Then
Girl Scout in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and Tucson, Arizona
Now
Special Staff Assistant to Pima County Attorney
Pima County Attorney’s Office
On Leadership
Leadership is the ability to inspire and enthuse, motivate and encourage, instill confidence, and guide and provide direction. A leader listens, creates a safe place for others to express themselves, provides decision making opportunities, and helps others realize their full potential. A leader leads by example and is not afraid to take risks by standing up and speaking out for what she believes in.
My Story
Being a Girl Scout – holding life-long Girl Scout values – prepared me for what I am and do today. Through my adult Girl Scout experiences, many doors opened to me because of my varied leadership experiences as an active adult Girl Scout.
Because I wanted to replicate the positive Girl Scouting experiences from my youth for my three daughters, I became a GS volunteer. Being a troop leader was followed by being a service unit director and then a Leadership Trainer. I participated with troops in the Council activities and programs, being especially inspired by the work of the Senior and Ambassador Girl Scouts; and worked with other leaders, volunteer administrators, and the staff. When I decided to enter the workforce after a 15 year hiatus, I was hired by the Sahuaro Girl Scout Council, ultimately organizing, directing, and administrating the cookie sale for the Southern Arizona.
It was during this time frame, and directly because I was a Girl Scout that I was appointed to a newly formed Tucson Environmental Council. Additionally, I was appointed to the Tucson/Pima Arts Council’s Cultural Heritage Committee at the recommendation of a Girl Scout staff member.
Both of these appointments, all because of my Girl Scout affiliation, afforded me many, many leadership opportunities and contacts throughout Tucson. As a member of the Cultural Heritage Committee, I was selected as one of the directors of the Storytelling Festival that I helped create and direct for 3 consecutive years that also provided opportunities for Girl Scout badge participation. I was elected chair of Tucson Environmental Council – because I was a Girl Scout and it was suggested, somewhat humorously, that I would be “fair.” That appointment eventually led to my hiring as a Ward 2 Council Aide which led to my appointment to my current position as a Special Staff Assistant to the Pima County Attorney Barbara LaWall.
Now more than ever, women and girls have a more equal role in society and must take advantage of opportunities for leadership roles.
Advice for girls
As I was re-reading the Girl Scout Law and Promise, I realized that they are basically the same principles that guide me today. I do believe honesty, fairness, responsibility and courageousness; respect for our environment, ourselves and others; and making our world a better place are at the core of a good leader.
We can all be leaders whether it is within our families, at school, in the workplace, or in our communities. Being a leader is a life-long learning experience and being prepared is the first step. Discovering what you love to do and getting an academic education, training, and building your skills in those areas are important as you need to be prepared for what life presents to you. Each day is filled with many of opportunities and your life will be determined by the choices you are able to make because of your preparation. You must also be responsible for those choices.
Inspiration
It doesn’t really matter what we expect from life, but rather what life expects from us. – Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning