How to Request Appearances

In my adventures as a troop leader, one of my favorite things to do is career day.  I implemented this with my first troop of Daisies as a monthly experience, and when my service unit heard about the success I had, they asked me to host a larger event that would benefit all of the girls in my service unit.

I accepted without a second thought [my downfall lol] and immediately began planning.  I decided that 12-14 *all female* professionals would be amazing, and set out to somehow get local professionals to agree to help!  I chose to only ask female professionals for this event because this was targeted towards the younger girls.  While men can be and ARE great advocates and supporters of women, *I* believe it is easier for a young girl to see herself in the role she is exploring.  It also reinforces the train of thought that girls can and will do anything they want with some hard work!

I drafted an email [see below] and reached out to professionals locally, and on Facebook (those community groups are AMAZING for girl scout resources!).  I emailed them, and then followed up by phone 2 days later. 

This was a hugely successful event - the council let me use one of their facilities free of charge, and the presenters almost all brought take aways for the girls.  We also ordered career day patches from www.Snappylogo.com.  We charged $2.50 per girl, and the SU saw about $1.50 of that back to them after name tags and coffee/donuts for the wonderful women who gave up a Saturday afternoon to interact with and inspire young girls.  We had a city council woman, a CIO, a realtor, etc.

Here is a copy of the email I used to request appearances - feel free to use this as needed (AND share with me how your event went!)

To whom it may concern:

 Hello! I am trying to reach [Potential Presenter].  My name is [Troop Leader] and I am a girl scout leader, here in [Local Area]. I lead a group of Daisies - they are 6 and 7 year old, wonderfully ambitious ladies. 

     This year, our girl scout theme is 'Dream, Explore, Be: Anything is Possible'. We work hard to show the young women in our local troops that they have worth. They are smart. They CAN do anything they want to do, if they work hard for it.

     In line with that, our service unit, [SU Number], is hosting a career day for these young women, so they can see real life application of where hard work and dedication can take them in life. 

     I would like to invite you to participate in this event as a local[Career], as it would be an honor to host you. 

     This event will take place at [Location, including address]. What we would ask of you is to host a table (which we would provide.)  You can bring any materials you would find useful or beneficial in explaining to the girls what you do and what it took for you to get to this career.  The event is scheduled from [Time] on [Date], and girls will expect to spend 5-6 minutes at each table interacting. 

Please let me know if this is something you would be willing to participate in - it would be a great help and inspiration if you are able to help us show these young women what they are capable of doing with their lives. 

Best Regards,

[Your Name]

Did you plan a successful event? Do you have a different method than this to solicit guest appearances for your troop? I'd love to hear how you do it, and/or how this worked for you!