CAN DO KIDS
Bit By Bit, Local Girl Scouts
Are Making a Difference
P
By Beverly Perkins
lantation Girl Scouts from Troop 10707 were eager to earn their Girl Scout Silver Award. The coveted award is one of the highest awards a Girl Scout Cadette can earn. To achieve the prestigious title, the cadettes must make a change for the better. The opportunity to do so allows scouts to show their leadership skills and make a difference in the world. Girls must first identify an issue they care about, and then decide if they want to do it solo or with a team before submitting a proposal to their local Council for approval. The service project must be educational, as well as sustainable after the project is completed. In the end, they must reflect, share, and celebrate it. A minimum of 50 hours is also required to earn the award. It gives girls the chance to explore, reach out, and take action to make their community a better place. Amid the pandemic last summer, Ashley Weiss told her mom that she would like to work on her Silver Award by helping a horse-related charity. So, the ambitious teen began her quest online to locate the perfect one. But unfortunately, she was disappointed to find out she was too young to volunteer. This year, the troop reached out again to Bit-By-Bit Therapeutic Riding Center founder Susan March to see how else they could assist at the center. Together they discovered the many ways their service would be valuable to the 501(C)(3) PATH Accredited Therapeutic Riding Center and an American Hippotherapy Association Registered Facility. Ashley then recruited her fellow Troop 10707 scouts Milana Silva and Sarah McKenzie, and they decided their Silver Award project should benefit the therapeutic riding center. Bit-By-Bit specializes in speech, occupational, and physical therapies for people with physical, neurological, emotional, and cognitive delays and or disorders with the help of specially trained horses. They also offer an adaptive riding program called “Horses for Heroes” free of charge to United States veterans with disabilities. When asked why she was passionate about this project, Ashley said, “Since I have a love of horses myself, seeing disabled people benefit from hippotherapy is inspiring and encouraging.” The girls began by refurbishing a few of the clients’ favorite Sensory Paddock stations and then offered to design and build one of their own. The new Fidget Station in the Sensory Paddock was their colorful creation.
They enlisted local artist Libby Hodges to assist with her artistic touch. Additionally, they renovated and replanted a butterfly and an herb garden with the help of Horticulturalist Angie Carroll of Plantation and built and donated some much-needed storage space in the therapy classroom. Not only did the girls want to help BitBy-Bit physically, but they also wanted to bring awareness to alternative education and therapies like Hippotherapy on a social media platform. So, they started an Instagram campaign to show how important programs like the ones offered by Bit-By-Bit help people who require different ways of learning and how the Davie center provides a muchneeded service in the community. “I learned that if you try to do something, you can do it with a plan. We made plans for everything, and we got everything we planned done. Everything in the project took a few different ideas to make it work or took us building it and rebuilding it to make sure that we could make it as effective as possible. I also learned how I can make a bigger impact than I ever imagined as long as I try,” exclaimed Sarah. Although the scouting trio each put in over 50 hours to accomplish their goal and achieve their award, they are most proud of the impact they made in the community and the lessons they learned while creating their project. “The most successful aspect of this project was when we got to see people enjoying and learning through our new creations. We successfully spread awareness for positive education systems for people with disabilities,” added Milana.
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To learn more, please visit Instagram @a_m_s_ silverawardproject and @bit_by_bit_therapy.
Ashley Weiss, Milana Silva, and Sarah McKenzie pose next to the Fidget Station in the Sensory Paddock.
Sarah McKenzie, Ashley Weiss, and Milana Silva pose next to the newly refurbished Cow Wash Station in the Sensory Paddock.
Heather Hileman GSSEF Senior Vice President of Mission Delivery, Sarah McKenzie, Milana Silva, and Ashley Weiss pose with their project display.
Our City Plantation / December 2021 / OurCityMedia.com / 23
