Dorothy Cogswell, a Suffolk resident and a Girl Scout volunteer for over 26 years, has received the National Youth Ministry Award from the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry for Girl Scouts. The award was recently presented to her at a special ceremony held in Denver, Colo.

Cogswell is a member of the Girl Scout Council of Colonial Coast and serves as a Senior Girl Scout leader and Girl Scout trainer. She is most active as the Girl Scout Liaison for the Diocese of Richmond. Her mission is to provide information and training on the four national Girl Scout religious recognition programs available to Catholic Girl Scouts.

She is also the volunteer representative for the Region IV Catholic Committee for Girl Scouts/CampFire, Inc., which encompasses seven dioceses in five states.

Two years ago, she received the Saint Anne Medal, an award to recognize outstanding work with Catholic Girl Scout members. She is also active in several other community organizations, including the Nansemond River Pilot Club, a national service organization.

Cogswell began her service as a Service Unit Coordinator with Colonial Coast Girl Scouts in 1993. By 1996 she had increased Unit 730’s membership to 109 adult volunteers and 448 girls, comprising 41 troops. At the annual council meeting, she received her first honor for dedicated service to Suffolk and the council.

Suffolk’s membership continued to grow under the guiding hand of Cogswell and by 1997 there were 46 troops with about 500 girls registered as Scouts. During that year, she saw profits for the troops come in at almost $14,000 for cookies, calendars, and nuts.

In 1998, Girl Scout cookie sales soared to new heights in Suffolk. With Cogswell at the helm of Unit 730, orders totaled 3,295 cases or 462 more cases than the previous year. The year also marked another in which the Catholic Diocese of Richmond honored Cogswell. She received the &uot;St. Elizabeth Ann Seton&uot; medal from Bishop Walter F. Sullivan of the diocese. It marked her &uot;meritorious service in the development of spiritual growth for Catholic youth.

In 1999, she was awarded the &uot;Thanks Badge,&uot; for providing outstanding service benefiting the total council or entire Girl Scout movement. In 2001, 8 year old &uot;Brownie&uot; Girl Scout Michelle Martin of Troop 5563 designed a new patch, &uot;Explore Suffolk,&uot; and she and her friend, Erin Sessoms, and Cogswell presented the patch to Mayor Curtis Milteer and council members.

For more information on Girl Scouting in Suffolk, call the Girl Scout Council of Colonial Coast at 547-4405. The council headquarters are located at 912 Cedar Rd., Chesapeake.