Members of Marlton Girl Scout Troop 21107 celebrated more than the completion of their Silver Award projects on Aug. 26. They celebrated the lasting impact those projects will have on their community.
The troop, made up of rising high-school freshmen, gathered at Woodstream Swim Club for a ribbon-cutting and bridging ceremony that highlighted sustainability efforts that resulted in the recycling of more than 1,000 pounds of plastic film and the installation of a new water-bottle filling station.
The event also marked the next chapter for troop members as they bridged to the next level of Girl Scouting. Some of the girls have been together since joining as Daisies in first grade and plan to continue their Girl Scout journey as they enter high school.
The Girl Scout Silver Award is the highest award a Girl Scout Cadette can earn. Scouts are challenged to identify an issue important to them, investigate their community’s needs, develop a plan and take action that creates a sustainable impact.
For Troop 21107, those efforts resulted in several projects addressing environmental sustainability, as well as student wellness and inclusion.
One group of Scouts took on the problem of plastic-film waste by launching a community-wide recycling campaign through the NexTrex Community Recycling Challenge.
Plastic film can include everyday materials such as shopping and grocery bags, bread bags, bubble wrap and newspaper sleeves. To make recycling those materials easier for residents, the Scouts worked with community partners to establish collection locations throughout the Marlton area.
Partners included Aldi, Elkins Chevrolet, Bakana’s Flowers, Evesham Township, Penn Dental Medicine and Woodstream Swim Club.
But collecting the plastic was only one part of the project.
Troop members were responsible for weekly collections, transporting the materials, maintaining records and encouraging residents to participate. By the conclusion of the initiative, the Scouts had collected and recycled more than 1,000 pounds of plastic film that otherwise could have ended up in landfills or waterways.
Education was another component of the effort.
Troop members worked with younger Girl Scouts through environmental badge programs and brought their message to the broader community at events including the Black Run Preserve Poker Run and Evesham Township’s Earth Day celebration.
The Scouts then looked for another way to reduce reliance on single-use plastics.
That effort led them to Woodstream Swim Club, where they developed a plan for a water-bottle filling station that would give members and families a convenient way to refill reusable bottles rather than purchase or bring disposable plastic water bottles.
The Scouts researched possible solutions, prepared grant proposals, approached community organizations and secured sponsorships to make the idea a reality.
They ultimately raised more than $2,000 for the project.
The new filling station was made possible with support from Elkins Chevrolet, the Marlton Business Association, Marlton Rotary Club, SPE and volunteer installer Dennis Brandimarte.
Its installation gave the Aug. 26 celebration a physical representation of the Scouts’ work – and one that will remain at Woodstream well after the Silver Award project itself is complete.
Other members of Troop 21107 directed their Silver Award efforts toward a different part of the Marlton community: Marlton Elementary School.
The Scouts developed a Recess and Wellness Enhancement Initiative intended to promote physical activity, wellness, inclusion and student engagement during recess and throughout the school day.
The collaborative project transformed both indoor and outdoor areas at the school.
Scouts created interactive activity walls along with a yoga and sensory area, accessible STEM play opportunities, an activity walkway and a community rock garden. Existing recreation spaces also received attention, with basketball and four-square courts and hopscotch grids revitalized.
Recognizing that recess does not always take place outside, the Scouts also developed resources for indoor recess. They assembled games and activities and created a guide that students and staff can use when outdoor play isn’t possible.
Accessibility was incorporated throughout the initiative, with an emphasis on giving students of different abilities opportunities to participate in movement, play, creativity and social interaction.
The improvements are expected to benefit more than 570 Marlton Elementary students and were designed to remain useful beyond the Scouts’ direct involvement.
While the projects took different approaches, they shared the same basic goal of identifying needs within the community and developing practical solutions.
At Marlton Elementary, that meant creating spaces where hundreds of children can move, play and interact. Throughout the larger community, it meant keeping more than 1,000 pounds of plastic out of the waste stream and providing an alternative to disposable water bottles at a gathering place used by local families.
The Aug. 26 ceremony provided an opportunity to recognize those accomplishments while also looking ahead.
As the members of Troop 21107 enter high school, their Silver Award projects leave behind visible reminders of the work they completed as Cadettes – from newly revitalized spaces at Marlton Elementary to a water-filling station at Woodstream Swim Club.
And for Scouts who have grown up together since elementary school, the bridging ceremony wasn’t an ending. It marked another step in a Girl Scout journey built around community, service and making a difference.
