Sparks with Critters

Posted on March 27, 2015 by Carissa

Never a group to shy away from an adventure, the 1st Sparks recently had a special guest come to a meeting. And he brought… friends.

Mike, of Mike’s Critters, was a great host for the girls who learned a tremendous amount about different kinds of animals including what they eat, how they protect themselves, why they look the way they do, and lots of other really cool trivia.

Mike brought a rabbit, a hedgehog, a red-eyed tree frog, a parrot, a leopard gecko, a chinchilla, a chameleon, and a mealy corn snake. The girls got to look at all of the animals up close and were able to touch most of them.

Did you know the Chinchilla is the softest animal in the whole wide world?

Some special volunteers even got to take turns holding some of the animals. The girls were so brave and were even excited to get to hold the snake!

The girls were so excited to have Mike and his critters at their meeting. It was educational, engaging, and totally hands-on. What a great opportunity. This unit and its leaders give Mike a rave review and totally suggest you check out his website and condsider booking him for your upcoming events.

Thinking Day 2015 – Healthy Living

Posted on March 14, 2015 by Carissa

In February, Girl Guides around the world celebrate the joint birthdays of Lord and Lady Baden-Powell, the founders of our organization, in Thinking Day celebrations. This year, Burnaby Mountain District hosted its annual celebration on February 21 at Charles Rummel Hall.

Approximately 75 girls came out with their families to celebrate Guiding. The event was planned and delivered by the 12th Rangers with help from the 14th Pathfinders. The girls did a wonderful job hosting the event, showing exemplary leadership skills.

The theme of this year’s event was healthy living, and the Rangers planned stations for the girls to visit round-robin style that contributed towards the new provincial program Colour Me Healthy challenges. By the end of the day, all girls present were well on their way to earning the challenges which may be completed in their units.

Fun stations included fruit & veggie trivia, yoga, foot tag, and a fruit and veg tasting station. The afternoon was rounded out with a lively campfire.

In addition to the festivities, there was a bake sale that many families contributed to. So many tasty things! Proceeds from the bake sale are going towards the district’s year end event in June. Thanks for helping us raise the funds for that.

A huge thank you goes out to the Rangers and Pathfinders who worked so hard planning and leading this event. The girls all had a great time and hopefully learned a thing or two about healthy choices.

To our sisters around the world, Happy Thinking Day 2015!

Brownies Experience the Orchestra

Posted on March 6, 2015 by Carissa

Last month the girls of the 54th Brownies enjoyed a concert at the Orpheum Theatre in downton Vancouver called Latin Beats Heroic Feats. The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra put the show on as a part of their Kids’ Koncerts series.

Especially exciting was the opportunity visit the VSO Instrument Fair in the hour before the show. The girls got some hands on exposure to a variety of instruments.

Performers were available with several different instruments to give kids personal demonstrations and a chance to try them themselves. The girls had a chance to try a cello, violin, flute, oboe, bass clarinet, and more!

There was even a craft station — always a bit hit with Brownies! — where the girls got to make their own carnival masks, which later became a part of the interactive show. The orchestra performed a number of musical pieces from across North and South America in an interactive show designed for kids aged four to eleven years old. Clowning and puppetry were also used to stage a story about a young boy’s travel through time and space, learning all about music and rhythm. Once again the girls impressed everybody with how well behaved and engaged they were through the whole experience. This unit visited the symphony last year as well and when Brown Owl asked what kinds of outings and activities they wanted to plan this year, there was an overwhelming desire to see the symphony again.