With a heart of gold and a talent in culinary arts, Ann A. Crane is
whipping up inspiration daily as a Juliette Gordon Low Society Member!
Ann, a life-long Girl Scout, earned the First Class Award, and is now
recognized as a Gold Award Girl Scout!
A huge believer in Girl Scouts and the Gold Award program, Ann has
served as a Board Member, Committee Member on multiple committees, and
is a current Gold Award Trainer and Interviewer. Ann makes time to
help girls gain leadership skills and earn their Gold Award, providing
mentorship and guidance on their service journey. Over her years
serving, Ann has received the Thanks I and Thanks II Awards, as well
as the Volunteer of Excellence award.
"I feel a real commitment to help all girls rise, take risks,
grow and become leaders in the world. Girl Scouts of Orange County
provides that opportunity for our girls here in the OC, and I am
honored to support their efforts to create our future leaders."
Ann advocates for all girls and women, not only through Girl Scouts,
but through past service on the board for Human Options to break the
cycle of domestic violence. Professionally, Ann teaches Culinary Arts
and Hospitality at the Orange County School of the Arts, lending her
passion to help youth find their passion and place in the field of hospitality.
"Girl Scout camp played a huge role in my life. And while
those memories and experiences are not quite as crystal clear, the
feeling of contentment, campfire singing, being in nature, working
with my peers and looking up to the older women who became my role
models is still there. I stepped away from one group for decades, but
was brought back in recently by a friend, and it was as though I had
never left. Sure, we're grayer and have more wrinkles, but we are the
same warm-hearted supportive, caring women we were back then. We're
retired or retiring, and still making time for Girl Scouts. Still
giving back to the camp we loved, we are creating new memories with
the younger girls and older women who will follow us."
In her business career, Ann has been a Girl Scout camp cook, line
cook, manager and vice president of restaurant operations. In
purchasing Meyerhof’s Catering, Ann found that she thrived as a small
business owner. She wore many hats and was intimately involved in
sales, recipe development, marketing, staff training, customer
relations and more. After selling Meyerhof’s in 2012, she took a year
off, and then decided to give back by teaching Culinary and
Hospitality at the Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA).
Matching food and beverage, coming up with fun things to do with
food, and talking about all of it -- well, those are her passions!
Ann also leads the way through philanthropy and volunteering, and
paired up with mixologist Joe G. to entertain Girl Scouts of Orange
County’s Promise Circle and Juliette Gordon Low Society Members (she
is a member of both groups) at a March 2021 virtual event. Ann
created home-made marshmallows, Mexican Hot Chocolate Bombs, and some
fun recipes to pair with Girl Scout cookie inspired cocktails created
by Joe G. It was like having our own Girl Scout Food Network show
with goodies delivered to guests.
Ann is open to new ideas and willing to share everything. Well -
everything except the recipe to her Chocolate Cookie Monsters.
To join Ann in investing in girls who will change the world, click
here to discover how you can become a Juliette Gordon Low
Society member by including Girl Scouts of Orange County in your
philanthropic plans.