"If your desire is to make a difference in the lives of girls and adults by offering Girl Scouting to all girls at all times, by all means, consider making a planned gift. You'll be glad you did."
Mr. and Mrs. Pat Norris
Mrs. Pat (far left) with Mr. Pat (far right), and Vi See, Executive Director (center) and Mark Schorr, Board Vice President of Fund Development (center back) at the Juliette Low Society Dinner in November.
What Girl Scouting Means to Us
Written by Mrs. Pat Norris
I (Mrs. Pat) was a Girl Scout all through my grade school and high school years (Davenport, Nebraska – Goldenrod Council). After college, I felt something was missing in my life and decided to volunteer. Thought I could be a good assistant leader, but the girls in my neighborhood in Lincoln needed a leader, not an assistant. And the rest is history. When I met Mr. Pat and moved to Denton, together we started two troops while transitioning my Lincoln troop to new leaders. Together, we’ve been co-leaders, Catron Challenge (formerly Project Adventure) facilitators – oh, I could tell you stories! – and trip leaders for the first Council-sponsored Junior trip to the Hot Air Balloon Races in Indianola, Iowa. In addition, I’ve served as Area Association Chair, a delegate, Service Unit Manager of SU 4, Day Camp Co-Coordinator, and as a member of various ad hoc committees and task forces.
Years ago when we first put our wills together, Pat knew how important Girl Scouting is to me and we agreed that upon my death, a gift would be made Homestead Council in both of our names because Girl Scouts is something we’ve done together and very much enjoyed. This past year, when we reevaluated our wills and really thought about what’s important in life and where our interests lie, Mr. Pat wanted to make a gift upon his death and we decided to increase our initial gift as well.
I believe that if it were not for Girl Scouting, we would not be where we are today. Girl Scouts has helped us become who we are today (Mr. Pat is Director of Youth Ministries for the Nebraska Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church and I am a part-time local pastor at Palmyra and Cheney United Methodist Churches). Skills we learned by planning trips and leading girls have definitely helped us with our work in youth ministry. Girl Scouting is also important to us because together we do not have children, but there are hundreds of girls who we’ve considered our kids. In fact, it was the girls who came up with calling us Mr. Pat and Mrs. Pat so we wouldn’t get confused! Girl Scouting is something we’ve been able to do together, and the Girl Scout Promise and Law promote values we believe in.
Eventually, there will come a time when our physical bodies won’t allow us to be actively involved in doing things with girls. But if, like us, it is your desire to make a difference in the lives of girls and adults by offering Girl Scouting to all girls at all times, by all means, consider making a planned gift. You’ll be glad you did. And it’s so easy to do. Just talk with your lawyer or financial advisor and she or he will know what to do. Or call Jenny Cardwell or Vi See!