Ellie here! I am so excited to kick off my first interview for GIRLS WHO LEAD with 3-time Lead Summit alum Mary Lara Hardesty. With many of us stuck at home, I’m sure we’ve all picked up a new hobby or two in the past year. Mary Lara taught herself how to make amigurumi, small crocheted animals, and found a way to take this new skill and give back to the community by  donating her profits to zoos and aquariums - over $800 in 2020!

Mary Lara told me all about how she got into amigurumi, why she decided to give back to zoos and aquariums, and how the lessons she learned at the Lead Summit have been a continuous source of inspiration for her as a swimmer and as a Girl Scout. 

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EF: What is amigurumi?

ML: It’s crocheting in the round. When you crochet it is flat, and you sew it up to be the shape you want it. For a hat or gloves you sew in the round, and a blanket or scarf it’s flat. So in amigurumi, it’s just crocheting in round, everything is round or oblong. It is Japanese and similar to origami, which is paper folding to make something new. 

EF: That’s really cool, I’ve never heard of amigurumi before this! How did you start making them? 

ML: I got a teach yourself amigurumi kit for Christmas in 2019. And then when the pandemic hit, I knew it was going to be a while before things started back, so I got the kit out and taught myself. It came with the stuff to make two, and a little book with instructions to create two woodland creatures. I taught myself at the beginning of the pandemic and used it as a way to pass the time since there was nothing else going on. 

EF: What inspired you to start selling them and donating the money to zoos and aquariums? 

ML: I’d been crocheting for about 2 months and then people started requesting to buy them, so I decided I would sell them. I felt really bad for all the different zoos and aquariums - that’s one of my pet passions, animal conservation. They were all closed, and of course all the animals still live there and still need to eat and have keepers come in and give care and everything. But they were all completely shut down and didn’t have any form of revenue coming in except for donations. I felt bad for them, because I felt like they were getting forgotten so I decided to donate the money. I really feel like zoos and aquariums are a pleasure thing but they aren’t something that you can turn on and off when it’s convenient. They really are all still there and they all still need care, but everyone kind of forgot about them at the beginning of the pandemic. I wanted to draw attention to that and the fact that they still need support just like everyone else at the beginning of the pandemic did. 

EF: That makes so much sense. People were so consumed with what other people were doing, especially at the beginning of the pandemic. 

ML: All the essential workers deserve all the praise they got, but there were essential workers who weren’t serving people like zoo staff, who were kind of getting swept to the wayside because they weren’t helping people. Like I said before, the animals aren’t something people can turn on and off when it’s convenient. And they still need care. 

EF: What are your favorite things to do outside of swimming, and making amigurumi?  

ML: I like to read a lot. I love adventure-fantasy fiction. And I have a part time job. I’m a kennel assistant at one of the local veterinary clinics and we also do wildlife rescue. I’ve gotten to assist in rescue and rehab, we get mostly raptors, there’s a lot of owls and hawks that come in. We see the occasional baby deer. There’s a lot of cool stuff I get to see. 

EF: That’s such a hands-on job. 

ML: It really is!

EF: How does your experience as a Girl Scout influence you as a leader? 

ML: I’ve been a girl scout since I was in kindergarten so for me, in Girl Scouts, it’s always been if you care about something, there’s ways to take action, big or small. It really influenced my decision to donate the money because it’s not going to make all the difference, but it can make a little difference. In Girl Scouts, I’ve really learned any contribution is a contribution, even if it seems small, it’s something. Anyway to take action, is taking action. Girl Scouts has really taught me how to make a difference with what I have, rather than wishing for something I don’t have and not doing anything. 

EF: What lessons have you learned from LEAD that you find yourself using in your daily life, whether it’s Girl Scouts, swimming or the other things you do? 

ML: Positive thinking is one of the big ones. With the pandemic, it’s really easy to fall into a negative spiral. The positive thinking and ways to see the good and celebrate the little wins has really helped me during the pandemic and life in general. Swim right now, for us, is only about half capacity so meets aren’t as good as I would’ve liked. I’m really trying to focus on the small goals and not so much on the times or where I place. In life, we can’t travel or anything, so I’ve been working on the small things like working on applications for travel trips in summer of 2022. That’s been my small win. Really having a good attitude and focusing on the small wins is something LEAD has helped me with, a lot! 

EF: You said you’ve been a part of Girl Scouts since kindergarten. It’s such a leadership based program, what do you think drew you to the program and has kept you interested for so long? 

ML: We started Girl Scouts because there was a troop at my church and my mom took over as the leader. For a long time, we stayed in it just because it’s good for you and it looks good on applications. Most girls kind of lose interest in seventh or eighth grade and I began to lose interest then too. We went to the National Convention in 2018 in Columbus, Ohio and it was thousands of girls from all over the world. It brought home to me that Girl Scouts was not an organization that just happens in your little circle. It is a world wide organization filled with people with common goals, even if you can’t see them all the time, there is always someone you can reach out to. It was important for me to know about the whole support network even if they aren’t always there and we all share a common goal. 

EF: From LEAD, what do you think has motivated you the most? 

ML: The most motivating lesson for me is that you can change. You can grow and change within your hobbies or within your sports or job. You can make the best of a situation. You never have to stagnate and just exist. You can always look to take it to the next step and to look into the future and find a way to move forward and reach your goals. And reaching your goals looks different for everyone. LEAD has given me a lot of different ways to look at a situation and make the best of it. I can say that I can do X to help me get to where I want to go. 

EF: That makes perfect sense. Now I have a couple rapid fire questions!

EF : Favorite book?

ML: Percy Jackson, the whole series. 

EF : Favorite dessert?

ML: Key lime pie. 

EF : Favorite event to swim?

ML: Open water races. 

EF : Favorite beverage? 

ML: Chocolate milk. 

EF : Favorite swimming event to watch? 

ML: 200 fly. 

EF : Favorite female role model? 

ML: I have a lot of women I look up to, the women at LEAD, either Olympians or small groups leaders or the LEAD Team, everyone is amazing and plays a role. In LEAD and outside, there are so many women I admire and they all play a different role so I don’t think I can pick one! 

EF : Thank you so much! That was really great, I loved your answers. 

ML: Thank you! 

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