On October 13, 2012, River Valleys’ girls, families and volunteers raked up and bagged 2 million pounds of leaves, soil and other debris from streets, parks and other public spaces. By keeping the leaves and other organic material out of storm sewers on Centennial Day of Service, girls helped fight the nutrient-fed excess algae growth that often chokes surface waters in urban areas.

Throughout the day, girls also stenciled 7,000 storm sewer entrances with an anti-pollution message. Many of the messages said: “Please Don’t Pollute. Drains To Mississippi River.”

“To mobilize 27,000 people on one day, and to keep this amount of organic material out of our rivers and streams, was just a phenomenal feat,” says Joan Nephew, the Freshwater Society’s executive director. “We are proud to have partnered with the Girl Scouts in this effort.

“And we are prouder still that many of the Girl Scouts have committed to repeating the cleanup this fall.”

The Freshwater Society and the Friends of the Minnesota Valley helped organize and coordinate Centennial Day of Service. The 3M company was the corporate sponsor.

The Great Girl Gathering was a monumental event for River Valleys. Girls rocked it with China Anne McClain, Zumba’d with Girl Scouts of the USA CEO Anna Maria Chávez, learned how to prevent phosphorus and made memories with old and new friends. During the two-day event, 1,000 volunteers donated 3,200 hours to assist with 15 concurrent events and over 140,000 girls along with their family and friends from across the nation attended the event!

Thank you to all the attendees, volunteers, partners, sponsors and staff who made the Great Girl Gathering possible! We are proud to share this award with you.

Darby Nelson has been traveling throughout Minnesota to speak about his book, For Love of Lakes, and to discuss the problems facing our waterways. Nelson made a special stop on October 13, visiting more than 200 Girl Scouts in Brooklyn Park who participated in Centennial Day of Service.

Nelson learned about Centennial Day of Service during one of his public appearances and he knew he wanted to be involved. As he described it, it made his month to hear about Centennial Day of Service and he could just picture the thousands of hands preventing leaves from entering waterways and turning into phosphorus.

“I couldn’t believe the efforts put forth by the Girl Scouts,” explained Nelson. “All their preventative efforts during Centennial Day of Service are exactly what I have been going around speaking about.”

As he continues his journey to inform people about the dangers of phosphorus in leaves damaging our lakes, Nelson will carry with him the memories of all the girls and volunteers he met during Centennial Day of Service.

“It’s more than just helping the waterways. These girls are learning really important lifelong skills.”

Throughout the day, we will be updating this post with news about Centennial Day of Service. Keep refreshing the page to see the newest updates. You can also follow the #CDOS hashtag on Twitter to find news from us and volunteers working today.

Please call 800-845-0787 with any immediate questions. Staff are available from 8 am to 5 pm.

7:13 am — Share Your Story

We are receiving the first posts on our Facebook wall from people getting ready this morning, and we’d love to hear from you too. Post your pictures and stories today, so we can all share the experience. If you tweet or check-in, include the #CDOS hashtag to join the conversation.

9:08 am – First Pictures Coming In

Volunteers are starting to share pictures of their CDOS activities. You can see all of our images as they come in on our Flickr page.

10:31 am – Girl Scouts on the KARE11 Morning Show

Viewers of the KARE11 Morning Show learned about the Centennial Day of Service and the activities of Girl Scouts throughout the council this morning.

11:19 am – Don’t Forget To Report Your Activities

River Valleys is working with our partners at the Freshwater Society to track the impact of today’s activities. Use this form on their site to share what you and your girls did today.

1:37 pm – Morning Activities Wrapping Up

Many of the Centennial Day of Service events are starting to wrap up, but there are still a few ongoing through the afternoon. Still send in pictures to our Facebook page, and watch our Flickr set for new pictures. Make sure to complete your activity report to show the full impact of today’s work.

6:15 pm – Thank You Everyone!

The Centennial Day of Service was a great success! Thank you for all of your hard work and support. Keep watching our Flickr and Facebook feeds to see new pictures as they are updated. Watch our site over the coming days and weeks for details about today’s impact. Put your email address into the field at the top right to have our new blog posts sent to you right as they’re published.

Thank you!

• Centennial Day of Service activities will occur rain or shine, so please be prepared and dress accordingly.
• Call 800-845-0787 with any questions or issues on Saturday. Staff will be available from 8 a.m.–5 p.m. to respond to calls.
• Check GirlScoutsRV.org throughout the day tomorrow for continuous news. You can also follow the #CDOS hashtag on Twitter to see updates from us and volunteers. Use the “Subscribe to GSRV News” box to the top right to have news delivered to your email once it’s published.
• Share your day with us! Post your pictures to River Valleys’ Facebook page with first names and let us know how you’re doing.

Thank you for registering and participating in this event to improve local water quality and make the world a better place. In recognition of your commitment to community, Girl Scouts River Valleys was presented with a Certificate of Commendation signed by Governor Mark Dayton. Click to see a copy of the certificate and find out more.

Want to know how big this event really is? Check out the map to see all the locations where Centennial Day of Service celebrations are taking place. 

Did you know that Centennial Day of Service is connected to our core Girl Scout program? By participating, you’ll make a difference and fulfill Girl Scout program requirements at the same time. Learn more.

The commendation reads:

This certificate is presented to the Girl Scouts of Minnesota and Wisconsin River Valleys in recognition of 100 years of service and commitment to community. Their commitment will lower phosphorus level in Minnesota’s rivers and lakes, making Minnesota a better place to live and work.

Therefore, with the appreciation and respect of the people of Minnesota, this certificate is presented in recognition of the Girl Scout 2012 Take Action: Centennial Day of Service.

Thank you Governor Dayton for recognizing Girl Scouts River Valleys!

Register now to join your sister Girl Scouts on October 13 during Centennial Day of Service. While you take action to make the world a better place, you could win a trip for 12 to Waterpark of America. The overnight trip includes:

• A slumber party for 12 at the Radisson Bloomington Hotel
• Passes to the Water Park of America
• 100 arcade tokens

The registration deadline is today—Friday, October 5.

Centennial Day of Service cleanups and celebrations will take place across our entire region. Check them out on the Centennial Day of Service map.

It’s Easy to Sign Up

All you have to do is call River Valleys at 800-845-0787 or 651-227-8835 Monday-Friday, 8:30 am – 5 pm, and we’ll handle the rest.

The largest take action project in River Valleys history, Centennial Day of Service will be a historic event. Girl Scouts, volunteers and alumnae from all over the council will participate by:

• removing grass and leaves from public spaces
• distributing door hangers to educate the public
• marking storm drains to warn citizens against dumping debris in them

You Did It! Let’s Celebrate.

After the hard work is done, join Girl Scouts in your community to relax and celebrate. Check out our map and find a Centennial Day of Service celebration near you.

With your participation and support on October 13, Girl Scouts will make a real difference to the environment by keeping local waterways clear, and fish and aquatic wildlife healthy.

Registration officially closes on October 5, so take action now by calling 800-845-0787 or sign up online. Enjoy an October day outside and do something big!

Have you heard about Sunny, the Sunfish? Take a photo of her in a place you love, and add it to our Facebook wall.

The weather was gorgeous, and volunteers helped lead hundreds of Girl Scouts in water quality activities, one of four steps required to earn the Centennial Day of Service Patch. Girls participated in several activities including learning about water careers, making a water filter, and pledging to fight against pollution to make a difference in their communities.

Each site offered something unique: Girls could go on a hayride, pick apples, explore a corn maze or pumpkin patch, and even make their own scarecrows.

Thank you to all of the volunteers and everyone who came out and showed their support for the upcoming Centennial Day of Service. Be sure to register and take action with the Girl Scouts on October 13!

1. This is the last opportunity that girls and volunteers will have to participate in the Girl Scouts’ Centennial celebration. This historic event will not happen again in our lifetimes.
2. This is a rare chance to hang out with girls and volunteers from all across the council. All 49 counties in River Valleys will be participating.
3. Participating on October 13 is one of the steps to earning your Leaf Rocker patch. (See full Centennial Day of Service patch requirements.)
4. You’ll make a real difference to the environment by keeping local waterways clear, and fish and aquatic wildlife healthy.
5. You’ll help your local community and communities throughout River Valleys save millions of dollars in clean-up costs.

With the support and participation of our Girl Scouts, alumnae and volunteers, Centennial Day of Service will demonstrate the true impact of what Girl Scouts can do. Are you ready to join us and make the world a better place? Take action and sign up now.