Returning Favorite - Stained Glass!

Yes, Kaye will be back with her "Five or Six Easy Pieces" stained glass workshop.  This time, she'll have a variety of kits available.  Easily the most popular workshop at GE, but space is limited so register early if you want a slot!

New in 2014 - Gift Tags

If you follow Sue and me on Pinterest, it should come as no surprise that we are into paper!  Paper crafting is hot as can be these days, so this year we decided to offer a joint workshop on making gift tags.  Enhance your gifts by adding one-of-a-kind, handmade gift tags.  Whether you concentrate on holidays or occasions, we’ll provide you with examples, a set of tag bases and use of our extensive collections of paper, images, ribbons, decorative pens and pencils, and enhancements that will turn a simple gift tag into a work of art.  (As always, click on photos to enlarge view!)

New in 2014 - Chocolate Truffles!

Do you like chocolate?

Learn to make chocolate truffles and make some to take home – if you can resist eating them long enough!  Marielle will lead you through the process of cooking, mixing, forming and chilling   truffles that will leave your family and friends swooning in chocolate comas! 

Chocolate Truffles!

But you'll need to register for this one quickly - spaces are strictly limited!

New in 2014 - Beginner Latin Cardio

Let's Get Physical!

Cindy, who has brought us hula-hooping and line dancing, is leading Beginner Latin Cardio!  She says:

Dance exercise is fun, the time flies when the music is playing. Follow the leader, or just keep moving! No fear, this will not be a super intense workout. First we will go over a few common Latin dance steps which are used in most Zumba classes. Then we will do five songs: a warm-up, three songs, and a cool-down. It won't take the entire hour. If you want to keep going, we can repeat the songs. 

Zip over to our workshops page to see what else is in store for you this year!  Workshops 2014  Registration opens in May!

Happy Patriots' Day!

The GSEM President's Award

The Great Escape Committee was honored to be presented with the GSEM President's Award at the Volunteer Recognition Dinner on April 10, 2014.  The award acknowledges a committee whose exemplary service in support of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience surpassed team goals and resulted in significant, measurable impact toward reaching the council's overall goals.  The group must have an active team of registered members.  The team must recognize, understand and practice the values of inclusive behavior and reflect the diversity of the geographic area in which they reside.

The Great Escape Committee thanks GSEM for this honor, and hope that it will inspire new people to attend the Great Escape.  We are waiting to meet you!

A few of the committee members before the dinner!

New In 2014 - Lean In

By now, most of us have at least heard about Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, and her book entitled “Lean In.”  In Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg examines why women’s progress in achieving leadership roles has stalled, explains the root causes, and offers compelling, commonsense solutions that can empower women to achieve their full potential.

We think that this book is relevant to us as women, and as leaders of girls. Longtime attendee Julie has graciously agreed to lead a discussion of this book on Saturday afternoon, between the end of workshops and dinner.  Read the book, think about it– and bring your reactions and ideas!  And don’t worry – this is an addition to GE and you won’t miss any workshop opportunities. All are welcome to participate.  So borrow or buy the book, read (or skim!) it, or just drop in to find out what it's all about!

2013 Memories - Part 4

Friendship is a fundamental part of the Great Escape, and the memories board reflected that!

A place where everyone is a new friend, where it’s ok to go and not ‘know’ someone, because a sister is always welcome, even if you’ve just met her.

Seeing friends we have not seen for a while and didn’t realize we missed; making new friends too.

 

Unconditional love,

freely given,

always there,

bonds formed, never broken,

no matter time or miles. 

Registration opens very soon!  Check those calendars and reserve September 26 - 28, 2014 to come to Wabasso for the Great Escape!  The workshop list is ready at Workshops 2014

New in 2014 - Two Off Site Trips

This is the first in a series of posts about innovations planned for Great Escape in 2014 (the dates are Sept. 26 - 28, BTW so put it on your calendar now!)

There will be two offsite trips this year.  The first will be to Quilted Threads in Henniker, one of the largest and best quilt shops in New England.  http://quiltedthreads.com/

Quilted Threads in Henniker, NH

The second is to The Fells, a historic estate and gardens.  The Fells was the home to 3 generations of the Hay family.  John Milton Hay was the private secretary to Abraham Lincoln, served as ambassador to Great Britain and as secretary of state under presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt.  At The Fells we can tour the historic house, explore the formal gardens and/or take a nature walk.  www.thefells.org

The Fells in Autumn

The Fells, Garden View

2013 Memories - Part 3

Another poem. a haiku this time. in honor of the coming weekend which is 'tents up' at most of our Eastern Mass camps:

Canvas and laughter

Memories of Bonnie Brae

Soft Wabasso night

2013 Memories - Part 2

Another poem from the memories board for weekend contemplation!

The 2013 Memories Board

Women, laughter,

Trees, breathing…

I can get through ‘til next year.

Great Escape Memories 2013

We had our committee meeting last night and we are almost ready to post the final workshop list and schedule and open registration for 2014!  While we're dotting i's and crossing t's I thought we'd go back to some of the memories we made last year.

Remember the photo board?  On the front, each attendee was invited to glue a leaf with her name.

On the back, participants were invited to make a leaf and write something on it - a memory, a poem, a quote.  While we wait for registration to open, I want to share some of those with you.  Several talented people wrote poems, so here's one.

WABASSO:

Woods

Awesome

Boats

Activities

Songs

Sleep Soundly

Outdoors

Next time, another poem and the quotes board.