Our next award recognizes a crew member who has joined in the last year and has most demonstrated leadership, service and spirit in venturing. Please join with me in congratulating our winner, Marion McCormick.
Before talking about Marion, i want to say a few words about those who joined in the last year. They have been outstanding, in participation, in leadership and in spirit. So outstanding that it was difficult for the adults to choose just one. Now let me explain why we chose Marion.
Unlike most of the crew, Marion didn’t join us because she saw our table at school or heard about us from another crew member. Marion has wanted to join this group for years. I can remember her mom coming by us whenever we sold pumpkins at the church ans she would say how much her daughter was looking forward to becoming a member. And this year, she was finally old enough.
Marion has been on almost every service activity, if not every one, that we have had. When we volunteered for habitat for humanity at their annual blitz build, Marion, because of her age, couldn’t hammer nails and spent her time directing cars where to park. When the others left, she declined a ride thinking she was supposed to leave with me, not knowing i was in a training class across town. By the time habitat called me and i reached her, she had been standing on duty for about 7 hours. But she didn’t complain. Marion doesn’t complain.
That leads me to tell you about her spirit. She is an enthusiastic supporter of this program. When she missed our knife safety training, she decided to get trained on her own. She contacted an assistant scoutmaster with the troop and asked him to train her, which he did. Waiting until next year wasn’t an option for her. She wanted to have the same training as everyone else.
I’ve often told new crew members that the only way to win an elected office is to run for it. It can be a scary thing to ask a group of teens to select you as their leader. When our elections came up this month for president and vice president, Marion decided to run for vice president. She didn’t win. But that didn’t stop her from running again, this time as treasurer. And Marion is our new crew treasurer.
For her active participation, her enthusiastic spirit, her leadership and service to others, i am proud to award Marion the 2006 advisors’ award. Congratulations!