As we write this message
we are just into our
2019 centennial year of
Girl Scouting in Rhode Island,
southeastern Massachusetts,
and Pawcatuck, CT.
100 years of girls receiving the gifts of courage, confidence, and
character which they use to shape not only their lives, but the
lives of countless others through their “take action” projects
in our communities. We hope you will mark your calendars for
September 21, 2019—our centennial celebration at Slater Memorial Park,
as well as May 4, 2019 for our first ever council-wide bridging ceremony
at Lincoln Woods State Park!
But, we are getting ahead of ourselves…this message is about fiscal year
2018 and we’d like to highlight a few items that are celebrated in greater
detail throughout this report.
The GSSNE board is very proud that we met two Girl Scout national
challenges to secure five new members of The Juliette Gordon Low Society!
This special society is comprised of individuals who believe so much in the
benefits of Girl Scouting that they have made a commitment of a legacy
gift to our council. We welcome new members to the JGLS at any time.
We are also very proud that our council was awarded a full three-year
charter from Girl Scouts of the USA in recognition of the good work we
are doing locally. Charters are issued for up to three years based on the
strength of a local council.
One of the highlights of 2018 was the ribbon-cutting for Dever’s Rest—a
beautiful cabin at Camp Hoffman that honors the memory of F. Harriet
Dever who made a generous gift to the council for this project. Harriet
loved taking her troop to Camp Hoffman and wanted a special place for
girls to camp for years to come. Though Harriet passed away before the
building was constructed, her family and friends were there to honor
her memory through a touching ceremony and reception where special
stories were shared. One memory was that as a girl, Harriet’s troop
traveled by train from Providence to Camp Hoffman to go camping!
Their train stopped off at the Kingston Station in West Kingston and
they trekked 1.5 miles to camp with gear in tow. This spring, Jordan
(a family friend of Harriet’s) and her friends in Troop 1259, will be the
first to camp at Dever’s Rest and they plan to get there with all of their
gear, by train, in memory of Harriet!