All Cooped Up: A Gold Award Project for the (Chicken) Masses

Gold Award Girls

The following entry is about Kelli Robertson's Gold Award Project--a chicken coop for the students at Travis Heights Elementary School. In it you'll read about the idea behind the project, the benefits it will bring and a shout-out to those who helped her accomplish her goal. Thank you, Kelli!

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"The Coop" is Kelli Robertson's finished Girl Scout Gold Award project, which can be found at Travis Heights Elementary. 

Kelli has been a Girl Scout for 12 years and dedicated her project to the students at Travis Heights Elementary School, where her father is the principal. She had many advisers on this project and they are cited on the blue plaque on the side of the coop. 

They include: Krista Ernst, Gail Laubenthal, Veronica Arispe, Tonya Penney, and Andee Knutson. Also, wonderful family friends, Gene, Karen, and Mike Sanders supported Kelli in this project by sharing their expertise since the small space has a 2.5 foot drop from one end of the coop to the other. 

The project was funded through Kelli’s Girl Scout cookie sales, fall product sales, and donations from the following businesses: McCoy’s Building Supplies, Home Depot, Viking Fence, and Callahan’s. 

This spring, The Coop will welcome chicks raised by 2nd graders from Travis Heights Elementary and students in the specialized units under the watchful eyes of Ms. Arispe and Mrs. K! 

Through raising and caring for the chicks, students will learn about life cycles, caring for animals, and the role they play in a habitat. In addition, as the residents of The Coop continue to grow and produce, future groups of students will understand the phrase “farm to table”, the elements of business and finance, as well future planning for an urbanized world.

Thanks to Kelli's project, dozens of students will have access to a real-life, hands-on farm experience. 

Girl Scouts Troop 2038 Thinks Outside of the Box!

When Patsy Sommer Elementary School needed a permanent collection box for clothing, Brownie Troop 2038 was there to help. One of the troop moms knew the girls could use their handy Girl Scout skills to make the box for the Round Rock Independent School District’s (RRISD) Clothes Closet Project.

During the summer, the girls and  troop parents worked on the box until it was ready for decoration. The girls then unleashed their creative side and gave the box some flair, earning their painting badge in the process. The troop presented the Clothes Closet donation dox to the principal of Sommer Elementary at the last PTA meeting. 

Brownie Troop 2038 hopes the box is just the beginning of a larger purpose-- helping collect clothing for students in need in RRISD.

Service projects like these wouldn't be possible without the help and encouragement that our adult volunteers provide. One of the many things that Girl Scouts do to improve the lives of the people in their community. Won't you be a part of it? Join today!

-Thanks Christine C. for the submission!