Submitted by Nancy Riddle
Metro Denver
Jackson
Edna “Skipper” Hollis. What an amazing woman, and I am so very proud and lucky to have had her as a Girl Scout leader. She taught valuable life lessons and remains an inspiration.
My fondest memory was of a 17-day, 4,000 mile bus trip in 1962 with 27 Girl Scouts, four leaders, and an intrepid bus driver, “Daddy Jim”. We camped through five states and Canada with a four-day stopover at the World’s Fair in Seattle. What adult in their right mind takes this on? Skipper Hollis!
With four patrols responsible for daily cooking, clean-up, log keeping, photography, programs, and other tasks, we learned more that summer than can be imparted in this simple missive.
Skipper always hand-wrote annual messages to me through her 103rd year. I especially cherish a note she wrote at the end of the afore-mentioned trip: “…but-in in my way- if I’ve helped you to know personally the true values that Scouting should unveil, then I’m happy to have been an interpreter of its realness. Scouting is a very fine guide to living. May it always be an enrichment to you…”
May Skipper’s legacy live on as it has for members of Troop 362 and may Girl Scouts continue to inspire young women.
Girl Scouts of Colorado is proud to celebrate the legacy of one of our most cherished alumnae, Edna “Skipper” Hollis. In 2016, Skipper passed away at the age of 104, leaving a 94-year history of Girl Scouting as a girl and an adult volunteer. Skipper touched the lives of hundreds of girls, families, and volunteers and will be remembered for her love of the outdoors and the annual troop gathering she hosted at her Colorado cabin for more than six decades.
To make a gift in honor of Skipper, which will support opportunity grants to ensure any girl is able to attend camp, or to honor an alum who has made a difference in your life, go to the Girl Scouts of Colorado website: http://www.girlscoutsofcolorado.org/en/support-us/alumnae.html
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