My Leader is Special Because...

Girl Scout leaders are the unsung heroes of the Girl Scout movement!  They work tirelessly to make sure our girls are learning, growing and, most of all, having fun as a Girl Scout!  Each year around the nation we celebrate these amazing women (and men) on April 22, the official Girl Scout Leader Appreciation day.  This year we polled girls to find out what they think is special about their leader.  Below you will find some of their answers.  As you can see their reasons are can be silly, fun, and heartwarming.  The common thread is that the girls recognize that the leader is the person that makes the experience one that they will remember!  Thank you, troop leaders for all you do! 

My Leader is special because…

(About a college student that is their leader)

…She has endless patience. – GS Junior

…She has good style! – GS Junior

…She is really really beautiful! – GS Junior

…She is funny and cool! – GS Brownie

…She works very hard to help all of us! – GS Junior

…She can take care of us. – GS Junior

…She is awesome and fun. – GS Brownie

(About a Troop leader/Cookie mom)

…She works very hard and lets us do stuff at her house – GS Junior

…She can be very serious and fun! – GS Junior

…She knows how to get stuff done! – GS Cadette

…She is the best cookie mom ever – GS Junior

…She is funny and fun to hang around with and the BEST cookie mom ever! – GS Junior

…She is fun, funny and the BEST cookie mom ever because she is sooo encouraging and teaches us new things! – GS Cadette

(About a Troop leader/Treasurer)

…She is great and nice and funny.   – GS Brownie

…She makes really great animal impressions – GS Junior

…She has a funny personality and is also AWESOME! – GS Junior

…She is sooo kind! – GS Brownie

…She is really kind and sweet! – GS Junior

…She keeps track of our troop money and helps us know how to use it like budgets and plans and stuff. – GS Cadette

(About a Troop leader/Mentor)

…She is the one that keeps things going and teaches us so many wonderful things. I think we appreciate her more than she knows.  GS Cadette

…She puts in a lot of work, goes out of her way to help us and makes things fun and interesting.  - GS Junior 

…She is smart, kind and funny. - GS Junior

…Today is her birthday and she is here, she goes on every trip, and she is appreciated. - GS Junior

…She chose to be our troop leader and it takes a special person to lead a troop of girls. - GS Junior

…GS Junior says, "My leader is a great leader because she is fun and humble and knows a lot about Girl Scouts." Mom says: I think by modest she means more like humble because [the leader] was saying last night, "Don't write stuff about me on the board, just [about the other leaders]." 

Please take a minute today and often throughout the year to tell your Troop Leader why she is special to you.  It will make all the difference to her!! 

"Girl Scouting is a Part of Me" by Lisa Deweese

Throughout the month of November, we've been urging everyone who volunteers with GSCTX to Invite a Friend and get them involved with Girl Scouts. There are so many reasons and  girls waiting to embark on the adventure of a lifetime, but they need YOU to guide them. Here is the story of Lisa Deweese, who has seen the benefits of Girl Scouting and volunteering many times over. 

Read about how it has influenced her life positively.Then Invite a Friend to start a troop and embark on the most exciting ride of your lives together!

"Girl Scouting is a part of me.  I have been involved for 45+ years, including 11 as a girl.  My blood may be a bit green.  

Girl Scouting has given me opportunities I probably would have never been offered. It allowed me to take on leadership roles that stretched my comfort zones, both as a girl, as a leader, and also a trainer.  The confidence I developed in Girl Scouting carried over into my professional life, allowing me to tackle bigger projects and positions.

Volunteering as an adult allowed me to make many contacts in the community which I normally would not have made.  It allowed me to get involved in the various communities I lived in as I moved throughout my career.   I started out to "help pay back" the time given to me by the leaders I had growing up.  Once I got involved as an adult, it kept me excited about the future.  Since I didn't have children, it allowed a path for me to still be involved with girls and their schools as well.

Early in my career, volunteering with Girl Scouts was considered good community involvement.  It probably played a role in promotions throughout my career, and put me in position to assume other roles, such as being the local Campaign Coordinator for my agencies involvement in the United Way  and service with the Ladies Auxiliary of the VFW.  I always said that Girl Scouting showed me how to be "flexible and adaptable" and that there was always more than one way to complete a project or tackle a challenge." 

- Lisa Deweese

Central Bell Service Unit

Volunteer Spotlight: Volunteering Doesn't Just Benefit Girls

As Girl Scouts staff members we don’t always see the impact Girl Scouting has on an adult volunteer – at least not as it happens. So, I felt privileged to see this happening with one volunteer.  

She joined Girl Scouts to help with her daughter’s troop, but wasn't sure she was quite up for the challenge of taking on the role of leader.  She is an introvert by nature; could hardly talk to other adults sometimes.  However, she understood the importance of her responsibilities  and took them on in order to become a better leader. 

She attended the council’s leadership training, sat in the back, and took it all in.  During a break, several experienced volunteers were talking and joking with the staff members that were there.  She stood on the other end of the porch – listening quietly.   When something funny was said, she would just smile, but she never quite joined in.

The next encounter with volunteers and staff members, she continued learning.  However, this time during the break she took a position a little closer to the action.  It took her four or five training sessions and a couple of years, but now she had mustered up enough courage to walk her way across that porch!  She began to talk and to share with others. 

Eventually, she joined the Service Unit team. Then, she undertook the role of a volunteer trainer.  She went on to became a Master Trainer and then a member of the council’s staff.  She insisted on working for free and had to be persuaded to take a paycheck.

Today, she is a lifetime Girl Scout and has worked for two councils for approximately ten years!

Sometimes, we forget that Girl Scouting can make a huge impact on adults as well!  We assume that all adult volunteers just have “what it takes.”  They do have the drive and the understanding that what they do is crucial, but there is also a lot of growth to take place when adults are in the picture.  

I know that Girl Scouting has impacted my life in a way that few people would realize. 

Let this be a reminder to slow down and spend time with volunteers!  You may be surprised at what you learn.  By all means, don’t be too quick to judge that shy lady in the back; she may surprise you!

-Lana Turner