Carleton Place Girl Guides plan to make a difference in 2010
Posted Nov 19, 2009 By EMC News
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EMC News - Carleton Place Girl Guides (CPGG) is excited to celebrate 100 years of Girl Guides in 2010. Since the middle of September, CPGG has held two registration events and is pleased that local units have doubled in size this year.
Naliah Legge, Samantha MacMillan, Sam Meabry, Keara O'Shea, Molly Pinhey and Carrie Savard.
The units participated in an Olympic Camp in September, which was held at the Mill of Kintail. Girls were divided into four groups - representing our international lodges of guiding - and participated in several fun events. The evening concluded with a sing along and campfire.
Also in September, the official Chocolate Mint Cookie Campaign kicked off. A barbecue and cookie blitz was held at Giant Tiger Sept. 19. Thank you to Ray McLaren, owner, and his staff for all their support and help. Local units participated in another blitz Oct. 10 at the local Price Chopper and Wal-Mart. Thank you to these retailers as well.
In October, CPGG hosted one of many National Campfires Oct. 21, and the units also participated in a Halloween sleepover, which was organized by our local group of Pathfinders. Girls made several Halloween crafts and played lots of Halloween-themed games. Thank you to the Pathfinders for organizing this event. The month concluded with this year's official enrolment ceremony. Many other events are planned to fundraise for 100th Anniversary events.
CPGG has published a 100th anniversary celebration cookbook - 'A Taste of Carleton Place Guiding'. Members submitted recipes, photos and stories of their guiding experiences. The book is currently on sale at local events in Carleton Place as well as from any member. The cost is $10. CPGGs will receive $7 from each book sold, and funds will be used for a camp celebration in the spring. Cookbooks will be available at our Holiday Bazaar, Nov. 21. The event will be held at St. James Anglican Parish Hall on Edmund Street from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. A light lunch will be served for a minimal charge. Highlights of the day include kids craft corner, Girl Guide craft tables, carolling by the units, and a visit from Santa with photos for minimal charge.
Several girls and guiders from Carleton Place will be attending Guiding Mosaic next year. This will be an amazing opportunity for girls and women from across Canada and around the world to come together, explore, learn and make new friends. 'Great Friends, Greater Experiences and the Greatest Memories', is the motto for the Mosaic. The camp is open to girls in 3rd year Guides and girls in the Pathfinders and Rangers programs. The camp will be held July 8-17 in Guelph, Ontario. The girls are asked to pick events from six areas (Active Living, Adventure, Arts, Community Action, Science & Technology and Waterfront). This is meant to be an individual camp where girls experience new opportunities. There will be fundraising events in the future to help support the girls who are participating, as this camp costs approximately $1,000 per girl. For the younger members we are looking at planning a Mini Mosaic. This will only be a weekend camp, again we would like to put a portion of the fundraising towards this event, offsetting the costs to the parents.
History
In 1909, 11,000 boys participated in a Scouting rally organized by Lord Baden-Powell at the Crystal Palace in London, Great Britain. To Baden-Powell's surprise, a large number of girls also showed up. They had been practicing Scouting and demanded entry into the rally. Baden-Powell was impressed and he asked his sister, Agnes, to create a program just for girls. This was the beginning of guiding.
By 1910, the guiding movement grew rapidly, thanks in part to Agnes, and later, to Baden-Powell's wife, Olave, who toured the country tirelessly promoting Girl Guides wherever she went. In 1910, the movement had reached Canada and the first unit was formed in St. Catharine's, Ontario. By 1912, there were units in every province and many of Canada's most forward-thinking women had gathered together to create the Canadian Girl Guides Association.
Girl Guides of Canada is the leadership organization of choice for girls and women in Canada. We, as volunteers, are honoured to be involved in an organization that plays a significant and positive role in the lives of its members. We do this by offering them a safe environment where they can fully participate in the fun, friendship and adventure of Guiding.
We are very proud to say that through guiding, local girls have been able to develop their skills, increase their confidence and self-esteem, and learn leadership skills through programs and activities that teach them to think for themselves.
Submitted by Bev Savard, 3rd Carleton Place Brownies, and Laura Gale, 1st and 2nd Carleton Place Sparks.
