Suffolk Troop 273 donates over 2,500 pounds of food to local foodbank

Girl Scouts from Troop 273 in Suffolk have helped end the fight against hunger by collecting over 2,500 pounds of non-perishable items for donation!

The Helping Hands Food Drive was organized by Troop Leader Ciara and her daughter Aliya Summers because of their participation in a food drive that was hosted by Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast in the past.

Aliya was able to get her entire troop excited and on board with collecting as many goods as possible to give back to the community and present them to the Virginia Peninsula Foodbank.

The girls were able to collect items by doing walkabouts, contacting family and friends, as well as placing donation boxes in schools and churches. Their hard work allowed the girls to individually raise 1,133.5 pounds of non-perishable items. Four girls stood out among the troop taking the first, second, third, and fourth place for the most pounds collected. Below is the list of winners with how many pounds of food they collected:

1^st place- Junior Aliya collected 343.5lbs of food

2^nd place- Daisy Aryanna gathered 282.5lbs of food

3^rd place- Brownie Shelby collected 173lbs of food

4^th place- Daisy Morgan gathered 97.5lbd of food

The winners were given gift certificates to the Girl Scout Shop at A Place for Girls.

At the end of April, the girls made a final push to collect extra donations. The troop participated in an eight-hour food donation event at a local Kroger. In comparison to the past, the troop put in more volunteer hours with the help of more girls. At the conclusion of the

event, they were able to beat last year's record by over 1,100 pounds of items which brought them to their total of more than 2,500 pounds. This is a record year for Troop 273!

For their participation in the food drive, the girls earned a Food Drive Patch. And, the girls who volunteered and toured at the Foodbank received an additional patch for their hard work!

They have not set a goal for next year, but are looking forward to making this an annual project and raising the bar to bring more items to the community. The girls will be meeting all summer long to make new goals and become better leaders!

Troop 273 has spots available for Juniors and Cadettes. Contact GSCCC at 757-547-4405 or email us at customercare@gsccc.org for help getting in Troop 273. The troop meets every other Sunday afternoon.