We are very sorry to hear the news that Shirley Strong has passed away and we send our thoughts to her family and friends at this time. Read on for Shirley's Girlguiding Story, as told by her friends and guiding sisters from Greater London Kent county, as well as an article from the Girlguiding magazine.
Remembering Shirley Strong 1930-2023
“Guiding has given me such opportunities that I am still amazed at what I have done. I’ve made so many friends along the way and enjoyed a full and fulfilling life. At the worst time in my life, Guiding supported me; at the best times I enjoyed supporting them.”
— - Shirley Strong
Shirley started her Guiding life as a Guide whilst at boarding school in the 1940s. “I remember that is was very exciting learning to use stirrup pumps, lying on the ground escaping from smoke rooms, and stalking the German Mistress from bushes in the garden because we thought she was a spy”.
No more Guiding for the next 20yrs, “then ‘out of the blue’ a friend asked me to become part of her Division team. I became the Division secretary, then the Commissioner in Chislehurst”. This was followed by 10 years as County Commissioner for GLK (1973-83). During this time Shirley’s husband tragically died leaving her a widow at 43 years old. “My Guiding commitments kept me going, the best therapy ever. So many friends gave me such strong support, a real lifeline in such a difficult time”.
“I have very happy memories of the ten years I spent in the County - the friends I made, the camps, Camp Fires, visits to units County week-ends at Foxlease and Aylesford. A special memory is the making of the County Standard and the dedication of it at Rochester Cathedral. We also joined with the other Kent Counties we raised £25,000 to restore a stained-glass window and a Cloister Bay at Canterbury Cathedral and held a Service there to present the cheque”.
From 1978 Shirley was a Council member and then on the Executive Committee of the Girl Guides Association. She represented the Executive Committee with Jean-Clare Schaw Miller at the ‘Festivals and Traditions of Mexico’ at Our Cabana, 1982 and 5 years later visited Sangam to be shown projects supported by GGA with sewing machines and the Leprosy Village.
In 1984, she became the Chief Commissioner for LaSER and was instrumental in the celebrations of 75yrs of Guiding both at Crystal Palace and the Albert Hall. Commissioners from all over the world attended and Shirley was hostess for the one from Trinidad and Tobago. This role she held for 7 years. “One of the highlights was the joint fund raising with the Scouts of London for Great Ormond Street Hospital which raised £500,000 to endow The Guide Ward for children suffering from leukemia and to help research”.
At a Foxlease training weekend, Shirley was awarded the Laurel Award – the highest award in Guiding. She ‘retired’ in 1991 and then became Chairman of the Guide Friendship Fund for a further 5 years. During her tenure, the Fund contributed £7,000 for a leprosy prevention programme in India plus a further £5,000 to encourage women to fit chimneys to their stoves to remove harmful fumes, again in India. For this sterling work, the WAGGGS Executive for the Asia Pacific Region presented Shirley with the Silver Elephant – the highest accolade from the Bharat Guide + Scout Association.
In 2001 Shirley was awarded an MBE from Queen Elizabeth II for services to the Girl Guide Association and the Society for Libyan Studies in London.
