Is there a polite way to tell someone

I think that's a horrible idea. How is that not going to be embarrassing and hurtful? And how would you address it, hey stinky, I saw this and thought of you?

She would have to be stupid to receive that anonymously and not take the hint.  I think that is cowardly!

Has it happened more than once?

If it has only happened once then you should just deal with it.

If it is on going, then you have a choice, deal with it, or be prepared to hurt this woman's feelings.

I know there are times of the month where if I use my regular deodorant I will smell myself by the end of the day.  When I am hormonal.. it seems to come out everywhere.  It got 100% worse when I was going through IVF and did not get better until I went through menopause.  So there were times when it caught me completely unaware and I would smell myself and have to try and remedy it.. but it wasn't always possible right away.  

I can not imagine how mortified I would have been if anyone had pointed it out to me!!  

I agree. This would be horrifying to receive and then on top of it wonder about each person you come in contact with and whether or not they were the one who sent it.

Is this an ongoing issue?  Or could it be a one time thing? She forgot deodorant, got her period, or didn't use the right soap to cut the smell???

Aside from a medical condition or allergy, I would personally appreciate it if I had BO and someone told me. Of course, you have to take my advice with a grain of salt. I am the kind of person who will tell you if you have a booger in your nose or something in your teeth. Why? Because I would want someone to tell ME. But everyone does not appreciate frankness, although my friends do.

But I would of course not say anything unless I knew the person. There are limits to frankness!

Something in your nose or teeth is something that can be immediately rectified if you know about it.  Not so with BO.

True, and I would not say anything about BO unless I knew the person really well; well enough to know that there was no medical condition.

Is it body odor or maybe stinky shoes?
But, I can't think of any way you could or would want to say something about the odor without embarrassing the woman. And I would feel horrible if I said something and it turns out she does have a medical condition causing the odor. And giving a "gift" of deodorant would be offensive too, especially if she has a problem that isn't easily fixed.

I bet she switched to natural deodorant and doesn't live with another adult to tell her. I would buy her some CertianDri or Clinical Protection Dove. Pull her aside privately and be super nice about it and let her know those deodorants need to be applied at night. Oh wait, first ask her if everything is ok at home, ask if she has running water. You never know maybe a pipe burst in the winter and she didn't have the money to fix it. Then give her the deodorant.

I see the suggestion of the anonymous note, I think that's a good idea. But find a way to throw it in her purse maybe if she walks away from it for a minute. I can't remember where, but I've heard of someone doing this, maybe at work? I think she's not showering daily and not using a strong deodorant. And if no one tells her, how awful to continue on like that. Someone has to tell her and it may stink less if she doesn't know who told her. Either way, write the note with "kindness and compassion" as suggested. Don't pass this job on to the head of vbs, they will probably coward out like most people in this thread.

No I can't smell myself after the gym even though I'm covered in sweat, nor do I smell my breath in the morning, I can only smell my shoes. My friend married a Cameroonian man last year and he had his local priest marry him. At the rehearsal the day before the wedding the priest stunk so bad I said to my friend that her fiance needs to say something to the priest. She said that the priest's wife and kids smell too. Perhaps they don't wear deodorant or shower daily, but obviously they all don't smell each other. Her fiance said something to the priest and the next day I could not smell him.

We're not talking about stopping a stranger in a parking lot, this is a woman she sees regularly and is part of her community. 

a good friend of ours was a college professor that worked with a lot of students from other countries/cultures, who didn't always have the same level of hygiene that most of us have, and also ate a large amount of garlic and other foods that contributed to it. she would have a session every year where she would go over hygiene "rules" so that if the students wanted to get internships/jobs what they needed to do to improve their body odors. Most had no idea that they had BO because everyone they were around smelled the same and to them was "normal"

In your case if she is part of a VBS, is there a minister or leader who might know her and be able to tell her?

If someone I didn't know told me that I had offensive body odor, I would be so mortified that not only would I not show my face at that particular church again (not exactly what vbs programs are going for) but I would likely hide in my house for a while.

Stinky is a kind of known quantity around my state. It's hot. It is hot and humid and particularly for people who are not used to it, their bodies have a really hard time keeping up. Ever been to Disney in August? Your olfactory sense is assaulted at every turn. Not only different cultural norms about natural body scents, but just normal people who are overwhelmed by just how sweaty it can be. Even those of us who are acclimated to it can have off days, days where your hormones just go apeshit and you can spray yourself from top to bottom with heavy duty deodorant and you still don't come home smelling like a rose at the end of the day. And...not to be deliberately gross, but most people only use deodorant under their arms...but down here that isn't the only area that gets hot and sweaty and stinky.

So all that to say, I would likely keep my counsel to myself and as my grandmother always said 'tend to my own knitting.' 

I couldn't do it. I would feel so rude and invasive. I did work where we had a male coworker who smelled awful. I doubt he bathed more than weekly. I didn't have to sit near him, but I did learn to hold my breath if I needed to walk by his cubicle.

I guess one morning several people who did sit near him planned an intervention-type thing and they all brought in deodorant, mouthwash, bars of strong soap, toothpaste, etc. They put it all on his desk and put a note on top that just said, "Please!" I didn't see it, I heard about it after the fact. I was embarrassed for the man. I don't know if he used them or not. I never got over my habit of holding my breath, just in case.

I think in a case of an employee, then HR needs to have a talk with them. My friend in HR has had to talk to employees about their hygiene and with one girl, her slutty wardrobe. It was her job and she did it as professionally as she could, but she didn't enjoy it.

For someone I didn't know at all, I would just make it a point to avoid being in their proximity. And since their only contact is passing by her at VBS, I would think it would be an easy thing to keep your distance.