Teresa Murray gives her all to girls as leader and cookie organizer
DERRY, NH – During Girl Scout Cookie season, going on now, one of the most crucial roles an adult volunteer can play is that of cookie organizer and accountant. Teresa Murray has not only made it possible for Girl Scouts in her area to get the cookies they need, she has gone above and beyond for her Girl Scouts. For all she has done, Murray has been named the Volunteer of the Month for March by Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains, the council serving girls across New Hampshire and Vermont.
Murray, 40, of Derry, is a lifetime member of Girl Scouts, a community product sales coordinator for the organization, a community accounting coordinator, community liaison, and leader of Brownie Troop 59000, which has nine second- and third-grade members.
“Teresa is absolutely amazing!” said DeeDee Rice, a volunteer support specialist with the Girl Scout council. “We cannot thank her enough for the support she provides to the troops and to the council.”
Rice said Murray is an optimist who looks for the positive in all she does, looking at challenges as opportunities and new experiences.
Coordinating cookies during a pandemic is especially tricky. Prior to 2020, Murray said the enormous number of cookies they had were delivered to the Chester fire station. This year and last, they’ve come directly to her home, where she scheduled pickups through one February weekend for 29 Girl Scout troops.
“We had 15 pallets of cookies in my driveway and garage!” she said. “I scheduled pickups like every half hour, so we had like one troop at a time here, which makes it easier for pickups.”
Murray has been a volunteer for Girl Scouts for more than 10 years, and stepped seamlessly into the role of community accounting coordinator when the longtime person in that role decided to retire. During the pandemic, she also took on the liaison role, helping other communities outside her own with the cookie sale.
“The fact that Teresa was willing to help another service unit in transition is remarkable,” said Robin Boyd, the manager of product sales for the council. “Her thoroughness – always so organized, and keeping her troops informed and supported. Truly, her mentorship and guidance to troops is above and beyond. We are so appreciative of the inspiration and Girl Scout spirit she brings to all she does!”
Murray began her Girl Scout experience when she was just 5 years old.
“My dad was in the Marine Corps, and we were living in North Carolina when I joined Daisies,” she said. The family later moved to Japan, where she became a member of Girl Scouts Overseas. “While I was in Japan, there was a Wider Opportunity available, through West Pacific Girl Scouts, to go to an international Girl Guides and Girl Scouting Jamboree in New Zealand. So my troop got selected to go for that. There were, I think, six of us girls, and two or three adults that went down, so we spent three weeks in New Zealand with Girl Scouts, which was like, the highlight of my life! Spent my 14th birthday in three countries on that trip!”
When the family moved to the U.S. in 1996, she found a troop in New Hampshire, and registered as a lifetime Girl Scout upon graduation, knowing that she would eventually volunteer. By 2011 she was helping with the accounting for Girl Scouts in Derry, Auburn, and Chester.
Her daughter is part of the Brownie troop she currently leads, and the girls have been quite busy after a year of participating online, thanks to the pandemic. They are learning new skills as they participate in this year’s Girl Scout Cookie program.
“They’re thinking about doing the Museum of Science sleepover, coming up, and also going to try to go camping this summer,” she said. “We’ve done apple picking the last few years.”
Whether it’s making new friends, taking trips, or just seeing girls become more confident, Murray says it’s all worth it.
“I believe in Girl Scouts. I’ve been a Girl Scout for 35 years now,” she said. “It’s fun! There’s so much that you can do…it’s flexible too.”
She encourages others to consider Girl Scouting as well.
“It’s never too late to join Girl Scouting. If you have some time, even if you want to go to a meeting and see if it’s what you like, just get involved!”
We Are Girl Scouts
Girl Scouts bring their dreams to life and work together to build a better world. Through programs from coast to coast, Girl Scouts of all backgrounds and abilities can be unapologetically themselves as they discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges—whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or advocate for climate justice, or make their first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors, and millions of alums, Girl Scouts lead the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them. To join us, volunteer, reconnect, or donate, visit girlscouts.org.
Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains serves girls throughout New Hampshire and Vermont through volunteer-run troops, events, and virtual programs. Visit www.girlscoutsgwm.org to learn more.
