The Girl Scout Silver Award is the highest honor a Cadette can achieve. It involves a team of Girl Scout Cadettes focusing on an issue they care about, learning the facts, and taking action to make a difference. So when the Cadettes in Troop 41425 in Clark, NJ, undertook their Silver Award project, they decided to create cage comforters for shelter animals.
After completing nearly 100 cage comforters, the Cadettes reached out to the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals to help get them to shelter animals. In our role as connector within the animal welfare community, we were delighted to be their partner in this truly worthwhile effort.
“Our girls love animals and worked on their Girl Scout Bronze Award several years ago by helping the local animal shelter with some landscape work,” explained Troop Leader Stephanie Kleczynski. “The girls wanted to learn a new skill this time around and decided on learning to sew. They still wanted to help animals and, after some internet research, we came across the Alliance’s cage comforter web page and, well, it was a perfect combination of their new skill and helping animals.
“We had hoped to offer an educational program as well when we presented our donation, but with Covid we knew that was no longer a possibility,” Stephanie continued. So instead of presenting the comforters directly to a shelter, the Cadettes presented them to Alliance President Jane Hoffman at a park in New Jersey where a safe, socially distanced outdoor setting was maintained.
Jane enlisted transport driver and photographer Joe Galka to accompany her to the presentation, where she bestowed upon each Cadette an Alex and Ani charm bangle bracelet featuring the Alliance’s logo charm as a thank you gift.
“We feel privileged to accept the donated comforters on behalf of the many animals these comforters will help make a little more comfortable while they wait for their forever homes,” said Jane. Upon her return to New York, Jane delivered the donated comforters to Animal Care Centers of NYC (ACC), Animal Haven, the Humane Society of New York, and The Patricia H. Ladew Foundation.
The shelters immediately put the comforters to good use, as demonstrated by the photos above of comfy kitties awaiting their forever homes.
We extend a warm thank you to Troop Leader Stephanie and Cadettes Cassie, Eva, Julia, Nila, Sophia, and Taylor for sharing their talents and passion with some very appreciative Little New Yorkers!