,Below are some ideas for Community Service Projects.
** Remember to offer older girls SSL hours.
** For more ideas, you can subscribe to Scouting Links Newsletter at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scouting_links_newsletter/join
Collect and Donate
Toys (Toys for Tots, National Center for Children & Families, etc.)
Bikes (Bikes for the World, Big Wheel Bikes in Bethesda)
Donations or Letters for Military On-Duty and Veterans (Any Soldier, Operation Gratitude, Washington DC VA Medical Center)
Shoes (Planet Aid)
Books (Friends of the Library, donate to local church and school drives)
Food (Bethesda Cares, Manna Food Center, Martha’s Table Food Drive, Shepherd's Table, So Others Might Eat)
Furniture and clothes (A Wider Circle)
Loose change/pennies (Pennies for Preemies)
Activities
Help with a conservation project. Events can be found at Potomac Conservancy, Nature Forward, Little Falls Watershed Alliance, and with many other organizations (more listed below). Or do your own project to protect our natural world such as making bird feeders or bird houses, explore your local creek using the Creek Critters App to help with water quality monitoring, remove invasive plants (see the Weed Warriors program) and help reestablish native plants and habitat, build and install Bat Boxes, create a Rain Garden, .... there is so much we can do to Leave No Trace and help our Earth!
Create a pollinator garden! Butterflies, bees, birds and other pollinators are for the planet as a whole! (some great guidance at Ava's Flowers, tips for small spaces at National Wildlife Federation)
Collect seeds for Growing Native seed collection. (Growing Native)
Upgrade someone's backyard (teacher's, elderly neighbor, etc.) to meet the qualifications to be National Wildlife Certified (see Certify-Your-Wildlife-Garden). There's a very nice step-by-step guide and lots of information with helpful links at Creating a Wildlife Habitat in Your Backyard.
Check out Montgomery Parks Volunteer website for opportunities. (Montgomery Parks)
Do a trash clean-up. (some annual ones are Potomac River Watershed or Little Falls Creek annual clean-up – see Alice Ferguson Foundation or Little Falls Watershed Alliance)
Make and distribute a brochure on an important issue such as eating healthy, recycling, or saving honeybees (as Jaden Burnett has done here for her Silver Award -- Thank you Jaden!).
Visit a Nursing Home (bring treats or gifts such as homemade candles/soaps/ornaments/etc., sing songs, play games such as bingo/cards/boardgames and have homemade prizes to give, make cards to give, do your Thinking Day performance, etc.)
Make gifts (bracelets, goodie bags, holiday “crackers”, etc.) for donating ( to NIH Children’s Inn, NCCF) or for selling and donating proceeds. One fun thing is to make mini build-a-bears to donate (see Bday Bears).
Bake cookies or other goodies and deliver to Bethesda Cares Homeless Shelter. (Bethesda Cares)
Prepare meals and food for the Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless. (Home Builders Care Assessment Center, see a sample of needs at https://mcch.net/donate-other-items-2/)
Write letters for soldiers. (Operation Gratitude)
Make Comfort Kits for military veterans. (Washington DC VA Medical Center)
Bake sale, car wash, or other fundraiser to donate proceedings.
Teach a class. (origami, yoga, etc.)
Run a girl scout meeting during parent meetings at schools, churches, shelters, etc. (for both boys and girls, NCCF is one location)
Help elderly in a neighborhood. (put up signs, survey neighborhood, or check with civic association about needs, help to take out trash, rake, mow, shovel, shop)
Volunteer at an Animal Shelter or make something for the animal.s (Happy Socks, make dog treats to take to shelter, make horse treats and take to retired horse farm such as Poplar Spring Animal Sanctuary )
Make Hats 4 the Homeless. (Hats 4 the Homeless)
Plan, prepare for and run a Girl Scout meeting, event or even encampment!
Places or Events to Volunteer Time At
Meals on Wheels (bag and deliver food)
Wider Circle (sort and clean toys/clothes, restore furniture – see www.awidercircle.org)
So Others Might Eat
Interfaith Clothing Supply (sort and hang clothes)
Suburban Hospital (Adopt a Family Program to give food and gifts)
Piggy back a church or school clothing or food drive
Ronald McDonald House (take hot, prepared meals to)
Check out Montgomery County Service Week listings (community-service-week-information-sessions)
Set up activity with Montgomery County Parks and Rec. Dept. (will set up activity for you, such as teaching to identify plants and removing invasive species, and they will send someone to lead it)
Check out Kind-Works Website for ideas (Do Kind Works)
Riley’s Lockhouse and other C&O Canal locations (docent or volunteer to help at C&O Canal Trust)
Volunteer at Special Olympics, Walk for Autism/MS/Etc., nature center, etc.
** Remember to offer older girls SSL hours.
** For more ideas, you can subscribe to Scouting Links Newsletter at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scouting_links_newsletter/join
Collect and Donate
Toys (Toys for Tots, National Center for Children & Families, etc.)
Bikes (Bikes for the World, Big Wheel Bikes in Bethesda)
Donations or Letters for Military On-Duty and Veterans (Any Soldier, Operation Gratitude, Washington DC VA Medical Center)
Shoes (Planet Aid)
Books (Friends of the Library, donate to local church and school drives)
Food (Bethesda Cares, Manna Food Center, Martha’s Table Food Drive, Shepherd's Table, So Others Might Eat)
Furniture and clothes (A Wider Circle)
Loose change/pennies (Pennies for Preemies)
Activities
Help with a conservation project. Events can be found at Potomac Conservancy, Nature Forward, Little Falls Watershed Alliance, and with many other organizations (more listed below). Or do your own project to protect our natural world such as making bird feeders or bird houses, explore your local creek using the Creek Critters App to help with water quality monitoring, remove invasive plants (see the Weed Warriors program) and help reestablish native plants and habitat, build and install Bat Boxes, create a Rain Garden, .... there is so much we can do to Leave No Trace and help our Earth!
Create a pollinator garden! Butterflies, bees, birds and other pollinators are for the planet as a whole! (some great guidance at Ava's Flowers, tips for small spaces at National Wildlife Federation)
Collect seeds for Growing Native seed collection. (Growing Native)
Upgrade someone's backyard (teacher's, elderly neighbor, etc.) to meet the qualifications to be National Wildlife Certified (see Certify-Your-Wildlife-Garden). There's a very nice step-by-step guide and lots of information with helpful links at Creating a Wildlife Habitat in Your Backyard.
Check out Montgomery Parks Volunteer website for opportunities. (Montgomery Parks)
Do a trash clean-up. (some annual ones are Potomac River Watershed or Little Falls Creek annual clean-up – see Alice Ferguson Foundation or Little Falls Watershed Alliance)
Make and distribute a brochure on an important issue such as eating healthy, recycling, or saving honeybees (as Jaden Burnett has done here for her Silver Award -- Thank you Jaden!).
Visit a Nursing Home (bring treats or gifts such as homemade candles/soaps/ornaments/etc., sing songs, play games such as bingo/cards/boardgames and have homemade prizes to give, make cards to give, do your Thinking Day performance, etc.)
Make gifts (bracelets, goodie bags, holiday “crackers”, etc.) for donating ( to NIH Children’s Inn, NCCF) or for selling and donating proceeds. One fun thing is to make mini build-a-bears to donate (see Bday Bears).
Bake cookies or other goodies and deliver to Bethesda Cares Homeless Shelter. (Bethesda Cares)
Prepare meals and food for the Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless. (Home Builders Care Assessment Center, see a sample of needs at https://mcch.net/donate-other-items-2/)
Write letters for soldiers. (Operation Gratitude)
Make Comfort Kits for military veterans. (Washington DC VA Medical Center)
Bake sale, car wash, or other fundraiser to donate proceedings.
Teach a class. (origami, yoga, etc.)
Run a girl scout meeting during parent meetings at schools, churches, shelters, etc. (for both boys and girls, NCCF is one location)
Help elderly in a neighborhood. (put up signs, survey neighborhood, or check with civic association about needs, help to take out trash, rake, mow, shovel, shop)
Volunteer at an Animal Shelter or make something for the animal.s (Happy Socks, make dog treats to take to shelter, make horse treats and take to retired horse farm such as Poplar Spring Animal Sanctuary )
Make Hats 4 the Homeless. (Hats 4 the Homeless)
Plan, prepare for and run a Girl Scout meeting, event or even encampment!
Places or Events to Volunteer Time At
Meals on Wheels (bag and deliver food)
Wider Circle (sort and clean toys/clothes, restore furniture – see www.awidercircle.org)
So Others Might Eat
Interfaith Clothing Supply (sort and hang clothes)
Suburban Hospital (Adopt a Family Program to give food and gifts)
Piggy back a church or school clothing or food drive
Ronald McDonald House (take hot, prepared meals to)
Check out Montgomery County Service Week listings (community-service-week-information-sessions)
Set up activity with Montgomery County Parks and Rec. Dept. (will set up activity for you, such as teaching to identify plants and removing invasive species, and they will send someone to lead it)
Check out Kind-Works Website for ideas (Do Kind Works)
Riley’s Lockhouse and other C&O Canal locations (docent or volunteer to help at C&O Canal Trust)
Volunteer at Special Olympics, Walk for Autism/MS/Etc., nature center, etc.