Welcome to Brownie Girl Scouts Troop #1564

I would like to start this welcome letter by letting you know how excited I am to be your daughters Brownie leader. Here is a little bit of information about me. My name is Rebecca Howard. I am the mother of two wonderful little girls; Kaitlynn and Courtney. They are a part of this troop too! I work full-time during the week and I am actively involved in Girl Scout Service Unit and Stony Point North PTA. My husband, Josh and I have been married almost 10 years. He is always involved and helping. He is also a registered Girl Scout, we like to call him our DoDad. I am excited for this upcoming year and look forward to meeting your daughters! If you know anyone who has a daughter, who would like to join, but have not yet had the chance, it is NOT too late. Just let them know to call one of us or bring them to the next meeting. The rest of this letter is just an outline to give you, the parents, ideas of what our troop is all about. WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE BELIEVE:

The Girl Scout Promise

ON MY HONOR, I WILL TRY: To serve God and my country, To help people at all times, And to live by the Girl Scout Law.

The Girl Scout Law

I WILL DO MY BEST TO BE . . . Honest and fair, Friendly and helpful, Considerate and caring, Courageous and strong, and Responsible for what I say and do, And to Respect myself and others, Respect authority, Use resources wisely, Make the world a better place, and Be a sister to every Girl Scout.

Parent Law
A Girl Scout parent . . . understands the true program of Girl Scouting. Gets her daughter to and from meetings on time. Knows a troop is a team effort. Sees the job through to the end. Sets a good example at all times. Is enthusiastic and cheerful. Does not consider the leader to be a baby-sitter. Brings troop problem to the leader first. Always does his or her part willingly and is aware that Girl Scouting is for all girls.

Parent Promise
On my honor, I will try to encourage and support my Girl Scout daughter. To help her troop at all times. And to obey the Girl Scout Parents Law.

MEETINGS: Our meetings will be held every other Wednesday, from 6:00pm to 7:30pm, in the lower level of the Zion Church of Christ. We start right away. You will always be notified, in plenty of time, of any changes to this information. You, the parents, are welcome to stay at any of our meetings however, you do not have to but we encourage if you stay that you register as a Girl Scout and help out. Those of you who choose to drop your daughter off, it is EXTREMELY important that you come in to sign them in and let us know they are here and you must also come in to get them at the end of the meeting. This also goes for all Girl Scout functions. We are responsible for their safety while attending these functions. If you bring them, but Grandma/Babysitter/etcwill be picking them up, we need to know ahead of time and we will also need their name. We are not trying to be difficult, this is all for your daughters safety. CEREMONIES: (Investiture/Rededication) Girls will make the Girl Scout promise for the very first time or reaffirm their promise. We are th planning our Investiture for Wednesday, October 9 . Parents are encouraged to attend and stay to celebrate this big step. Grandparents and family too! DUES: Our Brownie Troop dues are $35. Please let me know if you need to make arrangements for dues. The dues are to be collected by October. We feel this is much easier and lessens the burden, on all involved, rather than trying to remember to bring the dues to each meeting. It also gives us a budget to start with, to get the materials needed for our activities and to attend various Girl Scout functions. SUPPLIES: In an effort to keep dues low, each girl should bring a plastic pencil box, a box of crayons or colored pencils, a box of washable markers, a hand wipes (Wet-Ones or baby wipes), 2 glue sticks and 1 box of Kleenex. This will be left with me. UNIFORMS: Uniforms are encouraged, but not mandatory. However, they are required for ceremonies and public appearances a vest/sash, white polo and
khaki bottoms. That also identifies them as a member of our troop, when we go on various outings. We also have a local Girl Scout Shop at 8383 Blue Parkway Kansas City, MO 64133. Their phone number is 816-759-3004 or you may shop online at your convenience at www.girlscoutsksmo.org. If you buy the tunic or vest, then here are three items needed that should be sewn on immediately: 1. American Flag patch 2. Troop Numbers 1564 3. Council ID patch

HANDBOOKS: The girls will need to have a Brownie Journey book $7 (A World of Girls) - and the Girl Scout Guide to Girl Scouting - $22.50 this should be brought to each weekly meeting. GIRL/PARENT INFO FOLDER: I have a Girl Scout crate tote with a folder in it for each girl. Please check this folder after you sign your daughter in at each meeting. There will be a leader folder for me so you can turn in - permission slips, payments, concerns or ideas and I check this after every meeting. FUN PATCH/OUTINGS: Of course the girls always love fun patch activities and outings. We are planning several. Once our plans are finalized we will share that with parents. If you have any ideas that you think the girls would enjoyPLEASE SHARE! We are ALWAYS open for more ideas. Encourage your daughters to share her ideas also. Most service unit/council events require an additional fee that is not refundable once registration has been completed. Every girl may register for and attend council or service unit events individually, if the troop does not attend as a whole. VOLUNTEERS: We love Volunteers!! If you are able to assist with the troop in any way you must complete an online background check. You may do this from the council website at www.girlscoutsksmo.org Go to the Get Involved tab and select Be a Volunteer, use the word DISCOVER for your password. We encourage one parent per girl to be a registered Girl Scout. The cost is $15.00, just like the girls but, we are always needing help driving on field trips, help with cookie distribution, parades, events and etc In order to be able to drive, with Girl Scouts in your vehicle, then you do not have to be registered, but is recommended. We are currently looking for an assistant leader for our Daisy troop this year then to lead our Daises for the 2014-2015 year. SNACKS: We would like to offer the Brownie Troop a weekly snack. We will rotate this responsibility among all Brownie parents. Please try to bring something that can be eaten quickly as the girls work on their crafts. We have some paper plates and utensils but if you have some you would like to donate, we are glad to take them off your hands. Food Allergies please let me know if your child has a food allergy. For this reason, please do not send any snacks with peanuts or dairy products unless you baggage them separately and let me know prior to meeting. GIRL SCOUT COOKIES & CANDY/NUT/MAG: Fall Product Sale will be the candy/nut/magazines and this STARTS SOON!!! Cookie Sale will begin in January and we will have more information on each of these as we receive it. We have a special permission form for parents to complete at that time. We will ask all girls to participate. Girls will earn recognitions, awards/incentives, our troop earns money/camping credit and we help support the local Girl Scout program. If you ever have any questions, please do not hesitate to call me! I can be reached at the following numbers Rebecca Howard, Leader (Cell) 913-620-7784 Email: blessed042404@gmail.com
In closing, we would just like to say THANK YOU for taking the time, out of your busy schedule, for Troop #1564. Together, we can all make this a GREAT year!! Enclosures: Registration, Parent Involvement Form, Health History Form, Blank Permission Slip, GS Flyer Dates/Supplies/Costs, Snack Rotation Form