Service Unit Team Bios

Current position(s) (including number of years in each position if possible): 

Service Unit 643 leadership team volunteer: 6 years; service unit cookie program advisor and manager: 6 years; troop leader: 4-6 years; troop volunteer in troop 60641: 3 years; Daisy program level mentor: 1 year; Daisy troop leader: 1 year; fall camporee coordinator: 4 years; school rep: 3+ years 

Area(s) of impact:

Drea makes a positive impact wherever has the good fortune of her assistance and collaboration, and this is especially so within service unit 643 (northeast San Jose and Milpitas).

How she/he delivered outstanding service that made an impact: 

Drea has committed many years of service to service unit 643 and especially within the realm of facilitating our Older Girl-led Camporee for the past four years. Drea makes a big difference in several different ways in SU643.

Drea first became involved in Girl Scouts and the service unit when her eldest daughter, a rising 10th grader, was a Daisy; Drea was a co-troop leader.

Fast forward 11 years, and Drea has done so much for so many Girl Scout youth and adult volunteers within service unit 643.

Drea has served as the service unit cookie program advisor and has worked closely with all our troop leaders in 643, as well as the council’s entrepreneurial program staff, to lower the barrier to entry to the cookie program for all interested youth in 643. Drea has answered so many girls’ and adults’ questions about the cookie program over the years, and everyone knows that we can count on her to answer, or find the answer to, all of our vexing cookie program questions. She has also been a cookie point-person for troops when they had specific questions about ebudde or ABC Smart Cookie and has served as a cookie program subject matter expert as needed.

Perhaps most relevant to the Outdoor Trailblazer Award though, for the past four years, Drea has also served our 643 community as an Older Girl (OG) Camporee adult co-leader, responsible for interviewing, selecting, training, mentoring, and assisting OGs as they organize, plan, and execute a weekend-long Camporee for 150-250 Girl Scouts. As an OG Camporee adult, Drea has worked hard to equip and empower our OGs to really “own” their leadership experience related to putting together a large-scale weekend-long Camporee event, and her guidance has helped lead to our SU selling out all of our available Camporee slots for the past three years. She is a thoughtful, kind, and considerate Girl Scout adult volunteer, and her leadership reflects her values.

The first year our SU hosted an OG-led Camporee, we had just four-five OGs leading the event. The following year, we had a few more, maybe 10-12 total. Last year, we swelled to nearly 20 OGs who applied for and led the Camporee planning process, and this year, we are back to 11-12 OGs. Our SU has deliberately chosen to keep in place the OG-led Camporee model because it’s a strategic way for us to retain Older Girls in Girl Scouts throughout their middle school and high school years. Drea plays a huge role in this process because through her leadership, she mentors the OGs throughout their Camporee event planning process so that they, in turn, can mentor and empower the Girl Scout campers during the event weekend. For many of our Camporee Girl Scout attendees, Camporee is one of, if not the only, time they camp with their troop (/family), and Drea has helped stress this to our Camporee OGs, insisting that everything we do and offer at Camporee is accessible to all and that by attending Camporee, campers will want to stick around and become Camporee OGs, themselves, when they are older. This is such a huge part of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, and Drea helps ensure that this happens year after year.

Drea's camp name is Cricut, in part because she is a queen with her Cricut. Part of becoming an OG is that you 'earn' your camp sweater, and each year, Drea creates Camporee hoodies (and sometimes t-shirts) for Camporee OGs. If you have been an OG before, she updates the sleeve to reflect all the Camporees the OG has hosted. This, too, is a strategic and creative way that Drea has helped our service unit retain as many older Girl Scouts as possible year after year -- because the girls want to become OGs and get the enviable hoodie!

One last thing – in addition to all the aforementioned leadership roles within 643 and our OG-led Camporee, most recently Drea has taken on a Daisy troop for 25-26 as a co-leader, alongside her daughter (a rising 10th grader) and Ruth Corsaro, another incredible SU643 volunteer and her rising 11th grader. Drea’s youngest daughter, a rising kindergarten, has literally grown up around Girl Scouts and has been begging to be part of it her whole life. We think it’s incredible that Drea is going to afford her youngest daughter all the same, amazing experiences she afforded her elder daughter. Once Drea’s and Ruth’s high school-aged daughters graduate out of Girl Scouts – when the Daisy troop bridges to Brownies – Drea’s and Ruth’s daughters will take over the reins and lead the Brownies for subsequent years. We love this full-circle, mother-daughter “co-op” leadership experience.

Drea’s selfless generosity to Girl Scouts is remarkable, and we in service unit 643 are so lucky for her leadership and giving spirit. 

Council and national award list:

• Appreciation Pin: For outstanding service to at least one community. 

• Outdoor Trailblazer Award (nominated): For providing outdoor experiences for girls. 

• President’s Award: Recognizes a service unit team or group who surpasses team goals to result in a significant, measurable impact toward reaching the council’s overall goals.

Written by Erin Garvey in June 2025.

Current position(s) (including number of years in each position if possible): 

• Troop leader 61049: 10 years; 

• Troop leader 60214: 5 years; 

• Service unit 643 leader support manager or advisor: 6 years; 

• Older Girl (OG) Camporee planning committee adult leader/co-director: 4 years; 

• Kamp Konocti volunteer-run camp staff: 4 years; 

• SU 643 treasurer: 4-5 years

Area(s) of impact:

Erin makes a positive impact wherever has the good fortune of her assistance and collaboration, and this is especially so within service unit 643 (northeast San Jose and Milpitas), where we both serve together.  

How she/he delivered outstanding service that made an impact: 

Erin has committed many years of service to service unit 643 and especially within the realm of facilitating our Older Girl-led Camporee for the past four years. She makes a big difference in several different ways in SU643, and I will try to briefly describe all of them below. 

Erin is the hardest working volunteer in our Service Unit team. She is our rock, our base support, governing the interworking and volunteering of our service unit team. We would say she is the heart of our service unit, leading monthly meetings, scheduling events, reminding us of upcoming activities and events, and providing support when needed. She was our Leader Support Manager and now Service Unit Advisor. Not only is she a role model to our adult leaders and volunteers, she has made so many impacts on the lives of our girl scouts. She has been a troop leader for two separate troops: Troops 60214 (starting as a daisy troop; now a junior troop, a 5 year span) and 61049 (starting as a daisy troop now a cadette troop, a ten year span). Countless times she organized event and activity learning for all girls in the service units, not just her own troops.  More or less twenty eight troops in our service unit have benefited from her vision,  passion and passion in the Girl Scouting Movements in the last ten years of her service.

Perhaps most relevant to the Outdoor Trailblazer Award though, for the past four years, Erin has also served our 643 community as an Older Girl (OG) Camporee adult co-leader, responsible for interviewing, selecting, training, mentoring, and assisting OGs as they organize, plan, and execute a weekend-long Camporee for 150-250 Girl Scouts. As an OG Camporee adult, Erin has worked hard to equip and empower our OGs to really “own” their leadership experience related to putting together a large-scale weekend-long Camporee event, and her guidance has helped lead to our SU selling out all of our available Camporee slots for the past three years. She is a thoughtful, kind, and considerate Girl Scout adult volunteer, and her leadership reflects her values. 

The first year our SU hosted an OG-led Camporee, we had just four-five OGs leading the event. The following year, we had a few more, maybe 10-12 total. Last year, we swelled to nearly 20 OGs who applied for and led the Camporee planning process, and this year, we are back to 11-12 OGs. Our SU has deliberately chosen to keep in place the OG-led Camporee model because it’s a strategic way for us to retain Older Girls in Girl Scouts throughout their middle school and high school years. Erin plays a huge role in this process because through her leadership, she mentors the OGs throughout their Camporee event planning process so that they, in turn, can mentor and empower the Girl Scout campers during the event weekend. For many of our Camporee Girl Scout attendees, Camporee is one of, if not the only, time they camp with their troop (/family), and Erin has helped stress this to our Camporee OGs, insisting that everything we do and offer at Camporee is accessible to all and that by attending Camporee, campers will want to stick around and become Camporee OGs, themselves, when they are older. This is such a huge part of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, and Erin helps ensure that this happens year after year. 

Many years ago, pre-pandemic, Erin connected our service unit to CheddarUp so our SU could collect online payments in a way that was secure and council-approved. As such, she is the SU's CheddarUp guru and is responsible for managing all the tedium of CU registrations for all the SU-sponsored events, including Camporee. Being in charge of registration and effectively communicating many, many details isn't really a “fun” job, but it's important for the success of the event. This is especially true for Camporee because it is one of the only events the SU offers where participants/troops can register for the event in multiple ways: Early bird weekend-long or Saturday-only camper versus Standard registration weekend-long or Saturday-only camper. It is easy to drown in the tedium and details, and each year, for each SU event, Erin figures out a way to make it all work.

Erin and the other Camporee adults (Ruth Corsaro, Jess Pallach, Drea Key) all contribute many, many layers of support to our older girl-led Camporee, much of it invisible and behind-the-scenes, such as schlepping all the supplies for the weekend in her van before camp begins or working with the other adults to launch a two-year Volunteer in Training (VIT) role for our most experienced and elder OGs. By working so closely with the OGs, Erin and the other OG adults help to mentor and empower the older girl scouts and assist them in getting as much as possible out of their leadership experience. Her contributions have helped our SU retain as many older girls as we have, in no small part because they want to stick around and become Camporee OGs, once they are old enough/qualified. 

Council and national award list:

• Appreciation Pin: For outstanding service to at least one community. 

• Chris Arkley Significant Impact Award: For continued outstanding service for 3 years after receiving the Appreciation Pin.  

• Phyllis Jones Amistad Award: For commitment to diversity and inclusion through significantly increasing the number of diverse Girl Scouts in a troop, service unit, outreach program, or camp over a period of time.

• President’s Award: Recognizes a service unit team or group who surpasses team goals to result in a significant, measurable impact toward reaching the council’s overall goals. 

Written by Erin Garvey and Maggie Nguyen in June 2025.

Current position(s) (including number of years in each position if possible): 

Service unit 643 volunteer: 10+ years; service unit 643 registrar: 2-3 years; service unit 643 cultural liaison: 2-3 years; service unit 643 secretary: 2-3 years; service unit 643 new leader mentor: 2 years; service unit delegate: 2-3 years; Discoveree planning committee member: 3 years; Vietnamese Scouting Association helper/leader: 5+ years 

Area(s) of impact:

Ha makes a positive impact wherever has the good fortune of her assistance and collaboration, and this is especially so within service unit 643 (northeast San Jose and Milpitas). 

How she/he delivered outstanding service that made an impact: 

Ha is a longtime Girl Scout volunteer within service unit 643 whose years of service predate virtually everyone on the current leadership team and nearly all current Girl Scout leaders in the service unit. Ha bleeds Girl Scout green, and her longtime commitment to Girl Scouts and to 643. Ha’s lifestyle reflects the values, inspiration, and living commitments of Girl Scouting.

Ha has held so many leadership roles at both the troop level and at the service unit level over the years, yet I will try the impossible task of describing and enumerating each one. For many years, she served as our service unit’s cultural liaison to help bridge and connect the multiple Vietnamese Girl Scout troops in the service unit with the other “American” troops. In this role, Ha shared information about the service unit goings-on, such as Camporee, recruitment events, journey-in-a-day programming, the Thanksgiving Service Project, and more, so that the Vietnamese troops would be able to participate. Historically, there was a bit of a rift between these two Girl Scout groups in the service unit, and Ha was helpful in trying to remedy the gap in recent history.

Additionally, Ha has helped the service unit leadership team in other ways as well, including being an event registrar (pre-2020) and being our service unit secretary. Ha always wants to be helpful and contribute meaningfully to Girl Scouts and to service unit 643, and we appreciate that we can count on her to help fill a need for us, wherever it may exist.

Moreover, even though Ha doesn’t have children of her own in Girl Scouts, she remains committed to the mission and values of the organization and has committed herself to continuous learning. Practically any time there is a council-sponsored training event, she is eager to participate, demonstrated by her attending the service unit leadership teams’ summit each August for the past three-four years.

Additionally, Ha is eager to assist and provide leadership in other ways as well, wherever there is a need, demonstrated by her multiple-year commitment to the volunteer-run and volunteer-organized Discoveree training event each January. For several years, she was also one of the service unit’s delegates to council, committed to providing representation on behalf of our active SU to the council as a whole.

Most recently, Ha has become our service unit new leader mentor and has offered to help onboard new troop leaders to the service unit so they can “hit the ground running” and jump right into service unit-organized programs, entrepreneurial opportunities, and calls for community service. She is committed to the Girl Scout troops’ success in service unit 643, and we appreciate her so much.

Finally, Ha has become a fixture within the Vietnamese Scouting Association within service unit 643. 643 is unique in that historically, many of our Girl Scout troops are Vietnamese troops that operate both in the “American” realm of Girl Scouts – participating in council-run opportunities like fall product and cookies, badge programs, service options, and the like – and in the Vietnamese Scouting world as well – conducting meetings in Vietnamese and teaching their scouts (both Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, since many troops have companion troops in GS/BS) about Vietnamese language and culture, for example. In the Vietnamese Scouting world in SU643, Ha often bridges the BS/GS bridge and serves in various leadership capacities accordingly across multiple troops, including, most recently, Troop 60703.

Ha is a revered elder within both the American and Vietnamese Girl Scouting realms in 643, and we are so fortunate she has continued her commitment to Girl Scouting for more than a decade. 

Council and national award list:

• Appreciation Pin: For outstanding service to at least one community. 

• Honor Pin: For outstanding service to two or more communities. 

• President’s Award: Recognizes a service unit team or group who surpasses team goals to result in a significant, measurable impact toward reaching the council’s overall goals. 

• Ruth Robertson Commitment to Excellence Award (nominated): For demonstrating long-term commitment to the Girl Scout organization through at least ten years of service. 

Written by Erin Garvey in June 2025.

Current position(s) (including number of years in each position if possible): 

Troop leader-12 years; outdoor adventure mentor - 5 years; cookie program prize support - 5 years; service unit helper (general) - 5 years; Kamp Konocti assistance CIT (counselor in training) director - 6 years 

Area(s) of impact:

Jessica makes a positive impact wherever has the good fortune of her assistance and collaboration, and this is especially so within service unit 643 (northeast San Jose and Milpitas) and within the Kamp Konocti (a volunteer-run resident camp in Marin County) communities. 

How she/he delivered outstanding service that made an impact: 

Jess has committed many years of service to Girl Scouts of Northern California, specifically within service unit 643 and the Kamp Konocti communities.

She has been a troop leader since her daughter was a kindergarten Daisy – her troop is currently 11th grade Ambassadors – and in that role, she has provided numerous opportunities for growth, learning, and memory-making for her girls, ranging from helping them earn various badges and patches, their Bronze Award as Juniors, and the Silver Award as Cadettes. She supports her girls’ vision for their Girl Scout troop and empowers them to make their choices and really “own” their troop experience.

In addition to her work as a troop leader, Jess has been an incredibly helpful volunteer on our service unit leadership team. Jess is the volunteer we all dream of having because she shows up, willing and ready to work, and isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty or jump right in to satisfy a need. Officially, she is 643’s “outdoor adventure mentor” to help get girls outside as much as possible, and in reality, she is a Jill of All Trades. Since 2021, Jess has served as one of the Camporee Older Girl (OG) adults and has been responsible for leading our OGs (Cadettes and higher) through the planning and executing process to put together a ~150-250 person Camporee for our entire service unit, ranging from Daisies (kindergartners) to Ambassadors (12th graders). More recently, she has played an instrumental role in bringing to reality the Volunteer in Training (VIT) role for some of our most experienced OG Camporee leaders, leading these OGs through a rigorous, two-year process to eventually earn their VIT prior to bridging to a Girl Scout adult at the end of high school. Besides leading our OGs on the Camporee committee, for more than five years, Jess has also graciously helped with our cookie program and has been the person responsible for organizing the Girl Scouts cookie incentives and disseminating them out to troop leaders each spring. She is always willing to help out wherever and however she can for service unit functions, such as showing up early or staying late at SU events to help with set-up and/or tear-down, organizing SU resources at Rainbow’s End so they are all more accessible to troop leaders, helping plan the logistics for a Thanksgiving service project for vulnerable families in our SU, assisting at recruitment events and journey-in-a-day events, and playing a significant role in our annual adult and youth recognition event each spring.

Finally, Jess also is an invaluable part of the Kamp Konocti admin team and community. For the past six years, she has been an Assistant Director for the CIT (counselor in training) program, working closely with high schoolers for nearly a year leading up to Kamp each July to help prepare them for organizing Kamp activities and working as kamp counselors to elementary through high school-aged youth. Her enthusiasm for kamp is contagious, and it’s because of her that so many Girl Scout youth and adult members from our service unit have joined the Kamp Konocti community and family each summer.

Jess bleeds Girl Scout green, and her service is commendable. We are so appreciative of all that she does, and we thank her for her unwavering service and commitment. 

Council and national award list:

• Appreciation Pin (nominated): For outstanding service to at least one community. 

• Outdoor Trailblazer Award: For providing outdoor experiences for girls.

Written by Erin Garvey in June 2025.

Current position(s) (including number of years in each position if possible): 

SU 643 volunteer: five-six years; troop 60964 volunteer: ~10 years; SU delegate: ~1-2 years; national delegate alternate: <1 year; Gold Award committee member: ~2 years; Vietnamese Scouting Community secretary: 2+ years; 643 recognitions coordinator, webmaster, PR, communications person: 4+ years 

Area(s) of impact:

Maggie makes a big impact wherever she serves, and this is especially true in service unit 643, the Vietnamese Scouting Community (VSC), and in her troop, 60964. She has also made sizable contributions to council through her work as a Gold Award committee member. 

How she/he delivered outstanding service that made an impact: 

Maggie Nguyen is one of the most selfless people weI know, and we have encountered very few people in my life who so fiercely believe in the spirit and mission of Girl Scouts as Maggie. Commensurate with her passion for Girl Scouts, Maggie has held and currently holds a litany of volunteer leadership responsibilities to help advance Girl Scouting in service unit 643 and in the greater NorCal council. I’ll try to briefly describe her work below. 

In service unit 643, Maggie has held several roles in the past five-six years we’ve worked together on the 643 leadership team. Maggie has poured her heart and soul into being the recognition coordinator and communications/PR organizer for 643, and this has been repeatedly evident in her beautiful su643.org website she updated from a troop’s high award several years ago. Additionally, through her work as the recognition coordinator, Maggie seamlessly coordinates and delivers a professional-grade slideshow each year for our Girl Scout youth and adult volunteer members, pulling from the nominators’ kind words for the awardees. The result is an enviable slides deck that other service units and council staff members use as the model of aspiration and excellence. Similarly, she has created a 643 newsletter that highlights 643 happenings each year, with an equally beautiful and enviable end result. 

Closely related to her work with recognitions and communications, Maggie played a key role in bringing the President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA) to service unit 643. With our evergreen goal of retaining Girl Scout youth members, particularly as they go through middle and high school, as well as incentivizing adult members to stick around, bringing and advertising the PVSA became especially important to our SU. With Maggie’s help, as part of our yearly recognition event, in two years, over fifty Girl Scout youth and adult members have been recognized for earning PVSA honors. 

Still within our service unit level, Maggie recently undertook the additional responsibility of being a CSA Advisor, an advisor to the troop leaders of Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassador Girl Scouts (6th-12th graders), in the desire to get those girls to stay with Girl Scouts for as long as possible and to help those CSA adult leaders make that vision a reality. 

At a troop level, Maggie has been part of the multi-level Vietnamese troop 60964 for several years, since her daughter (who graduated from high school in 2025) was in elementary school. For many years, Maggie has also been the webmaster for her Lien Doan and has been responsible for creating her Lien Doan Truong Giang’s website. She has also successfully advised many Girl Scouts in troop 60964 through their Silver Awards as well. In addition, she has been the Vietnamese Scouting Community (VSC) secretary for several years. You can see examples of her digital prowess at these websites: 

http://liendoantruonggiang.org

https://www.facebook.com/LDTG689

https://su643.org

https://huongdaosanjose.org

Additionally, at a council-wide level, Maggie has most recently served as a service unit delegate and a national delegate alternate. She has also recently become a Gold Award Coordinator and wants to help as many Girl Scouts as possible earn their highest awards and demystify the process for them and their supportive adults. 

Maggie is one of the most humble and hardest-working leaders I know and is someone who will never complain about the hours and hours of her time and energies she selflessly gives to the Girl Scout organization. She always wants to learn more and do more – evidenced by how much time and energy she gives of herself to the continuing ed that Girl Scout trainings offers – and her passion and enthusiasm serves as a remarkable example for all of us. Her generosity and commitment is astounding, and we are so happy to have been afforded so many opportunities to serve alongside her. 

Council and national award list:

• Appreciation Pin: For outstanding service to at least one community. 

• Chris Arkley Significant Impact Award (nominated): For continued outstanding service for 3 years after receiving the Appreciation Pin.

• President's Award: Recognizes a service unit team or group who surpasses team goals to result in a significant, measurable impact toward reaching the council’s overall goals.

Written by Erin Garvey in June 2025.

Current position(s) (including number of years in each position if possible): 

Pauline has been a troop leader in Troop 61679 for many years (more than a decade). Fall Product manager - 3 years. Outdoor trainer for council - 1 year 

Area(s) of impact:

• Pauline has been a troop leader of Girl Scout troop 61679 for over ten years. Her own daughter aged out of Girl Scouts several years ago, and Pauline has continued to serve her community.

• She also has recently become an outdoor trainer (council-wide) and the fall product manager for Service Unit 643 for the past three years.

• Pauline has also taken on the role of co-CSA Advisor (Cadette, Senior, Ambassador troop leaders’) advisor for 25-26 for SU 643. 

How she/he delivered outstanding service that made an impact: 

Pauline has served Girl Scouts troop 61679 for over a decade. Girl Scout Troop 61679, Nữ Đoàn Trưng Vương, is part of the multi-level Vietnamese scouting community in San Jose and is a subset of the Liên Đoàn Diên Hồng, part of the Dien Hong Youth Foundation in San Jose, whose mission is to promote the Scouts Movement in partnership with Boy Scouts of America (BSA) and Girl Scouts of America (GS) since 1981. (If you need more information about how the LD operates and how Girl Scouts troop 61679 fits into the LD, please refer to their website here: https://www.lddienhongsj.org/GS61679).

Pauline has been an instrumental part of the Girl Scouts 61679 multi-level troop community for over a decade and continues to be the overall troop leader of 61679, despite her own daughter graduating out of Girl Scouts several years ago. In fact, Pauline is probably among the most tenured Girl Scout troop leader in the entire service unit 643 family. She is a wealth of knowledge and a fountain of support and enthusiasm for the Girl Scouting movement, believing wholeheartedly in the Girl Scout mission and everything for which it stands.

Most recently, in addition to continuing to serve as a troop leader for 61679, Pauline has also taken up the leadership for 643’s fall product manager role. When we were in need of new leadership several years ago, she graciously took up the role and has been seamlessly serving in it ever since, encouraging as many troops as possible to participate in the often-overlooked fall product program each year and answering everyone’s questions as they arise throughout the season.

Pauline is also committed to continuing to serve the Girl Scouting movement, and she demonstrates this willingness to serve through her ongoing “continuing ed” within Girl Scouts. She has recently become an Outdoor Trainer, where she trains other adult volunteers council-wide in the necessary fundamentals of outdoor knowledge (so that they, in turn, can teach their Girl Scout youth members). Additionally, she has participated in the annual, council-run service unit leadership teams’ summit in August at Camp Bothin so she can network with other service unit leadership and grow her knowledge in all things Girl Scouts so that she can then relay all that information back to her troop 61679 and LD.

We are so lucky to have Pauline in our 643 leadership team because she is always willing to help out whenever and wherever. Even though her official title is as the fall product manager, Pauline is always willing to assist wherever we have a need. Most recently, she has also taken on the additional role of co-CSA Advisor (Cadette, Senior, Ambassador Girl Scout troop leaders’) Advisor for 25-26 so that she can be supportive of leaders who are experiencing middle and high school with their girls and helping those leaders figure out how to retain their youth members as long as possible.

Pauline’s longstanding commitment to Girl Scouts is commendable, and we in service unit 643 are so lucky that she has been a fixture in our community and in the Vietnamese Scouting community in particular for as long as she has. Her service and generosity know no bounds, and our communities are all the better because of her and her exemplary giving nature. 

Council and national award list:

• Appreciation Pin: For outstanding service to at least one community.

• Ruth Robertson Commitment to Excellence Award (nominated): For demonstrating long-term commitment to the Girl Scout organization through at least ten years of service. 

Written by Erin Garvey in June 2025.

Current position(s) (including number of years in each position if possible): 

Troop leader-12 years; service unit co-membership support manager-5+ years; service unit program support manager-5+ years; Older Girl (OG) Camporee planning committee adult leader/co-director: 4 years; Kamp Konocti volunteer-run camp staff: 3 years 

Area(s) of impact:

Ruth makes a positive impact wherever has the good fortune of her assistance and collaboration, and this is especially so within service unit 643 (northeast San Jose and Milpitas).

How she/he delivered outstanding service that made an impact: 

Ruth has committed many years of service to service unit 643. Since her daughter was a young Girl Scout, Ruth has been a troop leader of troop 60641; her daughter is now a rising 11th grader.Additionally, Ruth has held many leadership roles within the service unit 643 leadership team essentially ever since she became a troop leader. 

In our time together on the service unit 643 leadership team, Ruth has served as the (co) Membership Support Manager, working closely with our council staff person/community manager to help new troops form and get off the ground. In that role, Ruth was instrumental to new troop leaders, serving as a guide and mentor, answering all of their questions related to how Girl Scouts “works” and what Girl Scouts in 643 looks like.

Additionally, she has also served as the Program Support Manager and has been very helpful in putting together various service unit-wide events and/or supporting team members in their work to host service unit events (including serving as the event first aider and registrar, when needed).

During cookie season, Ruth has also been extremely helpful for our service unit as she has sought out, cultivated, and nurtured many relationships with area businesses over the years to help procure cookie booths for troops. She has also been a cookie point-person for troops when they had specific questions about ebudde or ABC Smart Cookie and has served as a cookie program subject matter expert as needed.

In case that’s not enough, for the past four years, Ruth has also served our 643 community as an Older Girl (OG) Camporee adult co-leader, responsible for interviewing, selecting, training, mentoring, and assisting OGs as they organize, plan, and execute a weekend-long Camporee for 150-250 Girl Scouts. As an OG Camporee adult, Ruth has worked hard to equip and empower our OGs to really “own” their leadership experience related to putting together a large-scale weekend-long Camporee event, and her guidance has helped lead to our SU selling out all of our available Camporee slots for the past three years. She is a thoughtful, kind, and considerate Girl Scout adult volunteer, and her leadership reflects her values.

Finally, each summer for the past two summers, Ruth has also volunteered at the week-long volunteer-run resident camp in Marin County, Kamp Konocti.

One last thing – in addition to all the aforementioned leadership roles within 643 and Kamp Konocti, most recently Ruth has taken on a Daisy troop for 25-26 as a co-leader, alongside her daughter (a rising 11th grader) and Drea Key, another incredible SU643 volunteer and her rising 10th grader. Once Ruth’s and Drea’s daughters graduate out of Girl Scouts – when the Daisy troop bridges to Brownies – Ruth’s and Drea’s daughters will take over the reins and lead the Brownies for subsequent years. We love this full-circle, mother-daughter “co-op” leadership experience.

Ruth’s selfless generosity to Girl Scouts is remarkable, and we in service unit 643 are so lucky for her leadership and giving spirit. She is a lifetime Girl Scout member – having grown up here in 643 herself, having Girl Scout meetings at Rainbow’s End and everything – and she clearly bleeds Girl Scout green! 

Council and national award list:

• Appreciation Pin: For outstanding service to at least one community. 

• Chris Arkley Significant Impact Award (nominated): For continued outstanding service for 3 years after receiving the Appreciation Pin.  

• President's Award: Recognizes a service unit team or group who surpasses team goals to result in a significant, measurable impact toward reaching the council’s overall goals.

• Outdoor Trailblazer Award (nominated): For providing outdoor experiences for girls.

Written by Erin Garvey in June 2025.

Current position(s) (including number of years in each position if possible): 

Area(s) of impact:

How she/he delivered outstanding service that made an impact: 

Council and national award list:

• Appreciation Pin: For outstanding service to at least one community. 

• President's Award: Recognizes a service unit team or group who surpasses team goals to result in a significant, measurable impact toward reaching the council’s overall goals.

Current position(s) (including number of years in each position if possible): 

Area(s) of impact:

How she/he delivered outstanding service that made an impact: 

Council and national award list:

• Appreciation Pin: For outstanding service to at least one community.