Tonya Schoolcraft is an exceptional troop leader who decided to follow in her sister’s footsteps as a “troop mom” after her daughter expressed interest. She’s now the leader of Troop 75198 with no plans of stopping as she and her daughter navigate their Girl Scout journey together.

Tonya’s sister and her kids are life time members of Girl Scouts, with her sister being a leader for her daughters the entire time, so it was only natural for Tonya to look up to her to help guide her journey as a troop leader. Her troop is now on their way towards earning the coveted Girl Scout Bronze Award. Seems like her sister did a great prepping her for the “job!”

Tonya says her favorite memory as a troop leader was going to Camp Hawthorn Hollow with her girls. The most recent time they went one of her girl’s parents (a former Girl Scout) made up a song that her troop sang every time they traveled between sessions. It was so much fun for them! And it’s even more fun for Tonya to experience her girls really enjoying being together. She loves seeing the girls gain confidence in themselves and work together as a team to accomplish a goal.

For any current or future troop leaders, Tonya has this to say:

Don’t get discouraged if you think your girls aren’t “getting it.” I used to think my troop wasn’t really applying or understanding what the Journey’s were trying to teach them. However, as they matured and got older, I was able to see that they were in fact applying the lessons they learned in their everyday life.

Thank you, Tonya!

Do you know a volunteer who’s gone above and beyond? Nominate them to be featured on GSSEM’s Volunteer Spotlight at www.gssem.org/volspotlight!