Participate
in our brand new patch program – Building
My Community! Take the time to get to know your community and
work alongside them on a service project (or projects!) to beautify
your community and raise awareness.
Girls Give Back
Girl Scouts have a rich history of giving back to their communities. Be part of this tradition by participating in one of the service projects below.
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Building My Community
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Take Action Project Resources
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In
order to complete a Girl Scout Journey, you must do a Take Action
Project. Use these resources to help you!
Take Action Project Resource for Girl Scout Daisies, Brownies, and Juniors [PDF]
Take Action Project Resource for Girl Scout Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors [PDF]
Take Action Guide for Volunteers [PDF]
Register for our brand new take-action workshop on November 4.
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A Heart for the Homeless
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There
are currently over 72K residents in DuPage County living in
poverty and 10.5% are children. The goal of this service project is to
raise awareness and show how one person can make a big difference.
Through an interactive curriculum and possible volunteer or service projects you will be able to gain a better understanding of what it means to be homeless and how you can help make a difference. This patch program is open to Girl Scouts in any location.
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Cuddle Comfort
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Create
small, cuddly pillows or lap blankets as welcome gifts for pediatric
patients, senior citizens, homeless shelters and emergency rooms. We
have instructions for how to make these items, as well as potential
drop-off locations.
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Cancer Survivor Kits
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Have
you known someone affected by cancer and wondered how you could make a
difference? Help people battling cancer by collecting a few simple
items in a small tote bag; chemo patients will know the small
difference you made! Once your items are collected and your kits are
assembled, you can drop them off at your nearest cancer support
center. We have instructions for how to make these items, as well as
potential drop-off locaitons.
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Sweet Connections: Valentine's Day
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Create
Valentines and door decorations (hangers) to brighten the days of
people you know or people in a local assisted living facility. We even
have Valentine templates you can use!
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Dragonfly Patch Program
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Discover,
connect, and take action today with the Dragonfly Patch Program! Girls
will learn all about gratitude, empathy, kindness and leadership, and
how to make the world a better place through words and service.
Dragonfly Patch Program [PDF]
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Special Gifts Theatre Peer Mentors
Share Your Own Service Story
We love to know about the service projects you or your troop are completing within your communities. Tell us your story and you might be featured in a GCNWI publication!
Offer a Service Opportunity for Girl Scouts
Please email Annie Gilmartin or call 815-651-2715 if you are an organization with service opportunities for Girl Scouts.
National Service Projects
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Promote the Vote Service Project
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National Civic Action:
Promote the VoteSince Girl Scouts’ founding in 1912, our members have created lasting, positive change through advocacy and civic action. And though some girls may be too young to cast a ballot, they can still mobilize their communities to take action like a Girl Scout.
As we mark the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which removed the gender restriction to voting, Girl Scouts is launching a national “Promote the Vote” initiative to engage Girl Scout troops in the democratic process.
Voting is arguably our most important civic duty—but barriers still exist. In many parts of the country, voting laws and protocols make it difficult for many people, especially people of color, to cast their votes in local and federal elections. In other words, there’s work to be done—and girls can play a part!
We all have a role in helping people exercise their right to participate in the democratic process, including in this challenging time of COVID-19.
Here’s how your Girl Scout troop can promote the vote:
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Discuss the importance of voting. Lead your girls in a
conversation (PDF) about why voting is
essential and the power they have to increase access to the vote
and to encourage others to vote, even if they are too young to
vote themselves. (Hint: your troop could earn one of our new
Democracy badges in the process!)
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Make a plan and set a goal. With your girls, decide which
action(s) you’ll take to encourage people to register to vote and
make a plan to vote, and how many people you’ll reach out to.
There are so many ways your girls can share key information (PDF) and get the word
out! Senior and Ambassador troops can register (or pre-register)
to vote and make plans to cast their ballots together!
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Share your story on social media. Research shows that if
you persuade one person to vote, they’ll likely influence at least
one additional friend or family member to vote too! If you use
social to educate and inspire others to vote, be sure to tag us
using @girlscouts.
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Complete our survey so your troop’s impact can be
counted in our national service projects.
- Encourage your girls’ ongoing civic engagement through working to earn our new Democracy badges and using GSUSA’s suffrage toolkit.
For more voting resources, check out:
Check out more detailed guidance:
Instructions for troop leaders (PDF ).
Instructions to share with girls (PDF ).
Tell us about your project!
Girl Scouts is a § 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization. We do not take sides in elections or support or oppose any political candidates. Promote the Vote is a nonpolitical and nonpartisan initiative designed to increase civic participation and is not linked to any political party or to individuals on any one side of an issue. We encourage all citizens, regardless of political party, affiliation, or beliefs, to participate in the democratic process.
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Discuss the importance of voting. Lead your girls in a
conversation (PDF) about why voting is
essential and the power they have to increase access to the vote
and to encourage others to vote, even if they are too young to
vote themselves. (Hint: your troop could earn one of our new
Democracy badges in the process!)
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Citizen Science Service Project
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National Service Project:
Citizen ScienceHow can you play a part in solving some of the biggest problems facing our planet? Enter citizen science, where volunteers help scientists collect data for their studies and experiments. Anyone can be a citizen scientist—all you need is curiosity and a willingness to help!
This summer, your troop can contribute to important scientific research by participating in one of our Girl Scouts Give Back citizen science projects. We’ve partnered with SciStarter, an online citizen science community, to help get you going!
Here’s how your troop can make a difference:
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Choose either the Great Sunflower Project (for girls of all ages) or the Globe at Night project (for Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors) to create an account for your troop on SciStarter.
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Read the project’s instructions on your SciStarter dashboard and gather the needed tools and materials.
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Collect data for the project using the recommended tools and materials, and log the data using your SciStarter dashboard.
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Snap a photo of your troop’s work and share on social media using #GirlScoutsGiveBack (be sure to tag @girlscouts). Don’t forget to add your project to be counted as participating in our national service projects.
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If you wish to recognize your troop’s participation with a patch, we recommend the Girl Scouts Give Back patch.
Want to learn more about citizen science? For a limited
time only, you can download all activity instructions and the Take
Action Guide for the Think Like a Citizen Scientist Journey for
free from the Girl Scout Shop!
Tell us about the data you collected!
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Mask-Making Service Project
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Girl Scouts Give Back:
Mask MakingNow, with this nationwide mask-making campaign, all girls have the chance to step up to help their friends, neighbors, and frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. And we’ve partnered with Feeding America, a network of local food banks across the U.S., to make it easy for your girls to amplify their efforts.
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Ask your girls (and their friends!) to make masks for adults and kids. Use the instructions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). If your troop chooses to make masks for other kids, use 7.5” x 9” cloth instead.
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When you are ready to send your masks, you can include a letter like this (PDF).
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You can safely distribute masks where you see the greatest need in your community (check out these ideas). Through our partnership with Feeding America, your troop can easily donate (PDF) masks to your local food bank staff and families that rely on food bank services.
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Inspire others to give back! Snap a photo of your troop’s masks and post to your social networks using the hashtag #GirlScoutsGiveBack. Be sure to tag @girlscouts too!
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Don’t forget to come back and log the number of masks you made!
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If you wish to recognize your troop’s participation with a patch, we recommend this Mask Making Patch.
Check out some more detailed guidance (PDF).
Tell us how many masks you made!
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Letter-Writing Service Project
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Girl Scouts Give Back:
Letter-Writing Service ProjectThe idea is simple: girls write letters to people in nursing homes, senior residences, and assisted living facilities, including the dedicated staff and caregivers. This long-distance hug is a way to share your good thoughts with these vulnerable and loved community members.
Here’s how it works:
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Ask your girls (and their friends!) to write letters to senior and caretakers using our tips (PDF).
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You can mail letters to one of the facilities (PDF) or reach out to a local assisted living center and find out how they would like to receive your troop’s letters. You could collect and deliver them (using no-contact practices), have girls mail them individually, or even deliver them via email. Don’t forget to include a note to tell the staff about the letters you’re sending (DOC).
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Take a picture of your letter packet and post it to your social media networks using #GirlScoutsGiveBack (and be sure to tag us @girlscouts).
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Don't forget to come back here and log the number of letters to add them to the national campaign! Let’s see how many letters of love and care our Movement can send!
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If you wish to recognize your troop’s participation with a patch, we recommend this Girl Scouts Give Back patch.
Check out some more detailed guidance (PDF).
Tell us how many letters you sent!
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GSUSA National Service Projects
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Birthday in a Box
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Birthday in a Box
Celebrate Girl Scouts' 110th Birthday while brightening the day for a child in need!
Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana will collect various party items to donate to community food pantries.
Girl Scouts who donate 5 different birthday party items, please stop into the Retail Shop to pick up your complementary GCNWI Birthday Fun Patch!
Service Bars
Girl Scout Cadettes, Seniors and Ambassadors who are passionate about giving back can earn service bars. The Community Service Bar and the Service to Girl Scouting Bar each require a minimum of 20 hours of service to one organization or Girl Scout activity/troop.
Community Service Bar
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Choose an organization to help.
The organization will need to agree to give you instructions about the work you'll be doing. -
Get council approval.
Email Annie Gilmartin before you begin. -
Complete at least 20 hours of service.
Track your time with this form. -
Submit a final report.
Complete this online form to report your service.
Service to Girl Scouting Bar
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Complete at least 20 hours of service.
Track your time with this form. -
Submit a final report.
Complete this online form to report your service.
