Cookies & Cars
Girl Scouts earn interest patches by proving their skills and expertise in a number of areas, such as in the forest, around the house and on the road.
The Girl Scouts' car care interest patch requires that girls master vehicle care and driving skills through five steps: basic car maintenance, vehicle safety, safe driving, emergency preparation and driving “green.”
Jim Ungor, a Diehl Automotive mechanic with more than 20 years experience, has taught several groups of Girl Scouts about 16 to 17 years old to know their way around a vehicle.
“They are basically blind to it. They don't even know where the dipsticks are or how to get the hood open (latch under hood),” he said of the scouts.
“We start on the outside, look at the tires, air pressures, then you go under the hood and check the fluids, make sure they're OK.
“They really are interested to see how things work. They jump right in. Each of them has to do their own car.”
Ungor said his wife and sister both work with Girl Scout troops in the Gibsonia and Mars areas and solicited his help.
“It's been interesting doing it,” he said.
“I think it's a good thing to make the kids aware of simple and commonsense items.”
Ungor's lessons cover the five aforementioned steps:
Basic maintenance skills include changing a flat tire or windshield wipers, checking tire pressure and wear, replacing fluids or using jumper cables to restart a car with a dead battery.
The vehicle safety portion of the badge teaches scouts to determine which cars are the safest and which factors affect insurance costs.The study of safe driving practices includes observation of a traffic intersection or interviewing a highway patrol officer, as well as understanding the risks of distracted driving.The lesson is pertinent, considering a study by Teen Research Unlimited stated that girls are more likely than boys to drive 10 miles over the limit as well as text while driving.A study of more than 2,000 drivers, ages 16 to 19, by AAA and Seventeen Magazine reported the most dangerous driving activity is adjusting the music at 73 percent of respondents, while talking on the phone checked in at 60 percent and more than half of respondents admitted to texting and driving.Emergency preparedness lessons include putting together an emergency kit and speaking with a roadside service professional, as well as learning what to do in common hazardous situations, such as icy roads or when an engine overheats.Finally, scouts are encouraged to save fuel by driving less, driving at efficient speeds and learning easy ways to improve vehicle fuel efficiency.Of course, sometimes the best course of action is knowing when to call a tow truck, and Ungor teaches that, as well.
