Two dedicated Girl Scouts from Troop 224 have earned the Girl Scout Bronze Award, the highest honor a Girl Scout Junior can achieve. Adelyanna M. and Aubrie D. led a meaningful community service project titled “Girl Scouts Helping Foster Families,” demonstrating leadership, empathy, and initiative as members of Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida.

The project began in October 2024, when the girls recognized a critical need in their community: foster children often enter care suddenly, with few personal items. Wanting to help kids their own age, Adelyanna and Aubrie met with the Safe Children Coalition in Sarasota to learn directly about the foster system, the challenges children face during emergency removals, and the gaps in available support.

Motivated by what they learned, the Girl Scouts took action. Over the course of the next 12 months, they assembled 20 toiletry bags for children entering foster care, thoughtfully stocked with essentials meant to offer comfort, dignity, and a sense of stability. To make an even greater impact, the girls used part of their Girl Scout cookie earnings to purchase additional supplies for the Safe Children Coalition’s Family Closet, ensuring families and children have practical items when they need them most.

Throughout the project, Adelyanna and Aubrie practiced key Bronze Award skills—project planning, teamwork, problem-solving, budgeting, and communication. They produced a video to raise awareness and share their message with families and peers, helping expand community understanding of the needs of foster youth. Their work created a tangible, direct impact for children experiencing one of the most difficult moments of their lives.

The girls also experienced personal growth. Their troop leader, Liz Mercado, shared, “I loved seeing them grow through this project and seeing them realize their blessings. My own daughter now wants to be a foster parent.” One of the greatest challenges the girls faced was learning to scale their project—they felt deeply moved to help even more children than their resources allowed.

The Girl Scout Bronze Award encourages Girl Scout Juniors (grades 4–5) to work together to address a community need, take action, and develop lasting leadership skills. Projects must demonstrate research, planning, measurable impact, and community connection—key steps toward becoming confident, compassionate leaders.

Adelyanna and Aubrie hope their project inspires others. Their advice to younger Girl Scouts preparing for their Bronze Award: “Find something that can help the community. Look for organizations in need of help and awareness.”

Their awareness video and message encourage others to support foster families and the organizations that serve them—helping ensure every child feels seen, supported, and cared for.