The Girl Scout Daisy Troop 51695, all first graders from Prairie School, recently took a field trip to Dog Patch Pet & Feed to present owner Greg Gordon with a gift for A Place to Bark.
As troop leader Christine Lupo tells the story, during the holiday season, the young girls created crafts that they sold at Prairie School’s Jingle Bell Junction. A group of senior artists also purchased the handmade pine cone elf and angel decorations to use as party favors. In the end, by selling the seasonal novelty items for $5 each, the Daisy scouts had raised $150 to give to charity.
“This was our first service project,” said Lupo. “I had lots of pine cones from my mom. I was going to have the girls make the peanut butter and bird seed craft. Then after I got the option of being in the sale at school, I went on Pinterest and looked at pine cone ideas and saw the ideas for the elf and angel theme.”
Lupo hosted a meeting at her home and each scout created 10 items. The scouts then voted between animals and Meals on Wheels as the beneficiary of their creativity and fundraising. Animals won.
“I talked to the owner of Dog Patch and asked him what charity could use the money,” Lupo continued, noting the scouts also made fleece-knotted blankets to give to the shelter dogs waiting to be adopted into a new home. Gordon’s choice charity was A Place to Bark, a no kill foster and adoption rescue organization in Tennessee dedicated to the welfare of animals.
On January 25, the Daisy scouts toured Dog Patch with several mothers and a dad. They learned about aquarium fish, petted a corn snake, and played with puppies outside in the pen. Then the youngsters gathered around their troop leader as she presented a $150 check to Gordon, a most grateful pet store owner who will give the generous gift to the dog rescue organization.
“I’m super excited to do this,” Lupo had written earlier when she notified local press about the initiative. “I can’t wait to see this all come together. That’s what being a Girl Scout is all about.”
By the conclusion of the one-hour tour of the independently-owned pet store, the joyful first graders had learned many valuable lessons, including that working and volunteering together can make a difference in the lives of others.
“Growing up as girls with caring a heart—that’s what a girl can do,” said Lupo.
For more information about all the services and rescue efforts at Naperville’s original pet store, visit Dog Patch Pet & Feed. Dog Patch is located at 1108 E. Ogden Ave.
