Fund Development

An announcement from Robin Rabbit

Capital improvements to my home, Camp Robinwood, have been placed on hold temporarily. We want to keep you informed on the status of the Celebrate Camp Robinwood Troop Campaign, as well as another outstanding addition to the overall Invest in a Better Future Capital and Endowment Campaign.

Recent developments near Camp Robinwood

Recently, we learned that there are plans to develop the land immediately surrounding Camp Robinwood. Because of these developments, it is prudent for us to place any further capital improvements at the camp on hold for the next six months. This gives the Properties Committee a chance to review our plans in light of this new information. Meanwhile, we will continue to maintain the camp to our high standards while we monitor this development.
In addition, one of our neighbors at Camp Robinwood is a raceway and the noise from that facility continues to be a concern. We are monitoring this to assure that the raceway continues to comply with the rules and regulations associated with racing and with their agreement with us to cut off racing on weekends by 11 p.m.

What about the troop donations to Camp Robinwood?

Troop Campaign donors were asked to attend a special meeting held September 24 right after the fall Council meeting to consider this issue. Results will come to you in a subsequent issue of The Golden Link and on the Council Information Network (CIN). However, the troop campaign is not ending. The focus of the troop campaign and money raised will be redirected to another capital project.

The overall Invest in a Better Future Capital and Endowment Campaign, of which Celebrate Camp Robinwood Troop Campaign is a part, calls for funding to upgrade facilities at five Girl Scout camps: Camp Casa Mare in Seabrook; Camps Agnes Arnold, Misty Meadows, and Silver Springs, near Conroe; and Camp Whispering Pines, near Garrison. Earlier this year, a new component was added to the capital campaign: the acquisition and renovation of a new Program Place for Girls.

What is the Program Place?

The Program Place, adjacent to our current Houston headquarters, will create a unified campus for Girl Scouts that is large enough to accommodate many years of membership expansion. Our current headquarters at 3110 Southwest Freeway will be retained as the Council’s administrative center, so the Program Place remains completely “girl-centric.”

The Program Place will be a space designed just for girls, inside and out. This past spring, we conducted focus groups with Girl Scouts to find out their dreams for a new program center. The resulting design is warm, friendly, and welcoming to girls of all ages. Bright colors, modern lines, and interesting textures will give the Program Place a feeling of magic and spark girls’ imaginations. With several program areas, a café, stage, park space, pavilion museum, and the Girl Scout shop, our new campus will be a place where today’s Girl Scouts can learn about the past and enjoy programs that prepare them for a bright future. Its central location in the heart of Houston will also attract girls and families who are not currently Girl Scouts.

What’s Next?

If you haven’t already been notified by mail, you will shortly receive information about the outcome of the special called meeting held after the Fall Council meeting on September 24 for donors to the Robinwood Troop Campaign.

If you have any questions in the meantime, you may contact Mary Vitek at 713-292-0256 or mvitek@sjgs.org or our Capital and Endowment Campaign Director Marianita Paddock at 713-292-0207 or mpaddock@sjgs.org.