PHILADELPHIA, PA – Eight girls from a Hunting Park Girl Scout troop recently earned the Silver Award, the highest honor a Girl Scout Cadette, or middle school-aged Girl Scout, can achieve. Through more than 50 hours of community service each, the girls developed and led projects that addressed important community issues with meaningful and sustainable solutions. Their achievements were recognized during a special awards ceremony hosted by the Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania.
The girls worked in three teams, each focusing on an issue they were passionate about addressing. With support from troop leaders and community partners, they researched local needs, developed action plans, and successfully carried out three impactful service projects.
The first project, Sporty Sisters, was led by graduating eighth-graders Selena Espinosa and Gloria Miller. Recognizing the need to increase young girls’ access to sports and female athletic role models, they organized a series of free sports workshops for nearly 20 girls in kindergarten through fifth grade at Esperanza Health Center.
Each session introduced participants to a different sport, including pickleball and lacrosse, while also helping them build their volleyball skills. The workshops emphasized healthy habits such as proper nutrition, adequate sleep, and limiting screen time. As a special highlight, the group received donated tickets to attend a University of Pennsylvania women’s basketball game together.
The second project, City Cat Caretakers, was led by Khamani Carter-Hill (6th grade), Sofía Hernández Pagán (7th grade), and Ximena Vargas (6th grade). Their initiative focused on helping reduce Hunting Park’s stray cat population.
In partnership with the community cat team at ACCT Philadelphia, the girls built outdoor cat shelters, distributed cat food to local caretakers, and assisted in trapping more than a dozen cats for the Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program. Through TNR, community cats are spayed or neutered, vaccinated, and treated for fleas before being returned to their environment. The girls reported a noticeable decrease in kittens and stray cats within the two-block area where they concentrated their efforts.
The troop’s third project, Teaching the Tots, was created by Alex Unterburger, Rayne Adams, and Annaliese Hart, who recently completed sixth, seventh, and eighth grades, respectively. The project addressed early literacy challenges facing many Philadelphia families by helping preschool-aged children learn letter sounds and develop a love of reading before entering kindergarten.
The girls organized a series of literacy workshops for children ages 3 to 5. Each session included story time, songs and movement activities, letter-sound crafts, reading opportunities with caregivers, and free book giveaways to help families build home libraries. Alex, Rayne, and Annaliese said they were pleasantly surprised by how much they enjoyed working with young children.
Although none of the eight girls has entered high school yet, they have already demonstrated a remarkable commitment to making their community a better place. Their projects serve as a reminder that age is no barrier to creating positive change when people work together in service of others.
To learn more about Girl Scouts, including opportunities to start a troop at your school or community center, visit https://www.gsep.org