Irish Girl Guides invite the public to join their 110th birthday celebration!

– Irish Girl Guides celebrate 110 years of youth work empowering girls and women –

Dublin, 20/07/2021 – Members of Irish Girl Guides (IGG) are looking forward to celebrating 110 years of youth work empowering girls and women.

They would love former Girl Guides and members of the public to join the celebration by watching their YouTube channel – www.youtube/irishgirlguides – on Saturday 31 July at 7.30pm where the birthday bash will be livestreamed.

The celebration will take place during the organisation’s first ever online international camp, Octagon, which will see over 1,000 Girl Guides from 10 countries take part in activities related to the Sustainable Development Goals and Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Maths.

The celebration will include the premiere of a film made by Createschool in partnership with Newbridge Senior Branch Unit (Senior Branch is the Irish Girl Guides’ branch for 14-30 year olds) and the IGG Archives. The film includes footage from the early days of Guiding in Ireland and other relevant material from the National Archives of Ireland and looks at how the organisation has evolved over the years and continually adapted to remain relevant to each emerging generation.

Octagon Camp Chief Helen Concannon, who is involved in organising the birthday celebration, says, “We are hugely grateful to the National Youth Council of Ireland’s Artist in Residence Grant Scheme, the Arts Council of Ireland and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) for making this film possible.

“The National Youth Council of Ireland’s STEAM in Youth Work is also supporting a baking session where all 1,000+ girls will use their skills to bake and decorate birthday cakes for Irish Girl Guides, with thanks to Science Foundation Ireland and DCEDIY.

“It is going to be a fun celebration during which we will reflect on the achievements of IGG and its members over the past 110 years.”

Irish Girl Guides welcomes new youth members from age 5+ and volunteer leaders from age 18+. No previous experience of Girl Guides is necessary. To find out more, see www.irishgirlguides.ie or telephone 01-6683898.

ENDS

Contact:

Fiona Murdoch, Communications Officer, Irish Girl Guides

Tel: 085 8570565

Email: communications@irishgirlguides.ie

Notes for editors:

Irish Girl Guides has approximately 11,000 members. Guiding started in Ireland in 1911 and operates throughout the 26 counties with 1,600 volunteer leaders providing an informal educational programme of fun and challenging activities that foster confidence and leadership skills in girls and young women, enabling them to develop to their full potential and to become responsible citizens. Girls from age 5+ can choose to earn a wide range of badges, including Community Action, Climate Action, Cultural Diversity, Disability Awareness, Drug Awareness, Engineering, Europe, Science Investigator, STEM and Global Traveller.  www.irishgirlguides.ie