Have you ever wanted to make a
difference, but just haven’t known how? PROUDgirls, an organization dedicated to helping
tweens and teens live big and give big, is helping girls do just that by supporting groups
as they plan and execute community service projects.
This spring, PROUDgirls hosted the Be
The Change contest. They encouraged groups to submit videos and blog entries
detailing their best “gives” or community service projects in an effort to win fab prizes and take
home the top prize.
Who came in first? Team Bay Shore!
Group members Alyssa Gravina, Maggie Berke, Camille Warner, Sara Viola, Priscilla
Russo and Jaqueline Ulrich decided to make surgi-dolls that they would donate to a local
hospital. The dolls are used by doctors and nurses to help kids getting surgery better understand their procedures.
Take a peek at their winning video…
We talked to Alyssa about the whole
process. Read on to hear about these so PROUDgirls and their awesome service
project. It’s time to get inspired and be the change, babes!
GL: How do you and your team know
each other? How did you get together for the competition?
Alyssa Gravina: We’ve been in the
same classes for years so we’ve known each other a long time. My friend Pricilla, who’s
part of PROUDgirls, told us about it. We’ve done community service all separately since
most of us are in the service honors society, and we figured it might be fun to do it all
as a group since we’re doing it on our own anyways.
Why did you decide to make the
surgi-dolls?
We had been talking about a bunch of
different things, and we thought this was a really good idea because it would impact the
lives if children directly and it would only take a few days [to do].
Has anyone in your group had surgery
as a child?
I had surgery on my back last summer,
and when the idea was brought up, I thought it was cool because as a teenager, I was
so scared when I went into surgery. You can imagine how little kids feel!
Did you have fun while you were
making the dolls?
Yeah. We were all trying to learn how
to use the sewing machine and in the end I was the only one who learned, sort of, how to
use it. We had a lot of fun dressing the dolls, and picking our favorite ones, and just
playing around with them.
Why didn’t you decide to simply
raise money?
We wanted to do something different.
When we try and raise money, we have to ask the same people. We usually ask friends and
family. If we have a ‘give’ and raise the money, for the next ‘give’ we have to ask
them over again and go back to the same people.
Will you keep making the dolls?
Definitely! It’s really fun to work
with friends and do something helpful. We [now] make the dolls on our own time because [for
PROUDgirls On the Move] it has to be a new project every month. We brainstorm
ideas and have a few meetings each month and by the end of the month we have to have
completed one ‘give.’
So what are you guys doing for your
next give?
We thought instead of asking for money
we could get people to collect old used books.
What advice do you have for girls
who want to volunteer?
A lot of people think it’s so time
consuming and that it’s so much work to get involved, but once you do it, it really pays off!
Want to learn more about PROUDgirls On
the Move? CLICK HERE!
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BY JILLIAN ZACCHIA ON 6/12/2011 9:00:00 AM
POSTED IN Get Inspired, do gooder