Plainfield Girl Scouts

Mission

Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place.

The Girl Scout movement is open to all girls and adults who accept the Girl Scout Promise and Law.

The goals of the Girl Scout program and the way girls benefit from their experience:

Developing Self-Potential: to achieve one's full individual potential.
Developing Values: to guide actions and provide a foundation for sound decision-making.
Relating To Others: to increasing understanding, skill and respect.
Contributing To Society: to use one's abilities and leadership skills in cooperation with others.

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.

* When reciting the Girl Scout Promise, it is okay to replace the word "God" with whatever word your spiritual beliefs dictate.

Juliette Gordon Low established Girl Guiding in the United States in 1912. Mrs. Low held the first troop meeting in her home in Savannah, GA, on March 12, 1912. The Girl Guides were modeled after the scouting movement founded by Robert Baden-Powell.

The national organization was incorporated in 1915, with Mrs Low as the first president, and Girl Scouts of the USA was chartered by the United States Congress in 1950. Girl Scouts of the USA is one of 129 member countries of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts.

Plainfield is within the jurisdiction of Girl Scouts of Washington Rock Council which was created in 1957 when the Plainfield Area Girls Scouts along with seven Central Jersey Girl Scout Councils merged together to better serve their membership by combining resources.

In October 1, 2008, the Girl Scout Council Of Greater Essex And Hudson Counties, Girl Scouts Of Washington Rock Council and the Girl Scouts of Rolling Hills Council will unite to form one council as part of national realignment. As it has always been, the goal is to continue to provide girls from all jurisdictions the best in Girl Scout programming and to mold them into women of courage, confidence and character.

Girl Scout Program Levels

Daisy: ages 4-6, or grades Pre K - 1.
Brownie: ages 6-8, or grades 1-3.
Junior: ages 8-11, or grades 3-6.
Girl Scouting: ages 11-17, or grades 6-12.

Steps to becoming a Girl Scout troop leader

If you are volunteering to lead a new Girl Scout troop in your community:

Call the Girl Scouts of Washington Rock Council at (908) 232-3236 and let the receptionist know that you are interested in volunteering to be a leader in your community. We call them Service Units.
The receptionist will connect you to a staff member, called a Membership Specialist, who is responsible for member services in your community. The Membership Specialist may help you directly or refer you to a volunteer in your neighborhood.
Before you can meet with a group of girls, you have to fill out an application and get two references from non-family members. You also have to register with the Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA), and meet with a volunteer for a training we call "Introduction to Girl Scouting".
We will help you sign up for a training date to start learning all about Girl Scouts. The training will fill you in on the paperwork that needs to be done to get started, but will also give you many ideas on projects to do with the girls.

For more information contact the Girl Scouts of Washington Rock Council.

GSWRC Plainfield Membership Specialist

Fatima Latif (908) 232-3236 ext. 1218

Plainfield was established on April 1, 1800, originally a part of Elizabeth and Westfield townships, Plainfield became it own township on March 4, 1847. It was incorporated as a village in 1867. On April 2, 1869, Plainfield became a city and Job Male, a businessman, architect and philanthropist, was elected the first mayor.

Plainfield gained a reputation for a climate that was beneficial to people with respiratory ailments. In 1886, the publisher of the local newspaper, Thomas W. Morrison, began to use the slogan "Colorado of the East". Since Denver, Colorado, was known as the "Queen City of the Plains", the slogan for Plainfield eventually was shortened to "The Queen City".

In 1664 the Dutch lost control of the New Netherlands colony to the British. The land was granted to John Lord Berkeley and Sir George Cataret, they named it "New Jersey" after the Isle of Jersey in the English Channel.

Abraham Browning of Camden is credited for giving New Jersey the nickname of "Garden State". Browning compared New Jersey to an immense barrel, filled with good things to eat and open at both ends, with Pennsylvanians grabbing from one end and the New Yorkers from the other. Other New Jersey facts in brief:

First Inhabitants:: Delaware (Lenape) Indians.
First European Explorer:: Giovanni da Verrazzano - 1524.
Statehood:: December 18, 1787, the 3rd state
Capital:: Trenton.
Motto:: Liberty and Prosperity.
Bird:: Eastern Goldfinch.
Flower:: Purple Violet.
Tree:: Red Oak.
Highest Peak:: High Point.

Organizational Structure
				WAGGS

			GSUSA		143 Countries

		GSWRC Membership Specialist		300 Councils

	Plainfield Service Unit		19 Communities

Troop Leader Member		Service Unit Group Manager Secretary Registrar Treasurer Consultant Cookie Sale Manager Nut Sale Manager Encampment Director Public Relations Chair Organizer