Girl Scouts collect nearly 30,000 pounds of donations for Goodwill

Girl Scouts across western Pennsylvania showed their generous spirit over the holiday season by teaming up with Goodwill of Southwestern Pennsylvania for the "Give a Little Love" holiday clothing drive. 

And give they did! Close to 30,000 pounds of donated items were collected by GSWPA Girl Scouts during the month of December! 

Penn Wood Hills Troop 52570 dropping off their donations at Goodwill.

"Thanks to your commitment to the community and your generosity, Goodwill can provide much needed services to people in need throughout our area," said Danielle Hardy, Community Donations Specialist for Goodwill of Southwestern Pennsylvania. "This was truly a win-win program and we are so grateful l to have been able to partner with the Girl Scouts of Western PA."

Daisy Girl Scout Naudia Zotter of Pittsburgh collected
84 bags of donations for Goodwill!

While all girls who participated should be proud of their hard work, three girls went above and beyond and together collected more than 200 bags of donations. These three girls are the winners of a paid trip to camp, courtesy of Goodwill!

• Naudia Zotter, Troop 52611 – collected 84 bags of donations 
• Casey Krugh, Troop 54058 – collected 82 bags of donations
• Izzy Davanti, Troop 27038 – collected 80 bags of donations

The girls were recognized at Girl Scout Day with the Pitt Panthers on Jan. 17. Well done, girls! 

Girls get a "L.I.F.T." in life through unique program

Girls who were once at risk of dropping out or giving in to negative peer pressure are getting a “LIFT” to a brighter future thanks to a program that encourages them to focus on themselves and their futures.

Leaders In-training For Tomorrow (L.I.F.T.) is a unique program funded through a grant from the Allegheny County United Way and operated by Girl Scouts Western Pennsylvania in collaboration with local school districts. It’s designed to encourage at-risk girls in grades 6-12 to develop self-potential and values, relate to others and contribute to society.
 
Offered in a safe, all-girl environment, L.I.F.T. allows girls to form girl-to-girl mentoring relationships, conduct community and in-school take action projects, learn STEM concepts, develop career skills and much more. The girl-led sessions explore everything from self-esteem and diversity to financial literacy and preparation for college. Girls also have opportunities to get outdoors through programs at GSWPA camps, and they also gain valuable business skills through participation in the Girl Scout Cookie Program.

LIFT program Girl Scouts from Arsenal school participating in last year's National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend.

More than 100 girls are involved in the program in the Pittsburgh Public School System, including 60-70 girls at Arsenal, Sterrett and Pittsburgh Classical schools. The girls are currently planning volunteer opportunities and Girl Scout Take Action projects. L.I.F.T. participants at Sterrett recently started an anti-bullying campaign, creating posters to hand in the school promoting healthy relationships.

An additional 25-30 girls are part of the Heinz: Urban Scouting grant program. At Westinghouse Academy, girls are currently working on a healthy living initiative, teaching their classmates the importance of eating healthy by offering smoothies during lunch periods. Girls at Student Achievement Center recently created Christmas cards for the organization, “Women with a Voice,” dedicated to helping women who have lost children due to violence.

Additional grant money was received this year to expand the program to girls in fourth and fifth grades and for STEM-focused programming.

For more information on the LIFT program, please contact Vanessa Thompson at vthompson@gswpa.org or Melissa Dunlap at mdunlap@gswpa.org.