Girl Guide Day Camp

Taking advantage of a Friday PA Day for all schools in our area, we planned a Day Camp for Guides! We wound up with our 3 3rd Year Guides who had slept over, a 2nd Year Guide, 2 1st Year Guides, and our Ranger Helper. 

Everyone arrived bright and early at 7.30am to cook breakfast. We headed outside with buddy burners to cook bacon, while the tater tots went in the oven and pancakes were cooked on the stove. We also sliced up fruit and had left over juices from the sleepover. This fulfilled a common request to do more cooking, as opportunities are sometimes limited at camp due to the number of girls.

For the rest of the morning, we took part in the Students Rebuild 2019 Ocean Challenge. We attempted to watch the videos, but only parts of each were able to be played on my tablet, so we discussed the information that was contained in each video and shared how we felt about the oceans. Then it was time to get right into the heart of the challenge - creating sea creatures from paper products! We have a supply box of random crafting items so were able to provide white and coloured paper, newsprint, paper plates, tubes, streamers and masking tape, along with markers, scissors and glue. This was a highly successful project and we created and submitted a total of 27 pieces of artwork, raising $84 for ocean protection and recovery initiatives! Check out our ocean creatures on our team page - https://www.studentsrebuild.org/teams/8Y8Z7VTFHXL5.

Lunchtime meant it was time for more cooking! We made taco salad using Doritoes, including ground chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, salsa and sour cream. After eating and cleaning up, we moved onto our afternoon activities. 

Unfortunately, the weather was not cooperating, so we were unable to go outside and had to have fun indoors. We started by making popcorn over tealights. We set up each pair with two tealights on a metal or foil tray, two tart pans, clothespins, popcorn, oil and matches. The first task was to put about a tablespoon of oil in one of the tart pans along with the popcorn kernels, then make a container by inverting the other tart pan on top of the first and using the clothes pins to clip the two tins together. They then had to light the tealights. This took a while for some groups, but we also managed to help some Guides get over their fears. The tart pan popper was then held over the tealights, about 1-2" above the flames by holding onto the clothes pins. Patience is required as this does take a few minutes, but once the kernels started popping, everyone got very excited and into counting how many 'pops' they had! We are told the popcorn was very tasty as well!

Our next activity was board games, including King of Tokyo and Dungeons & Dragons. 


Once we'd finished gaming, the weather had cleared up a bit, so we headed outside for a scavenger hunt and active games. With the return of the rain, we went back inside and worked on an Advocacy Activity. The group was asked to work together and imagine they were planning an event in support of Saving the Oceans. They had to create a playlist for the event, come up with a slogan and chant for their campaign, and make a poster to share facts and information. 


We ended the day by cleaning up and putting away furniture before heading home to enjoy the rest of the weekend. 
 
Links:

• Students Rebuild 2019 Ocean Challenge

Food Bank Visit

This week we visited the Caledonia and District Food Bank as part of the Take Action program area. 

We met at the Church as usual and then walked to the Food Bank, where we were met by Dorette and Anne.

First we learned a bit about the services provided by the Food Bank and how it operates. They are open for service every Friday and people can access food, hygiene supplies, clothing, and find out about other community resources.

When a person arrives at the Food Bank, they take a form and a number. The form asks for some basic information (number of people in the family, male/female, ages of children) and then has a section where people can circle the items that they need. Another section at the bottom has other items that they can request. They put their number on the form, hand it in and wait to be called. While they are waiting, they can visit 'Linda's Closet'. Linda's Closet is a clothing closet that has all sorts of different items, including winter clothing and prom dresses. They also run a Backpack program in the fall so that children have the supplies they need to go back to school.

If there are school-age children in the family, each child receives a supply of snacks for school, which could include drinking boxes, yogurt, pudding cups, cheese strings, granola bars, apples, gold fish crackers, and/or individual hot chocolate packets. For infants, items such as formula, food, cereal and diapers are available. The Food Bank also runs a Christmas Hamper program where families receive a turkey, a food basket, fresh veggies (potatoes, carrots and onions), toiletries, hats and mitts, and a gift for each member of the family.

Some of the girls had brought donations, so we visited the scale and weighed our donations (25 pounds). Donation amounts are recorded along with the name of the group or individual donor. 

During our visit, we were able to help out with two tasks.

One area has been set aside for breaking down larger packages into smaller amounts - such as flour, sugar, rice, powdered milk, and pet food. The girls worked on dividing up large bags of dog food into smaller bags. They had to scoop food, trying to get as little as possible on the ground, and fill the bags with approximately the same amount.

The second task was to assemble toiletries bags for the Christmas Hampers. The girls used sheets with the ages and sexes of family members to make up packages for various families. When the sheet was given to the group, they had to record the family's number on the bag, then add items according to the age/sex of each family member. Each family received a bottle of shampoo, a bar of soap and a tube of toothpaste, then each person received a toothbrush and teens and adults received deodorant and razors.

At the end of the visit, we thanked Dorette and Anne and walked back to the Church for pick-up.

Giving Tuesday

In honour of Giving Tuesday, we spend the evening assembling and making gifts for others. 

We began with our usual opening ceremony, followed by an active game. 

Our main activity for the evening was creating and decorating a Card, Gift Bag, Canvas Tile Magnet and Bath Salt Ball to give to someone special in their lives. While many of the cards had a Christmas theme, the gift bags were move eclectic! The canvas tiles were painted with a variety of designs and colours and plastic ornament balls decorated ready to hold the bath salts. The bath salt receipe we used was vary simple, using equal amounts of fine sea salt and Epsom salts (4 cups of each made enough to fill 13 ornament balls with a bit left over). 
Our service project over the past month was collecting items for The Shoeboxes for Shelters Project. This program collects shoeboxes filled with high quality items as gifts for women in shelters. Boxes are collected and distributed locally and each is intended to have a value of approximately $50. We were able to collect enough items to fill 3 Shoeboxes and are very excited that our boxes will be going to young women aged 15 to 18 living in transitional housing in Brantford.  

We ended our meeting with reminders about our sleepover on Friday and visit to the Food Bank next week, then closed with Taps.

WE Day Toronto 2018

Imagine spending a day with 17,000 young people committed to making change in their schools, communities, country and the world. Add a slate of inspiring speakers and musical performances, and you have WE Day Toronto 2018!
We were again a small group, of 1 Guider, 1 Ranger and 1 Pathfinder, but we still had a great time! We caught the 7:30am GO Train from Aldershot Station and made it to Toronto by 8:30am, ready for the short walk to the Scotiabank Arena. Once inside we made our way  to our section on the first level and settled in. There were so many speakers and performances, that I know I've missed a few, but here are our memories of the day:

The DJs for the day were the Celebrity Marauders - and they kept everyone energized throughout the day. This year's Hosts were Ally Brooke, with Millie Davis and Tai Young.

The first speaker of the day was Anne Curry, an award-winning journalist and photojournalist who has covered the news from war zones and natural disasters in places including Syria, the Central African Republic, Darfur, Pakistan and Iraq. She shared how she has overcome challenges, and shared the words of holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel,  

"I learned that suffering confers no privilege. It's what we do with it. And what we do with our suffering is to prevent further suffering. And that's the moral message...not to stand by."

She was followed by Spencer West and Riya Karumanchi, the 15-year-old inventor of the Smart Cane, a cane for the visually impaired that combines GPS and computer vision technology to detect and describe objects. Read more about the Smart Cane.

We then learned more about WE's new initiative, WE Well-being. This initiative focuses on creating safe, inclusive, supportive environments; reducing the stigma surrounding mental health and mental illness; and empowering youth with resiliency the skills they need to maintain good mental wellness. Afterwards, we heard from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Nick Robinson (the broadcast host), and a performance by Why Don't We. Next, Jacob Tremblay spoke, and we heard about the WE Rise Up Initiative that is spreading positivity online.  Lilly Singh promoted her Girl Love Initiative - "Instead of competing against each other, stand together!"

We then had Miss Piggy's first appearance of the day, followed by Olivia Holt, a singer and actress, who told us "change doesn't need to be big, it just needs to start". 

Adam McMaster then shared his experiences transitioning from female to male, further stating that "sometimes it feels like the world is trying to tear you down - don't let it!" We then heard from Mariatu Kamara, a survivor of the Sierra Leone civil war, who lost both her hands. She now shares her story and advocates for forgiveness and moving forward, taking moments of hardship and building resilience from them. The next speaker was Governor Samuel Tunai, from Narok County in Kenya. He spoke about the impact WE has had in his county, sending young people to school, supplying clean water, and providing health care for mothers. 

Marc and Craig Kielburger spoke, emphasizing the theme of the day - Get Doing! - and telling the crowd that change is "up to you!". The Arkells then performed two songs, "Relentless" and "Knocking at the Door". They were followed by Johnny Orlando with "What If I Told You I Loved You". The next speakers were Delaney Todd and Adam Amonte, the co-founders of March for Our Lives. The organization was founded after the mass shooting at Margory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida to advocate for an end to gun violence. The founders encouraged everyone present to "know your rights, get involved and make your opinions heard!"

They were followed by Mustafa the Poet, a YouTube star, and Cerenna-Tee Racey. Cerenna is a Grade 11 student at the W. Ross Macdonald School for the Blind who is deaf-blind. She worked with artists to create the "Transformed Through Touch" art exhibit that guides viewers through seven rooms designed to share her experiences. Take a walk-through of the exhibit on YouTube. She was followed by Devery Jacobs, an indigenous actress and filmmaker and Margaret Trudeau, who spoke about the work being done by WaterAid Canada. She spoke about how one baby dies every minute from dirty water and how having access to clean water and sanitation can completely change a village. 

They were followed by singer Jessie Reyez and Johnny Orlando, who spoke about how social media is great for connecting and communicating, but shaming and bullying has to stop. Apefa Adjivon then spoke about women's rights and the Pearl Project, which connects girls with mentors in their chosen field to show girls that they can do anything!

Michael "Pinball" Clemens, a former CFL player, spoke next saying, "do not just be inspired today - take action. Become the nicest person you know". The final speaker of the day was Adam Devine, a comedian known for his appearances on "Modern Family" and in the movie "Pitch Perfect". We left before the final musical performance in order to catch our train back to Aldershot. It was a long day, but lots of fun and a great experience.