Governor's Luncheon Speaker: Kushkowski

Elaine Kushkowski, a junior at Ames High School, has been involved in Girl Scouts for ten years.  She served as a Girl Scouts of Greater Iowa delegate to the Girls' World Forum in Chicago last summer and is currently serving as the Vice President of the council's Girl Advisory Committee.  She recently spoke at The Governor’s Luncheon for Scouting, serving as the Co-Master of Ceremonies, which she reflects on below. Thanks for everything you do, Elaine!

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Elaine with Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds and Boy Scout representative

On January 9th, 2013, I went to the Prairie Meadows Event Center as the Master of Ceremonies for the Governor’s Luncheon for Scouting. The Luncheon is an annual fundraiser for Girl Scouts and Boy Scout in Iowa. This year the event attracted more than 550 people and raised much needed funds for Girl Scouts of Greater Iowa.

I thought it was great to see so many people come together to support Scouting in their communities. The fact that more than 550 people came to the event really shows that people know the importance of Scouting - for their children, their communities, their country, and the world.

On a more personal level, it was an honor to be able to speak in front of so many people and share my love of Scouting with them. I shared this reflection with the audience:  

“It’s hard for me to put into words the impact that Girl Scouting has had on my life. When I look at the activities I’m involved in, the beliefs I’ve developed, and the passions I’ve discovered, it becomes clear that every aspect of my life has been touched by my involvement in Girl Scouting.

Through Scouting, I have had countless opportunities to meet, learn from, and serve others. I have become a leader, among my peers, at my Girl Scout camp, and in my community. 

I learned, as a sixth grader setting out to earn my bronze award, that even young people can make a difference --- And I do, every Wednesday morning when I volunteer with first graders and help them learn to read.

I’ve learned that I’m more than just a part of Troop 601 - I am part of a worldwide organization composed of 10 million inspiring young women.

I have met Girl Scouts and Girl Guides from around the world, and have come to understand that through sharing our ideas and working together, a world of possibilities lies ahead.  And those possibilities lie in the hearts and minds of Scouts, who strive, each day, to make the world a better place." 

Speaking at the Governor’s Luncheon is but one example of how Girl Scouting has inspired me to be a courageous individual who is willing to take on new challenges. I’m glad I was able to represent the Girl Scouts of Greater Iowa, introduce Lieutenant Governor Reynolds, and share a little bit of what Girl Scouts is really all about.

My name is Elaine Kushkowski and I am proud to be a Girl Scout.

Elaine at the podium during the flag ceremony

Girls' World Forum - Chicago Part 2

Elaine Kuchkowski has written part 2 of her experience with more than 600 other Girl Scouts from all over the USA and Girl Guides from all over the world at the Girls' World Forum in Chicago - read on! 

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We Are 10 Million Voices, and We Are Singing

600 Girl Scouts and Girl Guides gathered in Chicago, Illinois, with a few goals in mind. I speak collectively when I say we knew we were there to discuss the Millennium Development Goals, meet people from other places around the world, and represent our councils and countries. But the thing that we didn’t know coming in was how much we could change and grow in six short days.

The three Millennium Development Goals (MGD) that were covered during Girls’ World Forum were Ending Poverty and Hunger, Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women, and Environmental Sustainability. Participants spent time at the Brookfield Zoo to learn about environmental sustainability, had an “Action Day” where the delegates went to different locations around the community and did service projects related to an MDG, and spent time discussing the Goals and what actions could solve the world’s problems. Near the end of our week together, each girl developed a Take Action plan related to one of the MDGs that will be implemented within the next year.

At the Forum, I learned what it is to be part of the global Girl Guide and Girl Scout community. The Australian Girl Guide that I sat next to at dinner the first night has become an incredible friend of mine. The people in my patrol promised to stay connected, even though we live all around the world, and support each other with our Take Action projects. The past week has been one of sharing experiences, listening to others, learning about different cultures, and growing in ways I never expected. With Girl Scouts, everything is possible.

I’m currently on the way to Camp Tanglefoot for my third year of CIT training, rejoining my GSGI family after meeting my WAGGGS international family in the bustling city of Chicago. It will be a change for sure, but the thing that will be the same is that truly excellent people, committed to making the world a better place, will surround me.

I’m thankful for this opportunity to represent Girl Scouts of Greater Iowa at such an amazing convention. Girl Scouting is not just about Girl Scout Brownies selling cookies, it is girls and women of all ages, working hard to create sustainable change. Encourage younger girls in your community to stay involved with Girl Scouts because there are so many opportunities for them to be leaders, both close to home and far away. Teach them that they are part of an international community of 10 MILLION girls, and that what they have to say matters.

Finally, in regards to the fantastic young women I met at Girls’ World Forum, here are few words from a camp song, “I’ll not say goodbye with tears in my eyes, but I’ll say hello to the friends that I’ll know.”

For more information of the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations in 2000, go to www.un.org/millenniumgoals .

- Elaine Kuchkowski

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Girls' World Forum - Chicago

Elaine Kuchkowski joins more than 600 other Girl Scouts from all over the USA and Girl Guides from all over the world (with their chaperones) for the Girls' World Forum, which is taking place in Chicago.  Elaine has been a Girl Scout for 9 years. She is an Ambassador and will be a junior at Ames High School on the fall. Her Girl Scout experience includes leading service unit events, being a CIT at Camp Tanglefoot, and representing the council as a delegate to the Girl Scout Leadership Institute, a part of the National Convention held in Houston last November - read on! 

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Elaine Kushkowski

Oh, you’re a Girl Scout. Can you help me get to Millennium Park?

7/11/12 was the first day of Girls’ World Forum in Chicago. I arrived early at the hotel, intending to drop off my luggage and then explore the city before the Forum started. My mom-and-chaperone’s room was ready, so my bags went there, making the luggage arrangements pleasantly simple. Outside the hotel, on the way to the Chicago History Museum, I passed a group of girls. The smiles of recognition were enough to know that they were Girl Scouts as well, possibly in the United States for the first time, seeing what Chicago had to offer before it was time to officially begin the Forum.

Later in the day, back at the hotel, a girl needed help with her room key. She spoke a little English and, though I have absolutely no working knowledge of German (aside from a few phrases I learned in third grade and have long since forgotten), all hope was not lost. She stored her bags in my room while we went down to the concierge desk, where the key was easily fixed and returned to her. She returned to my room, gathered her bags, smiled, thanked me, and headed down the hall to her now accessible room. Without a doubt she was thankful for the assistance and I, true to my promises as a Girl Scout, had done my good deed for the day.

At the Forum

Dinner proved to be by far the best experience I’ve had yet in my slightly less than a day at the Forum. Organized into patrols, the delegates went through the buffet and found their respective tables. I had the joy of sitting by Jenny, an Australian and fellow member of patrol 40. In an interesting turn of events, we began discussing the differences and similarities between the education systems in Australia and the United States, leading to insights previously unimaginable. I then met her fellow Australians and we parted, with a promise to meet up again tomorrow.

It’s amazing how simple it is to communicate with a smile, a knowing expression, and a willingness to help out when needed. More than anything, it is the pieces of our experience that we share with others that make them feel welcome and appreciated, two of the greatest gifts of all.

At Girls’ World Forum there are about 450 Girl Scouts and Girl Guides representing 89 countries. We have 3 Millennium Development Goals to discuss, 5 days to do it, and infinite experiences to share with one another. Our differences add interest and our similarities tie us together as girls and women dedicated to service, scouting, and sisterhood. As the National President of GSUSA, Connie Lindsey, said in her opening remarks, part of being a Girl Scout is knowing that wherever you go, you will always have sisters there to help you out.

As for directions to Millennium Park, it’s just down Michigan Avenue, on the left.

-  Elaine Kushkowski

Flying Monkeys Present in Brazil

We've been following the amazing progress and impact that the Flying Monkeys, a Girl Scout troop and FIRST Lego League award winning group from Ames and Gilbert, IA for quite some time now.  The troop just recently flew to Brazil to present at an amazing conference.  Melissa Murray, the Flying Monkeys coach, wrote the following update for us.  Way to go Flying Monkeys!! 

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Back in April, the U.S. Department of State  and FIRST contacted the Flying Monkeys to see if they would be interested in presenting at the Rio +20 UN Conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  The answer of course was, YES!  Since then it was a flurry of preparation: passports, visas, travel arrangements, preparations for presentations and packing.  Once school was out the girls were working nearly full time to finish everything before we left.

We recently flew to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  For all the girls, this was the first time they had been out of the United States and in a country where English was not the first language.  They worked on learning a few basics of Portuguese before we left, being sure to master “Bom gia!  Bem vindo! Oi!  Como vai?  Tudo bem, tudo legal. ‘Ta bom!  Onde são os servicios?  Obrigada.  De nada e Tchau!”* Armed with some basics, my Portuguese classes from 20 years ago, Spanish and French we were set to take the plunge.  The flight was an overnight flight and while nobody sleeps well on those, the girls managed to get some shut eye. A few of them were awake and able to behold an amazing sight: sunrise at 37,000’ over the Amazon Rainforest.

Truly an auspicious beginning to our trip.  From there, we sailed through customs, onto the van and off to the hotel.  Hotel Marina Palace is located on the beach in Leblon.  Where?  Right next to Ipanema (anyone remember the song The Girl From Ipanema?); just down from Copacabana (remember Barry Manilow's song?) on the upscale south side of Rio.  In spite of the fact that it is winter in Brazil, the weather was in the 80‘s, people were out swimming, surfing, playing volleyball and soccer.   Yes, we managed a visit to the beach! 

BUT, the real reason we were there was for the Rio +20. We presented at the Catholic University, which was hosting the Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation organized by the International Conference on Science (ICSU). 

The Monkeys also presented at the US Pavilion as part of the official Side Events of the UN Conference, showcasing youth and innovations.  We joined Nithin Tumma, winner of the INTEL Science Talent Search and two student representatives of the Gulliver International Team, winner of the Conrad Foundation Award.  These recently graduated high schoolers were amazing with what they have done: portable water filtration systems for Haiti and ground breaking breast cancer treatment research.  Still they were just as impressed with the Flying Monkeys as we were with them.  I noted one thing that all three groups have in common:  they wouldn't accept no for an answer;  they never gave up, looking for other solutions when something didn't work right.  Oh don't forget hard work, ridiculous hours and passion.

While at the Side Event, we did what few ever do (even those who attended the event!):  we took a golf cart tour of the world in 20 minutes!  Chauffeured by CAIXA (a sponsor of the events), we zipped past Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, Japan, China, Brazil, Germany, France, Italy and many more countries!  It was fun to see how each country represented themselves!  After our presentation, we headed across the way to Rio Centro, where the UN Conference was being held.  Security was definitely a priority, so it was a good thing we were already registered with an accredited NGO  (fancy terms for a non governmental organization) and could pass with relative ease.  (Note to GS Leaders:  there are reasons you carry copies of all the important documents with you on trips... we needed copies of the confirmation letters as it turns out!)

Accompanied by the US Department of State and FIRST, we met with officials from the US Consulate, UNESCO, and ICSU .  We met professors, students, representatives of corporations and others, even some of the Rockwell Collins folks who sponsored our adventure.    Don't they look smashing with their official Flying Monkey Travel Neck Pillows!?!

While there we also managed to squeeze in a little sightseeing, visiting Pão de Açucar (Sugarloaf),

Corcovado (where the iconic statue of the Redeemer presides over the Rio skyline),

the Jardim Bôtanico,  and even a Flamengo soccer game (they're one of the hometown teams).  This stadium is just their team's stadium.  The Maracanã is being renovated for the 2014 World Cup Finals and the the 2016 Summer Olympics.  That said, this "little" stadium holds close to 100,000 people by my guess.  However, this was not considered an important game so the opposing team's fans did not travel to the game and the stands were only mostly full on the one side.  I'll guess there was still 40,000 people there: drum lines, flags, songs and all.  Yes, Flamengo won the game in the last minutes and the crowd went wild!

It was exciting to see how the girls handled themselves with an ever changing schedule, discussing innovation strategies, even trying new foods.  Hey, it's a UN event, it's okay to try sushi!

The Flying Monkeys learned about navigating airports and cities in a foreign country and working through language and cultural barriers!  It was an amazing, hectic, beautiful, inspiring experience.  It was an honor that none of us will ever forget; one that I am proud to have been able to share with the girls.

*Bom gia!        Good day!

Bem vindo!      Welcome!

Oi!             Hi!

Como vai?        How’s it going?

Tudo bem, tudo legal. It’s all good!

‘Ta bom? ‘Ta bom!  Alright?  Alright!

Onde são os servicios?  Where’s the bathroom?

Obrigada         Thank you

De nada You’re welcome

Tchau!          Bye! 

 - Melissa Murray for the Flying Monkeys

The Future is Yours - Event & Overnight

High School Girls... Have you ever considered what's next in your life? 

Join us for an amazing opportunity for both high school girls and volunteers! We are hosting a unique overnight conference to help guide girls through a successful high school career and life beyond. You'll learn about career options, volunteer opportunities, and many other things to help you plan for your future!  Blogging for us is one of our fabulous breakout speakers for this year's event - read on!

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Alisa Link - RAGBRAI

My name is Alisa and I’m a Multimedia Producer at WHO-TV Channel 13 in Des Moines.  My title sounds really professional, but I have a lot of fun at my job. 

I’m so excited to be speaking at a breakout session for this year’s The Future is Yours Event. At this fantastic event, girls will have tons of opportunities to learn about how to prepare for the future! Our hope is that girls who attend will walk away feeling READY TO TAKE ON THE WORLD!

My session is called The Secrets of Social Media and Blogging Basics. In this day and age, social media is SO important. It can serve as a very useful tool when it comes to applying for college, applying for jobs, networking, and of course, is a great way to share your hobbies and experiences with friends and family!

During my break out session, I’m going to talk about its importance as well as how much fun social media and blogging can be! I’m also going to talk about Internet safety and a few warning signs to look out for when you’re cruising the Internet.  It’s important to remember that not everyone is who they say they are on the Internet. 

I’m also going to talk a little bit about my job at Channel 13! I write the stories for the website, www.whotv.com. Sometimes the stories are the same stories you hear on the news, but other times they’re stories about events and causes I am interested in, or I think "Des Moinesians" might be interested in.

Another part of my job is social media.  I run WHO’s Facebook page and I run the WHO Facebook and Twitter pages for our sports show, SoundOFF.  I also have a hand in helping our reporters with their blogs.  

RVTV

Social Media has brought me on so many adventures.  I blogged my way through RAGBRAI (see picture above)

I tagged along during RVTV (see picture at left)… 

And recently, I’ve invited my readers to read along as I eat locally grown food for 100 days. 

It’s always fun to write about my experiences and share them with the world!  I can’t wait to chat with you all during my break out session at The Future is Yours, which is right around the corner! You won’t want to miss out on this amazing event!  Can’t wait to see you all in July!

Click here to register for "The Future is Yours" today!

Sincerely,

Alisa Link

WHO-HD Multimedia Producer