Dare
to Care
The Council Recognition Event in April acknowledged
some very special volunteers for their many years in Girl Scouting...25,
30, 40, 50, 60 years! Whether you are returning after one year as
a Girl Scout volunteer or after 25+ years as a Girl Scout, you are
saying yes to a movement that inspires confidence, character, courage
and connections in girls and women of all ages. There is no more
noble a deed than to guide a young person into adulthood, and San
Jacinto Council is blessed with 14,000 such noble individuals. So,
sit back and enjoy the words of our volunteers, some long-time,
some rather new, as they reflect on why Girl Scouting is such a
powerful part of their lives. Their sentiments will reveal that,
for many, the relationship between volunteer and the Girl Scout
Movement becomes a love story. So much so that, as one writer describes
it, they “probably bleed green!”
When I first got involved in Girl Scouts as an
adult, 14 years ago, it was because my daughter was in the program.
I wanted to make sure that she had a good leader and would be
safe. I came in as a co-leader of a troop and ended up becoming
leader. I stayed with these girls until they graduated from
high school and enjoyed being a part of their lives and feeling
like I was offering them opportunities that they might not have
had outside of Girl Scouting. The girls and their families became
like family to me. As I got more involved at levels other than
the troop level, I started making lots of adult friends. Girl
Scouts also became a part of my social life. I have made some
friends that I think that I will have for a lifetime. My only
daughter is now successfully attending college. We are now both
lifetime members of Girl Scouts. I want to help other adults
be successful with their troops and think I can accomplish this
by being a Council trainer, serving as an ASUM in my service
unit, helping out at camps, serving on Council Cookie Committee,
and supporting troops in any other way that I can. Girl Scouts
also gave me a new hobby: geocaching, learned at an adult training
event. My husband was intrigued by it too. We bought a GPS (Global
Positioning System) and started our “treasure” hunting.
In June we participated in the Magellan “Be There”
Geocaching contest in Houston and won first place!
– Kathy Roby
I have encouraged my
daughter Samantha to continue in Girl Scouts because I
want her to experience the Girl Scouting experience beyond
the point when I stopped as a sixth grade Junior. I appreciate
the opportunities that Girl Scouts provides with its special
interest programs such as sailing, photography, singing,
and dancing.
I am fortunate as one of the several Green Starlettes
directors to work closely with intelligent, organized,
and caring women.
–Katherine Whitbeck |
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Going through the troop
process with my daughters, I saw the impact that Girl
Scout leaders have on shaping and influencing young girls
to try new things and think outside of the box. Now, as
a trainer for the outdoors, I can teach skills to adults
who then pass them on to girls. Through the adults, I
can touch many more young lives than if I had a troop
on my own. I believe that the family unit many times breaks
down due to divorce, death of a parent or other events
now facing families. Girl Scouting offers a way for young
girls to learn social skills and other values that sometimes
are not learned in their home situation. Girls need positive
adult role models. Girl Scouting may be the only positive
thing in their lives. I have been in so long that I probably
bleed green!
–Brenda S. Martin |
In 1983, I was a Brownie and Girl Scouting was an integral part
of my third grade lifestyle! Girl Scouting made me feel good.
Things at home were not the way mom would have liked them to
be (mom went through a divorce and she was working two jobs
to keep the lights on). All that aside, I have wonderful memories
and Girl Scouting was a part of it. I fondly remember my fearless
leader Miss Sherry and my co-leader Miss Debbie. We had our
meetings at the clubhouse in Carriage Lane and sometimes we
would have to meet at Miss Sherry’s house. I remember
Miss Debbie’s huge, air condition-less station wagon that
we all rode in to go to Sea World. My friend Erin got really
sick in the station wagon on the way home – it sounded
like a coke can exploding! Ahh, the memories. When I was asked
to co-lead a Girl Scout troop my reaction was,“Holy cow!!
That would be loads of fun!!” But I didn’t think
there was any way that I would qualify for any leadership position.
I didn’t finish Girl Scouts as a kid (much less know anything
about leading a troop). I might mess the whole thing up! I’m
craft impaired and I |
don’t know the first thing about building a campfire.
Oh, and there’s one major hang up: I don’t have
any kids!! I love kids and I love being around them but I’m
not a licensed teacher or a “real” parent. Plus,
I don’t have time for leading. But when I decided to give
it a shot all those excuses were extinguished. The extensive
background check done by Council reassured the parents, and
me, that I was trustworthy to be around their kids. The training
Council offers to new leaders was adequate enough for preparing
anyone (yes, anyone) for the Girl Scouting experience. I controlled
how much time I gave to the cause and I was off with a troop
of Junior Girl Scouts. Leading the troop became more fun the
more extracurricular adult activities I attended. What?? Yes.
There is an underground sub-culture to Girl Scouting as we know
it and it’s called adult Girl Scouting!! Weekend workshops
are fun opportunities for fellowship, learning and sharing experiences
with other adult Girl Scouts. Then why lead a troop if you don’t
have any kids? It’s not for the pay or the recognition,
but it’s just good-old fashion fun I guess. Picture this,
take a group of today’s girls to camp. No TV, no radio,
no computer, no cell phones and no parents. Scary? Absolutely
not. The raw creativity that comes out of the girls is absolutely
amazing. I got to know the girls so well over the years they
practically became my own. There were a lot of changes the girls
went through over the years (new schools, different schools,
new activities, etc...). One thing remained constant in their
lives: our troop. The girls are in high school now. When the
young ladies (Kristina, Kaitlyn, Ashlee, Tiffany, Brandi, Bonnie,
Brittany, Taylor, Misty, Amber, and Abra) are my age they’ll
have some good memories to look back upon. As an adult there’s
a feeling that “gets ya” when you share wholesome
activities with an impressionable child or teenager. What reason
does someone have for not being involved in Girl Scouting?
–Brandy Goodson-Gustafson |
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