By Nance Ebert, Contributing Writer

(front, l to r) Omshreya Swain, Riya Patel
(back, l to r) Olivia Rice, Sophie Scerbin, Lily Fox and Emerson Waite
Photo/submitted
Westborough – This past year has been quite busy for the girls in Troop 11130 as they achieved their Girl Scouts Silver Award. Juggling school, sports, music, family and more, each Girl Scout committed more than 50 hours to complete this year-long project.
The Silver Award is the second highest award of the Girl Scouts of the USA and the highest honor a Cadet can achieve.
Emerson Waite and Sophie Scerbin partnered for their project called “Silver Squad.” They worked directly with the activities coordinator at the Beaumont Rehabilitation and Skilled Nursing Center in Westborough to connect with residents there.
“The most challenging part of our project was keeping it sustainable, which is one of the criteria of the Silver Award. We enlisted the help of younger troops in hopes that by connecting these two communities, once we were ready to go to college, there would be other Girl Scouts to continue what we started,” Sophie said. “We had a Christmas get-together with caroling and spent time talking to the seniors, working on crafts and more.”
“Creating an inter-generational community and hearing stories upon stories being passed around makes me feel like I’ve had a positive impact on this town we live in because we are sharing our worlds with one another regardless of age,” Emerson said.
They also organized a live outdoor music performance for the seniors.
Riya Patel and Omshreya Swain’s project was called “Circulating Library Kits.” The kits, created for the Westborough Public Library, included items relating to four different science categories: biology, oceanology, astronomy and geology. The kits each contain a handmade board game, a book about the topic, a pamphlet and flashcards. They are hoping to generate interest in this field for young children, particularly girls.
“The girls worked closely with Hannah Gavalis, their mentor, who works in the children’s section of the library. They worked on this project for about 80 hours and, although frustrated at times, realized that things don’t always go perfectly,” said Lisa Whitney Scott, Troop 11130 Leader.
The project of Scouts Lily Fox and Olivia Rice was the Fales Elementary Sensory Garden. This project involved planting five sections of a garden for the senses with specific plants to reinforce smell, touch, taste, sound and sight.
“They wanted to create a space where the Fales community could experiment with nature in a relaxing and interactive way,” Scott said. “They hosted a fundraiser at a Westborough Garden Club event with baked goods. With the money raised, they purchased the materials needed to implement this garden. Their dads helped dig and construct the frames for each section.”
The girls, all 10th graders, received their Silver Awards and a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition signed by Elizabeth Warren June 20 at Mechanics Hall.
The Girl Scouts are now looking ahead to their Gold Award projects.