GIRL SC ❧ UT STRONG Sister to Sister Compass | Special Edition | 2020-2021 You’ve Got This In this edition: And Girl Scouts of Maine is here for you through it all. Cheering you on, lifting you up, celebrating your strengths. Today, tomorrow, together—we’re on your team. Didn’t renew for 2021? Don’t worry, we have the solution! Starting on April 1, choose Extended Year Membership and renew for both 2021 and 2022 for just $55. Dont miss this opportunity, this is a 2021 exclusive offer! Renew by: Your Girl will get: 5/18 6/1 6/15 ✓ ✓ ✓ Eligibility to register for Celebrate Camp events* ✓ ✓ ✓ Free special GSME Early Renewal Patch for girls ✓ Free We’ve Got This Patch for girls ✓ ✓ $5 bonus for troop per girl renewed online** ✓ $2.50 bonus for troop per girl renewed online** *Spaces are limited for the Celebrate Camp events at Camp Pondicherry and Camp Natarswi and are first come, first served. You must renew to be eligible to register. Registration for Celebrate Camp starts April 1 and closes when full or by June 15 (whichever happens first). Cost for Celebrate Camp is $15/girl and $10/adult. **Must be PAID renewals. Not applicable if paper forms are used or membership assistance is provided. Need help? Contact our Customer Care team at 888-922-4763 or [email protected]. ❧ 2 C mpass A Letter Sister to Sister Edition 2021 from our CEO Editor: Laura Genese Designer: Rebecca Benoski Dear Girl Scouts, It has been a year. In the 400 or so days since a global In this edition: pandemic was declared, we have changed as people and been reshaped as families in many ways, large and small. Face masks, Zoom meetings, no Joanne Crepeau CEO Message from CEO, travel, 6 feet distancing, remote schooling and work, no family Girl Scouts of Maine 3 Joanne Crepeau visits, Netflix binges, sweat pants, no in person troop meetings, hand sanitizers, take out dining—so many simple and profound shifts Girl Scout Leadership that have affected health, mental wellbeing, coping ability, employment, 4-12 Experience-Girl Stories friendships, relationships, and future outlook. And despite these many challenges, Girl Scouts faced them and thrived! I 13-15 Council Program Highlights am proud to state that Girl Scouts in Maine have shown a spirit and grit like at no other time in recent history. You earned badges and patches, zoomed Annual Celebration and with your troops, attended virtual programs and series, represented Maine 16 Gold Award Intro at the Girl Scout convention, connected with each other statewide, sold magazines, nuts, candies and cookies, earned free sessions of camp, and so much more. 17-19 Gold Award Girl Scouts In this Compass issue, you will find stories of members who were creative, successful, generous, helpful, kind, caring, responsible, used resources 20-21 Silver Award Girl Scouts wisely, and persevered no matter the challenge. This is what Girl Scout experiences, activities, and behaviors stand out in 22-25 Adult Recognitions my mind as I reflect over the last year: Camp Adventures for Girl Scouts at Home, Global Action, Google Classrooms, Gender Equity, 26 Grown-Ups Green ME Up (virtual), Girl-Planned Transforming Leadership, Girl Scout G Challenges, Government, gsLearn, GTeam TV, Go Gold, Girl Scout Way Celebrate Camp and 27 Family Camp International Escape Rooms, Inclusiveness, Ingenuity, I Improvements (at camps!) Upcoming Council Programs 28-29 Recruiter patches, Right to Lead, Rewards for Camp, R Recognitions, Reading Projects Program Partners 30 Leader Training, Licenses for Zoom, Literacy Projects Leave No Trace 31 Shop L Science, Sustainability, Singalongs, Scholarships 32 Community Engagement S Thank you girls for your go-getting ways, innovations, (sensible) risk- taking, and leadership that proved your mettle and resilience in this year of challenges. And my gratitude to all the adult leaders, volunteers, and families who supported them through these arduous times! You are all heroes and Girl Scout Strong! Yours in Girl Scouting, Joanne Crepeau CEO, Girl Scouts of Maine ❧ 3 The Girl Scout Entrepr ⮕ en e s u ll r i s k h S i p Leadership Experience e f i ⮕ L PROGRAM PILLAR HIGHLIGHTS S T ⮕ E M s r o ❧ o ⮕ d t u O OUTDOORS Embracing the outdoors, these Girl Scouts took to the trails and beyond! Cadette Avis Kennedy-Stirling, Troop 907, working on the Winter Challenge with Nordic skiing in Township A Range 12 and skating on West Branch Pond Camp. Troop 111 enjoyed art in the outdoors and hiking together this fall! STEM got science? Engineering is Fun! Troop 217 Junior Girls from Longreach explored through the Engineering Journey this fall. When thinking about a Take Action project, they decided they wanted to create a video on why they think Engineering is fun. They hope to share their story to inspire other girls to explore engineering. 4 GIRL Stories SHARING THE LOVE ACROSS MAINE Troop 2403 in Gorham happily raised their hands to work on handmade Valentine cards for the healthcare workers at Maine Medical. They made 76 cards to give the nurses and doctors to boost their morale and strength to keep on saving lives while risking their own. Brownie Girl Scout, Astrid from Troop 907 took the initiative and made Valentines kits to distribute to her troop so they could all make Valentine cards to send to Maine Hospice through the Hearts for Hospice initiative. Look how fun and creative these Valentines are! Kasey Jordan and Lily Philbrook of Troop 422 spent two meetings making 150 valentines for two local Rehabilitation Homes in Ellsworth, Courtland Rehabilitation and Seaport Rehabilitation, as well as Seaports Assisted Living Facility. Each resident received a card and a carnation. 5 Considerate and Caring... Always Living the Girl Scout Law When Troop 1168 found themselves with extra cases of cookies at the beginning of pandemic, they offered their network the opportunity to purchase cases to be donated to healthcare professionals. Still finding themselves with leftover cookies and observing their teachers, bus drivers, and other staff working so hard to make their new normal as safe and comfortable as they could, the girls made the decision as a troop to treat the hardworking teachers and staff at Helen Thompson Community School in West Gardiner. Christmas bags were filled with a package of cookies, a pencil, eraser, and a thank you Christmas card from the troop. They donated 54 packages and hope to make this a recurring event each year! Way to go girls! On October 31, in celebration of Juliette Gordon Low’s birthday, Troop With 2020 causing so many 1008 put together “birthday bags” that included cake mix, frosting, cake uncertainties, Girl Scout Troop 2024 of pans, candles, plates, and napkins. The girls had fun creating a spread- Rising Star discussed what they could out assembly line to put together their supplies in colorful gift bags. At do to help their community and decided the next meeting, some of the troop safely met at a local food pantry to to put together Christmas boxes for take a tour and deliver the bags to be passed out to those in need of some families in need. They reached out to birthday cheer. the school district in Enfield to identify families in need with young children. They were able to put together 3 boxes full of goods and buy gifts for all the children, helping 3 different families. The girls were so thankful that they were given the opportunity to help members of their community in such uncertain times. Well done, Girl Scouts! Thanks to the support and donations from our Gorham community and beyond, the Girl Scouts from Troop 618 were able to donate more than 900 masks to students and staff across Gorham Elementary schools. The girls collected donations of material, handmade masks, and received donations from members of their community throughout the summer and fall. Masks were sewn and delivered following all COVID precautions. 6 In November, Troop 111 invited girl- empowerment book illustrator Alexandra Bye to speak to the girls, since they had been talking about helping refugees, a girl- led idea! They had a zoom meeting with Alexandra, all getting to know each other, and she linked their interests to careers the girls might be interested in someday. She talked about the importance of speaking up for others and using our voices. She encouraged them to feel confident in their talents. It was a wonderful experience! From this, the girls then collected items that Catholic Charities of Portland needed for refugee families. They collected and delivered more than $1,000 worth of items - toothbrushes, pillows and blankets, towels, mittens, baby gear, cleaning supplies, etc. The girls learned so much about helping others in need during this time, as well as what it means to help people of all colors and cultures. Troop 111 had also earned so much money from their Fall Product Sale that they had a celebration and also brainstormed more ways to give back to their community. They voted on their ideas and supporting people experiencing homelessness was the top choice! Through a wonderful process of goal setting, the girls brainstormed what they thought was needed and chose the amount of money they wanted to spend. The girls then put together the packages individually and delivered them to a local shelter. It was a great activity to teach girls about community, being there for others, giving what you can when you can, as well as being grateful for what you have. Beautiful job, Girl Scouts! GET TO KNOW THE GIRL SCOUT LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE The Girl Scout Leadership Experience (GSLE) encourages girls to Discover themselves, Connect with others, and Take Action to make the world a better place.