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Christmas time can be viewed in a positive or negative way.

For instance, the “Grinch” way of seeing Christmas time which I unfortunately often fall into is – thinking abouthow busy the holiday season is, all of the parties and family gatherings, andfinding presents for everyone, and how cold it is and how everyone seems to getsick around Christmas time.

That’s not a very happy view. It’s not a very healthy view.

How SHOULD you think about Christmas time?

Christmas time or Advent is a time to remember what God has done, is doing, and to look forward to what He will do.

God the Father gave the greatest gift in His Son Jesus who was born, lived, died as the final sacrifice for our sins, and rose to live again and now stands with God as our Advocate. And Hewill come again.

In my family, we have a tradition of collecting ornaments that remind us of important life events. We will pick up an ornament and say “Remember when?”

Remember When…

For instance, these ornaments are from my family’s first trip to Disney when I was little and from when my family went back to Disney to celebrate the graduation of my brother, sister and I from college.

Looking at them, I remember sitting outside of the Tower of Terror in 1998 with my Dad while my Mom and Brother were on the ride because we were too scared to go with them. And then I remember in 2014 sitting next to my brother on the ride thinking – I’m going to be brave, I’m an adult now, I’ve got this, and NOPE! Grabbing my brother’s arm at the first drop. It was terrifying and so much fun!

This ornament, we got after our dog bear died. I remember when Bear was only a year old and ran away in a thunderstorm.

I remember when we got the call that someone had seen him, and we drove out and started calling for him. He came running up like in Homeward Bound. He was so excited that he jumped into the front seat of the car and we feed him a whole box of treats on the way home.

My Dad’s Heart Attack

While waiting for the ambulance to arrive, a mom got out of her mini-van and came up. “I’m here in case my son, who is asmatic and on the river, needs me. I have a tank of oxygen, may I administer it to you?”

As the oxygen rank out, the ambulance pulls up. They load my dad into the back of it but before they could leave, a car pulls up and a woman gets out.

“Hi, I’m a doctor. What’s going on?” She decides to ride along and take charge of my dad – something that very rarely happens. You see, a Paramedic can only do so much before they need a doctor’s approval, now they had a doctor with them.

While in the ambulance, they call a life flight – a helicopter – to come and get my dad. They take him to Erlanger hospital in Chattanooga which is one of the best hospitals in the southeast.

He is immediately wheeled into the cath lab where they identify the blockage andfix it. The artery that was blocked is called the widow maker. Most of thetime, a block there will kill you.

There is more to the story but I’ll stop there. My dad nearly died but GOD protected him. Looking back on that, I know that God protected my family. So, when I’m faced with difficult times now, I can look forward with hope and faith because of what God has done.

Badges – Achievements & Memories

Today, many of you will be receiving badges and patches that you earned so far this program year. Receiving the physical badge is a visual way of recognizing your achievement.

When you look at badges, you will be reminded of what you did to earn them. Perhaps you’ll remember dancing with your friends or learning about airplanes.

Treasure those memories. Write them down and save them. Then you can look back on those memories and say “Remember when…” 

These memories may not seem big, but each one is a point of light that when brought together can bring great light. 

Every program year, we host a Fall Family Camping expedition to a local state park with Trail Life Troop GA-0594, our brother troop.

This year, we are going to Victoria Bryant State Park on Friday, September 28th through Sunday, September 30th.

Here is a link to the Trail Map for Victoria Bryant. We will be in the Pioneer Area 1. There are bathroom facilities close by.

Families should plan on bringing their own camping gear and food. We will have some group planned activities.

TYPICALLY Late Sept. has temps of 75 high- 56 low (records are 104H 39 L)

Questions

Can we bring pets?

No, please don’t bring your pets, to many potential issues.

How much does this event cost?

$5 parking pass plus $20 per family. Each family should bring their own camping gear and food. Please also bring a bundle of wood.

What is the Pioneer Campsite #2 like?

All Pioneer camp facilities are within 100 yards of the parking area.

All campfires must be kept in designated areas such as fire rings.

Showers available at the office bathroom for $3 per person. This is in addition to the regular camping fee.

Pioneer Campsite #1: This is a primitive, rugged site for groups only with a minimum of 10 persons. The site is located by itself. The site has water but no electricity. The site shares a restroom with site #2. The site has a shelter with a concrete floor, storage room, and picnic tables. There are 2 Adirondack shelters that sleep about 10 each. There are 4 designated tent pads that will hold multiple tents. There are lantern posts, ground grills, a group fire ring, and flagpole

What should we bring?

Here is a list of recommended items to bring: click here to view Google Doc.

When can we arrive? Leave?

You can arrive at 1:00 PM on Friday and leave at any time.

What activities are planned?

TBA

Fundraising is an essential activity for the success of a Troop. Funds earned support the Troop Budget, provide for the service project, adult leader registration, and enable girls and their families to lessen the out of pocket costs of the Program.

Therefore, each American Heritage Girl Member is expected to participate in this effort. Participation in fundraising provides an intrinsic value to each Girl Member. She will develop her leadership skills and marketing experience as well as life skill development.

This Year’s Fundraiser

This year, our fundraiser will be the World’s Finest Chocolates!

Each box contains 60 chocolate bars that will be sold for $1 each:

• 12 – Milk Chocolate with Almonds Bars, 1.30 oz.
• 6 – Dark Chocolate Bars, 1.30 oz.
• 12 – W.F. Crisp® Bars, 1.15 oz.
• 12 – Milk Chocolate Bars, 1.30 oz.
• 18 – Caramel Bars, 1.30 oz.

The Incentives

Fundraisers are not easy and require that girls learn and grow. We want to reward them for their efforts, so we put together this incentive program.

For the first complete box of chocolate that a girl sells, she will win a New Class B T-Shirt from AHG.

For each additional box of chocolate that a girl sells, she will win a $5 gift card to a big box store (ie. Amazon, Walmart, Target, Kroger, Publix)

We will also have grand prizes. The girl(s) who sell the most boxes could win an additional gift card depending on the total number of boxes the troop sells.

Pie-A-Leader – everyone who sells 3 boxes or more gets a whipped cream “pie” to hit a leader with (participating leaders only).

Troop Party – we will either take a Monday night or another night to have a party.

Questions

If you have questions that are not answered below, please let us know!

Why are we doing a fundraiser?

In an effort to keep our yearly dues low, we do a fundraiser every year to cover the costs of the badge work the girls do, the service projects, and special events and projects.

For instance, if your daughter wants to do the Cake Decorating or Sewing or Needle Arts, we can reimburse leaders for the cost of supplies for the necessary activities rather than ask parents to come out of pocket for those expenses. It also allows us to more easily do service projects that involve gathering supplies, like if we do care bags for the homeless this year.

Why World’s Finest Chocolate?

Tasty. Easy. Affordable. 50% profit.

How will the fundraiser work?

During September, you will let us know how many boxes you think your daughter can sell. We’ll make the order by Sept 24th, so that we can have them in by Oct 1st.

Your daughter will collect the box(es) that she will sell on October 1st and will have 3 weeks to sell them. Each bar sells for $1. At the end of the fundraiser, she will turn in the box with any remaining chocolate and with the fundraising money she has collected.

Does every girl *have to* sell a box of chocolates?

No. You are not required to participate in the fundraiser, but every girl is strongly encouraged to participate.

It helps the girls learn and grow and helps support the activities of the troop. Plus, if she sells one box, she earns a Class B T-Shirt that she can wear to meeting and activities.

When will we start selling?

Monday, October 1st, the fundraiser begins with a small kickoff meeting at 8:00 PM (so units come back a bit early before the closing ceremony).

All remaining boxes and money will be turned in on October 22nd, giving the girls 3 weeks to sell.

The following Monday, October 29th, we award prizes.

How many boxes can my daughter take to sell?

We ask that everyone give us an estimated number of boxes that they believe they can sell in the 3-week timeframe. Please keep in mind that we don’t want a lot of chocolate at the end of the fundraiser, so don’t take more than you think you can sell.