Local Cadette Girl Scouts, Troop 403 in the play yard for dogs.
Local Cadette Girl Scouts, Troop 403, are putting leadership and service into action through a heartwarming partnership with Seal Beach Animal Care Center, working to refurbish the shelter’s aging outdoor play yard used by rescue dogs awaiting their forever homes. The Seal Beach Animal Care Center was founded in 1986 by a group of kind and concerned citizens who wanted a local no-kill shelter for dogs and cats. It is operated by over 150 volunteers and 20 staff and has saved over 21,000 animals over the past 40 years.
During the past year, the Long Beach Girl Scout Troop 403, consisting of 8th grade girls from various community middle schools, has planned and launched a hands-on community project to restore the space, which had become worn down from years of use. The Girl Scout Cadettes designed and repainted fencing structures, as well as repaired agility equipment to re-vitalize the enrichment zones designed to help the dogs exercise, socialize, and de-stress. Gwen Dang, a Cadette Girl Scout stated “This project helps create a difference by making the play yard more colorful and welcoming for potential adopters. We repainted and fixed the structures making everything new, fresh, and beautiful. It allows the dogs to have a happy place where they can meet families and hopefully find forever homes.”
The effort also supports the troop’s pursuit of the Silver Award, the highest honor a Cadette Girl Scout can earn. To achieve it, Girl Scouts must identify a community need, create a sustainable plan, and carry out a long-term solution.
“Our troop took a leadership role by organizing and planning out this project. We researched how to do woodwork and paint all with weather resistant materials. We created a project plan that we reviewed and got approved by the Seal Beach Animal Care Center, and we even submitted a project proposal to Lowe’s Hardware to receive discounted materials for our project” said Evalynn Stubbs, one of the Girl Scouts.
The shelter Board of Directors expressed gratitude for the troop’s initiative, stating “The scope of your project—the proposal, the planning, the fundraising, the skill development, the teamwork, the physical labor and time commitment—was so impressive! We know this was a huge undertaking and the spirit you showed us throughout the process was an outstanding example of community service at its best.”
“This project is about more than fixing up a yard,” said one of the Cadette Girl Scouts Chloe Dang. “We, as Girl Scouts, are learning what it means to serve our community with compassion and purpose. We’re excited to know that our work will directly improve the lives of animals who need care and comfort.” With teamwork, creativity, and a shared love for animals, the Cadette Scouts of Troop 403 are proving that even small acts of service can have an enormous impact.
If you’d like more information to make donations or adopt an animal, please contact the Seal Beach Animal Care Center at sbacc.org, 1700 Adolfo Lopez Dr, Seal Beach, CA.
SBACC is a California non-profit 501(c)3 Corporation, EIN #33-0192138. Donations made to SBACC are tax deductible, with the largest share going directly toward the care of our dogs and cats.
