Amy's Ice Cream and Thin Mints

March 2018

This cookie season I had the opportunity to write and submit a business plan to work with Austins own Amy's Ice Cream.

While putting together my business plan describing how I saw the marketing working -- I also learned how to describe my business to others..

Introduction

Mission Statement

Young Girls Cookies mission is to provide ABC Baker cookies to individuals and businesses in the northern region of the Austin Metropolitan Area through personalized interactions and appreciation from  the business owner.

Vision Statement

Our vision is that everyone who interacts with Young Girls Cookies will understand “It is more than just a box of cookies.”

About Us

Young Girls Cookies  is in the baked goods distribution industry distributing ABC Baker cookies in partnership with Girl Scouts of Central Texas and Girl Scouts of the USA.  The business was launched in 2005 by my sister, Sarah Young, I joined her in 2009. Total sales hit 10,000 during 2017. Customers can choose from nine different flavors, including five vegan and 1 gluten free.  We are open mid January to late February, (Opportunity knocks). Our focus market is ages 20-45 and mainly female. Businesses can use my cookies in their products or as gifts.

😊I did get the contract to supply them with thin mints for a limited edition flavor they had in June. It was fun.

I also applied for the GSUSA cookie pro program. Although I didn't get it -- again I am working on creating more and more videos.

Pink Ninja in the Jungle

So in July I attended a Ninja Camp - similar to the show - American Ninja Warrior.  I really enjoyed the instructor and have had some private lessons with him.

He has a group of parkour athletes and ninjas that train and workout together.  I was asked to participate in their photo shoot today.

We had a lot of fun climbing rocks, trees and jumping.

I was definitely the youngest one there.  But I had a blast with The Jungle Movement Academy.

GSUSA - Convention

GSUSA Convention - 2017

What a week!  I joined my mom and grandma for a few days in Columbus Ohio and the G.I.R.L. convention.

I worked the National Park Service booth and the SWE booth.  it was great to meet so many new friends.

The SWE booth and social media take over for them is part of my Gold Award.

I also had the opportunity to participate in the entrepreneur pitch contest.

I cannot wait until 2020 -- it will be my senior year AND it will be in Orlando!

While we were in Columbus -- my moms home town -- we visited The Columbus Zoo, Graters Ice Cream, COSI and because I had to ask -- Michelle Warnky's gym - MLAB Ohio

Although I could write and show all kinds of photos -- this is what I feel like today!

Posted: https://gsctx.wordpress.com/2017/08/09/life-after-girl-scouts/

AND

https://alltogether.swe.org/2017/08/life-girl-scouts/

A 5-year-old girl, Amy, walked into her first Girl Scout meeting. She didn’t know what to think or what to expect. Was she going to make friends? Was she going to get into trouble? Would anyone like her? She walked through that door, shy. She walked out of the meeting thinking she had had lots of fun earning badges, she’d made friends, and she wanted to do more with the community.

Traditional Girl Scouts was lots of fun for Amy, but when she got in high school, she wanted to do even more for her community and in her interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math).  And she wanted to make new friends outside of her Girl Scout troop.

After a bit of Girl Scout and STEM research, Amy found and joined the Lady Cans Girl Scouts robotics team her sophomore year of high school. Walking into the first meeting was a little like her first Girl Scout meeting. Would she like it and make friends? It was a whole different environment than Amy had ever experienced: ten other girls who all had the same interests and goals, a coach who would help her until she graduated, a community she could call her second home, and friends she could truly call her Girl Scout sisters.

According to their coach, Susie Rich, the Lady Cans is an all-girl, Girl Scouts robotics team located in the greater Austin area.  “They strive to build the courage, confidence and character of young girls and teach them to strive for success in everything they do,” Rich said.

According to the Lady Cans website, their mission is “to introduce young women to science, technology, engineering, and math principles while developing the skills to be successful in a variety of careers.”

Two years after joining, after building and programming robots, Amy was elected CEO, or captain, of the Lady Cans Robotics Team 2881, giving her the opportunity to learn leadership and public-speaking skills—and to lead an amazing team of 30 girls into being the award-winning team they are today.

After Lady Cans, Amy went to college with the goal of building robots for NASA. Last fall Amy got that opportunity with an internship at NASA Langley in Virginia building prototype robots for the International Space Station. “[In the Lady Cans,] every girl needs to do the building, the programming, and the leading,” Amy said. “I was more than prepared for my internship here at Langley NASA because of building with the Lady Cans.”

Amy, now 21, is in college studying aerospace engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. She enjoys her classes, and she has been accepted into the NASA Pathways Program based out of Houston. The Pathways Program allows young adults to be hired by a federal agency. The interns work one semester and go to school the next. Yes, it takes longer to finish their degrees, but they already have jobs when they finish.

“I knew Girl Scouts and the Lady Cans would give me the opportunities to learn and fail. Through these programs, I learned the courage, confidence, and character to be an amazing leader and employee.” Amy said.

100 years of Girl Scout cookies

Cookie Season is here!

This year the council wanted to showcase Girl Scout camps and everything you can learn at camp.  I was excited to participate in the first day of cookies media fun with my friends who had been part of the council Archery Club.  I miss the club - buy most of us still compete as part of DG Archery.

Anyway - this is the 100th anniversary of Girl Scout cookies - my mom sold cookies, my grandmother sold cookies.  Last year I earned the opportunity to sell cookies to Hopdoddys - this year I will try again.  I will probably go with a retro theme -- I think my grandmothers uniform.

What is your favorite cookie?  Do you eat them as cookies or do you use them to make fabulous desserts?

Archery and Travel

What does Archery and Travel have to do with Girl Scouts?

I fell in love with archery thru our councils archery club.  The opportunities have changed since I started.  And my mom and GS leader are both instructors.

Since I am going to Cyprus, Greece with Girl Scouts this summer -- I knew I needed to do a much as I could to help pay for the trip.  So I am helping them teach a series of classes.

ARCHERY with Troop 1587

Explore Archery Workshop

This 3 hour workshop follows the USA Archery Explore Archery guidelines and activities.  The youth will earn the archery badge for their age level.  Enjoy the workshop, all equipment is provided.  Students will learn their dominant eye, proper form for shooting, parts of the bow, how to score and how to be safe – yet have fun.  Bring your friends and family for a day of archery fun – grades 2-12. Questions? – kate@texasdirector.org

To register for one of the sessions  - https://www.eventbrite.com/e/girl-scout-archery-badge-workshop-tickets-28630535703

Fee $30.00 - Early Bird pricing ends 12/1 for December class      $35.00 registration until December 12^th

B, J, C, S, A ****Siblings and friends are welcome

Archery Country – 8121 Research Blvd, Austin 78758

            December 19 – 9:00 – 12:00 p.m.                       December 19 – 1:00 – 4:00 p.m.

Location:  Grace Presbyterian – 1705 Gattis School Rd., Round Rock 78664

Early bird registration until March 1st

                March 11 – 6:00 – 9:00 p.m.                   March 12 – 9:00 – 12:00 p.m.                                 March 12 – 1:00 – 4:00 p.m.

What to wear? – Closed toed shoes, hair needs to be pulled back, no loose clothing (for example strings from jackets)

WHO ARE WE?

We are Girl Scout moms and daughters who are top in the state ranked barebow target archers; Carrie Rogers Casey and Kate Woodward Young have enjoyed archery since they were kids shooting arrows at the family farm in the summer.  These GS leaders have trained over 40 adult volunteers in GSCTX and hundreds of girls.  When their daughters and troop wanted more – these moms made it happen.  Troop 1587 has 9 USA Archery trained coaches.  Kate, Carrie, Jennifer and Justin are trained level 2 instructors with USA Archery – they have been excited to share their new passion for the sport with young students around central Texas. Over 1000 kids  have benefited from classes with these coaches.  Currently, they coach a homeschool archery team in the Austin area.

 

Samsung STEM Challenge

This year I have joined the Girl Scouts Toastmasters club, press corps and robotics team.  As a member of the robotics team, all of us were encouraged to participate in the GSCTX Samsung STEM challenge.

The Lady Cans, GSCTX Austin Robotics Team sponsored 5 teams for this years Samsung STEM challenge, 3 Cadette and 2 older girl teams.  Lady Cans, CEO, Stephanie Waugh, Senior from Westwood High spoke at the event about the importance of STEM in Girl Scouts and how her joining the Lady Cans changed everything and that this contest helped her narrow her Engineering focus to Civil Engineering.  Lady Cans teams took 1^st and 2^nd in the Senior/Ambassador division and 1^st in the Cadette division.  Girls who are part of the Lady Cans come from troops around the Austin area. 

 

If you are looking for ways to get your daughter involved in STEM, make sure to explore the GSCTX calendar for events.  Middle and High School girls are welcome to contact the robotics volunteers about team opportunities.  There are seven First Lego League Robotics teams sponsored by council for elementary school and middle school students as well.