Making decisions about our properties continues to be a major focus for the board. The properties chair pulled together a sub-group called the “Office Relocation Task Group,” and they presented three recommendations to the board in September. Prior to making these recommendations, this group considered the responses to a member survey regarding the location of our Main Service Center, and utilized maps showing the population trends and accessibility of all of our office sites in our eight county jurisdiction. Of course, the operating budget was also looked at as we continue to work in an economically challenging time.

The board accepted all of the recommendations of this task force, which are:

1. Sell the Lakeland office
   a. We have begun conversations with an interested not-for-profit organization
   b. This office will remain open until it is sold
   c. Staff who work out of this office will have the ability to work from home as well as have space in Tampa
   d. We will be looking for potential “drop off” locations to assist volunteers
2. Close the Ocala office at the end of the lease period (Dec. 31, 2009) and move the functions from this site to the Visitor’s Center at Camp Wildwood
   a. This location is more centrally located for the four counties currently served out of the Ocala office
   b. Staff who work out of this office will have the ability to work from home as well as have space at Camp Wildwood
   c. We will be looking for potential “drop off” locations to assist volunteers
   d. The Girl Scout Store will be open for troop purchases during camping weekends at Camp Wildwood – a schedule of times will be make available to troops with their confirmations
3. Purchase a van to utilize as a Shop on the Road
   a. Once the Lakeland office is sold, the money for this will be available
   b. The Shop on the Road will have items from the Girl Scout Store, plus forms and Program On the Go totes
   c. The van will visit service unit meetings and events, and develop a schedule that will be posted on the website for the convenience of volunteers
4. Keep the main office in the Westshore area of Tampa
   a. This area is convenient to major highways and centrally located for the majority of our jurisdiction’s population
   b. We will have an energy audit done on this site to see if changes need to be made with the desire to be “green.”  Potential or needed renovations will be considered (if money is available) with the goal of staying in this building, but we will look at other sites in the Westshore area if it is necessary.
5. Approved the recommendation to allow SWFWMD to locate a monitor well on the Camp Wildwood property and received the news that the Summit County BOCC approved the lake restoration project on that site. We expect that in about five years, the lake at Camp Wildwood will be restored to its original size (or close to it), providing a natural venue for water activities for girls and volunteers, as well as an improved natural habitat for the wildlife.

Finally, I made two announcements:

1. I have been appointed by the president of the Florida Senate to serve a four-year term on the Florida Commission on the Status of Women
2. I announced my retirement from my position as CEO of GSWCF effective Dec. 31, 2009.

While the decision to retire was a very difficult one for me to make, the impending changes to the Girl Scout Retirement Plan caused me to move forward with retirement at least one year before I had originally planned. I will be working with the board to assure a smooth transition of leadership. I will truly miss working with Girl Scouting but will ALWAYS be a Girl Scout. At the same time, I am thrilled to be appointed to the Commission on the Status of Women as it will allow me to continue to make a difference in the lives of girls and women.

To be the organization of choice that develops girls into empowered confident women who dream, do and lead.

Keeping this vision and our National Mission statement (Girl Scouts builds girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place) in mind, the employed staff identified focus areas for 2010 and prepared measurable operating objectives for next year to move us towards achieving our vision and goals. The Board approved this strategic plan for 2010 at their meeting last night.

Six major focus areas have been identified for 2010 and each of these areas has specific objectives we will work to achieve. We will report our progress throughout the year to the Board. Here are the six focus areas:

1 – Focus on development of strong service teams to ensure greater support for volunteers, increased opportunities for girl placement and full implementation of the girl leadership experience.

2 – Develop and implement a strategic membership marketing plan for consistent council-wide adult recruitment, placement, recognition, personal growth opportunities and support for all volunteer positions.

3 – Ensure a stronger focus on outcomes for girls’ participation in all council sponsored, service unit developed and troop programs and create a better understanding of ‘pathways’ and the relevance of incorporating them into our ongoing work.

4 – Increase the financial support of the organization by developing strong partnerships, new opportunities for support and a renewed strategy and emphasis for volunteer and parent giving.

5 – Develop strong, sustainable relationships with corporate and community groups who value and support girl leadership development.

6 – Increase awareness of internal and external audiences of the four Girl Scout areas: Financial Literacy, Outdoor Education, Relevant Girl Issues, and Community Service, with a consistent focus on research, outcomes, the leadership experience model and the value of Girl Scouting.

A number of additional important strategies and Strategic Action Programs will also be part of the overall work of the council in 2010 as we work to be the experts in personal growth and leadership development for girls in west central Florida, to assure that ALL girls who want to be Girl Scouts have the opportunity, to assure the financial stability of the organization for growth and sustainability and to exceed the expectations of our volunteers, girls, parents and the community.

Next week I’ll share other items of interest from this Board meeting but please share your thoughts on our future focus with us.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will support Girl Scouts as an integral non-profit in our community – building more than 20,000 girls’ leadership development skills.

Through partnering with the Bucs, Girl Scouts of West Central Florida will be able to:

• increase Girl Scout awareness in our community;
• fundraise by offering tickets to all regular season games at a discounted, exclusive rate for Girl Scouts, friends and families (with focus on Jan. 3 game);
• sell cookies at the stadium following the Jan. 3 home game v. the Atlanta Falcons;
• promote the launch of the 2010 cookie season;
• offer unique girl program experiences.

We are very excited about partnering with the Tampa Bay Bucs for the 2009-2010 season and look forward to developing a long-term relationship between our organizations that will ultimately offer girls more opportunities to grow into successful, confident young women.

Tickets are now available through an online ordering site exclusive to Girl Scouts of West Central Florida. Click here for the steps to follow to support Girl Scouts of West Central Florida and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers!

I don’t know who Alan Lakein is but I agree with his assessment of planning. We make plans all the time both short term and long term.  We plan what we’re having for dinner, we plan what we’re going to do on the weekend, we plan vacations, we plan for emergencies, and we revise our plans as needed. So many factors go into our planning that we need to be flexible in order to reach our end goal. If we plan to go to the beach this weekend in order to spend some quality time doing something we enjoy with our friends or family, we need to alter those plans if it rains. We still want to have quality time with our friends or family but the beach is out…so we find an indoor activity to enjoy instead.

Some of our plans reach farther into the future – students keep their career goal plans in mind when determining the courses they take – as we age, we make plans for our retirement, deciding where we’ll live, how we’ll spend our time and what other adjustments we might need to make. Because these are long term plans/goals, they need to be reviewed occasionally to ensure they’re still appropriate. Students may change their mind about their chosen career once they see other possibilities or find the course work uninspiring or too difficult, economic or health concerns can affect our retirement plans. Luckily plans aren’t written in stone so they can be reviewed and adjusted to meet current and future needs.

When we were newly merged, the board and staff met to develop a four year Strategic Plan.  Now that Girl Scouts of West Central Florida is moving into our third year as a council, we are reviewing our plans to ensure they’re still relevant and will help us achieve our overall goals. The board of directors began this process in April and will be meeting next week to continue their work.  Employed staff held a two day planning meeting in July to develop their input to the board. Together, we’re identifying our vision, corporate values, long term goals, short term goals and developing some key strategies to help us move forward, keeping our Girl Scout mission always at the forefront of what we do.

This overall planning wouldn’t be complete without the input of our members. Our customers, patrons, clients and the community all have a stake in setting the future direction of Girl Scouts of West Central Florida. So, this is your opportunity to be part of this process – send me your thoughts on the future of GSWCF.

After all, “It pays to plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark.”

As I enter stores that are now filled with “back to school” specials, I’ll admit that I’m a little envious of those bright new binders and cool markers that line the shelves, as they remind me of simpler days. Of course the tools needed today are very different than when I was in school. Now I see advertisements for computers, iPod and Cell phone holders and all we wanted was a pretty blue binder. I can even remember using old wallpaper remnants and the Sunday comic pages to cover my books – do kids today even have book covers?

I grew up in Ohio and we always got one new outfit and a new pair of shoes at the beginning of the school year. I always wanted to wear mine on the first day but Mom wouldn’t allow that. As I grew older, I realized her wisdom since that new outfit was really a fall or winter outfit and the beginning of school still seemed like summer. How different things are now – we always wore dresses or skirts to school; even on gym days, the only difference was that we wore our “tennis shoes.” We always looked forward to the days our Brownie and/or Girl Scout troop met because we could wear our uniform to school.

Today is very different and shorts and slacks are the norm for school days. Some girls do still wear their uniform on the day their troops meet, but that is usually a Girl Scout t-shirt instead of the full uniform we proudly purchased at JCPenney.

But the one thing that has not changed is how busy this time of year is for anyone involved in Girl Scouting. So, here we go again preparing for another Girl Scout year, our third as Girl Scouts of West Central Florida. The service unit kick-off is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 1., and soon we’ll see Girl Scout volunteers holding membership rallies, making plans for their big events of the year and ‘cornering’ all the people they know who would make a great Girl Scout leader.

It always makes me a little sad that we have many more girls who want to be part of our program than we have leaders capable and/or willing to work with them. I’m always asking myself if we’ve really considered all the sources available to us – there must be others out there who work well with children and would love to be part of building girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place.

I know that my Girl Scout experience growing up created a lot of great memories. I experienced many “first times” because of my troop experiences. I camped for the first time….I saw a live theater performance for the first time….I took cooking classes and made my first meal……I learned how to make ‘hospital corners’ on my bed……I learned how to thread a needle and sew on a button and repair a hem (my mother was NOT a seamstress!)…..I held my first leadership position and I learned how to be part of a team. So many of those experiences have formed who I am today and I know I would have missed out on a lot if not for Girl Scouting.

That’s one of the reasons I’m so passionate about this organization. We can open up doors of experience and opportunity for girls in our community. We can (and do) make a difference in the community by building leaders with an understanding of service, a joy to learn, an ability to get along with others and with the leadership skills necessary to make it all happen.

Let’s all think about the people we know – wouldn’t some of those people be great Girl Scout volunteers? With our new Pathways, there are opportunities for many to share their skills, talents, time and commitment, whether in a short-term Pathway or a longer term Troop Pathway. Let’s not disappoint the girls who want and need this great Girl Scout experience. Call your friends, neighbors, the women you know at church, in the PTA or your social network and help your service team out with this important task of recruiting volunteers.

Have a great Girl Scout year!

Life is full of disappointments and set-backs, and I know that I have to work harder at looking for the positive in every situation. OK, so it’s raining outside and the flooding makes driving hazardous BUT it could be a hurricane, monsoon, tidal wave – there’s a reason to celebrate. We DO need the rain which will make our lawns green again, help our flowers survive and help the overall water condition of the state. Another reason to celebrate.

So I don’t get to enjoy the out-of-doors; I have plenty of projects and activities that can be done indoors. And why not throw a blanket on the floor and have an indoor picnic? This is a minor setback in the overall scheme of things. In today’s environment there are many reasons to be disappointed, unhappy and worried, but being angry, worried or upset doesn’t help and often makes things worse. By allowing ourselves to focus on the negative, we open ourselves up to even more disappointment. So, let’s “accentuate the positive,” “eliminate the negative” and focus our thoughts on celebrating what we can.

By focusing our energies on the benefits of each situation, by looking for the good in everything and everybody, and by living our lives recognizing that we can’t control everything, we can be healthier, happier people – and won’t that truly make the world a better place?!  I’m trying to look on the bright side in situations and to allow myself to let go of those things I can’t control and learn how to manage what I can control.

Believe me, I know that it’s not always easy to see the good in every situation, but it’s there if we just look for it!

Even though this is a busy time, I’d like to ask everyone to add one more small task to your ‘to-do’ list.

If you were at the Annual Meeting or have read the June edition of GS Express, you know we’re studying our properties closely and will soon be trying to decide if our main Service Center would be better suited to a different location in our council.  The Office Relocation Task Group will begin their work this summer and would like to have your input before they begin so a very short survey has been developed for that purpose.

A link to that survey was included in the latest GS Express and it’s also proivded here. We’d really like to receive your input and invite you to participate in this survey (prior to June 19 would be very helpful).

Just click on this link to get to the survey.

Thanks in advance for your feedback – we’ll share the results of the survey at the end of June.

Of course I had to adjust to my home routine too – getting back to my exercise regime and healthy eating. I’ll admit that the first session with my Personal Trainer when I returned left me with sore muscles for a couple days, and although I jumped back into my new eating habits immediately, it wasn’t easy and I long for those carbs I allowed myself on vacation. My dog wasn’t exactly sure how to react to my return either. He adjusted quickly to a new routine while I was gone and now he’s back to being alone most of the day – I’m not sure he’s very happy with that but he’ll adjust, too.

But one of the great things I found when I returned was that it was ‘business as normal’ while I was gone – that’s what I love about this organization. People are involved because they are committed to the mission, because they love what we’re able to do for girls, because they really do want to make a difference in the world – this goes for everyone, volunteers and employed staff.  Yes, my specific tasks were still waiting for me but between my great executive assistant and chief operating officer, my important messages had already been answered and prioritized, all questions and/or situations I would normally have dealt with had been handled and it affirmed for me the trust I have in those around me is justified.

Certainly we still have kinks to work out in our systems and we’re continually assessing our ways of work to make sure we’re providing the best service possible but we are making progress. We appreciate everyone’s understanding that we’re still dealing with “growing pains” and adjusting to a new staffing structure because of our recent need to eliminate some positions. We have a vision for the future – and we’re all looking at what that really looks like, how to get to that place and what our individual and team legacy will be.

What about you? What will your legacy be for Girl Scouts of West Central Florida? In 20 years, will people remember what you did?

For example, it was two weeks ago that we held our 2nd Annual Meeting as Girl Scouts of West Central Florida and it seems like yesterday. As always the Annual Meeting is a great time to see old friends, provide recognition for some of our very special volunteers, conduct the business of the organization and provide information to and receive feedback from our members.

This year’s Annual Meeting was no exception. Prior to the business meeting, Board members shared important information in two separate forums – one regarding the properties of GSWCF and the other regarding our finances. Those who were present were given an opportunity to ask questions, make comments and offer suggestions. Lots of great information was shared and lots of great questions and suggestions were offered.

As the Executive Committee of the Board traveled around the council looking at all of our properties, they developed lists identifying our “needs” and our “wishes” for each one. Considering the current economy and financial status, we know that right now we will just be maintaining our properties as there is limited opportunity for development and/or expansion. In addition to looking at all of our camp properties, they also considered our best usage of office space.

Overall the long-term goal will be to divest ourselves of both the Tampa and Lakeland offices and find new office space convenient to the interstate travel patterns of our area. Additionally the plan would be to renovate the “Welcome Center” at Camp Wildwood and move the services from the current Ocala office to that space. While these plans are not scheduled to occur immediately, the Board has set in place a “Relocation Task Group” who will manage this process.

So, for now all three of these offices will remain open. Changes have been made to the Ocala office to make room for a Resource Center for the convenience of the leaders in that area and the store at the Lakeland office will remain operational. The Tampa office will continue to be the corporate headquarters.

This may take some time and will surely take a lot of research and investigation to determine exactly what our needs are but time is the one thing we have plenty of……..even though it flies by faster than we expect!

Let me begin by saying a huge “THANK YOU” to all of the women and men who devote time, resources and energy into being Girl Scout leaders – now, in the past and in the future. These dedicated volunteers truly are helping make a difference in our world to make it a better place. I know that very few parents or community observers recognize the number of hours it takes to plan good troop meetings, the patience it takes to guide girls into making good decisions, the energy it takes to help make girls’ dreams and plans become reality or the personal sacrifices a Girl Scout leader makes in order to always ‘be there’ for the girls. Whether it’s just time to lend an ear to listen, a shoulder to cry on or to drop other personal plans to attend a special event or camping weekend with the girls, Girl Scout leaders really are worth their weight in gold. They do this work because they believe in what this program does for girls, because they love knowing they’re making a difference in a girl’s life and their reward is often in the smile on a girl’s face when she tries something new and succeeds, in the satisfaction of having one of “her/his” girls reach a goal and in hearing the giggles coming from a tent on an overnight camping trip.

Here’s a poem I have always enjoyed – the Author is unknown but I always get chills and a tear in my eye when I hear it.

THE GREEN ANGEL

I dreamed I went to Heaven
And saw among the dead
An Angel dressed in Green
A halo round her head,
And she looked kind of funny
Midst all the glaring white.
The others asked her jealously
What gave her such a right.
“I’m just a Girl Scout leader,
I lay no hold to fame.
But being such a person
Means more than just a name.
My jobs on earth were many,
Praises and thanks were few.
I did more work in one day
Than ten people ought to do.
I was a tin can cooker
A hiker, a pathfinder –
I’ve also been an artist
A sailor, a bookbinder.
I taught jumping Jills to dance.
I taught parrots to sing.
I made saints out of hoodlums
While Mama had her fling.
I walked the streets till my feet
Felt like a ton of bricks
Selling Girl Scout cookies till
The mere thought made me sick.
But it was a lot of fun,
Life never was a bore.
See - - this role isn’t new to me - -
I’ve been an Angel before.”

If you know a Girl Scout Leader, please give her/him a hug today and say “thanks for helping make the world a better place.”