Tag Archives: Girl Guides

Sparks Pizza Pajama Party

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Last weekend the 1st Burnaby Mountain Sparks had a sleepover pizza pajama party at Richmond Guide House. It was a great opportunity for the girls and leaders to get to know each other — and with the unit having 10 new girls, 2 new junior leaders, and 1 new Guider this year,  this seemed pretty important!

The decorated sleepover totes — really cute draw string backpacks sewn by Emerald.

Future fashion designers hard at work

Dinner, of course, was pizza. One of the highlights was the “movie theatre” where the girls got to watch The Lorax projected onto the wall. And it wouldn’t be a movie theatre without popcorn!

Getting ready to watch the movie

In the morning everyone was pretty sleepy, but a good time was had by all. The girls made new friends and some really great memories of their early days in Sparks.

Everyone is now excited for some of our upcoming events. Did you know that the Lorax speaks for the trees? He says that “UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing’s going to change. It’s Not.” Hmm. I wonder what we could do if we had some trees… Stay tuned!

First Aid Training

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This Thanksgiving weekend, six Guiders from our District spent time becoming certified in Red Cross Standard First Aid and CPR Level C.

Six brand new Red Cross certificates

This qualification actually exceeds the Girl Guides requirement for most kinds of activities — that so many of our leaders were interested in taking this course rather than the more common Emergency First Aid course shows how committed we are to girl safety and to being able to offer exciting programming. The Girl Guide motto, after all, is “Be Prepared!”

Leaders from both our Ranger units practicing a sling for a broken arm

The leaders learned about life-saving techniques such as CPR for adults, children, and infants, including use of automatic external defibrillators. They learned about how to deal with choking, head injuries, sprains, broken bones, allergic reactions (including anaphylaxis), heat exhaustion, heart attacks, and more.

Leaders from the 56th Guides doing a “tubular” sling for a dislocated shoulder

The trainer was an enthusiastic paramedic who kept the days fun. All six leaders had a great time learning about these important skills… although they sincerely hope they will never have to use any them!

Cookies are here!

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This week, more than 2500 boxes of chocolatey mint cookies arrived for our District to sell. Cookies have been distributed to units, who have given them to girls this week.

Chocolatey Mint Cookies went on sale October 1st

This year, the cookies are coming out in awesome new packaging. The new look really highlights what Girl Guides is all about. What else is new about cookies this year? Well, although it has been true of our cookies for a few years now, we are now have the nut-free symbol right on the box. Also, trans fats in the chocolatey mint cookies have gone down by 90%.

Not only does cookie selling provide funds that help us run girl programming (they help subsidize camps, pay for craft supplies, etc) it also helps every girl develop confidence and business skills. From Sparks to Rangers, our girls proudly ask “Would you like to buy a box of Girl Guide Cookies?” and are eager to tell you they’re only “$5.00 a box!”

SFU Volunteer and Community Engagement Fair

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This week has been all about membership in Burnaby Mountain District! There have been two membership information sessions at local elementary schools to reach out to the youth, and we also spent time at the local university campus to reach adults.

Did you know that membership in our district is up this year, and that most of our units have less than three spaces currently available?

The day at Simon Fraser University’s Volunteer and Community Engagement Fair was an especially exciting time. We worked with Guiders from a couple of other districts to represent West Coast Area (and beyond!) at this major event attended by more than 3000 students, faculty, and staff.

Did you know that there are a variety of ways for women to get involved in our organization, and that neither experience or daughters are required?

PR Advisor Bethany and District Commissioner Gerry at our booth

We talked to several women, most of whom were university students, about their fond memories of being involved in Guiding as a a child — and considering getting involved again. Others came by hardly knowing what Girl Guides was about, but expressing interest in working with kids. We gave out cookie samples and were eager to talk about all the exciting things going on in our district this year.

Check out the great presentation board we borrowed from Area. Wouldn’t it be great to make our own, filled with memories of our district?

By the end of the fair two leaders had actually filled out registration forms and been placed in units in our district, and four others had expressed interest and asked to be contacted by our commissioner. In addition, we collected contact information from women interested in getting involved in Vancouver, Surrey, North Vancouver, and other parts of Burnaby. They will be contacted by the appropriate districts shortly.

Did you know that Guiding offers amazing opportunities for its girls and women including scholarships, training, and international travel?

Over all the SFU fair was a big success. Our Guiders are happy to be gaining the support and fresh new ideas coming from these young, talented, motivated women.

Thinking of Joining Girl Guides?

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Although we accept new registrations all year long, September is a great time to get involved. Units are just getting started with the Guiding year and everyone is full of great ideas and enthusiasm.

Don’t know a lot about Guiding? That’s okay. Take a look at our Vision and Mission:

Vision

Girl Guides of Canada-Guides du Canada, the organization of choice for girls and women, makes a positive difference in the life of every girl and woman who experiences Guiding so she can contribute responsibly to her communities.

Mission

Girl Guides of Canada-Guides du Canada enables girls to be confident, resourceful and courageous, and to make a difference in the world.

How could that be a bad thing? Girl Guides is a great place to make friends, get involved in the community, engage in service projects, learn new skills, and go camping. In addition, there are opportunities for international travel, scholarships, and more.

Let us know if you’ve got any questions. We’d love to welcome any new members (girls or adults) into our organization. While you’re thinking about it, check out our Girl Greatness PSA: