Summertime Hours

Summer is just around the corner and so are summer hours at our leadership centers and retail shops!

Our summer hours begin Monday, June 3 and run through Friday, August 30 for our leadership centers and retail shops.

The summer hours are:

Monday through Thursday, leadership centers and retail shops are open 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Are you wondering what will happen if you have a Girl Scout question at 3:38 p.m. on Friday, July 19 (during summer hours)? Don’t fret! You can still reach employees at their direct number or extension.

Don’t know the extension of the person you are trying to reach? You can find all of the extensions on the Contact Us page of our website.

A Cookie Sale Thank You.

A word of thanks from Marilyn Askelson, product sales manager:

I want to take this time to thank everyone for their hard work for the 2013 Cookie Sale Program! Here are a few highlights to be proud of:

With your guidance,  support and determination, troops earned $1,130,055 in troop profit.  Think of all the great opportunities that this will give girls!

Girl Scouts of Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois collected almost 25,000 packages of cookies for our military!  That’s almost double what was collected last year!

Girls sold an average of 173 packages per girl compared to 161 last year!

We know that participating in the cookie sale takes a lot of hard work, determination and communication.  We truly appreciate all the extra time you put in to ensure that the girls in your troops achieve success and that they learn skills that will benefit them for a lifetime.

Yours in Girl Scouts,

Marilyn

The 2013 Cookie Sale Program may have just ended but we started planning for the 2014 Cookie Sale Program already! We are looking for Girl Scouts help in planning the recognition options. Girl Scouts can indicate their recognition preferences here until June 10!

A Girl Scout close up!

Meet Amber Rickeberg, regional membership manager out of our Burlington Area Leadership Center!

What is your favorite color? I always hate this question, because I love EVERY color. Anything bright, vibrant and fun!

What is your favorite food? Locrio de Pollo- Dominican Rice & Chicken

What are you listening to right now? I really love the song Next To Me by Emeli Sande

Why did you join Girl Scouts? I was in Kindergarten, and I wanted to do anything that involved being with my friends

What do you like best about Girl Scouts? I love days that I get to go out there and work with the girls. It always melts my heart when I see girls using what they have learned in Girl Scouts, and blossoming into leaders and strong young women!

Why should girls join Girl Scouts? Because we are all about teaching girls to be the best they can be, and being confident with themselves. It is important for women today to be smart, independent, strong leaders, and Girl Scouts is empowering women to do just that!

What would you change about the world? I think that as a culture, we put too much emphasis on vanity. We worry about how we look, what we wear, who we are friends with, and the list goes on. I wish that people felt comfortable to always be who they are, no matter what anyone else thinks.

What do you want to be when you grow up? I want to travel everywhere! Anything that allows me to see the world!

Why should parents, guardians, grandparents, etc. volunteer for their Girl Scout’s experience? I can’t think of a better way to bond together, and learn from one another! It’s an experience you will never forget!

Why should girls spring register? 1. It makes it decreases the stress for parents & leaders in the fall. 2. You get an awesome pencil pouch & the cutest patch ever!

For more information on spring registering, visit: www.GirlScoutsToday.org/Spring-Registration!

The Choice is Yours at summer camp.

Blog post written by Einstein (Val Harle), Director of Camp Conestoga and Outdoor Leadership Experience Manager

As a camp director, one of the things I have heard a lot from girls who have gone to camp is that they want to be able to do a certain activity more than once or they wanted to do an activity, like archery, and the rest of their group did not.

Since camp is planned by the group of girls there are times one activity gets left undone in favor of something else. For example, the group decides to spend time canoeing instead of taking a nature hike. What if you really wanted to take a nature hike?

Well, there is a new camp session to solve this problem. The Choice is Yours lets the girl decide individually what she wants to do each day.

So, if archery is your thing or you really want to learn more about developing photos in the dark room, you can spend time learning that skill. The best part is that a girl can go to camp with a buddy or even her whole troop and decide what she wants to do and do it. There’s still plenty of time to hang out with friend but the girls pick what they want to do without having to compromise with the group.

Canoeing everyday? Not a problem. Zipline twice? Sure. Don’t like arts and crafts? Girls don’t have to go. The Choice is Yours. This session is for girls entering 6^th-12^th grades and girls can register individually, with a buddy or as a troop.

The Choice is Yours session will be held at Camp Little Cloud and Camp Conestoga this summer.

-Einstein

A Bronze Award for the Daisies!

Girl Scout Junior troop 6039 of Hudson, IA stopped by the Waterloo Area Leadership Center to share their Bronze Award project.

They created Daisy Totes for new Girl Scout Daisy leaders! Each tote contains enough supplies for a new troop for their entire first year! Amazing!

They put together a binder that explains each Daisy petal and story.

These Daisy Totes will be used year after year because after Daisy leader’s first year, he or she will replenish supplies and return it to the Waterloo Area Leadership Center for a new Daisy leader!

More summer adventures!

Come join us for one to seven weeks of fun! Girls entering grades K-5 are invited to join us for arts and crafts, games, field trips, guest speakers and of course, a whole lot of fun!

Girls will discover the three keys of leadership: Discover, Connect and Take Action with our caring, well-trained staff. We will provide each girl with a safe and memorable experience.

These summer adventures are happening in the Quad Cities and the Corridor. View the flyers to see what your Girl Scout could be doing this summer in the Quad Cities and the Corridor!

Transportation is available for the Quad Cities summer adventures.

Registration will be taken at the door, but spots are limited so sign up early!

There is also a summer program for girls in grades 6-8 in the Quad Cities called the Bling Summer Program!

Questions? Call 800-798-0833.

Night on Broadway

Adults, this blog post is for you!

A fabulous night of Broadway hits sung by local media with an exquisite dinner and wine pairing in the historic Gold Room of the Hotel Blackhawk supporting Girl Scouts.

Sounds wonderful, right?

This will be a reality Thursday, May 23 as Girl Scouts of Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois presents the annual “Night on Broadway.”

“We’re excited to share our mission amidst a special evening of talented media personalities and incredible food and fine wine,” stated Shelly Wells Cain, Vice President of Development and Marketing. “This new twist on our event promises guests an elegant evening of dinner and entertainment.”

Reservations are $80 per person or $750 per table of 10.  To make a reservation, call (309) 788-0833.  The RSVP deadline is Friday, May 17, 2013.

All proceeds from the event will benefit the new Girl Scout Program Center in Rock Island, IL.

Night on Broadway is sponsored by Trinity Health Systems, Quad City Bank & Trust, Tennant Truck Lines, Inc., QC International Airport and Russell Construction.