Membership Staff
Vice President - Membership
Carolyn Johnson

Directors
Gladys Birdwell
Sandee Williams

Team Leaders
Kathy Denton
Tracy Gillin
Deepa Seetepalli
Karyn Smith
Pam Soles
Nina Williams
Sue Zingleman

Membership Managers
Alex DeReinzi
Stephanie Finleon
Lynn Flournoy
Dawn Francis
Gina Galloway
Cecilia Garcia
Gloria Gracia Johnson
Milly Garzon
JoAnna Harris
Sheila Hauser
Laura Hernadez
Selina Howard
Sandra Johnson
Elizabeth Leas
Alicia McWilliams
Parina Paripoonnanonda
Wendy Rea
Juana Rhoden
Donna Robinson
Maria Roldan
Abby Sibley
Jamie Stiyer
Theresa Thomas
Celia Valles
Purvi Zaver

Cate Teague, Administrative Assistant
Linda Pharris, Departmental Assistant
Jean Rhoden, Secretary

713-292-0300

Striving for Greatness Year After Year
by Kathy Denton

     “Good is the enemy of great,” observes Jim Collins in his book Good to Great.“It is just so easy to settle for good.” Every June, service units experience a rebirth of sorts. Although still in one membership year, it is time to prepare for the next. And how a service unit prepares for its rebirth each year will certainly contribute to the success, or lack of success, of that year. True, it takes a lot of work and commitment to develop a good service unit culture. How much more effort would it take to create a great service unit culture? Maybe not as much as one might think. With eyes and hearts continually focused on the girls, the goal for each service unit is and always will be one of greatness.
     On June 1 each year, some service units greet brand new administrators, while others welcome back old friends, midway though their two-year term. The prospect for greatness lies within both. A positive attitude from the incoming management team is an important ingredient in getting off to a good start! New appointees who are filled with hope and enthusiasm, look forward to the possibilities ahead. Returning administrators, with gainful experience and wisdom, are excited and determined to make the new year even better than the last!
     Trainings, trainings, and more trainings! The summer months at San Jacinto Council offer a myriad of support and skill-building opportunities to help build a strong foundation for the new membership year. Valuable and necessary trainings follow right on the heels of the selection of service unit administrators. Ready, Set, and Go is a must for new administrators, as it helps prepare them for their new responsibilities. Beyond Ready, Set, and Go is just as valuable in offering updates and enhancing the skills for administrators with at least one year of experience under their belts. And since recruitment of girls and adults into the Girl Scouting experience is everybody’s job, a variety of recruitment trainings is available throughout the summer, including at FOCUS. Tools for Success is a required training for administrators and Membership Recruitment Coordinators (MRCs) alike. Leaders, also, can take advantage of summer trainings. Level “train-ins” prepare and enrich leaders for the upcoming year. Check The Golden Link and CIN for all training schedules.
     With the selection of a strong, trained service team (those important positions, such as registrar, treasurer, ELF, recruitment team, BLT facilitator, product sales manager, etc. that help make a service unit tick), the benefits to the service unit vastly increase. Each position has its own specialized training offered during the summer. These trainings can also be found in the Link and on the CIN. Reminder: service team rosters (F-35) are submitted to the Membership Manager.
     One of the first duties of the administrators and service team, with the advisement of the membership manager, is to prepare the service unit plan of work and proposed budget (F-450) for the upcoming membership year. The plan of work is a vision created on paper of what the upcoming year may look like. Recruitment efforts, BLT and other trainings, meetings, girl programming, service projects, product sales and other fundraisers are discussed on this occasion. The Administrative Guide is used to capture the upcoming year in calendar form. Some service units use their last meeting of the year to discuss the next year’s events with all of the volunteers, attempting to recruit service team members and committee chairs for future events. End-of-year leader evaluations are helpful tools in this process. The plan of work and proposed budget are completed by August 1.
     A visit to the Membership Development Conference this year can give the service unit management team just the boost it needs to get the new year started with a bang! Held the last weekend in July, MDC formally ushers in the new membership year. Participants can take workshops, listen to speakers, network with other adult Girl Scouts, and visit departmental booths to update themselves on all that Council has to offer. Since this year marks the 14th and last MDC, it will be a final opportunity to take advantage of this huge, fun Council-wide pep rally! Volunteers leave MDC excited and energized, eager to secure dates and locations for fall recruitment activities.
     The journey from a good to a great service unit can be a long one or it can be just a short distance away. The transformation from good-ness to greatness may be easy or it may take a lot of work on everyone’s part. Who knows, unless there’s an effort? Attitudes may need some polishing. Blurred visions may need some correcting. The team may need some coaching. The race to greatness needs to be about winning. So, get on your mark, get set, GO!