
Lynne Fugate, CEO of the Girl Scouts Council of the Southern Appalachians, delivered sobering — but yet hopeful — news.
The local council of the Girl Scouts has experienced its toughest year in the organization’s history due to Hurricane Helene which devastated communities in our area last fall. But if an enthusiastic (and festive) gathering of supporters earlier this week is any indication, the beloved non-profit should be on the mend soon.
“Hurricane Helene devastated communities in our Council footprint,” Lynne Fugate, CEO of Girl Scouts Council of the Southern Appalachians, told supporters at Wednesday’s luncheon at the Press Room event center.
“Families lost belongings, homes, pets, and loved ones. Entire neighborhoods were swept away. And Girl Scouts was a part of that story. Troops were displaced. Supplies stored in church basements were washed out in the floods.”
In addition, she said that recruitment season — “normally the lifeblood of our fall” — was interrupted as families understandably focused on survival, not troop meetings. Continue reading