It was an invitation we couldn't really pass up. The young women of Girl Scout Troop 8322 from Grand Haven were in Muskegon on a Sunday morning doing some work to help beautify one of our most important spots in town when it comes to making sure those who are vulnerable are safe, sheltered and able to find the resources they need to make necessary changes to hopefully make sure they never end up in the situation twice. There's a hidden garden area at Every Woman's Place that offers some private respite for the clients of EWP and through all we've been through the last year or so, it's also become a makeshift outdoor meeting spot.
The gals are working on a two purpose garden. One, beautiful plants we all get that, but the secondary purpose of this garden is a Monarch Butterfly "weigh station". The migratory pattern of the Monarch Butterfly is massive. If we're lucky enough to see a few here over the course of the summer, their lives will include a journey over tens of thousands of miles at some point where they will go as far south as Mexico and then return. In fact, as this is being written, the migratory path north has already begun for 2021 so keep an eye out for these amazing creatures coming to a garden near you soon! They are also endearing the building with a new painting. The original drawing was done up by one of the members of the troop who you'll meet in our video and you can learn more about her.
A grant from Howmet helped get this project underway so we didn't want to interrupt too long on what needs to be done, but take a minute to meet Sofia, Samantha, Kristin and Megan along with Girl Scout Advisor Amy Maloley, Rachel Cole of Every Woman's Place and Chelsey Wabsis of the Muskegon Area Conservation District and see great work in action by some very remarkable young people.
We strongly believe in celebrating the accomplishments of young people. Showing them the value and importance of what they are doing is essential to them believing that they can do and be more. When everything comes together like a Girl Scout Troop working to attain a goal by benefitting a local place as essential as Every Woman's Place and being backed by Howmet in their efforts....it's a powerful combination for good and we hope that the lesson learned today is that an act of kindness goes so much further than anyone could ever imagine. Nature is being preserved, a respite for people and butterflies is being established and the example of transformation from a chrysalis into a butterfly is also a metaphor for the work that goes on at Every Woman's Place. It was a great Sunday morning to be out covering stories!
