Century of Service
CRANBERRY TWP — More than 400 Girl Scouts and 194 adults in the township are celebrating scouting's 100th anniversary by doing service projects for 100 consecutive days.
Called 100 Days of Caring, the project began Dec. 4.
Allison Beresnyak, recruiter for the Cranberry Area Girl Scouts, came up with the idea for the 44 troops in the Cranberry service area to perform at least one service project per day until the 100th anniversary of Girl Scouting on March 12.
“Girl Scouts is about service, but it's nice to concentrate it and do 100 days,” Beresnyak said.
She said nonprofit groups in the southern Butler County area can submit requests to be the focus of the big service project which will be done on March 11, the last day of the program. Girls from all 44 troops will be invited to work on that service project.
Beresnyak said nonprofits can send their requests to girlscouts.cranberry@gmail.com until the end of January.
Girls in all 44 troops can log onto www.cranberrygirlscouts.com and click on “100 Days of Caring” to view upcoming projects or read reports about projects that have been completed. Girls in all troops are invited to join in on projects from other troops.
“The girls learn how many charities there are out there because the troops are doing something every day for 100 days,” said Chris Bench, troop leader and service district manager. “It's a lesson in helping the less fortunate and teaches the girls to always put charity work at the top of the list.”
Some of the projects being pursued in 100 Days of Caring are those routinely completed, while others are new.
Five eighth graders from Cadette Troop 20880 enjoyed an afternoon of festive holiday activities with residents of Cranberry Place. The girls led several rounds of bingo and presented the winners with candy cane treats.After sharing homemade holiday cookies and punch with the seniors, the Cadettes — who are also members of the Seneca Valley eighth grade band — played several holiday tunes on flute, French horn, trombone and clarinet.A mother-daughter duet also played “Parade of the Toy Soldiers” on the piano, then each senior made a homemade candy cane ornament to decorate their rooms.Bench accompanied her troop to Barnes & Noble on three days during the busy holiday shopping season to gift wrap books and other items for shoppers.Donations for the gift wrapping service went to The Caring Place, a source of support for grieving children located in Wexford.Troop member Melissa Karidis, 15, happily wrapped about 25 presents.“I like to wrap presents, even though I'm not that good at it,” Melissa said. “And I know how important it is to The Caring Place and the families who participate in their programs.”Melissa said scouting has taught her no one is too young to give back to their community or those in need. She also learned that many people in her community are in need.“(Girls Scouts) has taught me to do more for others than for myself,” Melissa said.
Bench said her troop has worked closely with The Caring Place over the years and always tries to respond to any requests for help they may have.Another project being undertaken by scouts during the 100 Days of Caring is packing emergency supply bags for Project Hope of Zelienople. The bags are filled with items needed by parents of hospitalized children who are unwilling to leave their children's bedsides or who rushed out of the house with their sick child without grabbing any essentials.“We chose Project Hope because it's such a worthy charity,” Bench said.The girls helped sort the hundreds of items, then placed them in individual bags in assembly line fashion.The girls of Troop 21960, led by troop leader Amara Cavagnaro, are planning to place a unique item in the bags at Project Hope that they hope will keep patients and their parents close when they must be apart.Cavagnaro said her troop members will make 120 small, heart-shaped pillows, and two will be placed in each of 60 Project Hope bags. One heart is for the patient, and one for the parent.If the parent has to go home or be away from their child for any reason, they can swap pillows so they can each hold onto the other's “heart” until they are reunited.Cavagnaro said her girls have been busily cutting, stuffing and sewing hearts.“It's fantastic for the girls to be doing this for their community, because that's what Girls Scouts is all about,” Cavagnaro said.Another sewing project sees two Brownies and their mothers from Troop 21845 sewing simple scarves and hats for those who might otherwise go without this winter.
Troop co-leader Jennifer McNany said her daughter, Jocelyn, and another Brownie have produced 55 scarves and hats so far.“It's a great opportunity for girls to do something good for our area,” McNany said of the 100 Days of Caring, “and the girls can make new friends and do new activities.”Even longtime Girl Scout events have been redressed to fit into the project.The annual Father/Daughter Dance, held last weekend at the Marriott Pittsburgh North, saw scouts and their fathers arriving in their finery and carrying nonperishable food items for local food banks.“It shows (the girls) that if one person brings a can of food in and you have a couple hundred people attend the event, how much of a difference that can make,” Bench said.She said the 100 Days of Caring project, in addition to helping so many who need so much, will mold the minds of tomorrow's adults.“They are reaching out and showing people in need that there are people willing to help out who are there for them.”
Nonprofit groups in southern Butler County can submit requests to be the focus of the big March 11 service porject. Nonprofits can send their requests to girlscouts.cranberry@gmail.com until the end of January.
