Meet GSSJC Board MemberCarmen Orta
“I’m so impressed with what the girls have
done”
by Tami De La Fuente |
More About Carmen
What is your favorite Girl Scout Cookie? Shortbread.
What is your favorite saying? “My father
always used to say, be honest. You can’t buy honesty.
Do what you say you’re going to do. This is something
I’ve passed on to my sons as well.”
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A native Houstonian, and the youngest
of nine children, Carmen Orta always wanted to be a
Girl Scout, but never had the opportunity. “It
always seemed the Girl Scouts got to do so much, and
go so many places around the city. Although I was not
a Girl Scout, my dad, who owned a furniture store and
a neighborhood grocery store, instilled many of the
same values of Girl Scouting in me.”
A proud graduate of St. Agnes Academy, Carmen is known
to say often that ‘business is in my blood.’
She will celebrate 20 years in business in 2005; the
family-owned telecommunications firm American Communication
Services, Inc. has been a labor of love for Carmen.
Carmen also loves hearing about the community service
projects Girl Scouts have completed and the leadership
they learn to employ at home, at school, and with friends.
“When I hear some of the stories of our own Girl
Scouts at the board meetings, it makes me proud. I’m
so impressed with what the girls have done.”
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When asked about barriers to participation in Girl
Scouting for Hispanic girls, Carmen shared that GSSJC
is on the right road to removing these roadblocks in
Houston’s fastest growing ethnic community. “I
think our outreach programs prove that we are willing
to pay more than just lip service to the tagline, Girl
Scouting is for every girl, everywhere.” Carmen
salutes GSSJC for programs like Latinas Taking the Lead
and feels there should be more cultivation of young
women who can serve as ambassadors in the city’s
South American and Mexican neighborhoods.
A proud mother of three sons, Carmen and her husband
Roy will celebrate 37 years in marriage in October of
this year. While she waits patiently for grandchildren,
and hopefully a future Girl Scout, Carmen enjoys reading,
listening to music and volunteering with other youth
and family-serving agencies like La Rosa and De Madres
a Madres. She has recently been named to the METRO Board
of Directors and also sits on the board for the Association
for the Advancement of Mexican Americans’ Community
Development Corporation. |
MDC 2004 is heading north! |
| Mark
your calendar for Friday, July 23 and Saturday,
July 24 and plan now to attend Membership
Development Conference 2004!
This year’s
annual adult event will be held at The Woodlands
Waterway Marriott Hotel.
See the CIN
for more details and updates.
www.gssjc.org |
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Girl Scouts among testers of SWAP game
 Patch
Products and their Promotions Manager Frank Beres made
it possible for many GSSJC troop leaders to pick up
a SWAP game for their troops at the fall service unit
meetings. Peggy Brown, Patch’s vice president
of Product Development and in-house game inventor invented
Swap. Peggy was a Brownie and Junior and her mother
served as a leader during part of that time.
Brown said, “I invented this
game, because I figured just about everybody likes a
fast and silly card game. I wanted to make a game that
kids and grown-ups could play together and it would
be equally fun for everybody.”
She added, “We did a sample
program to introduce Swap to people. The Girl Scouts
have been great in helping us spread the word about
how fun it is to play Swap! When groups of people play
a game and like it, they tell their families and friends.
Those people buy it, play it, like it, and tell more
people. Soon, everybody knows about Swap and it becomes
the next game craze!”
Membership managers distributed
the games in the fall. Additional games were made available
to girls participating in selected program events. Patch
Products is already laying the groundwork for the 2004
edition of the Million Minute Family Challenge beginning
in September. In the meantime, if you have any questions
or suggestions, contact Patch Products at 800-524-4263,
millionminute@patchproducts.com, or visit
www.patchproducts.com to learn more about great
family games and toys.
Swap games are available for purchase
at local retail outlets.
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