Girl Scouts o f C en tral Illinois A nnual Report 2010

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Dear Girl Scout members and friends,
2010 was a year of challenge and opportunity for Girl Scouts of Central Illinois. Like most non-profits, we
felt the effects of a struggling economy, but this challenge only reinforced our commitment to bringing the
Girl Scout program to girls throughout our council’s jurisdiction, as evidenced by the fact that we served
more than 20,000 girls in 2010, nearly half of whom required financial assistance in order to participate. We
anticipate serving even more girls this year as we currently sit at approximately 18,150 members with another
five months to go in the membership year.
Over 10,000 girls attended council-sponsored programs that delivered the Girl Scout Leadership
Experience. One hundred sixteen girls in our council achieved the Bronze, Silver, and Gold Award as part of
their path to leadership and giving back to their communities while another seventy-three are expected to
achieve the award as they wrap up their 2010-11 membership year. Over 2,300 girls attended GSCI
summer camps, and this included nearly $30,000 in campership assistance. We expect more than 2500 at
our camps this summer as we continue to assist those who could not otherwise attend these life-changing
opportunities. Of course, we could not offer this far-reaching impact without your support, and we look
forward to a continued partnership with our community friends and supporters in the coming years.
Other accomplishments from the past year include the development of online shopping and
eRegistration for membership, program, and camp, as we seek to make e-commerce more available as a
convenience to our customers and members. GSUSA launched a brand revitalization campaign in July of
2010 and GSCI has embraced the look and the message of the revitalized brand as we seek to reach even
more girls with the empowering programming that Girl Scouting provides for any girl who decides to join us.
One of the greatest testaments to the support from our communities was seen in the tremendous success
of Operation Cookie Share, a new addition to the Girl Scout Cookie Activity in 2010 that allowed cookie
customers to support Girl Scouts and U.S. soldiers by contributing Girl Scout cookies to women and men
serving in our country’s military. Thanks to a partnership with State Farm as well as the generous
contributions of our communities, a total of 84,000 boxes of cookies made their way to soldiers serving in
Iraq, Afghanistan, and the U.S in 2010 while another 58,476 boxes will be on their way following our most
recent cookie sale – far surpassing our hope for the success of this program. In response, we were gifted with
U.S. flags that had flown across the world, and we received numerous letters of gratitude from the recipients
of your generosity.
Moving forward, we expect to continue to meet challenges with unflagging commitment to bringing the Girl
Scout Leadership Experience to girls in central Illinois. With your continued support we are enthusiastic about
giving girls the opportunity to do great things – on their own behalf and on behalf of their communities. As we
continue our preparations for celebrating 100 years of Girl Scouting in 2012, we cannot thank you enough for
your commitment of time, talent, and resources on behalf of the girls we serve and we look forward to your
continued partnership as we draw near the conclusion of the first one hundred years of Girl Scouting and
move into Girl Scouting’s second century of building girls of courage, confidence, and character.
Sincerely,
Pam Kovacevich, CEO Elaine Young, Board Chair
Girl Scouts of Central Illinois Girl Scouts of Central Illinois
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