| Care & Couseling Center is a non-profit organization serving women & families facing unplanned pregnancies. Items needed: diapers (sizes 3&4), Similac infant formula, baby food, & baby wipes to stock their mom's closet. The center is located at 1131 Fairview, Downers Grove and can be contacted at 960-1060. Hours are Mon.&Wed. 9:30a.m.- 4 p.m. Tues.&Thurs. 9:30a.m. - 7:00p.m. |
| Service Projects |
| Service Unit Projects Winter Fun Bags Ideas for Projects Des Plaines Historical Museum Girls' Voices Giving Dupage Kids Can Help National Park Service Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum Take Pride in America |
| Ideas from.... Girl Scouts of Santa Clara County Hornets' Nest Council Leaders Landing Pleasant Hill Girl Scout Association |
| Color a Smile is a non-profit organization spreading smiles with cheerful drawings. World Relief in DuPage County is currently operating a program to work with kids who are new to the US and living in DuPage County. They try to provide each refugee child with a filled backpack of school basics to help them get through their first year. Consider having your troop help out! |
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| Brownie Cadette/Senior Cookies Council Forms Crafts Daisy Events Fall Product Field Trips Games Junior Leader Tips Patches Scrapbook Songs, Poems & Graces Workshops |
| Volunteer Match - Find out who needs volunteers in your area. No need to register unless you're looking for volunteers. Make a Difference Day is a unique program that inspires and rewards volunteers. A national day of helping others -- a celebration of neighbors helping neighbors in October. Registered non-profits can obtain needed supplies for their Make A Difference Day projects, by simply registering their project "Wish Lists" online with Inkindex. |
| Make a Child Smile is an organization that makes a child smile with a life threatening illness. Cards can be sent to either a child featured on their website that month or previous children. Take a few moments before making the cards and read the troop the information about the child they are making the cards for. Check out the Love Quilts - It's a great service for those adults who cross stitch. |
| Morton Arboretum - Would your Girl Scout Troop like to accept the challenge of building a nature-themed scarecrow this fall? It is time to start thinking scarecrows, as we continue with our annual Fall Color Festival in October. Last year was the first year for our Scarecrow Trail and we would like to continue with this fun and creative activity by including even more Girl Scouts this year. We have had quite a few requests already to participate, but we would like to ensure that everyone is aware of this fun program. This year we are implementing a few changes. The scarecrows will be displayed around Meadow Lake for our visitors to enjoy. With an increased interest in participation, we would like to present a minimum of 25 scarecrows. Keeping with the Arboretum’s mission and tradition, each scarecrow must have a nature theme. Please refer to the responsibilities form for examples. For important dates and times, click here. In order to involve as many Girl Scout troops as possible, we wanted to get in contact with each applicant before the troops dispersed for the summertime. For information regarding our registration, click on the link. I look forward to hearing back from you with all of your great scarecrow ideas. If you have any further questions, please contact me at (630) 719-7966 or aharris@mortonarb.org. |
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| Eight Tried and True Service Project Ideas Girl Scouts was founded on the ideal of service to others and strive to make a difference. Below are eight project ideas............ 1. Blanket & Quilt Projects (For all age levels) - Girl Scouts can create blankets and quilts for the needy. One project is My Brothers' Keeper Quilt Project for the homeless. The other, Project linus, donates homemade blankets to seriously ill or traumatized children. Log onto www.reese.org/sharon/uglyhelp.htm for "Ugly Quilts" help or for Project Linus call 309-664-7814 or log onto www.projectlinus.org. For information about sewing and quilting service projects, go to the Home Sewing Association web site www.sewing.org. 2. Birthday in a bag (For all age levels) - To create a birthday party kit, collect items to give a party: cake mix, frosting, baking pan, candles, decorations, balloons, paper goods, favors, signed birthday card and a small gift. Appropriately assemble items into kits, decorate, wrap and tag them with age level and gender. 3. Tray favors for Meals on Wheels (Daisy, Brownie & Junior) - Girls can brighten the days of homebound and haspital patients by creating handmade tray favors. Girls can make turkeys, valentines, snowmen and other symbols of the holidays. Girls can also make personalized thank-you cards for volunteers who deliver meals. 4. Toiletry Kits (For all age levels) - Soap, shampoo, toilet paper and other items can be collected and distributed in many different ways. The first method is a "bulk" collection. The items can be collected at events and given to a social service agency representative. The second method is to make personal care kits. The girls can collect and assemble sample-sized personal care items into individual kits and donate them to a women's shelter. 5. Cookies at Ronal McDonald House (For all age levels) - Girls can bake cookies for families residing at a Ronald McDonald House. 6. Backpacks & school supplies (For all age levels) - Girls can organize a school-supply drive for kids at a homeless shelter. Donations included new and like-new backpacks, filled with school supplies for the new school year. 7. Ecology-minded projects (For all age levels) - Projects for outdoors can include clearing nature trails and planting flowers at community parks. Check into getting trees donated for an Earth Day project . 8. Food matters (Junior, Cadette & Senior) - Particpate in a senior citizens meal project at a local church. Plan a menu, decorate the dining area, then cook and serve the food. Take time to chat with the seniors and play games. Donate food to a food pantry. |
| "I like to think of myself as a stone dropped into the water. Each ripple traveling outward may affect another on it's way to shore. And each of those contacts create more ripples." - Anonymous Girl Scout |
| Scouting Web has lots and lots of links for information on service projects! There's also tips on volunteering and even a service wizard that will help you find service that is compatible with your interests and abilities. If you're looking for a project that's for your specific level, they even have that too, so take a few minutes and see what they have to offer! Warm Up America! Join America's needleworkers in creating warm afghan blankets for those in need. Create seven- by nine-inch rectangular sections using any basic knitting or crochet patterns, in the color of worsted-weight acrylic yarn of your choice. Drop your squares off at your local Michaels store, and talk to the Store Events Coordinator about the date of the local joining party if you'd like to help join the squares together. |