Photo courtesy of Teresa Odom.
Odom honored for years of service to Hoover Girl Scouts
2014 Mildred Bell Johnson Award winner Teresa Odom (far right) with son Charlie, husband Eddie, and daughters Emily and Anna Marie.
Through her worldly travels, Teresa Odom has given decades of service to the Girl Scouts.
She began in Puerto Rico, where she lived from early elementary school through seventh grade, and continued with the program when her family moved to Chicago.
“Girl Scouts was a very big deal in Puerto Rico,” Odom said. “Everyone I knew was involved.”
Odom, a mother of three and resident of Hoover, has since reconnected with the group that impacted her so positively in childhood.
Here, she has served in a variety of roles, including leader of Troop 71, a member of the Girl Scouts Board of Directors and a Service Area Manager, a post she held for five years.
For her service, Odom was honored in February by the Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama with the Mildred Bell Johnson Award.
Johnson, the award’s namesake, is credited with founding the first Girl Scout troop for African-American girls in Birmingham. She also served as a District Advisor for the Magic City.
“I am just dumbfounded that I won the award, which is given to someone who distinguishes themselves with their community work and has a long-standing connection with the Girl Scouts,” Odom said. “To me, there are people who do so much more. And there is so much more I want to do.”
Keeping good on that promise, Odom is working to elevate the value of what Girl Scouts can offer young women through her work in the Hispanic community.
“While Girl Scouts exists to serve all girls, sometimes it’s harder to do that for girls who may not speak the language or if they come from a different culture,” said Odom. “I am working hard to make sure they are focusing on serving Hispanic girls and Hispanic families.”
