Council-wide Service Projects for December: Elderly

Service Project Ideas
The following activities can be done with a nursing home, senior center, retirement community, assisted living facility, church shut-ins or senior groups. Be sure to contact the facility to make arrangements for the activity before you begin. When doing an activity with food, be sure to check the health considerations for those you will be serving.

• Visit and share treats, sing songs (holiday as well as those they may know), read, talk, play games, etc.
  
• Put together small presents (hand lotions, book, socks) to be given to those who may be alone for the holidays.
  
• Make a craft for the holidays or just for fun.
  
• Make holiday cards, decorations or tray favors for residents and their rooms.
  
• If you have several girls (or parents) who play musical instruments, put together a holiday program.
  
• Put together a care basket: include snacks, toiletry items, reading material, easy-to- put-on clothing.
  
• Decorate a Christmas tree, the hallways, central rooms or resident rooms.
  
• Adopt "grandparents," especially those without family nearby and make a commitment to visit them once a month to do a project, read, share holiday treats or cards, listen to their stories.
  
• Bring sugar cookies (several dozen for each girl) and items to decorate cookies. Have the girls and the elderly work in pairs. Leave the cookies for the seniors to eat and to share with family and friends who visit.
  
• Connect with seniors who cannot get out to do their holiday shopping and then help them wrap the presents.
  
• Help serve a meal at a facility.
  
• Collect hats and socks for residents (who are often chilly).
  
• Host a holiday party.
  
• Set up a call-in service for the elderly from your neighborhood, area church, community center, etc. Call them once a day to check on them, chat.

Related Programs/Badges, etc.

Remember: if one of the requirements for a recognition is to do a service project, the girls cannot do the same service project for the Great Blue Heron Service pin. The girls can also earn the recognition by completing the required number of activities without the service activity.

• Brownie Girl Scout Try-Its: Brownie Girl Scouts Through the Years, Listening to the Past
  
• Junior Girl Scout Badges: Across Generations, My Heritage
  
• Cadette and Senior Interest Project Patches: Generations Hand In Hand, Heritage Hunt
  
• Programs (See the Idea Book pages 109-126 for more information on Community Programs listed below) Muskego Historical Settlement, New Berlin Historical Park, Old World Wisconsin, Washington County Historical Society Museum and 1880's Jail, Waukesha County Historical Society and Museum.

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