sonoma so they could catch the camp bus to Sugar Pine, wrote this about the “before and after” drives:

"The Orland girls were so excited. On the car ride down to Sonoma, all the girls were quiet. On the ride home, oh my gosh, they couldn’t stop talking about how great it was and what they liked best. Surprising to me, many girls said the part they liked best was talking with and playing games with the mentors. It meant so much to them that these important, busy women would take time out of their life and talk to them and play with them just like a “regular person.” Who would have thought!"

As with camperships, Camp CEO is made possible by generous donors and corporate sponsors. You can learn more about Camp CEO at my SFGate blog post, Helping Girls Thrive at Camp CEO, or by clicking here.

A Wrap-up of the 2011 Camp Season.

• 24 volunteer-run community day camps 
• 4 volunteer-run resident camps 
• 4 council-run resident camps
• 1 council-run day camp
• Lots and lots of snow to shovel: 
  • We had to cancel the first two sessions at Deer Lake – check out this picture taken in late June!
  • 60 volunteers converged on Two Sentinels the week before its open date to shovel paths and dig out the biffies.
  • During June camp set up at Sugar Pine (at just 5,000 feet), for the first time anyone could recall, we had to plow a path to our shadiest tent unit.
• Over $86,000 in campership financial aid awarded to 386 girls!
• Over 10,000 happy campers!

A huge effort goes into getting all these camps up and running each summer – a true partnership of staff and volunteers – setting the camp program schedule, registering girls, getting seasonal staff hired, trained and paid, walking horses up the long road to Skylark Ranch (the trailer can’t make it up that road), recruiting volunteers and campers, loading and unloading buses, and dealing with all the inevitable emergencies that arise when 33 mini towns spring up for summer. Camp is incredibly rewarding and exhausting for the volunteers and staff who make it happen for the girls. Thank you so much for all the love and care you put into making sure that Camp Rocks!

Girl’s Guides to Girl Scouting and Journey Badge Activity Sets.

In case you’ve missed the news, the new Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting and the Journey Badge Activity Sets for each age level should be available in our GSNorCal Retail Shops by September 15. We've received a few preview sets of the Guides and Badge Activity Sets at the council offices, and council staff are busy incorporating them into programs and volunteer training. Both the Guides and the Activity Sets look great and help bring the Girl Scout Leadership Experience into focus, making it easier for girls and leaders to understand how the Journeys, badges and skill-building activities work together and build a foundation for the next level of Girl Scouting as well as for life-long skills and leadership qualities. Click here for videos and a sneak peek at these new resources on the GSNorCal website!

Yours in Scouting,

Marina H. Park, CEO
Girl Scouts of Northern California

E-mail: mpark@girlscoutsnorcal.org
Phone: (510) 562-8470, ext. 139 · Fax: (510) 633-0369
Oakland Office: 7700 Edgewater Drive, Suite 340 · Oakland, CA 94621-0149
San Jose Office: 1310 South Bascom Avenue · San Jose, CA 95128
www.GirlScoutsNorCal.org

Members Update Blog: www.marinasmemberupdates.com
SF Gate/City Brights Blog: www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/mpark/index?blogid=164 

Member Update, June 17, 2011: Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting and a troop leader's journey

June 17, 2011

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,

Thank you to all the leaders who just wrapped up another year of Girl Scouting and to all the camp volunteers launching camp season.  We expect over 10,000 girls to go camping this summer - at 4 council run resident camps, 1 council run day camp, 24 volunteer-run day camps and 4 volunteer-run resident camps.     This update includes: Program update - Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting, badges and change  A troop leader's thoughts on her 12 year journey as a troop leader

Program Update: Girls Guide to Girl Scouting, Badges, and Change.

We've heard from a lot of members the past few weeks who were surprised and disappointed to learn that GSUSA discontinued, as of June 1, 2011, all of the badges, IPs and Try-its they know and love.  GSUSA will be releasing new badges this fall with the new Girls Guide to Girl Scouting.  You can click this link to access a lot of information about how the new National Program Portfolio will work.    I know it has been a frustrating several years for many of our troop volunteers as the National Program Portfolio has rolled out in bits and pieces.  The great news is that just in time for our 100th Anniversary we will have all that leaders need to work with girls to create the Girl Scout Leadership Experience.  Yes!  Girl still have fun, learn new skills, go camping, sell cookies and make life-long friends.  Along the way, they also develop key leadership skills - the ability to discover, connect and take action and make the world a better place.   GSUSA began building the new Girl Scout Leadership Experience in 2004 - a kindergarten Daisy in fall 2004 is starting 7th grade this fall.  I'm guessing at least some of you might be wondering:  What's taken so long?  Here's a brief summary of all that's happened from 2004 to the present and into 2012.         As you can see, a lot has gone into getting to where we are now with lots of new program changes introduced, especially since our October 2007 merger.  At the same time as volunteers have been trying to keep up with program changes, you've all also been dealing with lots of other changes, including merger-related changes as we evolve from 5 ways of doing things to 1, changes to volunteer training and screening mandated by GSUSA policy changes, and technology changes - most notably, the change to Personify for online registration.      The big program changes are behind us, but we all need to be prepared - with as many big changes as Girl Scouts just made -- for continued tweaks and improvements. For example, next up, GSUSA is combining their Orientation and Leadership Essentials courses into one course called GS101.  We will continue to do our best to give troop and Service Unit leaders as much advance notice as possible via the Monday Mailing.  If you would like to receive the Monday Mailing, and don't currently, you can click here to sign up.      Thank you for helping us through this challenging and exciting time of change.  It's a good thing we have an amazing party planned for 2012: One Hundred, Fun Hundred!  I look forward to taking some time to celebrate with all of you the foundation we've built and the journey ahead.

A Troop Leader's Thoughts on her 12-Year Journey as a Troop Leader.

Congratulations to the 682 Ambassador Girl Scouts who are members of the high school class of 2011!   I have great faith that these girls are, indeed, going to make the world a better place.  Thank you, also, to the many troop leaders and other volunteers who guided these graduating Ambassadors on their Girl Scout journeys.    Last week Lois, a troop leader for 12 years, sent me the following reflection on her experience and gave me permission to share it with all of you.  For many troop leaders, summer is a time of reflection and of getting ready for the coming year.  And, necessarily, that reflection includes the question - is it all worth it? Here are Lois' thoughts on that question:   June 4, 2011   I am retiring as a GS leader, and today was my last service project with my troop.   When I first started this troop, the girls chose the bluebird as their crest because it meant "at home in the city or in the wild, singing and happiness."   That fit our troop perfectly, but in all my years as a leader, my troop has never seen a real bluebird.   Today we spent four hours planting trees, much of it in the rain.  At the end we were soaking wet and exhausted.  One girl said, "This is the worst thing I've ever done as a Girl Scout" (Later, this feeling was much assuaged by peppermint hot chocolate from Starbucks!)   Suddenly, two bluebirds alighted on the fence by us.  At first we thought they were a male and a female.  Then we noticed the brightly colored one was finding food for the other and feeding it.  They were an adult bluebird and its baby.  They stayed for a long time, fearlessly fluttering and hovering near us.     Isn't this just what we do as Girl Scout leaders?  We teach our girls to stretch their own wings and fly, yet we still give them what they need as they grow until they are ready to be independent adults themselves.   Sometimes as a Girl Scout leader I have doubted myself, wondering if I were doing a good job, wondering if I were serving the girls well.  Sometimes I have felt unappreciated by my girls and their families, and I wondered if I were making a difference or wasting my time.  I felt this bluebird was sent today to give me the message that yes, it has all been worth it.    When I think back on my years of volunteering with Girl Scouts, I will always remember the bluebird that arrived just in time to bestow a final benediction on my years of service as a leader.     So, to Lois and to all of this year's troop leaders, service unit volunteers, learning facilitators, product sales volunteers and community camp volunteers, a special thank you for all that you do to "teach our girls to stretch their own wings and fly."

Member update, May 20, 2011: Golden Gate Bridging, Camp, 100th Anniversary and Strategic Plan!

May 20, 2011

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,

As you  all know, this is a busy time of year for Girl Scouts of Northern California: Golden Gate Bridging Year end ceremonies Connecting on Facebook Getting ready for camp! Wrapping up the 2011 cookie sale and looking forward to 2012 Getting ready for Girl Scouts 100th Anniversary Year! One Hundred, Fun Hundred Forever Green:  The Bothin Organic Garden The Year of the Girl:  Online Membership Renewal and Family Giving Annual meeting & strategic plan

Golden Gate Bridging.

Almost 4,000 girls and 1,300 adults crossed the Bridge on Saturday, May 7, to celebrate Bridging from Juniors to Cadettes.  Thank you to the 300 older girl and adult volunteers and 65 staff members who made the day possible!   Check out our Facebook page at facebook.com/gsnorcal for links to more photos.  You can also click here to see some home-made videos on my sfgate blog about Bridging.      For 2012 we are moving Golden Gate Bridging to our council-wide 100th Anniversary Celebration - One Hundred, Fun Hundred.  The party we are hosting is so big that we had to rent a fairground to host it.  We hope you will join us May 5, 2012 for this amazing once in a lifetime celebration.  It is going to be super exciting to hold an event for every girl bridging to the next age level and for every Girl Scout (current and alumnae) bridging to the second century of Girl Scouting.  For troops looking forward to Golden Gate Bridging, we will have "do it yourself" packages for small groups to cross the Bridge and also look forward to returning to this fun event in 2013!  To learn more about GSNorCal's remarkable 100th Anniversary celebration or to watch the list of activities grow over the next year, please click here.

Year End Ceremonies.

This is the time of year when many Service Units celebrate important milestones:  Awards, 10 year pins and bridging from older girl to adult Girl Scouts.  I enjoyed attending the Solano County celebration last weekend, which celebrated these milestones with 11 girls, their families and troop and service unit volunteers.  Two girls earned their Gold Awards and one of them, who will head to U.C. Davis this fall, made a point of sharing with me how important her Gold Award experience was for her college and scholarship applications.

Connecting on Facebook.

We launched our Facebook page about four months ago, at facebook.com/gsnorcal.  I've enjoyed reading our friends' questions and comments.  Staying connected in a Council that spans 19 counties can be challenging.  Facebook is one of many ways to help build those connections.   Just this past Sunday, we cheered on our Chief Communications and Fund Development Officer, Nikki Van Ausdall, who ran the 100th Anniversary of Bay to Breakers as -- what else? -- a Thin Mint celebrating Girl Scouts' 100th.  Nikki got a lot of Facebook thumbs up - and here's her reply:     Thanks for the great energy to help us get through the race! The GS Cookie costumes were so FUN! I just need 99 of you to join me NEXT year so we can have 100 Cookies running for the Girl Scouts!!!   That would be a FUN sight! - perhaps some great vintage uniforms in the mix too!

Getting Ready for Camp!

Summer camp season is almost here.  That means two things:  work parties and camp registration!   Work parties.  Thank you to the 172 volunteers who've helped at spring work parties at our camps and outdoor program centers:  Bothin (working on the new organic garden), Cordelia, Skylark Ranch, The Cove and Twin Canyon.   We have work parties coming up at Arequipa and Bothin, Butano Creek, Deer Lake and Sugar Pine  -- click here to check out our web site for complete information and dates.       Snow Happens!  Of course, sometimes volunteer work parties aren't planned in advance ... A good example is this past weekend at Two Sentinels (located in the high Sierra near the Kirkwood ski resort).  After receiving a report from a neighbor that snow had collapsed the kitchen roof, a volunteer repair team quickly organized to visit the camp:  10 volunteers, and two staff members, Tiffany Strickland (who oversees Community Camps and is our summer camp director at Bothin) and Dave Poock (our Senior Director of Property), snow shoed and skied into camp with tools to make what repairs they could and figure out next steps.  The damage was less extensive than feared, but will it will cost about $20,000 to construct a new roof.       Camp Registration.  Family camp programs at Sugar Pine and Bothin are nearly sold out!  Limited space is still available, but don't wait.  These programs are great, affordable summer options for families.   GSNorCal resident camps (Bothin, Deer Lake, Sugar Pine and Skylark Ranch - all voted best sleepaway camps by readers of Bay Area Parent Magazine) and the GSNorCal day camp in Milpitas (Camp Metro) still have space available in some programs.  There are also many volunteer-run resident and day camps to choose from.  Learn more about summer camp, including job opportunities, at www.camprocks.org.

Wrapping Up the 2011 Cookie Sale and Looking Forward to 2012.

As I reported in my last update, 2011 was our best cookie sale ever!  We've had a few questions about how we will use the proceeds from the sale.  When we planned our budget this year, we flagged several long-deferred projects that we knew we would only be able to complete if we had our best cookie sale ever.  We look forward to being able complete these projects, which include:   Camp repairs:  The additional cookie revenue will pay for some much-needed repairs and improvements at our council camps and properties, such as replacing roofing on buildings at Skylark Ranch and expanding our horse camp corrals so we can accommodate more horses (which means more girls can ride).    One phone system for GSNorCal offices:  We have six offices and operate five separate phone systems (a legacy of our five council merger in October 2007).  A new phone system has been on our wish list each year since the merger, but we simply couldn't afford it.  Thanks to our strong cookies sale, 2011 will be the year when we can make this important investment for our council.  Over the long term, this investment will save money on phone and service bills and more importantly, will help us improve service to volunteers - one phone system means that we will be able to answer your calls and forward you to the person who can best answer your question.   We hope to have the new phone system in place in time for our 2012 membership year.    Reserve:  The successful cookie sale will help us save for a rainy day fund.  The unexpected repair required at Two Sentinels is a good example of why it is so important for us to have reserve funds to support unplanned expenses and revenue shortfalls.  Currently our reserve would fund just 3 months of operations in an emergency instead of the GSUSA-recommended 6 month minimum.    Thank you, again, to the girls, families and volunteers who contributed to the success of this year's sale!   We've received a lot of helpful feedback from you about what went well in our first year of a direct sale and what could be improved for 2012. We already are in the planning stages for 2012 product sales and look forward to working with each of you to make our 100th Anniversary cookie sale the best and most fun ever!

Getting Ready for Girl Scouts' 100th Anniversary Year!

Girl Scouts began on March 12, 1912, with one woman, 18 girls and a dream.  Today, there are 50 million living Girl Scout alumnae in the United States.  Our 100th Anniversary year is all about celebrating Girl Scouts and keeping the dream alive for the next 100 years!   Here are just a few of the things we are doing to get ready for 2012:   One Hundred, Fun Hundred on May 5, 2012:  A committee of volunteers and staff, representing all areas of Girl Scouts of Northern California, is organizing our council's 100th anniversary celebration at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton.  Golden Gate Bridging is an incredible experience, because there are 5,500 people gathered to celebrate Girl Scouting.  We hope to have 20,000 at One Hundred Fun Hundred.  There will be something for everyone, from young to old -- and we've reserved camp ground space for 6,000 people.  Online registration will open this fall!   Forever Green - Bothin Organic Garden:  Nationwide, Girl Scouts are engaging in Forever Green take action projects that will have a significant positive impact on the environment.  GSNorCal has several planned Forever Green projects, including community green spaces.  We've launched the "community green space" take action project by creating an instructional organic garden at Camp Bothin that will be sustained through the actions of girls and volunteers. The garden also will instruct, providing engaging curriculum for different age levels on many topics.  This spring, work parties and camporees have united to take action and bring the Bothin Organic Garden (or BOG as we affectionately refer to it) to life!  Vegetables are in the ground, and this weekend, volunteers will be weeding, mulching and building a bean teepee.  This summer at Camp Bothin girls will learn about the garden and healthy farm to table meals!  To learn more about the BOG, contact Kymberly Miller, director, Green By Nature, at kmiller@girlscoutsnorcal.org.   The Year of the Girl: Online Membership Renewal and Family Giving     Membership renewal for the 2011-2012 year has begun. I encourage you to renew your membership online. It's green, cost effective and time efficient. With paper registration, not only are we consuming paper, but we're also consuming volunteer and staff time to process the paper registrations and account for the membership fees. All members with annual memberships who renew online and on time -- by June 15, 2011 -- receive this 100th anniversary commemorative patch.     If you haven't renewed your membership yet, click here for step-by-step instructions that you can print and follow along ,or go directly to our eBiz site at www.girlscoutsnorcal.org/ebiz.   Family giving:  While renewing your membership online, please consider making a family partnership donation; a $60 donation will help us close the gap between the $300/year per girl it costs to deliver Girl Scouts to girls in volunteer-led troops in Northern California and the $240 of this cost that is raised through program fees, camp fees, property rentals and product sales.

Annual Meeting and Strategic Plan.

On Saturday, April 30, Regional Delegates, Board Development Committee Members, Board Members and other interested members met at AT&T's beautiful San Ramon office complex and: Heard reports from me, our Treasurer (Carolyn Worth), our Property Task Group Chair (Ellen Richey) and some amazing girls: Sarah, who described her Gold Award project and the thousands of blankets she has inspired others to help make for foster children; Andie, who shared how she's sold over 3,000 boxes of cookies each year and the travel she has been able to experience as a result; and Mackenzie, who participates in a Girl Scouts after school astronomy program and shared with us both how the program has opened her eyes to science and how being a Girl Scout for the past two years has helped her become a better person.   Elected a slate of Board Members, Board Development Committee members and National Council Delegates and Alternate: Board and Board Development Committee members.   National Council Delegates and Alternates.  Discussed GSNorCal's next three year strategic plan.  We spent a lot of time on this topic and received lots of great input from the meeting participants.  As I've shared in previous updates, found online here, we are using the GSUSA model of "strategic learning" which engages a "Strategic Learning Team" of 25 Board Members, volunteers, community members and staff in an in-depth process of discovery and strategic learning that began in January.  The Strategic Learning Team identified 5 key priorities for our next three year plan (October 1, 2011 - September 30, 2014).  Our Board further refined these priorities based on input from members at the Annual Meeting:   Mission Delivery: Align recruiting, troop development, program and outdoor experiences, volunteer resources and communications to achieve the national program outcomes and sustainable membership growth goals. Volunteerism:  Make Girl Scouts of Northern California a great place to volunteer, and increase the number of effective and satisfied volunteers, with an emphasis on recruitment and resources, including training and support. Diversity and Inclusion:  Engage all parts of the Girl Scout community to deliver a relevant, sustainable Girl Scout Leadership Experience for girls in Northern California's diverse communities.  Focus on Latina girls and their families as one of the largest, fastest growing populations within our council's jurisdiction.  Alumnae:  Leverage Girl Scouts' 100th Anniversary to establish Alumnae as an engaged and growing source of volunteers and financial support. Financial Strength:  Establish a strong financial foundation with prudent liquid assets (cash and investments) and growing revenue sources, with operations and properties aligned with strategic priorities. The Strategic Learning Team met for a final time this past weekend (for two days) and began the important work of getting from idea to action, passing the baton to GSNorCal staff members who will continue to refine the plan.  At the conclusion of this final meeting, our Board President, Woody Shackleton, announced that he and his wife are donating $50,000 to Girl Scouts of Northern California to be used to help fund implementation of these strategic priorities, with   "Special thanks to the volunteers, board members, staff and community leaders who contributed so much to building a revised aggressive Strategic Plan to serve the girls of Northern California!"   The Shackletons' generous gift will help us build the capacity to achieve our goals.   Next steps will include bringing a draft plan to the Board at its July meeting, meeting with members and Regional Delegates for input during September, refining the plan based on input and then presenting the final plan to the Board at its November meeting.  So, stay tuned, there will be much more information coming out this fall.   When strategy seems like a lot of words on the page, I look at pictures like the one below.  These Daisy Girl Scouts, at their bridging celebration, will bridge to adult Girl Scouts in 2023.  They are the reason long-term planning matters!   As always, please let me know if you have any questions or comments.   Yours in Girl Scouting,

Member Update, April 22, 2011: Leader's Day, Cookies and Oakland Office Survey!

April 22, 2011

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,

Today, April 22, is Girl Scout Leader's Day, when we honor and appreciate all the volunteers who work as leaders and mentors in partnership with girls.       Volunteers are making a positive difference for 2.3 million Girl Scouts today -- girls like Maris, whose mom recently sent this note of appreciation for her daughter's 12 years of Girl Scouting:  GGT graphic created by Maris.   "I thought you would be interested that my daughter was accepted to 10 of 12 colleges/universities where she applied and we think it is because she is technical and learned leadership skills through Girl Scout programs. She was, of course, encouraged by Girls Go Tech programs, especially the NASA Robotics camp and the [volunteer-led] Elf and CIT programs at Diablo Day Camp and Butano Creek.   Two of the schools she was accepted to gave her substantial Leadership Scholarships. They mentioned her Girl Scout Gold Award specifically. I cannot emphasize more how much the Gold Award makes an applicant stand out from the others...."   Maris' Girl Scout journey was made possible by scores of volunteers -- troop leaders, trainers, learning facilitators, cookie managers, service unit volunteers, volunteer camp directors and counselors, award advisors and  committees, and the list goes on.   Thank you for all that you do for Girl Scouts in Northern California.   And now, two more topics for this update: Our Best Cookie Sale Ever!  Oakland office survey results from over 1,100 participants

Our Best Cookie Sale Ever!

Congratulations and thank you to all the girls, volunteers and parents who helped Girl Scouts of Northern California achieve its best cookies sale ever.  Girls sold a record 4,133,402 boxes! And, while they were at it, learned about making plans, reaching goals and connecting with the public.   This year's "cookies on demand" was a whole new cookie sale model, and I greatly appreciate all that everyone did to make this transition so successful for our council and, ultimately, for our girls.  We ended up with more left over boxes than we have in past years, but that's part of learning about a new way of conducting the cookie program -- and even with the extras that troops returned in the final week, we still had our best sale ever!   As always, we will look forward to your input on improvements for our 2012 100th Anniversary sale!

Oakland Office Survey Results from over 1,100 participants.

From March 21 through April 4, 2011, GSNorCal adult members were invited to participate in a survey to give input regarding what's important to them about a Girl Scout office/service center. This information will help the council develop a plan for the 2013 expiration of the Oakland office lease.     The Board Property Task Group is over-seeing this work.  Our goal is to present recommendations to the Board at its November meeting about the general location(s) for our next office(s), how much space we should have for office, meetings, program, shop and storage, and how we should structure the financial transaction.  This will give us plenty of time to engage a broker and plan our next steps for the 2013 lease expiration date.   The response to the survey was fantastic. Over 1,100 adult members representing all areas of GSNorCal took the survey. Almost ¼ of the respondents live in the East Bay along the 680 corridor and almost another ¼ live in Santa Clara County. Two-thirds responded from the perspective of troop leaders/co-leaders and about 20% responded from the parent perspective.   Below is a summary of the survey's key findings. For a complete summary of the survey results, click here. 80% do not interact with GSNorCal headquarter functions in person. 84% prefer a blended GSNorCal's headquarters and service center for members(the Property Task Group interpreted this, based on comments, to mean that members want us to be efficient and use resources wisely).      Representing the Girl Scout brand in a professional manner is the most important factor that should be taken into consideration for GSNorCal's headquarters whether it's a stand-alone office or integrated into a service center.      54% have been to the Oakland office since January 1, 2009. Overwhelmingly, freeway access and parking were identified as strengths of the Oakland office building. The two significant weaknesses are travel distance and signage. Shopping at the Girl Scout store was ranked as most important in how adult members in the Greater Bay Area use or would like to use a GSNorCal office/service center now and in the future to enhance their Girl Scout experience. Using a computer was ranked the least important. The four most important features for an office/service center in the Greater Bay Area are:    Short travel distance Safety Plentiful, free, and convenient parking Easy freeway access The least important is easy access to public transportation.  Over 50% are willing to drive or be in transit for 16-30 minutes to reach a Girl Scout office/service center in the Greater Bay Area. Almost 20% cited up to 45 minutes as acceptable. 83% indicated that the number of girl members in the area should be considered when identifying potential GSNorCal office/service center location(s) in the Greater Bay Area vs. the number of girls in the area. Thank you, again, to our leaders and volunteers, for all that you do for girls!   Yours in Girl Scouting,

Marina H. Park, CEO Girl Scouts of Northern California

Member Update, March 24, 2011: Earthquake Relief, Cookies, GSUSA News, Annual Meeting

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,

Here are the topics in this update: Earthquake and Pacific tsunamis relief efforts Cookie Program 2011 Space Cookies robotics team wins Regionals and is headed to the Worlds! 99th Birthday celebrations with alumnae Looking ahead - a survey for your  input: Click here to help us plan for our Oakland office lease expiration in May 2013 GSUSA News:  Updates from last week's 3 day CEO meeting, on national program, the 2011 National Convention in Houston and 100th Anniversary; and GSNorCal Annual Meeting, April 30, 2011

Earthquake and Pacific Tsunamis Relief Efforts.

It has been two weeks since the devastating Japan earthquake and Pacific tsunamis.  GSUSA has announced: Girl Scouts and troops may raise funds directly for nonprofits that are providing disaster relief related to the earthquake and tsunami.  GSUSA has started a fund for Girl Scouts of Japan; however, it does not yet have information on what the specific needs are, and I think GSUSA will hold off on widely promoting this effort until the needs are known. We will, of course, share information as we have it. GSUSA has asked that Girl Scout troops send origami cranes to our Girl Scouts Overseas organization. Click here for instructions and mailing information.     Last week, Girl Scout council CEOs and GSUSA senior staff met outside Chicago for three days. The meeting began with a report from the CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA in Japan, Barbara Hill.  Barbara and her staff are all okay, but the suffering and trauma is beyond anything she could possibly imagine.  Barbara has only lived in Japan for six months, but when she returned home after the earthquake, her Japanese neighbors were there with tea, rice cakes, comfort and companionship.  When asked how people could help, she suggested that in the short term, they support on the ground relief efforts and mentioned the Red Cross, which has been very active.  You can visit our website for links to the Red Cross and other relief organizations that are on the ground in Japan.  When asked if she plans to return to Japan, Barbara's answer was "yes, the girls need Girl Scouting now more than ever."     I also want to keep in our thoughts and prayers Crescent City, in the northern-most part of our council, which suffered significant damage to its harbor and fishing boats.  The Crescent City Service Unit leader reports that, so far, we are not aware of any Girl Scout families that have been directly impacted by the tsunami, but, of course, the community is heartbroken by the damage to the harbor and fishing fleet.  Del Norte County Rotary Clubs have started a fund to provide support and assistance to Del Norte County fishermen devastated by the tsunami. Individuals and organizations wanting to make contributions may make donations to: the Redwood Regional Rotary Relief Super Fund, c/o The Humboldt Area Foundation, P. O. Box 99, Bayside, CA 95524, www.hafoundation.org. Crescent City Girl Scouts also are developing a plan to raise funds. We will provide information, as we have it, about ways Girl Scouts can help.   If you have any suggestions, please feel free to send them to me.   Cookies. Booth sales end this Sunday, March 27. We've had a string of cold and rainy weekends this March, with more showers forecast for this coming weekend.  A huge thank you to the thousands of cookie volunteers, girls and parents  who have braved rain, sleet, wind, and snow (like our Sonoma troop pictured on their rainy-day Cookie Walkabout Parade!) and contributed their time and energy to what we hope will be our most successful sale ever. If you don't have Thin Mints and Samoas in the freezer yet, the time is now! You can search for booths online and via our Smartphone app -- click here to learn more.     Every cookie has a mission:  At last week's meeting of Girl Scout CEOs, Barbara Krumsiek, the CEO and President of Calvert Group, reflected on the leadership qualities and business skills that she attributes to her Girl Scout experience.  Barbara volunteers as a member of Girl Scouts 100th Anniversary Campaign Planning Committee and was there to talk about the Campaign.  She also shared why Girl Scouts is important to her.  When a New York Times reporter asked Barbara last year where she learned her leadership skills, the first thing that came to mind, was Girl Scouts and the cookie sale.  Here's an excerpt from that interview: (click here for the full interview)     NYT. So where did you learn those [leadership] skills?   Barbara Krumsiek. I have to credit two early experiences. One is Girl Scouts. It was a huge part of my life growing up in Queens. It was an opportunity to learn selling through Girl Scout cookies. I always vied for the top selling awards. I remember having a troop leader have confidence in me that I could go off and lead a group of girls to start the campfire or whatever.   Every cookie has a mission: to help girls do great things!  Thank you, again, to everyone who is contributing their time and energy to this year's sale. Space Cookies Robotics Team Wins Regionals and is Headed to the Worlds! More great cookie news!  The Space Cookies robotics team, sponsored by NASA Ames Research Center and Girl Scouts of Northern California, won the Sacramento Regionals FIRST competition on March 19 as part of a 3 team alliance, out of 56 teams that entered. The judges also awarded the Space Cookies the Engineering Inspiration Award, celebrating the team's outstanding efforts in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, within their schools and their communities.  With these wins, they are headed to the FIRST World Festival in St. Louis!  Congratulations to the Space Cookies and their mentors!  You can read more about them in this blog post by clicking here.   99th Birthday Celebrations with Girl Scout Alumnae.  March 12, 2011, was Girl Scouts 99th birthday!  140 alumnae enjoyed birthday parties organized by the Northern California Alumnae Association and friends, in Chico, Eureka, Palo Alto and Santa Rosa.  I enjoyed meeting alumnae in Palo Alto from all parts of the San Francisco Bay Area and South Bay.  Many are active volunteers.  One member, who is approaching 75 years in Girl Scouts, excused herself a few minutes early because she was running, for the second night in a row, a Girl Scouts father-daughter folk dance.  I was impressed!  Click here to learn more about the Alumnae Association and its activities, including Gold Award celebrations, women's weekends and, of course, March 2012 100th birthday celebrations.      Looking Ahead -- A Survey for Your Input.  Our Oakland office lease expires in May 2013. Click here for a survey to provide your input on next steps.    Background:  The Oakland office has been in the same location (near the Oakland Airport) since 1992.  Today it houses about 65 staff who support the East Bay/Marin service area, which includes Solano, Contra Costa, Alameda and Marin Counties, and the following council-wide "headquarters" functions:  CEO, finance, communications, marketing, web site, fund development, human resources, information technology, online store and retail operations and senior staff who oversee the following council-wide member services:  membership, adult development, program, property, and product sales.  Our San Jose office also handles several council-wide functions, including adult screening, outdoor program and registration for program, adult learning, camp and property reservations. There are no plans to change the San Jose office.    The decisions we need to make:  We need to decide on the functions and location(s) for our next headquarters and service centers (in addition to the San Jose office) to best support members in the seven Greater Bay Area counties:  Solano, Contra Costa, Alameda, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara.  The Board Property Task Group is overseeing this project.  We have lots of decisions to make, and member input is key.  For example, do we stay where we are?   Move to a new location in Oakland?  Open a service center in a new or additional location?  What is important to members in a headquarters location -- Do members want a location that draws more public attention to Girl Scouts?  What is the best allocation of our limited resources among program centers, outdoor camp properties, and office service centers?  Which is more important, BART access or free parking?  Do members want opportunities to interact with staff who are providing council-wide services?  Is it more convenient for members to have back office operations in the same location as program services?  What kinds of meeting and program spaces do members want?    The Oakland Office Planning Survey is your opportunity to answer these questions and more.  The survey will remain open through 11:59 p.m., Monday, April 4.  The Property Task Group will review results at its April meeting and use member input to guide next steps.  We are starting with this adult member survey and expect to get girl input later in the process. GSUSA News.  Last week, I attended a three day meeting with senior GSUSA staff and the 112 council CEOs.  Here are some highlights:   A Girl's Guide to Girl Scouting is on its way for each age level.    Each Guide helps girls build skills and earn badges and complements the Journeys which are all about developing qualities that empower girls to discover, connect and take action.  The age level Guides and Journeys work together.  Guides are in production and should be available in stores by late summer.  GSUSA partnered with volunteers and girls to create the Guides.  They heard, and made happen, such requests as: Link skills and badges to each Journey (done) Keep the Guides current and relevant - use binders so badges can be updated (no more computer badges from 2001 telling girls in 2011 to find something that ends in ".com"), and let girls customize what they want to work on (done) Make the Guides consistent, clear, customizable and fun  (done) -- GSUSA used the same template for each age level, getting lots of girl input on each badge and keeping things simple for adults too.  Guides are self explanatory and there is no separate adult guide. The CEOs (many of whom have many, many more years of experience than do I) loved what they saw (I did too)!  Click here to view a GSUSA video that explains how the Brownie Guide works.      National Convention.    The National Convention is November 10-13, 2011, in Houston Texas.  The theme is:  Renewing the Promise: Girl Scouts in a New Century.  The Convention will include a business meeting (there will be four proposed bylaws amendments); celebrations and opportunities to share information and ideas.  100th Anniversary Celebrations will include reunions, bridging to a new century and a big Saturday night celebration (GSUSA's Chief Marketing Officer assures us the celebration will be worthy of the 100th).    Our council elects a slate of National Council Delegates (nominated by our Board Development Committee) at our April 30 Annual Meeting.  We will share information on the national governance proposals with all members in May, as soon as we have that information in final form from GSUSA.  You can click here for updates on National Convention volunteer opportunities and registration for official visitors.     100th Anniversary.    2012 will be "The Year of the Girl" -- a year-long focus on girls and their impact on the world.  In addition to lots of fun celebrations, Forever Green take action projects, and commemorative items, this is a once in a life time opportunity to make sure the world knows why girls matter, how Girl Scouts helps girls thrive and why girls deserve our support.          Girl Scouts already is laying important ground work for the Year of the Girl.  The March 8, 2011, Washington D.C. celebration of the 100th International Women's Day, featured Shannon McNamara, a 2009 Girl Scout Young Woman of Distinction and Founder of SHARE, a nonprofit that focuses on girls' education in Tanzania, Africa. Michelle Obama echoed Shannon's remarks:  "We as a nation benefit from every girl whose potential is fulfilled."  And then Mrs. Obama pointed out, as a prime example of how our nation benefits, Shannon's Gold Award project and its powerful and positive impact on our world. Click here to see more.      We'll keep you posted about all the plans via our 100th Anniversary e-newsletters, Facebook updates, and tweets on Twitter.  If you haven't signed up to follow GSNorCal on Facebook, go to facebook.com/gsnorcal and click the "Like" button (or, when you are logged on to Facebook, just search Girl Scouts of Northern California and friend us). To follow us on Twitter, visit twitter.com/gsnorcal and become a follower.  GSNorCal Annual Meeting, April 30, 2011. You can learn more about the Annual Meeting agenda, nominated slate, proposed bylaws amendments and registration at this link.  The agenda includes: Brief  updates on the state of the council and from the Treasurer and Property Task Group; A report from the Regional Delegates Task Group and vote on four proposals to amend the Bylaws; A report from the Board Development Committee and vote on a slate of nominees that includes members of the Board of Directors, Board Development Committee and National Council Delegates; A brief update on governance proposals that will be on the agenda at the National Convention; and Conversations about GSNorCal's strategic direction and priorities for our next 3 year strategic plan. As always, please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Member Update, February 16, 2011: Cookies, Events, Camp and Strategy

Dear Members and Friends of Girl Scouts,

February, March and April are busy months for Girl Scouts. 2011 is no exception!     Cookies.  Cookies are here now! This coming weekend (February 19-20) is Neighborhood Walkabout Weekend, when girls throughout GSNorCal will Bling Their Red Wagons and go door-to-door in neighborhoods selling cookies. This year's sale runs  Feb. 11-March 27 and iLoveCookies.org is your source for all things cookie, including Cookie Finders by phone and online!   Lead the Way: 111 teen girls attended this annual girl-led, girl-organized weekend conference.    Discoveree:  700 participants enjoyed 122 workshops at this annual training conference for adults and girls in grades 10-12.   Girls Go Tech: 1,000 girls and 100 volunteers combined forces for a wonderful "When I Grow Up" career exploration day at NASA Ames in Mountain View.   Camp and Camp Properties. Exciting news: Bay Area Parent Magazine readers voted GSNorCal Camps "Best Sleepaway Camps!"  Registration for council run camps opened on Feb. 1. We also are happy to welcome our new Director of Property Development, Priscilla McKenney -- Priscilla's mission is to connect more members with opportunities to enjoy Girl Scout camp properties! 99th Birthday Parties. Don't forget, the 99th birthday of Girl Scouts is Saturday, March 12. Alumnae groups are organizing birthday parties and teas -- please visit our web site for more information about when and where. Volunteer survey:  We are very interested to know about your experience as a volunteer in GSNorCal. We know that you're busy, and we know that there are many other organizations where you could volunteer. We strive to make your experience a satisfying one where you know that you are making a difference in girls' lives and our community. Results from this survey will be used in the strategic learning process described below and will be used to set priorities for the next three years for the council. The survey will remain open through March 4. Click here to participate in the survey.  Strategy. We are starting work on the next three-year strategic plan for Girl Scouts of Northern California and will be discussing it with members at the April 30, 2011, Annual Meeting, which will be held at AT&T's offices in San Ramon. Thank you to AT&T for donating the use of their meeting space!   2011 Woman of Distinction Gala honoring Cindy Pawlcyn. This sold-out event was our first-ever Woman of Distinction event in St. Helena. In addition to celebrating Cindy's accomplishments as a chef and proponent of sustainable, healthy food, the event netted over $25,000 for Girl Scouts, including $14,000 for outreach in Sonoma and Napa counties.

Cookies!

We are all excited about cookies!     This year we are moving from pre-orders and the long wait for cookies - to Cookies on Demand.  We hope this change will simplify the cookie sale for girls and their customers! We also have a new iPhone/Android/Smartphone app that customers can download to search and receive information about for open cookie booths. You can download it for free by clicking here. This weekend, Feb. 19-20, is Neighborhood Walkabout Weekend, when girls all across our council will Bling Their Red Wagons and go door-to-door in neighborhoods selling cookies. Booth sales will be Feb. 25-March 27. If you have questions about cookies -- we have a lot of answers on our website at iLoveCookies.org. If you don't see the answer to your question, feel free to send me an email. We greatly appreciate everyone's support of the girls and the cookie sale. It makes Girl Scouts possible for thousands of girls and helps Girl Scouts of Northern California  maintain its properties, deliver great programs, support volunteers and keep the lights on. Lead the Way. Last year, our Board held its February meeting at Discoveree and toured that great event. This year, the Board  met  in our San Jose office and joined Lead the Way for a reception and dinner. Lead the Way is organized by high school girls for high school girls.This year's theme -- which the girls chose -- was "Shoot for the Moon." Between Friday evening and noon Sunday, the girls attended workshops on topics such as connections, self-discovery, self-defense, healthy eating, team-building and business etiquette.    One of the things I love about Girl Scouts, is our ability to connect girls from so many different backgrounds and help them discover and support each other in achieving their shared goals. This year's Lead the Way included girls who first experienced Girl Scouts through Camp CEO (a program for girls from underserved communities), together with many girls who are now in the 11th and 12th years of Girl Scouts and are working on their Gold Awards.    I sat next to a Camp CEO participant at dinner who told me that Camp CEO was life-changing for her, because it gave her the courage to step away from what's familiar and attend programs like Lead the Way. She said that at home, everyone knows everyone's business and "they look at you like this ... [insert a not very nice look here] if you step outside of how they think you should be or who you should be with." At Lead the Way, everyone was welcome and they were all just girls who cared about the same things. And no one looked her "like this" when she talked to someone different. She commented that she was meeting girls from races, cultures and communities that she had never been able to connect with before, and that was the most important thing about the two-day Lead the Way event for her. She was discovering their differences. She also was discovering the many ways in which these girls were the same as her. And, in my favorite observation of the night, she said that when she could interact with others without all the pressure she felt from her own community, she could discover more of who she really is.  Discoveree I missed Discoveree this year, since our Board meeting and Lead the Way were on the same day, but based on reports from Shari Teresi, our Senior Director of Adult Development, I understand that this year was one of our biggest Discoverees -- with 615 registered participants and another 100 or so volunteers.     Discoveree is an annual training conference for adults and girls in grades 10-12. Participants had 122 workshop topics to choose from including lots of ideas for troops, Journeys, crafts, and outdoor skills. Thank you to the amazing volunteers who make Discoveree happen.  Girls Go Tech I love this picture: a Junior Aide holding a human brain under the watchful eye of two Stanford scientists -- taken at this year's "When I Grow Up" career day. More than 1,000 girls of all ages, learned from 100 volunteers about a wide range of science, technology, and engineering careers, from astronomy to robotics and toxicology. Click here for an article I wrote about the event for my SFGate blog. And click here for a link to my homemade video about the event.  Camp and Camp Properties.  Council-run camps: We are honored that readers of Bay Area Parent Magazine voted GSNorCal camps the "Best Sleepaway Camps!" Registration for council-run camps opened Feb. 1. They are filling fast this year. Family camp at Sugar Pine sold out last year, so if Family Camp is on your family's summer wish list, be sure to sign up soon! Click here to register or for more information.   Community camps:  Registration is now open for many of the volunteer-run community camps. Volunteers are planning 24 day camps and 4 resident camps throughout GSNorCal this summer. Each community camp handles its own registration. This year you will be able to learn about community camps by visiting the camprocks website, which currently includes links to information about 21 different community camps, and also at your service unit meetings and via direct mailings from the community camps.  Camp and Outdoor Program Properties I am happy to announce that Priscilla McKenney joined our staff on Feb. 1 as the new Director of Property Development. Here she is -- in the green shirt -- at 11,050 feet on Mt. Shinn in the Sierras! We created this position in response to input from members at our 2010 Annual Meeting, where we heard loud and clear that we can do a better job educating members about the properties we have and how to use the properties to make outdoor experiences fun, engaging, safe and accessible for girls and volunteers. Priscilla joins us with over 20 years of experience in outdoor leadership, youth development, experiential education, and adventure based programming. She has a strong commitment to diversity, inclusivity, and accessibility in the field of adventure education and extensive connections with other nonprofit outdoor adventure organizations. Priscilla has led women and girls on outdoor adventures from traverses in the High Sierras and paddle trips in Alaska to trekking in the Himalayas. She will spend the first few months in the "discover" and "connect" phase, learning from members (both girls and adult) what will work best for you. You can reach Priscilla directly at pmckenney@girlscoutsnorcal.org.  99th Birthday Alumnae Parties: March 12, 2011  99th Birthday Celebrations:  The 99th birthday of Girl Scouts is Saturday, March 12.  Alumnae groups are organizing birthday parties and teas -- click here to visit our web site for more information about events in Chico, Eureka, Palo Alto, Redding and Santa Rosa.     Alumnae Chapters:  Deborah Holden (dholden@girlscoutsnorcal.org), who many of you know as the Senior Director of the North Coast Area and as the Senior Director who oversees Retail, is adding a third hat and also is now serving as our Senior Director liaison to GSNorCal's Alumnae Chapters. The San Francisco Bay Area has a well established Alumnae chapter that runs the area's annual Gold Award recognition event. Our North Coast alumnae also recently formed the North Coast Chapter. The North Coast Alumnae Chapter also has a long history of supporting local Gold Award celebrations. Deborah is working with other Alumnae interested in establishing Chapters in their areas.       Other Opportunities for Alumnae engagement: All past Girl Scouts are alumnae, and there are many ways to get involved as we launch the next 100 years of Girl Scouting: Re-connect with Girl Scouts through the national alumnae association -- click here.  Register with GSNorCal to receive email updates and newsletters -- click here.  Join us on Facebook -- click here.   Follow us on Twitter -- click here. Strategy.  It has been three years since we started work on our current three year strategic plan.  Our Board recently commenced work on our next three year plan (which the Board will adopt at its November 2011 meeting).    We are using strategic learning. GSUSA is encouraging councils to use a planning method called "strategic learning." Last fall our Board President, Woody Shackleton, Chief Program and Membership Officer, Michelle McCormick and I attended a 2-day training with GSUSA and other Girl Scout councils, conducted by Willie Petersen, the Columbia Business School professor who has been working with GSUSA to adapt strategic learning for Girl Scout councils. Our Board is following GSUSA's Strategic Learning timeline/approach to develop our next three year plan. The table below summarizes the timeline and opportunities for member input.     Opportunities for member input. We appreciate your participation in our Volunteer Survey. Regional Delegates also will have opportunities to provide input. Member input and participation in surveys and meetings was really helpful in developing our current plan, and we look forward to your input for this next plan as well.   Board and Strategic Learning Team Opportunities for Member Input Fall 2010: Board identifies strategic priorities and establishes 20-25 member Strategic Learning Team (which includes Board members, community members, Regional Delegates and staff)   Winter: Strategic Learning Team meets and organizes into 5 sub-teams focused on gathering information "from the outside in": customers, competitors, stakeholders, non-profit sector and "our own realities" Member survey Conference calls with Regional Delegates Early April: Five Strategic Learning Teams share with each other what they've learned and develop insights about "strategic choices" Mid-April: Share Strategic Learning Team insights and priorities with Regional Delegates April 30, annual meeting: Strategic Learning Team shares its insights and recommended "strategic choices" with members   April 30: after annual meeting, and with the benefit of member input, Board meets and adopts strategic choices Regional Delegates and members at Annual meeting provide input on strategic choices May: Strategic Learning Team "passes the baton" from strategy to implementation There will be opportunities for member input as we figure out HOW best to achieve our strategic priorities. May-October: Implementation plan to help GSNorCal close the gaps between where we are today and our strategic priorities. Work will continue on the long-term property plan, which will be informed by the council's strategic priorities/choices. There will be opportunities for member input as we figure out HOW best to achieve our strategic priorities. November: Board adopts strategic plan and long term property plan.  The final Board-adopted three-year plan, will reflect member input.

2011 Woman of Distinction Gala honoring Cindy Pawlcyn.   

Girl Scout alumna and master chef Cindy Pawlcyn with our Girl Scout Ambassadors. This sold-out event was our first-ever Woman of Distinction event in St. Helena. In addition to celebrating Cindy's accomplishments as a chef and proponent of sustainable, healthy food, we raised funds for outreach in Sonoma and Napa counties. Cindy delightfully shared how she earned her Girl Scout cooking badge at age 8 and used the skills she learned selling Girl Scout cookies to translate into her first catering business as a teenager!   Thanks to our generous sponsors and donors at the gala, the event netted over $25,000 for Girl Scouts of Northern California, including over $14,000 for outreach in Napa and Sonoma Counties.   Thank you to our Woman of Distinction Sponsors for helping Girl Scouts of Northern California make the world a better place! Bronze sponsors: Aramark, AT&T, Clover Stornetta Farms, Diana L. Bell, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Robert "Woody" and Denise Shackleton, and Safeway. Friendship Circle sponsors: Cakebread Cellars, Deloitte, Robert Half, Sares Regis, See's Candies, and Spaulding, McCullough and Tansil LLP Patron sponsor:  Rudolph & Sletten Silent auction sponsors: Mahoney Vineyards, Suzanne Moshier, Schramsberg Vineyards, Trefethen Family Vineyards, and Williams-Sonoma. In-Kind donors: Cakebread Cellars, Charles Krug Winery, and St. Supery Vineyards.  As always, please do not hesitate to send questions and comments to me.   Yours in Girl Scouting,

Marina H. Park, CEO Girl Scouts of Northern California