The Northeast Iowa Council is pleased to honor Melissa Neel as a Spotlight Volunteer! Melissa currently serves as an Assistant Den Leader for Pack 10 in her 4th year of Scouting. She was awarded the Scouting Spirit Award for Pack 10 in 2020.
Melissa is the mother of 2 amazing kids, Madison and Dylan. Outside of Scouts, Melissa works at the Diamond Jo while navigating work, home life and Scouts.
What motivates you to give your time to Scouting?
I am motivated to give my time to Scouting because I see the benefits that my child gets out of it. She is able to be with children of a similar age from different schools and the program allows her to learn things she may have never been exposed to. A great example of that would be the Aviation STEM program we attended. She was able to navigate a flight simulator which is something she may never have had a change to do without Scouts.
What advice can you give to new Scouting parents?
My advice to new Scout parents is this: you get what you put into it. If you are not prepared to go to meetings and get involved then it might not be for you. Especially at the cub level, it is a lot of hands on activities with the kids.
Please share a favorite Scouting memory.
Our favorite Scout memory is from Webelos camp in 2019. Madison was not looking forward to using a BB gun at all, but with encouragement from myself, camp staff and pack leader Brian Graham, she was able to overcome her fear and actually got a bullseye on her first try! Seeing the happiness on her face when she saw her achievement was absolutely amazing.
On behalf of the Northeast Iowa Council, please help us say thank you to a very dedicated Scouter, Melissa Neel!