When a Girl Scout sees a need in her community, she jumps right in to help. That's exactly what the members of Girl Scout Cadette Troop 21002 did when they fixed up and beautified a truck bed produce stand at Glenn Hope Care Farm in Felton. The troop members, who live in East York and Wrightsville, not only created a fun and functional product, but also earned their Silver Award in the process. The Silver Award is the highest award a Cadette Girl Scout can earn.
"We got the idea for the project from co-leader Natalie Lawton," said troop co-leader Jen Sitler, who noted that Lawton knew of the work Aimee Jo Morris does on the farm, a nonprofit organization that seeks to promote the mental and physical health of veterans through hands-on programming. Morris had an old truck bed on the property and wanted to turn it into a produce cart for the veterans to display and sell the food they grow.
The troop of nine seventh-grade girls got to work brainstorming ideas, submitting donation requests and completing almost all of the hands-on work, including cleaning up the truck, sanding, doing body putty work, cutting wood and measuring roof angles and board pieces. They also used power tools, including drills, sanders and miter saws, and spray- and hand-painted the final product. In total, the girls put in a combined 195 hours to complete the project. Community donations from Geo's Auto Repair, Billet Industries, Barney's Auto Center, Rick's Home Center, Lowe's and ReStore York made the project possible.
The girls had a ribbon-cutting ceremony on July 30. In addition to their Silver Award, the girls were given a Veterans Humanitarian Award from Glenn Hope Care Farm.
For troop member Caitlyn Rivera, earning her Silver Award meant much more than receiving a pin or certificate. "I get to help others," she stated. "I feel really happy when I see a smile on someone else's face just by me doing a good deed."
Troop member Jessica Sechrist said the project was a lot of fun, and Ariana Hesson said donating her time and efforts to the project was all part of what it means to be a Girl Scout.
Completing the project required putting many ideas together, said troop member Shelby Breen, who noted that the toughest part of the project was "the persistence and showing up every morning ready to work."
Troop members Charlotte Pritts and Lilly Sitler enjoyed working together as a troop to make something beautiful and useful, and both enjoyed painting the truck bed.
Troop member Emily Spagnolo said she was happy to discover the troop worked and communicated well together. "I'm proud of everyone and think we should be proud of each other," she stated.
Encouraging other Girl Scouts to earn their Silver Award, Ruby Lawton said, "I would say if you have an idea, go for it! The satisfaction is reward enough." Her fellow Girl Scout Austen Pritts agreed, adding, "I would say that you should speak up if you have an idea for a Silver Award, because it can really impact someone else's life."
Leave a Review