Manahawkin Woman Recognized By Girl Scouts Of The Jersey Shore

MANAHAWKIN, NJ — A Manahawkin woman was among eight women recognized by the Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore for their contributions to local communities at the organization's annual Phenomenal Women Under 40 awards ceremony and fundraising event in Farmingdale.

The celebration on Sept. 22, along with proceeds from a summer-long 50/50 raffle, raised $40,000 to fuel leadership experiences for Girl Scouts in the Jersey Shore region and to fund membership fees for girls who want to become Girl Scouts but whose families are facing financial hardship.

"We are proud to honor and celebrate phenomenal women who go above and beyond to make our communities better places through their work and volunteer service," said Eileen Higgins, chief executive officer of Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore, which serves nearly 9,000 girls in Monmouth and Ocean counties.

Melissa Schwaner is the owner of Swan Therapy Group LLC with locations in Toms River and expanding to Manahawkin and Brick. She has been working with children, adolescents and young adults for her entire career. She holds both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in social work from Rutgers University, where she minored in psychology.

She opened Swan Therapy Group LLC in 2019 and has been continuing to assist as many children and families as possible with issues that arise.

Schwaner has an extensive history working in a partial care program where she assisted teenagers after school who were in need of intensive outpatient therapy. She also worked as a Military Family Life Counselor on the Naval Base helping children of active duty parents.

When she is not in therapy sessions with clients, Schwaner enjoys going to the beach, spending time with her family, eating ice cream and playing with her trained therapy dog Charlie.

Schwaner received the 2021 Phenom Award along with Ocean County residents Kristina Henderson, Chelsea Masterson and Megan O'Keefe, and Monmouth County residents Alaina Bontales, Danielle M. Jones, Eboné Lawrence-Smith and Shannon Oreficé.

The 2021 Phenom recipients were selected from a public nomination process and are "making a positive difference every day as health care professionals, educators, business owners and nonprofit leaders," said Teri O'Connor, chairperson of Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore's board of directors.

"The Phenom honorees are tremendous role models for our Girl Scouts, aspiring to be leaders who make our world a better place," O'Connor added.

For more information about leadership and program opportunities offered by the Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore in Monmouth and Ocean counties, e-mail info@gsfun.org or call (800) 785-2090.

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