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Service Project Ideas
A compilation of outstanding ideas from various sources of wonderful, helpful, giving people! Permission has been granted to use, share and distribute these ideas.
Thank you to everyone who contributed! Susan B.

Dawn M. Sims
DFAS-CO/FA
Here is a website to check out: http://members.aol.com/SurfinChar/servproj.html and these are some of my own ideas or activities that we have completed. Contact your local food delivery service for the elderly/impaired, it's called Meals on Wheels here and ask them if they accept tray favors. We've done ghosts out of tootsie roll suckers, Christmas tree ornaments out of green foam, traced our hands to extend a hug for valentines day, the possibilities are endless. We participated in Operation Dear Abby and are waiting to hear back from them. Another troop I know follows up with care packages of Girl Scout cookies! Our council as a whole makes valentine boxes for Veterans at the VA Hospital. They can provide a list of what they needs, i.e. decks of cards, individually wrapped crackers, combs, gum, etc. The girls made a homemade valentine and placed it inside their box. We are going to offer to paint and stencil our pools restrooms - when don't they need brightening up! Another troop in our area took a tour of the Ronald McDonald House at Children's Hospital and will be making the families a Spaghetti dinner. A coat collection in October for the homeless. We charge a can of admission to our Court of Award's Ceremony in December and donate it to the local food pantry. I am going to contact them to see if they can use help sorting the food for delivery. I hope some of these will help.

Dorothy Paris
Michigan
How about collecting used coats for a local shelter, reading to smaller kids at the library, Spring clean-up (twigs, etc) of a local park or arboretum, the ever popular can drive, collecting pop cans to buy hats for local cancer victims (or making the hats), visiting the nursing homes and singing songs for them (the old Girl Scout favorites spark memories), making May day baskets out of tissue paper flowers for the nursing home residents. Valentine's cards for the nursing home residents....Hope this helps!

Tina Capps
One of the most successful and fun service projects for my Brownie troop has been making homemade noncook playdough and giving it to a nonprofit day care, Head Start or other type of Early Childhood Program. We always make enough so that the girls can keep some and give some away. We do this about three times a year because the girls love it so much.

Pam Hollis
Leader, organizer, team member
Orange county, California
What I did with my little girls was make cards - cards that could be used for any occasion - blank inside so someone can write what they like in them. These we grouped in packs of 5 and 10 and gave them to Meals on wheels for those who could not afford to buy Hallmark cards but would like to drop a word to someone. Also we made "placemats" for the Meal on wheels trays. The Daisies were best at that. They mostly did flowers and rainbows.You could also have the girls collect boxes of tea, chocolate drink, candy - apportion these out between the girls and place those in little baggies and put inside a mug as a gift for someone in need.We also collected games the girls grew out of and clothes and took them to a home where abused Moms and their children came to seek shelter. Also small toiletries pack for the Moms.

Peggy Chambers
Hey! Greetings from upstate SC - Old 96 Council. My troop of Cadettes & Seniors is working on the 2000min. of service, too. We divided 2000 by the number of girls in the troop and got an average of how much time each person needed to spend on a project(s). We'll do some things
as a troop and some individual efforts, since they're older girls - they volunteer at school, church, etc. on their own. Project suggestions? The tried & true kindnesses to nursing home residents is always good. Valentine's, St. Pats, Easter, July 4 holidays are good times to make cards, little treats and deliver them. My council is doing a book drive for GS B'day - ties in with the reading programs. We collected new children's underwear at Christmas to donate to Prevent Child Abuse Carolina clients. Check with the city/county for beautification projects (planting flowers) in the spring. The animal shelter always needs stuff - towels, food, newspapers - plus the girls will love to visit there. Recycle old phone books in Oct (?) when the new ones are issued.
There are lots of links to more from others in ScoutingLinks: Resources.


Gail Beacham
Brownie Troop #304
Scott AFB, IL
For Valentine's Day, we are taking toilet paper rolls, cutting them in half, and covering them with Valentine's fabric (glued on by the girls) so that the fabric is like a Tootsie Roll wrapper. You tie one end with ribbon, fill the open end with candy, and then tie the other end up. Very cheap, easy for young girls to do, and very pretty! We are bringing them to the hospital on our Base.


Peggy Sauvie, stay at home mom of Ashleigh, 10, Amanda, 5, and Joshua and Jeremy
(yes they are identical)
Some things my troops have done are: decorate cookies for nursing home residents, a canned food drive, knit scarves for the coats for kids program, made bookmarks for the reading literacy program.

Cathy Dobbins
Troop 1206 and 3311 in New Mexico
Hi! I have a troop of Juniors and a troop of Cadettes and we plan an average of one Service project a month. Many are so simple that you don't realize you are doing a "service" until you are done! My Cadette troop started in their second year of juniors visiting a nursing home once a month and are still doing it now 3 years later. We have done a trash collection at our local school and picked up 15 bags of trash in 1 hour! You would never have known the trash was there if you weren't looking for it! We currently are using one of our troop badge projects to make Valentine cards for an assisted care facility where one of our girl's grandparents is living. We have made bird feeders out of pinecones and Peanut butter for migrating birds, we have done a gently used book drive and donated them to our council for an outreach program, we have
collected socks, gloves and hats for the homeless, and we have also held a canned food drive for our local food pantry. We have not always had a lot of response or help, but for our big projects, we always include what we are doing in our Service Unit newsletter and ask if anyone wants to help. You could also do a simple flag ceremony for your SU leader meeting or school PTA meeting. There are so many more things you could do...even volunteer to clean someone's house or make some sandwiches or cookies to take to school for the teachers....I could go on all day, but I think you'll get a good start from this!


Terry Hair
I am a junior scout leader. I was a leader for my older daughter who is now 18. I now have 12 6th grade juniors. I think the best service project I have done was at a nursing home. We went several times. We played bingo with the residents. Some of the girls called & other girls
sat with a resident & helped play. We took the prizes ( hand lotion & bananas were favorites). We made Valentines & cookies for Valentines Day. We sang Christmas carols @ Christmas. It did not matter what we did the residents loved us. The girls looked foreword to seeing the residents. I recommend it. I hope this helps.


Sharon Bormann
Some of the different service projects we have done is reading to the elderly, Food drives, collected old stuffed animals for the local hospital to give out to sick kids, collected coats for the needy, we also have done a craft each month for the local nursing home for table decorations. These are just a few. If you have any questions please feel free to ask more. A lot of these we do on the Service unit level.

Kellie Green
There are many different ways to serve......Can Food Drive, Can Food Drive for your local Animal Shelter, Park or Beach Cleanup, Make cards for servicemen over seas I have an APO(address)
if you need it, Make cards for a childrens hospital, Visit your local home for the aged, take them pictures the girls have made, Have a yard sale(Tag sale) and donate the money to someone or something.


Cherrie Akin
Here is a list of suggested service projects from our Service Unit. Hope it helps!
SERVICE - A GIFT FROM THE HEART!! HINTS FOR A HAPPY AND SUCCESSFUL SERVICE PROJECT
1. Check with the organization or agency BEFORE starting on the project.
2. Make sure the project is appropriate for the age level.
3. Try to do a project where there will be a response (someone to thank them and let the girls know they are appreciated.
4. Consider face-to-face projects instead of just collecting things.-Plant flowers or participate in a clean up campaign at a neighborhood church, school or park.
-Give a party or host a badge day for younger scouts.
-Make and donate bookmarks with a message to the school or city library.
-Plan and conduct a bicycle safety rodeo for others.
-Clean up a littered desert area.
-Adopt a rest home, crisis center or group home for regular, year round attention.
-Make a flag pole and sashes for younger troop or Neighborhood flag ceremonies.
-Prepare gifts or favors for patients in nursing homes, hospitals, etc.
-Volunteer to teach games or songs or to read to young children, shut-ins, or the elderly.
-Volunteer to do a flag ceremony at PTA or other community group meetings.
-Put together brightly illustrated books, flash cards or scrapbooks for children in hospitals or shelters.
-Prepare special favors or cards for teachers, school office staff, crossing guards, playground aides, cafeteria workers at their school to say thanks!
-Volunteer to babysit occasionally for a troop leader or a single parent in your neighborhood.
-Volunteer to give manicures at a local nursing home.
-Provide hand decorated or store bought wrapping paper to volunteer agencies or volunteer to wrap donated gifts.
-With troop parents organize an appreciation dinner or present your leader with a pizza gift certificate on Leader Appreciation Day - April 22.
-Troops volunteer to provide child care for meetings of the PTA, at election polling places, at monthly leaders meetings, during parent teacher conferences, etc.
-Make a special card or treat for local service people who make your community a better place to live - fire stations, police stations, ambulance services, post office, etc.
-Make Health Kits - 10" x 12" drawstring bags made from heavy duty material and fill with personal items - soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, comb, shampoo, deodorant, wash cloth and hand towel. Donate the kits to crisis shelters or homeless shelters.
-Make Play Kits - Decorate a small shoe box or empty oatmeal box and fill with crayons, coloring books, scratch paper, pipe cleaners, pencils, etc. and donate to crisis or homeless shelters.
-Make baby quilts and donate to local hospitals.
-Prepare puppet shows, skits, talent shows or sing along to present at local nursing homes or children's shelters.
-Make and fill Christmas stockings to be distributed by school social workers to needy children.
-Host an Un-Birthday party at a local shelter, complete with a cake and small gifts.
-Provide homeless shelters with Mending Kits - (in small ziplock bags place 3-4 colors of thread wrapped around an index card, 2 needles, 2 safety pins, 3-4 buttons, 2 band-aids.) OR Stationery Kits - (in small ziplock bags place 2 envelopes with 2 stamps attached, 3-4 sheets of writing paper and a pencil).
-Make personal tote bags for children in group homes, crisis shelters.
-Collect food for food banks or volunteer to help pack food boxes or serve at community kitchens.
-Ask your school counselor about special needs for students at your school.


Carolina Low Country Girl Scouts, Service Unit 19
Clothes drive for Orphanage, Food donations for Animal Shelter, Put together a time capsule.

Anne Mitchell, leader
CLCGS, Troop 252
Donate old books to Literacy group, Read to seniors.

Rosella Roberson, leader
CLCGS, Troop 485
"A Time For Giving" Donated items (dry goods, canned goods, clothing, toys, books) to CODA for the holidays.

Gail Lupton, leader
CLCGS, Troop 460
Book drive to retirement home, make crafts and give to sick children during a visit to the hospital.


Susan Bailey, leader
CLCGS, Troop 375
Food bank donation of "Birthday In A Box" "Friends of Caroline Hospice" decorate a tree at the annual "Festival of Trees"

Donna Pine, leader
CLCGS, Troop55
Blanket drive for animal shelters.

Patty Thompson
Girl Scouts of Central Maryland
Severn, Maryland
I've been collecting ideas for a while now so I'm sending them to you…Check out these websites:
http://members.tripod.com/a_scout/allserv.htm
http://members.aol.com/GSLdrKay/serviceideas.html
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Grove/6610/serviceprojects.htm
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pointe/9385/service.htm

Leslie A. Scroble
I just wanted to share a really cool Service Project some of the members of our troop did on Saturday. We were contacted by one of our scout's father who is a member of the local Volunteer Fire Department. They needed some "victims" for new members of the department to rescue
during training. They filled the room with nontoxic "smoke" made from vegetable oil blown through a mister - set up barriers through out the room and planted the victims. The troop was given a lesson on how to assist their own rescue by shouting or banging to make noise. A fireman
in full dress is scary - they can't talk very well with the air tank and they make weird sucking noises to breathe. They wear sensors that beep if they are not moving, and at times they were blindfolded - so there was a lot going on. The troop loved the excitement - the firemen and firewomen appreciated the help and we had a great learning experience for people of
all ages. Ask you local FD - bet they would appreciate the offer!!


Ethel B.
Plymouth Bay
Go to this site http://www.cardsforkids.com they are looking for homemade cards to send to terminally ill kids, I just printed out two dozen from my computer, but you can have the girls make them with rubber stamps, stickers etc. They are also looking for envelopes, but if you can't make them, they will take just the cards, as long as they are a certain size, check out the web site for details....
**Please note: www.cardsforkids.com is no longer in service. If you are interested in a project like this contact: Annette Marie and The Board Members of Keiki Cards (www.keikicards.org.), 5641 Kalanianaole Hwy. Honolulu HI 96821,
Phone 808-377-0848, Fax 808-373-5365.

More from Ethel B.
We just did coloring packets for the hospital...had the office supply store donate copies of coloring pages, we put 5 different pictures and a bunch of crayons in an envelope and gave it to the pediatric ward...keeps the kids busy when they are bored...we will be doing the same with word puzzles in the future...5 puzzles and a pencil...good for the older kids and adults.

Karen Norgard
Sahuaro GSC Tucson, AZ
Someone on the list asked for service project ideas and I sent her the following list. I thought it might help to post it to the list as well.
1. Organize a collection and delivery for a local battered and abuse shelter
2. Collect "birthday boxes" from troops in your service unit and deliver to children's shelters or local food banks(boxes include items such as balloons, candles, plates, napkins, cups, party favors, a small present or gift certificate, noisemakers, confetti, cake mix, canned frosting, etc).
3. Organize a clean up for all the school playgrounds in your area
4. Offer to tutor at local homework help locations
5. Bike safety workshop combined with a bike rodeo
6. Plant flowers, shrubs, trees where needed locally
7. Adopt a family for Christmas and or birthdays (check with churches or outreach agencies near you)
8. Organize a food drive for your local food bank
9. Hold a cat or dog show and combine with information about pets, healthy, sterilization, etc. Collect dog or cat food to donate to your local Humane Society.
10. Make "busy kits" for kids in the hospital or for hospital waiting rooms. In a gallon zip lock bag, place some crayons (ask local restaurants for donations) and coloring book pages. Puzzles are good too.
11. Collect and donate school supplies to local shelters
12. Organize a towel and blanket drive for the local animal shelter(s)
13. Make "Baby Sprinkle" baskets to present to first born baby on Juliette Low's birthday (October 31st) or Girl Scout Day (March 12th). Call local hospital to coordinate this.
14. Hold a baby shower for the local child abuse shelter (e-mail me if you'd like details on this one)
15. Collect items to make "care kits" for seniors in assisted living or nursing homes (include items such as lotions, toiletry items, nail clippers, comb, brush, etc)
16. Organize a gently used toy drive for the local pediatric unit.
17. Collect coats to donate to needy kids
18. Make simple stuffed animals or collect used stuffed animals for hospitals, fire departments, ambulance drivers, police, etc.
19. Collect books for a local shelter (build a bookcase for them to go in too)
20. Collect and donate books to the federal prison
21. Have the girls in the troop read books on to tapes and donate the books and tapes to the local pediatric unit, shelter, or school for the blind
22. Organize a magazine collection drive. Donate to local VA, hospitals, shelter, or libraries (school or public)
23. Make and place Peace Poles in public parks or school grounds, etc.
24. Go Christmas caroling for canned food. Put out flyers in the neighborhood a week ahead of time.
25. Organize a badge/try-it/IPP workshop
26. Hold a craft fair and donate a percentage of the proceeds to local GS facilities
27. Organize a craft fair-set up several tables with different kinds of crafts to teach.
28. Hold a games/Olympics day for local troops
29. Host an Astronomy night
30. Hold a camping skills (outdoor skills) work shop with different skills and/or information at stations
31. Host a crime prevention workshop
32. Hold an emergency preparedness event
33. Arrange a story hour at your local library
34. Make, collect, or donate "blankies" to babies/toddlers in need
35. Hold a fitness workshop for all levels
36. Do manicures for women in the nursing homes or assisted living centers
37. Make packages to mail to servicemen overseas (contact the Red Cross on how to distribute). Include items such as books, videos, hot chocolate and hot cider packets, microwave popcorn, hard candy, greeting cards that they can use to send home, small games, magazines, etc.
38. Help the Color a Smile organization (Color a Smile, PO Box 1516, Morristown, New Jersey 07962 (973) 540-9222
39. Help with local non-profit organizations (e.g. help hand out info for MADD, walk for the diabetes foundation, help the local school with events or projects, etc.
40. Help with local troop organizers. Go with them to troop organization/leader recruitment meetings and share your knowledge and love of scouting.
Some new ones that we have done since last May are: Birthday boxes for abuse shelters, Yard work and maintenance for a wildlife rehabilitation center, Cleaning carpets at the church where we meet.
Some additional websites you might check into are:
http://members.aol.com/GSLdrKay/serviceideas.html
http://www.guidezone.skl.com/i_bw_index.html
http://wwwgeocities.com/Heartland/Pointe/9385
Have fun with these! If you need more detailed information, just ask!

Kay Schechter, NJ
Interesting service project - used for Eagle project
I just read a different Eagle project today in the newspaper and thought it was worth passing along to anyone willing to consider it.An Eagle Scout candidate (think this is correct term) - decided to run a Senior Prom for his Eagle Award. All Senior Citizens in his town were
invited. He noted that many people did not attend their own senior proms and many more
never even graduated HS in this age group. The press wrote a really nice article, focusing primarily on the seniors - which was great - but this just sounded like a nice service project that
could be done - troop wise or service unit wise - A Senior "Senior" Prom. They used a pix of this young man dancing with a Senior Prom - LOL - really nice picture - and she noted she had no problem with a date - LOL. Author unknown.


From Patty Thompson's message
A few years ago, my Cadette troop came up with a great service project. They organized a "Mother's Day Out" program. They scheduled it for the first Saturday in December. We were able to use the school cafeteria where the troop was based. We advertised through the schools and churches the girls attended, as well as the service unit. We took only children who were potty-trained. Here's what we did:1. Contacted the school and arranged to have use of the cafeteria from noon to 4pm on a Saturday. 2. Made up flyers advertising the event. We included the fact that there would be adults trained in First aid and CPR there as well. We also requested a change of clothes be sent in case of spills. 3. The girls set up a predetermined number of stations: craft, indoor game, outdoor game, holiday songs, story/quiet time and snack time. Some
girls were "group leaders" others were station leaders. 4. As children arrived, they were checked in (parents had to leave an emergency number) and they made the child a nametag. While waiting for a small group to form, some getting to know you games were played. Then the group leader took her group through the stations. At the craft station, the craft was wrapped to be a present for parents. 5. Because the majority of our area is Christian, we ended the day with a
visit from Santa.


Linda Gardner
Senior/Cadette Troop 2001
Patriots' Trail GSC
A lot of people bring home sample sized toiletry items from hotels and airplanes when they travel. This may help you with some of the items you're looking for.Last year we asked our troop families to donate personal care items, which they had collected. I was astonished at the quantity (this was a last minute project) and variety. A lot of shampoo, hair rinses and small bars
of soap, as expected. But they also brought in toothbrushes, combs, skin creams, shower caps, shoe brushes. We were able to assemble 25 personal care collections (gallon ziploc bags) to donate to a women's shelter.This year we're going to do a similar project, with a bit more planning. We've asked our families to start collecting again. And we're inviting the 6th grade Junior troops to join us in the project as a bridging project. We'll gather together at the end of April to assemble personal care kits in time for Mother's Day to donate to some women's organization.


Maryann Shovestul
Hockessin DE
Chesapeake Bay GSC
Service Project: Emerg. Preparedness
I did this patch with my Cadette troop this year. The troop purchased 10 red canvas bags from AC Moore. Then the girls checked out Safety Wise to see what it said about the first aid kits. Then they each picked an item and brought in enough of the item to go into each of the 10 bags. It was not everything on the list but it was a good bit. These bags were given to new troops starting in our area. The new leaders were very grateful.


Other ideas from Patty Thompson's message
Authors are unreachable…
Make Christmas stockings for children who will be spending Christmas in a shelter.
Made cookies to mail to service members who are overseas during the holidays.
Take troop money to purchase toys for older children in need for Christmas. Some were delivered to the school nurse to deliver to those in need.
Make apple pies to donate to the county food pantries and soup kitchens.
Make holiday cards for nursing home residents deliver and sing carols.


Chris Prodan, Junior Troop 240, West Columbia, SC
My Junior troop has participated in our SU's Baby Bundle event at Christmas and has decided to continue throughout the troop year. We collect baby items at each meeting for newborns and deliver to a local hospital for those families in need. The hospital staff places the items in bundles and delivers them throughout the nursery.


Marilynn Barr
Jr. Leader, SUP,
Plymouth Bay
Just wanted to let you know that the idea of "keep kids busy kits" which I got off the list was a great success here in our council. My girls (Jrs) made 450 kits and we distributed them to one of the local hospital ER and the WIC office in our town. They were really impressed to receive them. What impressed me is the director of the hospital was a boy scout and knew the difference between the "merit" badges and the patches. Unfortunately even though I sent out a news release several weeks in advance we did not get any coverage. Our council recently implemented what they are calling a white ribbon program that includes community service of 10 hours or more for one project. Between getting the supplies and putting it all together and delivering them it was well over 10 hours. So we have earned this ribbon to add to our flag. Thanks again for the idea. I got so many requests for information on just what these are so I decided to post it to the list rather than answer individually. First and foremost it's not my idea. I don't remember who I got it from but it definitely came from this list back in the fall.In gallon size storage bags we placed three crayons, several coloring pages, construction paper, doodle pages, and an activity page. The idea is to keep kids busy while waiting in the hospital ER or in the WIC office while their parents fill out necessary paperwork etc. One hospital did turn us down flat
which I was very unprepared for. But the other one made up for it in their acceptance of them.The white ribbon program is new to our council this year and it is to increase the amount of community ties we have. It must be a minimum of 10 hours. Must benefit the community outside of Girl Scouts. We must submit a proposal with the intent three weeks before the project is scheduled to begin. Write and submit a press release. Submit a copy of the written action
plan, time log, copy of press release and girl and leader evaluations to the Community Ties Program Manager.


Judi Augustine
Delaware-Raritan GSC, Edison,NJ
Cadette Troop #828 (http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/4748)
Junior Troop #574 (http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/4749)
Junior Troop #1339
Brownie Troop #601
Keep Kids Busy Kits - We are going to be doing this when we go back from spring break. The one
hospital near us has a children's emergency room---that's where most of the packets will be going. A leader of another troop in our SU is a nurse there & she said they will be thrilled to get them. We sent for some things from Oriental Trading to put in the bags too. The bags will have-------girl's bag-- coloring pages, few sheets of paper, crayons, small pencil, small top, necklace, bracelet, ring, stickers, a *winner* medallion, small erasers, small *magic tricks* puzzle, small
magnifying glass & *tracies* (plastic cutout animals that you can trace & color). The boys will have the same, except in place of the necklace, bracelet & ring they will have dinosaur tattoos & little rubber finger monsters. If they go over good, the girls want to make it a yearly service
project like their animal shelter project.Just 1 more time when this list has come up with a great idea!!! One other project we want to do----either before May or right after we start up again
in Sept is the Party Boxes. That is another top-notch idea. Girls have put time into thinking of other things that can also go in the box. They have come up with some good ideas!! Next year we'll do the boxes with the Brownies too. Here's what we put in our boxes (which the girls have decorated):cake mix, icing, gel icing (for writing), alum. foil cake pan, sprinkles, candles, card, gift (such as a Beanie--small ,inexpensive & covers girls or boys), paper & ribbon OR party bag, party favors, plates, napkins, cups, plastic forks, *free* coupons ( like you get at Mickey D's, etc).
We put enough for 8-12 people in the box; depending on the size packages we get. We give them to social services at least 2 weeks before the child's B/D. Then they have plenty of time to get them to the parents.

Barb Karpowicz
1st Palgrave Guides
Our District did birthday boxes last spring and donated them to our local food bank. They were a huge success and VERY much appreciated by the food bank. They had never seen anything quite like it (thanks to the list!).We actually did ours up in large popcorn tins (about 2' high x 10" diameter) that had been donated to us by a local food manufacturer. We put raffia in the bottom and then added birthday plates, cups & napkins, cake mix, frosting mix, candles, loot bags, Hawaiian leis (left over from our area dinner), hats, noisemakers and various little party favors and toys appropriate to the age and gender of the intended recipient. The tins were
painted with a glossy cream paint and then the girls added handprints for decoration. A spot was left "clean" on the tin to write in the name of the birthday child and the date of the party. The tins were donated without lids, so we topped them with fabric tied on with a ribbon. We attached a tag with the suggested age and gender so they could be distributed without opening them up.All our birthday tins were filled to accommodate a party of 8 kids - a number we came up with based on the number of plates in a package!We have 6 units in our District and had each unit (from Sparks to Rangers) complete 2 tins. I would love to see this will turn into an annual service project for us. It was both fun for the girls and appreciated by the food bank.


Donna Tuttle
http://www.geocities.com/EnchantedForest/Meadow/3817/index.html
Cad/Sr leader, Appreciation Pin Award '99, Outstanding Leader Award '99, Outstanding Volunteer Award '98, Delegate, Apprenticed Trainer, SU Program Director
Birthday boxes response: Thought I'd respond to all. Last year our service unit decided to do this
as a joint service project. We did it for GS Birthday. After the great response we got from the local Child Services Dept. we decided to keep this as an ongoing service project (at least 3 troops anyway). I have a Cadette/Senior troop, that meets at the same time and place as a Brownie and
Junior troop--we do things together and separately as well. These three troops decided that when anyone in the troop had a birthday, that girl would bring one item to put into a birthday box. When the birthday box is filled we wrap it up and take it to child services. The leaders decided that to ensure that we get all items we need, we'd make a list and cross off what we
have and then the girls could pick something off the list to get. When one box is filled, we'd start all over again.Cake mix, icing mix, napkins, plates, cups, plastic forks, balloons, party favors, hats, table clothes, candles, and a small present for whatever age/gender..


Shelly Cleveland
GSRI Jr. Troop 495
Birthday Boxes: Our troop also put in gift certificates from a local ice cream shop for free ice cream.

Tami Katzer
Junior troop 499
Olathe KS
Just wanted to pass on a new idea (at least to me) that some of you might be interested in. Last spring our SU did the birthday in a box project for our local Salvation Army that temporarily houses families trying to get back on their feet, find a job etc. The Volunteer Coordinator approached me with a new idea based on this . We told her that we would like to do birthday in a
box again or something else that would help her.She came up with "breakfast in a box". Many shelters serve a basic breakfast. Cereal and Milk, but the kids (don't they all) get really excited
when someone brings in pop tarts. So she is asking us to round up pop tarts, cereal bars, juice boxes, and now that school will be back in session some things for an after school snack for the kids to get when they get "home" from school. I think that we will be calling it "Snack Sacks"
instead so that we don't get just breakfast items. We are planning on getting together items for 14 families and then making them up boxes of these breakfast/snack items so that they can pass them out to their families.


Angela Cherry
Brownie and Junior troop 713
Girl Scout Council of the Nation's Capital
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Ridge/1089
HERO badges: Help Take Away the OuchChildren in the hematology/oncology clinic undergo frequent finger sticks, injections, spinal taps and bone marrow tests. Hero badges help these
children cope. They give children a feeling of pride and accomplishment for having endured the pain and discomfort of medical procedures. Children look forward to picking out their own special badges and having them pinned on.You can help keep the hero treasure chest filled with badges. Hematology clinic alone needs more than 200 badges monthly. Hundreds more are needed for additional clinics and laboratories.Use your imagination in creating colorful badges. Thanks in advance for your time and thoughtfulness.Instructions for Hero badges: Badges can be any shape-round, square, oblong, diamond - approximately 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches. Layered shapes in contrasting colors are excellent. Use safe materials-felt, heavy paper, ribbon, trim, stickers-and attach a small safety pin at top. Pinking shears prevent fabric raveling. Children enjoy variety and will respond to your creative ideas.What to do After you Make Hero Badges: Place the badges in a large envelope or a box. Mail them to:Children's Hospital National Medical Center, Volunteer Office, 111 Michigan Avenue NW, Washington, D.C. 20010.
( 202-745-2062) Please remember to include troop number and the leaders name and address.Lets all help these children feel brave through such a hard time! They especially need to feel like Hero's!**Note: This leader is from the Washington DC area. Check with hospitals in your local area.

Dianna Stugen
1. Nursing home:
a. Perform skits
b. Sing X-mas carols
c. Make them cookies (they love sweets)
d. Play bingo (partner girls and seniors together)
e. Bring pets (the girl's pets) to visit... old folks just love pets!
f. Donate books, especially large print ones!
2. Call you local library and see if you can plant flowers in one of their flower beds during the springtime. Call any local parks also and see if you can do it at a park.
3. Make cereal garlands to put on trees for birds to eat. Use the cherios, fruit loops etc.
4. Collect paper bags for the local food closets or local churches that give away food.
5. Of course a can food drive
6. Make something little but cute to put on the Meals on Wheels trays that delivers food to shut ins. (Our girls got plastic film canisters from a film development place (Target) decorated them and then stuffed them with silk flowers. We used clay to hold the flowers in place.
7. We collected gently used toys and donated them to the local shelter for abused women and children. Also collected can goods, paper goods and hair decorations for the local shelters.

Also from Dianna Stugen
Tray Craft: I plan to do something similar with my Junior troop this year for the meals on wheels program. I bought the tiny flower pots (about 2 or 3 inches high) in a package of about 10 or 12 for about $2. I plan to fill them with clay or maybe paraffin (still not decided on the best fill yet).
I plan to buy bunches of small artificial/silk flowers and stick them in the pots. Voila! Little flower pots to decorate trays! I did something similar to this back in the early 70's when I was a Junior GS.


Therese DeSanto
Junior/Cadette Leader
GSCNC SU Manager
Manassas,Va
Our Service Unit just present our local hospital with about 75 "Kid Care Kits" for Pediatrics. My Junior troop as a service project - put this together. Because I work at our local hospital, I have an idea of what things get donated to Pediatrics.What we did is present a flyer to all troops in our Service Unit (54 troops) suggesting that they could bring service to sick kids in our hospital.
Troops were asked to make a kit, which consisted of: a caboodle or small plastic container filled with lots of things to cheer a sick child. We asked for all age levels - starting at Daisy to High School Seniors. We also said they could be designed for boys. We asked that the kits have
get-well cards in them as well. Kits included items such as body bath items, nail items, hair accessories to crayons, paper, small toys to books. The response was overwhelming. We have had lots of comments from the nurses at our hospital have great this is.We also did this at the perfect time. A 5th grade daughter of a Radiologist tech at our hospital was just diagnosed with a lung cancer - diagnosis is unknown. She has a 1st grade sister also. Both girls are on a waiting
list for scouts (not in my SU). Our troop put together a large care collection for both girls and presented them to her mom. T...was beyond words and we were glad to have made her daughters feel better.


From Scouting Links Issue #42
(submitted by WPLARA)
I am the leader of brownie troop # 1252 from Rootstown Ohio. In November, the girls made Happy Holidays cards and they were mailed overseas to service men and women in connection with Operation Dear Abby. Over the Holiday Break we received responses back thanking the girls for the Cards. As part of finishing our Cookie Count Try-It we are making up some
care packages of girl scout cookies and a short note from all the girls and sending them to the ones that sent back a response.


Cyndy Gephart
Operation Dear Abby Addresses: I'm enclosing a note I received that has the Operation Dear Abby addresses to send holiday mail to service members stationed overseas. Here are the Operation Dear Abby addresses that were sent to me:

Europe & S.W. Asia
Any Service Member
Operation Dear Abby
APO AE 09135

Far East
Any Service Member
Operation Dear Abby
APO AP 96285

Med. Basin
Any Service Member
Operation Dear Abby
FPO AE 09646

Pacific Basin
Any Service Member
Operation Dear Abby
FPO AP 96385

Heather Sullivan
Troop Leader #1515
SUM #202
"Reading is Fun" "Read Across America": I just wanted to remind everyone that March 2nd is "Reading is Fun" day, celebrating Dr. Suess' birthday. What a wonderful opportunity to promote reading & Girl Scouting together. Our Junior Troop is hosting a pajama party for all Girl Scouts in our neighborhood & their families. They wear their pajamas, bring a pillow, & we will be reading from several Dr. Suess books that Barnes & Noble is donating to us. They donated 1 per troop!!! :-) Cost of admission for our event is a new or used book for our book drive. Many other opportunities to share the joy of reading & Dr. Suess can be found on the "Read Across America" website... www.nea.org/readacross/celebrate.html
Have fun & happy reading!!


Lisa Tighe
Girl Scouts of Broward County
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
My troop will be holding their silver service project on this coming Saturday and since it is so close I would like to comment on the leader that asked for thoughts regarding girls who have not completed all the other requirements
prior to the project. First off, our project is a Scavenger Hunt in which 400 local Girl Scouts will be looking for items that will benefit various community organizations. Each girl contacted her own organization (i.e.,
Humane Society, local homeless shelter, blood mobile, Children's Aids
Society, etc.); the organizations supplied us with a list of their needs.
The participating troops will arrive at the recreation center, register, and
obtain their lists. They then can go back home, search their homes, friends
homes, etc., to get as much of everything that they can. When they come
back to the location, the organizations will have displays and tables set up.
While the troops are having their items tallied, the Girl Scouts can visit
the booths to learn more about the worthy organizations and see where the
goods are going to be put to use. Prizes are awarded to everyone participating. It is two fold - the organizations get to go home with lots of stuff that they can use and the Girl Scouts get to learn about these
organizations (and possibly get ideas about what they can do at a later date).We have worked for about 8 months on this project. Starting with deciding what to do to now. Each girl had a different idea and different
organization that they wanted to do it for. They had to make simple decisions such as to do a project individually or as a troop. They had to make difficult decisions as to what organizations to choose. Some were group decision, some individual. Yes, I see where the prior requirements would be needed, however, I do have several girls that have not finished completely a few things here and there. Would I not allow them the remainder of the year to finish up the challenge or complete the hours on the leadership pin? Absolutely not. My girls have worked hard and demonstrated great skills in working on the project. They choose this date, because it was felt that there would be a better turnout to the event. I feel it is important to be flexible at this age. I would never ask a girl to choose an event over band competition, etc. We need to encourage the girls to participate in activities inside of Girl Scouting and outside. It is important that the girls know they have the choice. Some have other commitments that they have to honor. In addition, they could have done the short things that some of the requirements allow, however, they would not be learning what was intended. I have some 7th and 8th graders who are working on this project. They will not receive the silver for this, however, the next project will be on a smaller scale and very localized. What they have learned from this experience is great. Everyone deserves to get the credit they deserve. And those few 9th graders will be given a little more time to finish up what they have not completed. But there will be 6 Silvers from our troop this year!


And also from Lisa Tighe
Girl Scouts of Broward County
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
I am proud to say that my girls just finished their community service project for their silver award on Saturday with outstanding results! I just have to
brag to the captive audience on this list. They arranged a scavenger hunt
for other GS to participate in. All the participants combed thru neighborhoods looking for goods that were requested by community
organizations. When the hunt was over, all the teams returned with their
goods to be counted. While everything was being tallied, the troops were
able to meet and visit with the organizations (who had come earlier in the
day and set up displays). This was done so that the girls could actually
see how their efforts were going to be used and learn about other service
projects they could do. There were 10 organizations represented including a
local outreach center, food bank, homeless shelter, humane society, wildlife
care center, community blood center, childrens diagnostic center, Dalmation
rescue, and more. We also contributed everyone's entry fees to the Juliette
Low Foundation. (was only 50 cents per person).There was so much collected that several of the organizations had to go down the street to rent u-hauls to carry away the goods. Most of the other organizations had to call for additional vans and assistance because their vehicles were not large enough. There was an overwhelming response by everyone and it was wonderful.The girls were initially concerned because there was a lack of participation as they hoped for 400 but it turned out to be great. Over 150 girls participate in the event and it was great. They received lots of thanks and praise and it was a wonderful experience for them and me too. It was great seeing my girls display leadership skills like they did. We are a troop of
12 girls and 9 should be receiving their Silver this year. 3 of which have been together since Daisies! Each year they surprise me but I think this
time, they even surprised themselves.


Jean Jagodzinski
Minnesota
We have a website: http://members.aol.com/tandjjag
Our service unit does collect new socks at the annual sock hop. Each pair gets you one chance at a door prize. The place we collect them for, caters especially to women and children. They love to see the socks come in, and I think it is a creative way to tie in the "sock" hop.


Sheila M. Bennett
Over the years I have participated in many service projects. I have listed
some of them. I hope this will help you out. Food Drive, Worked at Homeless Shelter/Warming shelter (made food, served food, set-tables, clean-up, made place mats, made sack lunches (Collected donations), Park Clean-ups (Check safety wise concerning health issues involved), Adopt a family
Make Christmas cards to donate to nursing homes/hospitals etc., Make Valentine cards to send to service men/women stationed over seas, Make Valentines for Vets and send to the veterans hospital, Put on talent show for nursing home, Adopt a senior, Play bingo at the senior center, Christmas caroling for the senior center, Birthday Boxes - we put together boxes with cake mix, frosting, candles, goody bags, invitations, balloons, cups, napkins, forks, hats, etc. and labeled it for boy or girl and age or theme and donated them to a local shelter. EVERY CHILD DESERVES A BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION! (In some of theme we included Toy Store gift certificates.
Make toiletry bags to hand out at homeless shelter (Toothbrush, tooth paste,
shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, soap etc. ) In August we collect up school supplies and old backpacks and new ones to donate to children we are in need. We volunteer at different events that support a cause such as Special Olympics, Women's Shelter fundraiser, Race for a Cure (Breast Cancers Fundraiser). I contact different organizations periodically to see if they are in need of volunteers or if they can offer us an opportunity.
Food Bank (Sorting food), Rake 'N Run - We rake the yards of senior citizens and basically move from one house to the next quickly (I got names from our local senior center).

Lisa Taulbee
One of my Junior troop's favorite service projects was when we sang Christmas songs at a nursing home. I photocopied about 8 familiar songs (the upbeat ones like Deck the Halls work better than quiet ones like Away in a Manger) and put them in folders so the girls could carry them, and felt (and looked) like a real choir. We walked from room to room and sang to over 100 residents. We're going back for Valentine's Day and are making sachets out of cotton stuffing scented with lavender oil and tied up in netting (tulle) with a ribbon. The girls also made heart shaped butterflies to hand out.
We've also made bird feeders by mixing equal amounts of peanut butter and
cornmeal and smearing this onto pinecones and then rolling them in bird
seed. Our meeting place is near a park and we made and scattered these
feeders in the park. The girls are always on the lookout for trash when we
go to the park so we always have a trash bag with us. I guess that counts
too!


Cookie Grugan
Hemlock GSC - Central PA
Sr. Advisor, etc.
In their infinite wisdom, one year my girls (who were Cadettes at the time)
decided to take a Talent Show to the nursing home. We went early, as the older folks go to bed early. Some of the girls were taking dance lessons, others got together and sang songs, etc. We even had one girl who did all of the advertisements between the acts - she acted like a dog for dog food and did some other very creative things. All of the folks who were able to get to the all-purpose room were brought by the staff to the show. The music was peppy - some of the folks even got up and danced to it. All in all, it was a fun evening both for the girls and the patients. It really didn't take a lot of getting together, since the girls worked together on the stuff between meetings. And the dance routines were already in place. I think the whole show lasted not more than one hour.


Pat Dwigans AKA Cobra Mom
opmale1@aol.com
Rita O'Neill co Originator
mpzs92a@juno.com
IRISHBORN1@aol.com
Christmas Care Packages to Troops: The troops, Rita, myself and the Cobra Team thank you very much for sending a care package. These are suggested ITEMS that you can send:
Any powdered Drink with sugar including TEA
HOT CHOCOLATE
Marshmallows
Cookies store Bought or Home made
Video Tapes, cassette or Cd's use some with xmas theme
Candy
Cheese (cheese whiz, any non perishable cheese or cheese dips)
Dips that are not perishable
Snacks, potato chips, any type of JUNK food
Snack crackers ALL KINDS
Anything that you would use for party at home or work.
Outdoor and indoor Christmas decorations
Any type of Ear WARMERS for the troops. It does get cold.
Christmas Lights indoor and outdoor (like you use at Christmas)
Balloons colors for the holiday
Crepe paper streamers color for the Holiday
Any type of door or window decorations
Any type of table decorations including table cloths. You might even send
the rolls of table cloth material (plastic) that you buy at party supply
stores and they can cut them to length.
The ceramic decorations that light up
A SANTA SUIT and if you are sending this PLEASE LET ME KNOW.
Small Christmas trees (1 to 3 foot) to put in their own areas.
Blank Christmas cards to send back home to their families. Childrens
Cards included.
GRAB bags marked (male or female) they can pass out to the troops with
small items. Anything that you feel a female or a male would use. Stationary,
personal items etc.
Garland
I know I have forgotten a lot of items, but you have the general idea.
POSTAGE
DON'T forget to put the LOGO on the package. We have a sheet of logos we
can send you via E mail you can print out. REMEMBER THE POSTAGE IS HEFTY so if you can't afford this, PLEASE, don't worry about IT and you also need that special form from the post office. Where it says Items put " BONAFIDE GIFT."09790. Tell the post office to use this APO code for the charges but the one I have below for the actual shipping. Real confusing I know but the new APO is so new they are not showing it for the rates.BE SURE TO SEND A NOTE WITH it enclosing your E. MAIL and ask Mike to
let you know when it arrives.If you need the NEW APPEAL letter and want to pass it on to your friends, ask one of us for it.

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