Girl Scouts Josie Pimentel and Athena Wrenn from Carbondale Earn the Presidential Volunteer Service Award

Athena Wrenn (left) and Josie Pimentel receiving their
Presidential Volunteer Service Awards

Josie Pimentel and Athena Wrenn of Carbondale have each earned the Presidential Volunteer Service Award, which recognizes individuals, families and groups that have, by their commitment and example, inspire others to engage in voluntary service. 

Josie volunteered 102 hours with organizations including Carbondale Park District, Carbondale Public Library, Carbondale Soccer Inc. and Unity Point Beta Club.  She has been a Girl Scout for seven years and is the daughter of Ed and Susan Pimentel of Carbondale.

Athena volunteered 100 hours with organizations including Carbondale Public Library, Unity Point School, Crab Orchard Wildlife Preserve and Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois.  She has been a Girl Scout for nine years and is the daughter of Kim King-Wrenn and Russell Wrenn of Carbondale. 

 

Both girls are freshmen at Carbondale Community High School and members of Girl Scout Cadette Troop #8174.   
 

The President’s Volunteer Service Award was established in 2003 by the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation.  It recognizes individuals, families, and groups that have achieved a prescribed standard that is either measured by the number of hours served over a 12-month period or by cumulative hours earned over the course of a lifetime. 

 

Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois serves 14,000 girls and 4,800 adult volunteers in more than 40 counties in southern Illinois. Girl Scouting has inspired more than 50 million girls and women since its founding in 1912. Girl Scouting is focused on providing a premier Girl Scout Leadership Experience for girls in the 21st century, while ensuring the traditions and values that have been core to Girl Scouting since its beginning remain strong and relevant.

 

About the President’s Volunteer Service Award

In 2003, the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation created the President’s Volunteer Service Award program as a way to thank and honor Americans who, by their demonstrated commitment and example, inspire others to engage in volunteer service.

 

The President’s Volunteer Service Award recognizes individuals, families, and groups that have achieved a certain standard – measured by the number of hours served over a 12-month period or cumulative hours earned over the course of a lifetime.

 

Award recipients receive:

• An official President’s Volunteer Service Award pin.

• A personalized certificate of achievement

 

Award Criteria

The following are the eligibility requirements for each age group:

 

Bronze Level

Girl Scouts 6-14 years of age: 50 to 74 hours
Girl Scouts 15-18 years of age: 100 to 174 hours

 

Silver Level

Girl Scouts 6-14 years of age: 75 to 99 hours
Girl Scouts 15-18 years of age: 175 to 249 hours

 

Gold Level

Girl Scouts 6-14 years of age: 100 hours or more
Girl Scouts 15-18 years of age: 250 hours or more

 

To learn more about the President's Volunteer Service Award, please contact Program Manager Laurie Foster at 800.345.6858, ext. 2119 or e-mail lfoster@gsofsi.org.   To apply for a President's Volunteer Service Award, please fill out the required form (one per girl) found on GSSI's website and submit the form with $5 per award to GSSI, Attn: Awards, #4 Ginger Creek Pkwy, Glen Carbon, IL, 62034.

October 2013 Volunteer Training Opportunities

GSSI Training and Enrichment Course Schedule 2013-2014

Improve YOURS.E.L.F with more events like REFRESH featuring the PB&J Workshop and favorites like Organize Your Stuff, Fun Girl Scout Songs, Help I’m a New Leader and much more.  Please refer to the website calendar located at www.gsofsi.org for more information including times, registration deadline, and applicable fees.  Go to registration form.

S.E.L.F. (Saturday Enrichment Learning Fairs)

October 12 - Camp Torqua
November 9 – Carmi (NewBeginning Church)
November 16 - Camp Wassatoga
February 15 – Collinsville(Meadow Heights Baptist Church

Troop Camp Training
October 20 – Camp ChanYaTa
October 20 – Camp WhisperingOaks
November 3 – Camp Cedar Point
November 17 – Camp Wassatoga

CPR / FA / AED Certification

October 19 – Trenton

Archery
October 20 – Camp ChanYaTa
October 20 – Camp WhisperingOaks
November 3 – Camp Cedar Point
November 16 – Camp Wassatoga(following the SELF event)

O.W.L. – Outdoor Weekend for Learning!
May 3 - Camp Cedar Point (Small Craft Safety –Canoe, Wilderness and Remote First Aid, Troop Camp Training, Archery, Advanced Outdoor Cooking, Knots & Knives, GPS and more).

Trainings by Request
As always, additional courses are available by request to best suit volunteer needs and schedules!  Please use the Training by Request form available on the GSSI's website, www.gsofsi.org.

Taylor Koonce from Dupo Has Received the Girl Scout Gold Award

Taylor Koonce from Dupo has received the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can receive.  Taylor completed her Girl Scout Gold Award project during her senior year at Dupo High School in 2013. For her project,  Learning Green, Taylor educated people living in her community about environment issues and ways to be eco-friendly. In addition,  with the help of her Air Force Junior ROTC unit, she repaired an outdoor classroom that community members use.

Although Taylor said things didn’t always go as planned, everything worked out well in the end. “If you search, there are always people willing to help. And, I learned that while being a leader, sometimes you delegate things and sometimes you need to get down in the dirt with your team.” Taylor also credits the successful completion of her Girl Scout Gold Award project because of  help from Michael Conley, John Solomon, AFJROTC Unit IL-941, Sandy Nelson, Kendra Koonce and Michael Koonce.

Taylor has been a Girl Scout for 13 years and received the Girl Scout Trifecta Award for earning her Girl Scout Bronze Award, Girl Scout Silver Award and Girl Scout Gold Award. Taylor plans to attend Michigan State University where she will  major in Biosystems Engineering. She is the daughter Kendra and Michael Koonce.

The Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can earn, recognizes a Girl Scout's commitment to excellence as  she develops skills and values to meet present and future challenges in her life. To earn the Girl Scout Gold Award, a Girl Scout  Senior or Girl Scout Ambassador must design and carry out a project that fulfills a need within a girl’s community, creates change, and is sustainable. The project must be completed with a suggested minimum of 80 hours of work. Only about 6 percent of eligible girls earn the prestigious Gold Award.

GSSI Summer E-Chronicle Available Now

Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois' latest e-chronicle is now available on our website, www.gsofsi.org.  Read recent Girl Scout news including an Annual Meeting wrap up, top Cookie Sellers by Service Unit, an update on the Challenge & Change grant projects and the story of GSSI's Robotic Gems from Washington Park. There are also tons of photos from Day & Resident Camps, Thin Mint Sprint, and more!

Read now...

Have You Read GSSI's Girl Scout Stories?

Read personal experiences of GSSI Girl Scouts, volunteers and alumnae through GSSI's Girl Scout Stories!   Visit our website, www.gsofsi.org, or click the links below to read unique and interesting first-hand experiences from Girl Scouts throughout southern Illinois.

Girl Stories:

Troop #370 from Edwardsville: We Campaigned Against Bullying
TBot 907 from Roxana: From Rookie Robotics to Global Innovators
Katie Bowen from Staunton: Wild Times in Costa Rica
Samantha Lucy from Mason: One Summer, Two Trips
Claire Rankin from Carterville: Touring Europe with My Sister
Jordan Rankin from Carterville: From London to Lucerne
Shelby Wratchford from Fults: I Took My Dream Trip to Paris

Volunteer Stories:

Helen Holbert from Edwardsville: A Girl Scout Bond That Lasts
Paula Sherdian: Girl Scouts Going Strong in Oblong


Do you have a unique Girl Scout story?  Contact Erin Johnson at 800.345.6858 or ejohnson@gsofsi.org.

Jennifer Randolph: Girls Grow Outdoors

Jennifer Randolph, Outdoor Program Manager

March is one the hardest months for me to be inside. As I sit here typing, I am hearing the beautiful serenade of our friends the spring peepers through the window and the birds are scurrying around in the underbrush preparing for spring.  We are so lucky to live in Southern Illinois, where the bounty of nature is all around us!  What a secret treasure we have in Shawnee National Forest, Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge and several state parks for the public to enjoy. Many of these agencies offer FREE programs not only to the general public but also to Girl Scout troops!  Talk about inexpensive, fun and educational entertainment!

Each season in Southern Illinois holds so many outdoor treasures for us to enjoy. Winter brings an opportunity to really see what is in the woods. With leaves out of the way, we have a great vantage point for wildlife and the lay of the land. What a great time of year to watch for Bald Eagles! Spring brings wildflowers, the wonderful smell of earth and rain and all of that lovely green comes back! Fall brings the beautiful colors of changing leaves, campfires and hiking trips.

But summer perhaps, is the best time of year in Southern Illinois! Why, you say? Because summer opens the door for hundreds of excited girls to attend GSSI resident and day camps!

Each year in June and July, there is a buzz in the air as sleeping bags are dug out, canteens are washed and backpacks are filled with camping essentials! Not only is camp crazy fun, but it plays an important part in a girl’s development, as well!

Camping is so much more than just sleeping outside in a tent or a cabin!! These camping experiences are teaching girls life skills, independence and, for Pete’s sake, it’s getting them out of the house and away from technology for a while. By sending girls to camp, parents are helping their daughters build courage, confidence and character while exploring a new world of experiences. Girls have the opportunity to make new friends, learn how to work together in a unit and try fun and new activities that they may have previously thought they couldn’t do.

Camping also helps girls foster a love and appreciation of the outdoors. It is important now, more than ever, that children feel a connection to nature so that in turn, they will grow to be environmentally responsible adults.

So you see, something as small as attending a session at resident camp or day camp can really make a long term difference in a girl’s life! Why not give it a try this summer!    You can view GSSI’s summer camp opportunities online at: http://bit.ly/13GSSIcamp.

Girl Scouts having fun at camp last summer.



Susan Gurwitch: My First Girl Scout Cookie Program

Susan Gurwitch, COO

So, it’s my first cookie program as GSSI’s COO and as a parent.  I have been out with my girls selling in the rain and cold; have watched them be successful and be turned down (we have 12 girl scouts in our neighborhood) - yet I have never seen them so motivated or excited to be participating in something.  Coming off of the enthusiasm of a successful Fall sale, both girls were set on selling at least 1,000 boxes.  Cooper wants to go to Resident Camp and Josie wants to go to Six Flags.  Selling 1,000 boxes is a huge achievement (and, we’re finding out, hard work!)   We are nowhere near our goals yet, but the girls plan on selling in cookie booths on all five weekends available, so we’ll see where we end up!

From a staff perspective, I know there are still concerns about the Spring versus Fall timeframe.  I know it’s difficult, but as parents and staff we need to do all we can to help our girls be successful.   Changing our strategies and encouraging the girls is most important.  After all, it’s all about them and honing their skills.  I look forward to the booth sales and watching the troops develop their people skills, money management, and hitting their goals.  I also know the Product Program staff is working around the clock to help all of our parents and volunteers - whether it’s helping to secure booth locations, getting cookies to service units, or fielding questions about the cost and cookie choice difference between us and Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri.

Also, I am thrilled with the success of GSSI’s Fall product program.  After a successful nut, candy, magazine program (both personally for my girls as well as for the council) the excitement around our house is contagious.   I continue to look forward to hearing from all of you.  The more I hear, the more I learn!  Please keep letting me know how things are going.

Susan Gurwitch: Thank You, Girl Scouts.

Susan Gurwitch, COO

I can’t believe its December already!  It seems like 2012 has flown by!  I have been with Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois for about seven months now and I’m so thankful for everything it has brought to my life – an ability to spend more time with my husband and girls, both at home and at Girl Scout events, the confidence that Cooper and Josie have gained from Girl Scout programs, new friends and colleagues, and the chance to be a part of something so valuable to my own community.  When I left the corporate world for GSSI, I never imagined how much I would gain – the ability to see so many people doing such wonderful things, working with staff and volunteers whose hearts are so big and knowing what a difference Girl Scouts can make on our world.

I have also learned the value of volunteerism and of volunteers.  I cannot say enough to thank each and every one of you for all you do for girls.  From Day Camp Directors and volunteers to Service Unit Team Members to Troop Leaders to parents who help at programs … you are all amazing.  The time, effort, and love you give to the girls, parents and staff of GSSI is so appreciated.  It is because of each one of you that our girls get such an amazing experience. 

As we look toward 2013 and all the great things to come, I want to say thank you.  Thank you for being so welcoming and for creating something so wonderful here in Southern Illinois.   Something we can all be proud of!   I look forward to meeting more of you over the next year, hearing your stories and working together to make the world’s premier leadership organization for girls even better!