Scouting Teaches Girls to Serve God and Their Country

In Girl Scouting we teach girls to serve God and their country. It’s built right in the Girl Scout Promise and we’ve really been seeing that message in very personal ways the past few weeks.
As our Girl Scouts are currently out and about in the community participating in the Girl Scout Cookie Program, they often offer our customers the option of contributing cookies to our military personnel overseas through Operation Cookie. Working with our partners at DHL Global, DHL delivers Girl Scout cookies to the Middle East and the military hospitals in Germany. In the past five years, DHL has sent over 600,000 boxes to our service men and women.
A few weekends ago Troop 3674, with Girl Scout Leader Terry Soto, was having a booth sale and a young man came by and gave them $20 as a donation. While the troop had been doing brisk business and getting quite a few donations for Operation Cookie, this was their largest one that day. Terry thanked him and asked why he was making such a generous gift. The young man replied that he had recently returned from the Middle East and that receiving those Girl Scout cookies had meant a lot to him and his buddies.
Not only was it a “taste of home,” it was a reminder that people at home remembered where they were and what they were doing. Terry said the girls in her troop learned a great deal about life that day, far beyond what she would have expected at a cookie booth sale.
Earlier this month, the Girl Scouts of Nassau County was asked by one of our own volunteers if we could be present at the funeral of Arnold Bocksel, a decorated veteran of World War II and a former Japanese Prisoner of War. It was an out of the ordinary request since we did not personally know Mr. Bocksel, but the caller was very intent, so I told her I’d try to find someone in the community to go. The stars aligned and Sharon Haley, chair of Association Volunteers for the Jericho-Syosset Association of Girl Scouts, said that she could attend.
Sharon tells it best in her own words: “Thanks for sending me to pay respects to Mr. Bocksel and his family. Various government offices sent people to express their sympathies to the family and pay their respects. I'm glad I could do the same for Girl Scouts. On a personal note, I didn't need the tissues I brought until they sang 'My Country 'Tis of Thee' at the end of the funeral service. I was overwhelmed by Mr. Bocksel's commitment to God, country and family."
Our girls learn by doing, as do our volunteers. Listening to our veterans we can all learn a great deal. I encourage our readers to reach out to those who are currently serving our country, as well as those who have served before. Ask a veteran to tell you about his/her experiences and what it mean to serve. And, don’t forget to say “thank you” to the veterans and their families. Tell them the Girl Scouts reminded you to.
About Arnold Bocksel
Mr. Bocksel was born in New York, NY and volunteered for the U.S. Army in 1941. He served in the U.S. Army Mine Planter Service, Harbor Defenses of Manila and Subic Bay, Philippines as chief engineer, stationed on Corregidor Island, at the entrance of Manila Bay. After Bataan fell to the Japanese on April 9, 1942, and before Corregidor Island fell, fuel stores became too low to continue mine planting operations. Mr. Bocksel recommended to his commanding officer that they might be able to recover fuel from sunken American and Filipino ships. Mr. Bocksel and three others successfully recovered enough fuel to re-supply American ships in the area.
Mr. Bocksel was captured by the Japanese and spent three-and-a-half years as a prisoner of war. During that time, according to his son, Mr. Bocksel and a captured priest made communion wafers from their meager, saved, rice rations to celebrate the sacrament of communion with fellow prisoners. Mr. Bocksel's daughter noted in the eulogy that her father lived for each day for three-and-a-half years not knowing if he would survive another day. But, the Lord rewarded him with a long life of 97 years. Mr. Bocksel continued to serve his community and his country by sharing his wartime experiences with others.

Donna Ceravolo, CEO Girl Scouts of Nassau County