December 16, 2011
This month we bid adieu to Susan Britton, a member of SCAN’s volunteer family for more than half a decade.
Every week, Susan served as the Children’s Program Coordinator for SCAN’s Monday night Parent Support Group. This month she’ll oversee her last evening of children’s activites to allow time for other personal and professional opportunities.
“I’ll miss the wonderful dedicated staff and volunteers I have had the pleasure of working with over the years,” said Susan, “but I think I will especially miss the children. They are amazing people and have taught me so much!”
Susan’s enthusiasm for organizing developmentally-appropriate activities has been a blessing for the parents, SCAN staff and volunteers who work side-by-side with her each week.
“Susan is obviously very dedicated,” said Juliet Mason, a SCAN volunteer who appreciated how welcoming Susan was when she first started helping with the group. “I think in the year and half I’ve been working with her, she’s only missed three Mondays,” said Juliet. “She knows all the kids, even those that don’t come regularly; she remembers them and their names instantly.”
“Susan is a volunteer you can always count on,” said Shannon May, SCAN’s previous Parent Education Coordinator, who spent 4 years working alongside Susan in numerous capacities.”Her energy and flexibility to be creative and adjust to working with children and their sometimes challenging behaviors is admirable.”
Susan enjoyed giving her time and talents to support SCAN’s Parent Support Groups because, as she puts it, “Children learn how to take good care of each other by sharing a toy, inviting someone else to play or standing up when someone is being teased. That sense of responsibility for each other and caring is really refreshing and re-energizing, especially when it comes from a child who did not have or use those social skills when they first came to group”.
We will miss Susan and the wealth of knowledge she has shared with SCAN as well as the parents and children we have been privileged to serve together over the past five years. Luckily, SCAN will remain in touch with Susan professionally at the three SCAN-supported developmental playgroups she coordinates as part of her work at the Center for Alexandria’s Children.
We’re sending a special thank you to Susan this month, for the hours upon hours of expertise and care she has put towards enhancing the lives of children in the Alexandria community!