At VolunteerSpot, we love supporting Girl Scouts; Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place. A key way Girl Scouts funds it's good work is through the annual Girl Scout cookie sale.
Today, our volunteer Spotlight shines on Paula Aiton, Cookie Co-Chair for Troop 2365, Hanford, California. Paula's troop is part of Girl Scouts of Central California South serving more than 12,000 girls, grades Kindergarten through 12th grade, in Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera and Tulare Counties.
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What's your role with the Troop?
I am the “Cookie Co-Chair” for my daughter’s Girl Scout troop. The girls will begin selling cookies in March as their annual fundraiser. My primary role as Cookie Co-Chair is to coordinate the girl volunteers (and their parents) for two-hour shifts over 4 weekends in March. We will be selling the cookies from table “booths” in front of our local supermarket.Do you volunteer in other arenas of your life?
I have volunteered as a musician at church since I was 13 years old. I play multiple instruments (flute, saxophone, piano, percussion). This activity is a big part of who I am. It is my ministry. In addition, I also volunteer as a leader for women’s ministry at my church. I lead small group bible study as well as mentor women who need encouragement and direction in their lives, both practical and spiritual.
How did you get interested in volunteering?
My mother always made herself available to volunteer for church groups, women’s groups, community work, etc. I am the youngest of her eight children and it was just a natural extension of my upbringing to volunteer. I am a very solution-oriented person and so I often jump in to help because I hope that I have good ideas that help the group as a whole.
What’s one piece of advice you have for parent volunteers out there?
Pace yourself. Easier said than done, I know. If a parent has management skills, those can be a big help because managers are used to delegating work to others. Moms without leadership experience may not have those same skills and they may try to do too much themselves. I’ve also seen parent volunteers who would not let go of control over their little piece of the puzzle. This can cause tension and strife within a volunteer group. So, pacing yourself, looking for other parents in the group that can take over part of your burden and asking for help are all extremely important to a successful volunteer experience.
Why did you decide to use VolunteerSpot?
I wanted to offer our parent volunteers an online scheduling tool so that they could sign up for shifts at their convenience. In the past, I have had to do a lot of phone calling. I’ve also had to lay out a paper schedule at each of the Girl Scout meetings and I still do that. But I’m using VolunteerSpot this year as our primary vehicle for scheduling the Cookie Booth Sales.
Anything else you’d like our readers to know?
I couldn’t imagine my life without spending time as a volunteer. Sometimes I wish I had said “No” instead of “Yes”. But, generally, all my volunteer experiences have been rewarding.
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To learn more about Girl Scouts, visit http://www.girlscoutsccs.org/index.php
We salute Paula and all the other volunteer leaders out there working on behalf of our children. If you're using VolunteerSpot, write and tell us about what you're doing and give us a chance to shine our Volunteer Spotlight on you!! Just email us at VS@volunteerspot.com
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