As we look ahead to one of our busiest times of year (the Girl Scout Cookie Sale is coming!) with packed schedules full of school events, troop events, and (please!) family time, it can be hard to add another meeting to your calendar. And in the hustle and bustle what meeting often gets left out (or forgotten)? The local Girl Scout volunteer meetings, or as we call them, the Service Unit meeting.

What’s a Service Unit meeting?

These meetings are generally held monthly and led by other volunteers like yourself. They’re a place for our dedicated Girl Scout volunteers to share successes, get advice from other veteran leaders, and pass on important information about Girl Scouts and the local community.

Just as our English teachers (and poet John Donne) liked to remind us that “no man is an island, entire of itself,” no volunteer or troop operates at its best in isolation. So what benefits are there to attending a meeting? We’re so glad you asked!

4 Awesome Reasons to Attend Your Local Volunteer Meeting

Connect with other Girl Scout volunteers in your area.

This is your chance to network with other volunteers and get your burning questions asked. You could learn about what awesome community partners other troops in your area have discovered for workshops, events, and badge related activities. You can ask for ideas or tried and true methods for behavior management in your troop, ways to engage parents, or even find a sister troop to take a field trip or go on a camp out with your girls.

Receive updated information about Girl Scouts at the local, council, and national levels.

Did you ever wonder how other volunteers knew about the the awesome CSA Leadership Conference happening in February? Or when the Cookie Rally was happening in your area? What about the Early Bird registration incentives? Service Unit meetings are one of the ways we share information with our volunteers. They’re a great place to learn about upcoming local and council-sponsored activities and events, product sales information and deadlines, community partnerships, council procedures, as well as what’s new from Girl Scouts of the USA.

Meet your council support and learn how to navigate the Girl Scout processes.

Our troop support staff, the Community Engagement team, attend many of our volunteer meetings hoping to meet (and help) volunteers just like you! From questions about training requirements, financial reports, troop trip procedures, additional fundraisers, trouble shooting conflicts in your troop, or whatever other questions you have, our staff want to help you navigate the ins and outs of volunteering with our organization. If they don’t know the answer, they’ll be able to connect you with the department or staff member who does.

Of course if you can’t make the meetings and you still need answers, we want to help you! Contact your Community Engagement Manager directly or reach out to our Customer Care Team at 888.350.5090 or customerservice@gswo.org.

Build a Girl Scout sisterhood.

This is your opportunity to make new friends (but keep the old)! Our volunteers are wonderful people, dedicated to building girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of that awesome sisterhood? Many a lifelong friendship started at a Girl Scout volunteer meeting!

So what do you think of our reasons? Did we convince you to keep (or add) our monthly volunteer meeting to your busy schedule? We hope so! Not sure when yours takes place? Contact our Customer Care Team at 888.350.5090 today!