Dear GSWNY Members,
We hope you had a wonderful holiday with your family last week.
We appreciate your flexibility and diligence with following COVID-19 guidelines to ensure the safety of our girls, volunteers and staff. We are continuing to assess the recent yellow and orange zone regulations in our WNY regions and we will be sharing updated information next week in Tuesday’s Member Essentials on December 8.
In the meantime, please continue to refer to our current COVID 19 guidelines and FAQs.
Please see the important announcements below and for questions, please contact Customer Care customercare@gswny.org or call 1-888-837-6410. In an emergency, please call 1-800-882-9268.
GSWNY is holding a Girl Scout Cookie training for troops TONIGHT!
This was previously shared and for those who can’t attend, the recording will be made available by Thursday, December 3 on GSWNY’s website under Cookies+ in the resources section.
REGISTER FOR TONIGHT’S COOKIE TRAINING
Create moments of joy this holiday season!
We’re opening our online Cookie Program this Saturday, December 5th, which means you can get Girl Scout cookies in time for the holidays!
While social distancing measures may continue to keep families and friends apart, cookie customers will be able to stay connected this season through a gift box option that ships directly to their family and friends via the Smart Cookie online platform.
All cookies will be available for $5 a package.
Consumers will delight in knowing their cookie purchase is an investment in girl leadership in WNY. With every sale, the Girl Scout Cookie Program teaches girls to think like entrepreneurs as they run their small businesses and learn lifelong skills, like goal setting, people skills, and decision—making, which are imperative for any leadership role.
Volunteer of Excellence: GSWNY Adult Recognition Award Monthly Highlight
For the month of December we will explore the Volunteer of Excellence Pin. This is a great award to give as we think about this season of giving! The Volunteer of Excellence is similar to the Appreciation Pin, but is awarded at the Service Unit level, not the council level. This award is approved by your Service Unit Adult Recognition Coordinator or Service Unit Adult Recognition Committee. There is no set deadline to submit a nomination – so it can be given at any time!
Cyber Monday Week Sale! Exclusive Preview!
From Monday, November 30, to Friday, December 4, we are offering all PLUSH for only $9.95!
Every Girl Scout wants to hang out with the cutest plush around! These huggable plush buddies have a rainbow pattern with “Girl Scouts” embroidery and are perfect to fill every girl’s stocking.
Plush includes: Sloth, Monkey, Narwhal, Lion and Unicorn.
VS 2.0 System Upgrade Updates
We’re excited because on Sunday, December 6, the new VS 2.0 Go-Live is anticipated to take place! At the time of Go-Live, the system will begin processing 1.8 million member accounts which will start the process to send the “We’re Live!” email to all members who migrated with a unique email address. Accounts are processed in random batches meaning that all council members will not receive their reactivation email at the same time. Emails will be sent in batches, which will continue through Monday December 7.
Starting November 18 at 11:59 PM EST, Girl Scouts began system-wide updates that will temporarily pause access to myGS including your member profile and the Volunteer Toolkit (VTK) for approximately 2-3 weeks. Please watch for an email from Girl Scouts in early December announcing the debut of our refreshed member account management system as well as updated login information and instructions for accessing your account.
During system downtime: To continue the fun with your Girl Scout(s) during this time, visit our national Girl Scouts at Home page here for badge and Journey activities, service projects, patches, and event recordings that you can use either in-person or virtually. Visit our GSWNY Troop Leader Blueprint for additional resources here. You can also visit the Girl Scout Shop for printed or downloadable program materials by badge and Journey.
Pop-Up Message: After Login to myGS or VTK – example can be seen in the image to the right.
Given the momentary system updates, if a member or non-member has any trouble joining or renewing their membership online, please use this special digital form here and a Customer Care representative will be in touch or call 1-888-837-6410. Thank you.
Girl Scouting at Home
Looking for ways to stay involved with Girl Scouts? Check out our Girl Scouting at Home page today! New resources are added regularly.
Virtual Girl Scout Badges with the Buffalo Zoo
Dates available throughout 2020 with programs for different Girl Scout levels.
Each badge includes:
- Animal demonstrations
- Exclusive live views of animal exhibits at the zoo
- Badge-related discussions and activities.
Is your troop interested in a badge that’s not listed? Contact us at lthibault@buffalozoo.org and we can set up a custom badge for your group of 10 or more girls.
Looking for more options? Head to girlscouts.org for even more at-home opportunities for your Girl Scout.
Girl Scouts Doing Good Things
Girl Scout Troop 60755-Millwheel (612) collected for a food drive for the Penfield Food Shelf on November 14, 2020. They gave out flyers the week before and picked up today while being socially distant!
We are #GirlScoutStrong! Looking forward to talking to you next Tuesday! In the meantime, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at Customer Care customercare@gswny.org or call 1-888-837-6410. In an emergency, please call 1-800-882-9268.
Categories: Member Essentials, Uncategorized
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