Plainfield Scouts Give Back to Sick Kids

A group of Plainfield Girl Scouts recently earned their Silver Awards by giving back to kids in need.

Cadette Troop 70572, led by Beth Randall and Brenda Rosenbaum, collected more than 1,000 books that were donated to area hospitals to bring joy to kids facing illnesses.

The girls, who will be freshman in high school this year, also recorded themselves reading the books on DVD, donating the tapes to hospitals to help provide entertainment to young patients.

Randall said the Silver Award, the last step before the prestigious Gold Award, requires 50 hours of service, and the girls began working on the project last year.

To earn the Silver Award, “it should be some kind of service that they provide,” Randall said. “It’s really up to the girls to decide what to do and to set a schedule. They did it all themselves."

Starting last January, the Cadettes began collecting books with the help of other area troops.

All in all, they collected more than 1,000 books Randall said. The girls also decided to record books on DVD to help both young patients and their weary parents.

“They did it to help the parents get a break,” Randall said.

At the end of May, the troop delivered boxes of DVDs and books to Loyola, Hinsdale, Edward and Presense St. Joseph Hospitals.

“Every hospital got multiple boxes of books and DVDs,” Randall said.