Girl Scout of Historic Georgia Camp Lanier Is in Urgent Need and Asks Community for Help

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Camp Lanier

I thought being disconnected from the internet and WiFi would be hard, but it was actually easy and I had a lot of fun!

Gainesville, GA (PRWEB) June 10, 2014

Girl Scout camp season has already begun and with that comes the thought of campfires and s’mores. Every summer at camp, Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia provides life changing outdoor programs. This is what one parent had to say about sending her daughter to Girl Scout camp, “The skills that my daughter learns from camp are more than just hiking, and camping. She learns confidence, and self-reliance that children do not have the opportunity in today's society.” A recent study of nearly 3,000 Girl Scouts and 2,000 alumnae by the Girl Scout Research Institute (GSRI) reveals that the experience is about much more than camping.

However, Camp Lanier is in critical need of community support for maintenance and upgrades.

Camp Lanier is an 88 acre camp situated on Lake Lanier in Forsyth County. Leased from the Corp of Engineers, facilities include three open-air roofed pavilions with picnic tables, a campfire ring with seating, restrooms and showers, two smaller picnic shelters, a platform tent area, a floating dock, and a beach area.

Urgent needs for tools and equipment to maintain this property are beyond the council’s current budget limitations and in-kind or monetary donations from the
community are needed. Current urgent needs at Camp Lanier include:

Back pack blower
Zero turn mower
Utility vehicle with a dump bed
Pickup truck

Volunteers to help with the general care and maintenance of the property are also greatly appreciated.

“It was my first time on the water, in a lake,” said a 10-year-old Girl Scout. “I was scared at first but when I started to paddle I got the hang of it. I really loved it.”

The GSRI study titled “More Than S’mores: Successes and Surprises in Girl Scouts’ Outdoor Experiences” revealed that Girl Scout camp was a favorite experience for most Girl Scout alumnae and that repeated outdoor experiences make girls stronger challenge seekers and better problem solvers. Girl Scout camp provides girls with unique opportunities to try new things, improve skills, overcome fears and help other girls.

At a time when children in the U.S. are more likely to spend most of their summer online indoors rather than outside, Girl Scouts provides a valuable outdoor option. Outdoor spaces support physical play, which helps girls develop movement capability and confidence. Time in nature improves concentration and creative reasoning, and nature provides novelty and challenge, which enhance leadership. One camper recently shared her experience, “I thought being disconnected from the internet and WiFi would be hard, but it was actually easy and I had a lot of fun!”

Girl Scout camps throughout Georgia are beautiful properties that will host programs ranging from canoeing to geocaching. Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia owns six camps and leases three others to serve girls from 125 counties. General property maintenance requires a significant investment of time and resources, and recent weather events have multiplied the need for support.

Community support to maintain the beauty and safety of these special properties make the continuation of these life-changing, memory-making programs possible. To learn more about Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia or to make a monetary donation, visit http://www.gshg.org. If you would like to make an in-kind donation or volunteer for maintenance projects at camp, contact Teresa Laird, at 706.621.5979 or tlaird(at)gshg(dot)org.

About Girl Scouts
Girl Scouts is the preeminent leadership development organization for girls in the world. The Girl Scout Leadership Experience encourages girls to discover, connect and take action on the issues most important to them. Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place.

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