By Theresa Knapp
The Milford Girl Scouts have had a very busy year that included various troop and community activities such as town parades, Citizens of Milford Beautification Day, face painting at Celebrate Milford, grave flagging, Scouting for Food, Christmas caroling at local nursing homes and around town, and Kite Day.
Troops 64892 & 64908 plan to paint outdoor games for children on the fence at the CCC. Both troops also participated in cleaning a portion of the bike trail as part of Milford Beautification Day. Courtesy photo
Daisy Troop 65354 scouts Hazel Kennedy, Mabel Prince, Mia Manning and Charlotte Syfert with troop leader Catherine Tonsberg visiting the Milford Humane Society to make their donation. Courtesy photo
Various troops consisting of girls in grades Kindergarten to grade 12 who helped at food pantries, community cleanups, holiday events, and much more.
Brownie troop 65352 volunteered at the Daily Bread Food Pantry. Courtesy photo
Milford 6th grade Cadette Troop helped with Santa photos this year. (top row l-r: Mia Santomenna, Mila Cales, bottom row: Claire Viera, Santa, Kaia Demers). Courtesy photo
The girls in Daisy Troop 65354 chose to use some of their cookie sale profits to get supplies for the Milford Humane Society, said their leader Catherine Tonsberg. She said the girls also learned what the Humane Society does and about what a volunteer is and why it’s so important, adding “They were excited to be able to do something to give back to this important part of our community (and got to meet some kittens!)”
Ambassador Troop 11275 members Cailyn Paccico, Natalie daCunha, and Emily Croteau sanding and painting/staining the tables under the pavilion at Plains Park. Courtesy photo
Valerie Kennedy is the leader of Brownie Troop 65352 which sorted food at the
Daily Bread Food Pantry. Kennedy said, “Joe talked to the girls about how everything works and told us about how many families they provide food for each week. The girls helped sort all the food donations that had been picked up by the Post Office [food drive]. They all did a great job sorting and putting food where it needed to go. All the girls enjoyed helping and had so much fun they did not want to leave. We left our own donation and the kids left feeling good about themselves and were having fun helping others in the process! Truly thankful for those who donate their time regularly to help those in our community that are in need!”
Junior Troops 64892 and 64908 (grades 4-5) plan to paint outdoor games for children on the fence at the CCC. Both troops also participated in cleaning a portion of the bike trail as part of Milford Beautification Day. In addition, three of the fourth and fifth grade Juniors recently completed their Bronze Award, hosting a planting and painting event for the special needs community during the Best Buddies dance on May 12. Leaders: Sandy Knapp and Emily Iacovelli
The sixth grade Cadettes helped at the Milford High School craft fair this winter, helping with the Santa pictures, reports leader Sandy Knapp. “The girls also organized a singalong fun event for all Milford Girl Scouts on March 26, in which each troop from K-12 performed a song for friends and family.” The troop also taught Daisy Girl Scouts about engineering by building fairy houses.
Cadette Troop 30016 (grades 7-8) leader Jen Schepis said her troop created period bags for teens, adding “Schools often only give out enough products for a few days so our troop created bags with enough period products for a full week. This is incredibly important for teens during vacation weeks.” The troop also held a hat and mitten drive over the winter.
Ambassador Troop 11275 (grade 12) sanded and painted the picnic tables under the pavilion at Plains Park as well as sanded and stained the gaga ball courts behind Stacy Middle School. Leader Amy Croteau said, “The 11 members of the troop each learned the value of volunteering in the community by doing this work for the town to enjoy. Milford Parks Director, Jim Asam, graciously provided the paint and supplies for the Plains Park project. A donation from Amazon delivery service partner, Comanche Logistics, helped to purchase stain for the gaga ball courts.”
Other troop accomplishments include:
Daisies (grades K-1) assembled birthday bags for those less fortunate. Leader: April Higaonna
Brownies (grades 2-3) planted flowers at CCC. Leaders: Katlyn Gauthier/Vanessa Newhart
Ambassadors (grade 11) purchased items for animal shelter/sanctuary/rescue center. Leader: Carolyn Deslaurier-Tate
For more information on Milford Girl Scouts, visit them on Facebook at “Milford (MA) Girl Scouts”
