Girl Scouts of Kentucky’s Wilderness Road (GSKWR) has named Meghan Sandfoss and Rhonda Ritzi as Co-Chairs for the volunteer giving phase of the “Challenge A Girl to Change Our World” campaign.
The capital campaign will fund the creation of a state-of-the-art Leadership Campus on an 11-acre Erlanger site that will provide Northern Kentucky girls their best opportunities to become future leaders. This phase of the campaign seeks support from over 2,400 Girl Scout volunteers throughout a 66-county service area throughout Kentucky, as well as past volunteers.
Sandfoss, a resident of Covington, and Ritzi, of Crescent Springs, will champion the effort to help fund the project, through volunteer recruitment and involvement, awareness generation and a call to action for support by volunteers. Both women have been heavily involved in the Kentucky Girl Scouts program and share a passion for the positive impact it has on girls and young women.
Meghan Sandfoss and Rhonda Ritzi (Photos from GSKWR)
Sandfoss is the executive director in the Office of Broadband Development for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. She has held positions with the Northern Kentucky Area Development where she was an Associate Director of Community Planning and Community Development Planner. Sandfoss brings a deep knowledge of regional community and economic development, public policy and compliance, as well as a keen interest in the future welfare of Kentucky. She has been a Girl Scout Troop Leader for eight years and is the recipient of the Volunteer of Excellence Award for outstanding service to the Girl Scout Leadership Experience.
Ritzi is the recreation programs coordinator at Kenton County Parks and Recreation. For the past six years, she has planned and implemented high-quality, diverse recreational programs, while enhancing the community by building partnerships throughout Northern Kentucky. Ritzi’s passion for recreation can be traced back to Girl Scouts, having over 30 years of experience in outdoor programming, membership recruitment, leadership training and project management. She is also a board member of the Kenton Conservancy and the Northern Kentucky Urban and Community Forestry Council and chair of Reforest NKY. Ritziis a lifetime member of the Girl Scouts, and is a recipient of the Gold Award, the highest achievement from the Girl Scouts of the USA.
The GSKWR Northern Kentucky Leadership Campus will be developed in three phases. Phase One of the campaign seeks $2 million to build a Leadership Campus that will include a Command Center, Retail Center and Entrepreneurship Center. This phase will:
• Provide modern, accessible space for over 2,400 staff and volunteers to conduct training, planning and mentorship opportunities that are critical to supporting GSKWR operations
• Allow for additional Erlanger community engagement by providing access to space for events, team-building and corporate events once the Leadership Campus is complete
• Through the Entrepreneurship and Retail Centers, facilitate access to innovative experiences in leadership, STEM, and health and wellness for girls, as well as allow for cookie entrepreneurs to work as teams to accomplish goals
• Increase the number of volunteers by nearly 60% by 2024 and the number of Northern Kentucky Girl Scout members by 52%
To date, GSKWR has raised $836,000 towards this goal of $2 million. A billboard will soon be erected on the site facing 1-75 to help raise awareness and promote the benefits of the GSKWR Leadership Campus to the Northern Kentucky community.
The Girl Scouts of Kentucky Wilderness Road seek the participation and support of all community members to help provide this valuable asset to the future the girls of Kentucky. For more details about the Challenge A Girl to Change Our World campaign, or to contribute, please visit www.gskentucky.org or contact Capital Campaign Director, Deidra Fajack at 513-325-3211,or dfajack@gswrc.org
Kentucky’s Girl Scouts of Kentucky Wilderness Road
