Check out the latest activities and fun in our council as we wrap up another Girl Scout year.
By Cathy Molitoris
As we start another Girl Scout year, let’s take a look back at the fun, festivities, and accomplishments of girls this past season. Several troops finished up last year with ceremonies, honoring Highest Award earners and celebrating the move from one level of Girl Scouts to the next. Others participated in community events and learned about our place in the world around us.
Marking Memorial Day in Monroe County
Girl Scouts believe in making an impact on their community, and that was certainly true for the girls in Troop 50314. They marched in a local Memorial Day parade sponsored by the American Legion Post 413 in Pocono Pines, helping to show their gratitude for people who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.
Highlighting Highest Awards in Dauphin County
Service Unit 175 closed out this past Girl Scout year with a recognition event for girls who earned the Bronze, Silver or Gold awards. Held at the St. Joan of Arc Social Hall in May, the celebration honored these highest-award recipients from troops in the Hummelstown, Hershey, and Middletown areas. The Service Unit now plans to hold the event annually.
Water, water everywhere in Dauphin County
Girls in Service Unit 175 also learned all about the wonders of water at “We Keep Water Flowing Day” in June. Twenty-five girls, 10 volunteers and one turtle attended the program, where girls learned about jobs in the water industry, the water cycle, PA watersheds, water chemistry, and water conservation. Girls also hiked along the Swatara Creek and enjoyed a visit from members of the PA Fish and Boat Commission, which emphasized the importance of protecting waterways for fish, what to do if you encounter a turtle or snake, and the importance of using the correct size life jacket. Everyone (except the turtle) ended the fun day with refreshing ice pops.
A spa day and tea party in Lancaster County
When you’ve worked hard all year to earn badges and give back to your community, you deserve to treat yourself. That’s just what Daisies and Brownies in Troop 70627 did when they held a spa day and tea party. The girls voted to use their cookie proceeds to get manicures and pedicures at Lancaster School of Cosmetology, where they learned about tipping for services. The troop then decorated hats for the tea party and had snacks. At the Garden of the Five Senses in Lancaster County Park, the girls held a Bridging Ceremony for four Brownies moving up to Juniors. Each girl shared something she enjoyed this past year, and one thing she’s looking forward to in the coming year. Each girl also received her patches, badges, and pins on pinwheels. The group then traveled to the Sugarplums & Tea restaurant in Lampeter, where girls and grownups enjoyed a high tea lunch. Girls learned table manners, etiquette, and enjoyed tea and juice in real tea cups.
Going to the dogs in Dauphin County
Six Girl Scouts from Junior Troop 10645 came up with the paw-fect project for their Bronze Award. Cassidy, Elise, Bhakti, Sadie, Carrie, and Kennedy completed the “Agent of Change” journey, where they learned about the “Power of One,” “Power of Team,” and “Power of Community.” They then visited with dogs in training and volunteers with Susquehanna Service Dogs, learned about the program and how it helps people in the community, and decided to take action. They set up a table at a local craft market in June, where they collected more than $130 in donations to purchase supplies such as treats, laundry detergent, and dog toys for dogs in training. As the final step in their project, the girls built a sensory path at the Susquehanna Service Dogs training facility in Grantville. They laid weed block, secured landscape timbers, spread soil and pea gravel, and placed objects on the path. The sensory path will be used to help train service dogs to assist clients with a variety of needs.
Vests and sashes hold yearlong memories for Lycoming County
Daisies and Brownies from Troop 60271 in Lycoming County celebrated their Girl Scout year with an end-of-year vest and sash ceremony. Leaders, including graduating Ambassador Girl Scout Sarah Kline from Troop 60041, presented the girls with their age-level vest or sash containing all of the earned awards, badges, and fun patches completed during the year.
Dauphin County troop wraps up a successful year
A little rain couldn’t dampen the spirits of Troop 10840 when the Girl Scouts held their first Court of Awards and Bridging Ceremony at Italian Lake in Harrisburg in June. The Girl Scouts helped plan all the details of the ceremony, including what snacks to bring and what color balloons to get for decorations They chose rainbow colors to represent each Girl Scout level.
The festivities celebrated the fun and hard work of the past year, with patches and badges distributed to the girls and the pinning of one-year membership stars. The troop also officially welcomed two new Brownies and presented them with a small welcome gift. Two of the Daisies in the troop bridged to Brownies, marking the move in true Girl Scout tradition with a magic pond created by a crafty volunteer for the Brownies to gaze into. The troop concluded the ceremony with snacks, which, naturally, included brownies.
Loving a Little Library in Lancaster County
What can you do with an old newspaper dispenser? If you’re the girls in Troop 70620, you can get creative. They adopted and restored a Little Free Library at Columbia Crossing, by sandblasting, priming, painting, and fabricating a new shelf. They also replaced Plexiglas and decorated the structure. Junior Girl Scouts helped to stock the library with books for children of all ages.
A Champion for stamps in Union County
Do you know what a philatelist is? Erin from Troop 61083 sure does. She earned her Gold Award in April by creating the “Philatelist E. Project,” a program to help people of all ages learn about history and culture through postage stamps. If you’d like to learn more about stamp collecting, including how to earn your own philatelist patch for free, visit Erin’s project.
Getting ready for Barbie in Lancaster County
Girl Scouts just want to have fun, and that’s what the members of Troop 71348 did when they decided to attend the premiere of the “Barbie” movie at Penn Cinema. The girls hit local thrift stores for outfits to wear and then posed at a photo booth at the theater. Their cool looks were picked up by the local newspaper’s online site.
York County Girl Scouts travel back in time
If you stopped by Codorus Service Unit 842’s day camp in July, you might have seen a dragon or two. Not to worry, though, because it was all part of the camp’s theme. The Service Unit held Damsels and Dragons, a Renaissance Adventure, for girls of all ages. Girl Scouts from multiple service units joined in the fun.
Summer fun at Foxfire House
It was hot, hot, hot at Camp Furnace Hills this summer, but that didn’t stop the fun. Girls from Service Unit 645 enjoyed baking in an outdoor oven, weaving, shaking butter to make whipped cream, paper cutting, and tin punching. Kathy, Deb, and Barb from Foxfire House customized the weekend to give the girls an unforgettable experience that also included making mountain pies on the stove.
Submit a Mission Moment today so we can showcase your Girl Scouts’ recent experiences and accomplishments next month! Visit our Mission Moment Recap webpage on the GSHPA Blog to see more Mission Moments from previous months.