At S&S we work with a lot of Girl Scout troops and their leaders. It warms our heart when we get to hear about great ways they are using products from S&S to do better in their communities. Not only does this show them how good it feels and the difference they can make in the lives of others, but it instills in them the importance of paying it forward. These are life long lessons and we love the Girls Scouts organization for creating this type of environment.
Here’s a story from a proud Girl Scout parent that guided three scouts on their mission to help pediatric patients at the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. After you read their story, make sure to leave them some encouragement in the comments below and to share your similar stories, as its important that we advocate for these wonderful Acts of Kindness!
“Three Girl Scouts from Troop 33083 (Riana, Madison and Samantha) in Redwood City California recently completed their Silver Award Project, hoping that their efforts will bring a smile to pediatric patients at Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital. Their goal was to raise enough money to make 200+ craft kits for pediatric patients who aren’t well enough to leave their hospital room or bed.
The girls chose this service project from one of their fellow troop member’s own hospital experience – she knew firsthand what a positive difference craft activities can make on a child’s hospital stay. It’s scary enough for anyone to be in a hospital for a long period of time, but especially for children who are restricted to their hospital room or bed. There is a lot of time to worry about what might be wrong, whether the tests will hurt, or when you’ll be able to go home to your family. Arts and Crafts kits can help pediatric patients take their mind off of their illness by providing an enjoyable, creative activity to pass the time. For example, creating a bracelet from beads or coloring in a large velvet
art poster with markers can provide a great way to lift a child’s spirits.
During the summer, the girls leveraged social media, email, and personal connections to raise money for their cause. By mid-August, the girls had raised over $400 from these sources to purchase Arts & Crafts supplies. They worked diligently through the rest of the summer to purchase their supplies and assemble the Arts and Crafts kits and activities targeted for pediatric patients, ages 5-18.
On September 12, the girls delivered a large wagon load of Arts & Crafts donations to Margot Lee, Director of the Forever Young Zone craft center at Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital. The donations included 74 home-made bracelet kits, 110 Velvet Art Posters, 50 sets of fineline markers, 72 mini activity kits (wordsearch, crosswords), 14 sets of 18 Disney Giant Coloring Pages, 36 packs of jumbo crayons, 11 spools of lanyard string with assorted clips & clasps, 40 foam craft kits (including leis, ornaments), numerous crafting supplies, and customized donation box for the craft center, with
a $50 starter cash donation.
Margot was thrilled with the girls’ work on this project and the generous donation of craft supplies and kits. She commented on how the craft kits and types of donations provided would make a real difference for the pediatric patients who couldn’t leave their hospital rooms.
The girls would like to give a big thank you to everyone who supported their cause — and a special thanks to S&S Worldwide for their generous donation of the Velvet Art Posters and fine line marker sets for their project! They are hopeful that this project will help bring some enjoyment to many pediatric patients at LPCH.
