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Our dedication to Girl Scout Troop 835
COMPUTERS-RFID TECHNOLOGY McCullochs PO Box 5457, Wakefield RI 02880 (401) 265-2852 Girl Scout Troop 835 Richmond RI
I was the troop leader of these fine girls and I feel this page needs to stay. I took the troop when no mother came forward. We had a great year and did so much. We did so many things for the community. The girls and I won't forget all the work and fun. I hope leaders in the future will realize that Girl Scouts is so much more than selling cookies.
Girl Scouts is more than just doing crafts. They work together to learn about life and the world they live in. Girls Scouts give back to the community more than they take.
The girls learn about patriotism, the environment, government, countries and people all over the world and more.
The girls learn how to help the aged and people of all walks of life.
They learn about business, travel, the solar system, preserving natural resources and how to deal with life on a daily basis.
Girl Scouts are not just for girls. It is a family thing. The moms and dads of these fine girls support their girls and their efforts. Our success comes from their active participation and caring to see that their girls develop into wonderful young ladies. Troop 835 is a Girl Scout Junior Troop consisting of girls 8-11 in grades 3,4,5 and 6. Watch them as they do things to make our world a better place to live in.
EVENTS FOR 2003-2004 -----------------------------
MAGAZINE SALES All of the girls received badges for their hard work. Special trophies were earned by Abaigeal, Mya and Rachael for being the top three sales girls. NINIGRET OBSERVATORY HOMEMADE FLOWER ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE HASBRO CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL
SPRING ART PROJECT
SLEEPOVERS Sleepovers can be lots of fun. Some girls are just not ready for all that fun so we only had five girls join the party. It was the annual sleepover at the Westerly WMCA. Safe, secure and guaranteed to have you tired for the next day. The girls enjoyed basketball, swimming, great food, a movie and lots of other games. The most important thing is that they enjoyed being with their Girl Scout "sisters" away from home. They proved their maturity and responsibility and had fun while doing it.
POTTERY MAKING DESIGNING A TROOP FLAG Our girls worked for three meetings to come up with a flag which best expresses their feeling of Girl Scouts. They started by putting their heads together to make 4 flags. They reduced the best of all of their work to two flags and finally one flag. Their meanings applied to each portion of the flag included kindness, friendship, respect, creativity, caring, hard work and sharing. The nine blue stripes represent the original nine girls in the troop. These girls have put their hearts in making this flag. Shortly, the flags will be made and they will be flown proudly under the flag of our great country.
THE BURYING AND RETRIEVAL OF TIME CAPSULES-LEARNING MAPPING Each girl put special treasures, pictures and more into their individual steel container. They then buried the container in an open field. Their only hope of ever finding their cylinder again depends on how good they drew their own maps. This taught the girls about the history of time capsules and the importance of accurate mapping.
LEARNING MAGIC AND BALLOON CREATIONS THE MAKING OF A MUSIC AND DANCE VIDEO THE PREPARATION OF A COMPLETE THANKSGIVING FEAST FOR SENIORS AT HOME What can I say? These girls worked almost four hours to prepare a wonderful meal for senior citizens. On Thanksgiving Day, they gave more of their time to deliver these wonderful meals to people's homes. The girls hard at work below. They did everything without adult intervention.
The girls finishing up. Then off to deliver on Thanksgiving Day to some of the people shown below and more.
CHRISTMAS TREE CUTTING PARTY IN CT. WITH DONATION OF THE TREES TO A SENIOR CENTER AND A SCHOOL. THE GIRLS DECORATED THE TREES WITH ALL OF THEIR OWN HANDMADE DECORATIONS. The girls worked for hours on hand making Christmas decorations. These ornaments will be put on the two trees we are donating. This hard work paid off as it was also a family dinner party and an awards/badge ceremony. It was hosted by Lolita's Pizza 1187D Main Street, Hope Valley RI (401)539-0200 Lolita's was amazing and they treated us like family. It was a great place for a party. The food was delicious, the service was excellent and the pricing was perfect. They also donated a beautiful fruit and dip platter, fresh vegetable and dip platter and refreshments for the girls. A big warm thank you to Lolita's as you have made December 1, 2003 a day we will never forget.
The girls cut the trees at the farm owned by the Slimak family in North Stonington, CT. The Slimaks graciously gave us a tour of the farm, taught us about all of the types of Christmas trees, showed us how to make a wreath and treated us to cocoa and cookies. If that wasn't enough, they donated two trees and gave each of the girls a little baby tree to nurture on their own. The girls were also given "make your own ornaments" by Tonya Morgan, daughter in law of the Slimaks. As the cold and darkness set in, we took the girls out to dinner at Hoptown Pizza. The end of a perfect day. One week later it was time to create the masterpieces. Two beautiful trees were donated to Richmond Elementary School and the Charlestown Senior Center. The girls proudly decorated both trees with the beautiful ornaments they had made. It was a real family affair as Hannah's mom Cheryl helped us do the trees. What a warm welcome we got as Hannah's grandfather (Cheryl's dad) is the gentleman in charge at the senior center. Three generations of family surrounded by the Girl Scout family.
FREE SNOW PLOWING FOR PERSONS IN NEED Here is a project that has brought great response and is really helping people in the community. If only we had about 20 trucks, the smiles we could bring. The recipients include senior citizens, disabled, single parents and more. GIRL SCOUT COOKIE SALES A TRIP ON THE AMTRAK TRAIN ****** AMTRAK SAYS NO WAY AND WE DECIDE TO WRITE TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES***
COMMUNICATING WITH GIRLS SCOUTS AROUND THE WORLD AND LOTS MORE....... One final note: I just had to put this in because it was a story about the girls and me as featured in the Providence Journal. Since I am always taking the pictures, this will probably be the only one of me. The point of the story is that men and families need to get involved with Girl Scouts. We need to all work together to make this world a better place.
From the Providence Journal-Front page of the South County Section dated December 9th, 2003: Dads step in as Girl Scout leaders 08:16 AM EST on Tuesday, December 9, 2003 By Arline A. Fleming Journal Staff Writer Oh boy, this Hope Valley Girl Scout troop leader's name is Dad. Rick McCulloch, father to Mya, and an arts-and-crafts novice, wore a Girl Scout green sweatshirt at the afternoon meeting of Troop 835, Richmond, where Christmas decorations were being produced with energy and flare. "Keep working girls, we need at least 6,000 ornaments by tonight _ just kidding, just kidding," he quickly added, responding to their pop-eyed reaction. Troop 835 is one of a handful of Rhode Island troops being led by men who volunteered to step in, with the blessings of Girl Scouts of Rhode Island, Inc., when no one else did. "We want girls to have strong, dedicated female role models in Girl Scouting, but we also want the girls to see men as a natural part of their lives," said Connie Worthington, assistant executive director of funding and communications at Girl Scouts of Rhode Island. "When men participate in Girl Scouting, the girls see cooperation and dedication among all adults," she added. Richmond Troop 835 had been led by women until last summer when the troop leaders retired. The core group of girls, which included McCulloch's daughter Mya, 9, wanted to continue as a group, so they waited for a volunteer. They were still waiting when Rick McCulloch asked his daughter a serious question:
"Mya, would you like Daddy to be your Girl Scout Troop leader?" She hesitated, unsure of how the rest of Troop 835 would react. When the other girls cheered and clapped at the possibility, McCulloch knew he had better study up on s'mores. Troop member Courtney Cousineau, 9, of Richmond, likes the idea of a dad being their leader. Sitting on folded knees, scissors in hand, she nodded, it's fine with her. "It's different from everyone else, and he can be like, fun," she said earnestly. McCulloch, 51, who was required to attend troop leader training, recalled that first session. "There were 41 women and me." Thinking back to that session, his face became red. "By the end of the day, they were like my big sisters," he said, "and they are all truly dedicated to the girls." Mr. Rick, as the girls call him, already knew about the challenges of children. He and his wife Paula waited for a decade to become parents. When it didn't happen, they weathered the adoption process, first for Mya, and then for a little sister, Devan, both from China. "There is nothing more important to me than my girls," McCulloch said. That is why he puts in at least 10 hours a week, arranging the meetings, the activities, the community service projects, and yes, the cookie sales. But being a Girl Scout leader in 2003 is a little more wide-reaching than simply weekly crafts sessions and cookie sales. On the day before Thanksgiving, Girl Scout Troop 835 prepared a traditional holiday dinner at McCulloch's house. Thanksgiving morning, four of them piled into McCulloch's car and delivered eight complete meals to local shut-ins. "I do think it is wonderful that some men choose to participate in Girl Scouting, to work with girls and women on projects for the good of others," said Worthington. Worthington said in keeping the best interests of the girls in mind, there are definite rules in place. "Our written Girl Scout safety standards dictate that each group or troop have at least one adult leader and one or more assistant leaders with at least one member an adult female unrelated to the other adults. Fathers or male leaders are welcome on trips with Girl Scouts and their female leaders, but only if separate sleeping quarters and bathrooms are available for their use on long trips or in overnight situations." McCulloch's assistant troop leader is Katsumi Hann, mother to Allyson. According to Girl Scouts of Rhode Island, four other men are officially involved with Rhode Island Girl Scouting. They are Bill Wilson, who leads Riverside's 11-member junior cadette Troop 103; Harry West, who actually lives in Attleboro, but leads his daughter's Daisy troop at St. Mary Academy, Bay View, in East Providence; Steve Markovitz, a school physical therapist in Providence, has led a troop there for more than a dozen years, and Alan Auclair, an assistant leader in Woonsocket. Markovitz, having been a Boy Scout, is father to two girls. He said scouting was very important to him, and he wanted his daughters to have a similar experience. When it looked as if his older daughter's troop was going to be leaderless, he volunteered. "It has been good to be part of it, and good for my daughters." His group, Troop 422 of Providence, includes girls from several high schools, which makes him proud and happy that he jumped in and saved them from disbanding. Markovitz was the recipient of a Leadership Development Award for outstanding leadership, said Jennifer B. Robinson of Girl Scouts of Rhode Island. "He had to have completed one full year as a leader and had to have completed numerous leadership development training activities, and then went above and beyond as a volunteer leader," Robinson said. Harry West, who is a runway safety program manager for the Federal Aviation Administration, leads Daisy Troop 1281 of East Providence, which has 12 girls. "My daughter saw the Daisy's meeting last year at her school and asked if she could become a Daisy Girl Scout this year when she entered kindergarten," West said. "I inquired around her school to see if anyone was going to do a troop. No one seemed to be doing this, so I made several telephone calls to find out what was required. I attended the basic leadership training and started the troop at St. Mary Academy, Bay View. "I am an Eagle Boy Scout and scouting was very important to me. I am trying to give back some of the benefits I received by being a scout." While his wife cannot attend the meetings, West said she helps him plan many of the activities. The Richmond troop has a full schedule ahead, said McCulloch, who has past and future meetings on his computer. He even created a Web site for the troop. "I work a million hours a week as an auto parts consultant," he said, but he still manages to plan his time around girl scout activities, putting in at least five hours a week preparing for meetings. His wife Paula, who works in a Westerly doctor's office, devotes her after-work time to their younger child. "It takes an amazing amount of time," McCulloch said of his newly found hobby, "but I'm having a ball."
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