Mother, leader wins Volunteer of the Year Award

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Alexandria Mosness
  • Ramstein Public Affairs
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany --  Pamela Howard's journey with girl scouts started ten years ago when she got her daughters involved because they had so much energy, and now a decade later, Mrs. Howard is more involved with Girl Scouts than she thought she would ever be. 

Mrs. Howard, the troop leader for Troops 749 and 333, recently won the Exceptional Volunteer of the Year award for Ramstein Air Base for her dedication and hard hours with the Ramstein girls. 

With more than 2,000 hours of volunteer time, Mrs. Howard, was still modest of her accomplishment. 

"I was pretty shocked when I found out about winning the award," she said. "I have never won anything like this before, so yes, it was quite a surprise. All I did was take care of my girls." 

Mrs. Howard, a cheerful woman with a motherly glow, grew up in the small town just east of Mount Pillar, Vt., where Girl Scouts was nowhere to be found. 

"I was the only girl for a few miles, so there was not a Girl Scouts, but my mom was a Cub Scout leader for my brothers," said Mrs. Howard. "So, like any younger sibling, I tagged along, and that is where my interest grew." 

Mrs. Howard and her family moved around quite a lot because her husband is active duty Air Force, so she knew that wanted to get her two daughters involved with something steady. 

"Both of my girls, Sara and Emily, started Girl Scouts when they were in kindergarten," added Mrs. Howard, whose family will permanently changes station in February. "My husband and I wanted to be able to provide something that was consistent in their life because we knew we would always be moving around a lot." 

While the nomination came as a surprise, it was an easy choice for her coworkers to put her up for the award. 

"She gives so much of her time to the two troops and the Ramstein neighborhood of girls," said Anna Lilley, Ramstein Girl Scouts overseas committee chair. "She has 2 different troops of girls who adore her and she listens to them. She teaches them outdoor skills, as well as life skills and values that they can take with them as they grow up and move on." 

"Mrs. Howard is a very humble and generous person," said Rita Guerrero, Ramstein Girl Scouts awards and grants coordinator."Her nomination was submitted without her knowledge and although she was not there to receive her award, Ramstein Girl Scouts was very honored of her generous dedication of volunteering and achievements.

Mrs. Howard was not able to attend the awards ceremony because she was doing what she does best--taking care of her troops. 

"She volunteered to take one of her troop members to the dentist--their father is deployed and mom could not take leave from work," added Mrs. Guerrero. 

Being involved with Girl Scouts has really shown Mrs. Howard many of the benefits the Scouts have to offer. 

"I like the way it aspires girls to and be the best they can be," Mrs. Howard exclaimed. "For me, I like being a leader and am able to see the girls every week to mentor them, and show them all they can be whatever they want to be in life." 

While Mrs. Howard and her family will leave Ramstein in February, this will not stop her from continuing to volunteer with the Girl Scouts. 

"Wherever we go next my girls and I will definitely be involved with Girl Scouts," said Mrs. Howard, whose role model growing up was her grandmother who always had everything under control. "I don't plan on giving up the Girl Scouts anytime soon."