Donated PJs, Books Let Girls See ‘Aladdin’

DENNISVILLE – Girl Scouts donated 43 sets of pajamas and nine books as their price of admission Feb. 23 to see the movie “Aladdin” as part of a monthly community outreach effort. 
According to Christine Selover, a co-leader of Girl Scout Troop 44536, the event organizers, scouts from 25 troops across Cape May County gathered at the Dennis Township Senior Citizens Center with the items which will be donated to children in need.
It’s part of a nationwide effort called Pajama Program. Its mission is dedicated to “bringing good nights complete with new pajamas and storybooks to children to help open their imagination and escape unimaginably difficult circumstances.”
“In the past when I’ve done a pajama drive, we donated to the (New Jersey) Department of Children and Families (DCF) to be used for children who are in crisis and need clothing for the night,” Selover said.
“Each of the scouts came to movie night wearing pajamas and their ticket was a pair of new pajamas or nightgowns. We had all sorts of sizes donated. It was a successful event,” she continued.
The Pajama Program is dedicated to providing “a loving bedtime and restful night to children with clothing and books as a way of starting a positive, good day.”
“Every troop does outreach in their community,” Selover noted. “Our service unit, which covers the county, does something once a month. Last month we did a socks drive for The Branches of Rio Grande, and we collected over 520 pairs of socks for the homeless.
“Many troops put flags on graves for Memorial Day,” she continued. “We’ve done food drives and visited food pantries; we’ve collected gifts at Christmas time and wrapped them as part of a Secret Santa program, and many do community cleanups alongside the roads. Girl Scouting is very alive and doing well in the county.”
She said troops in Middle and Upper townships are recruiting girls to join scouting.
“I think one of the benefits of scouting is that it exposes girls to activities that they may not do in school or with their families,” Selover said.
“Girls also need experiences without their families, independently, while still having two caring adult leaders watching over them,” she said.
While most people know of Girl Scouting through annual cookie sales, Selover said, “That’s about 20 percent of what we do. It’s a means to an end. However, the cookie sales teach the girls business skills, learning how to negotiate for example. The money raised is used by them to go places and experience different things.”
Selover has been a leader for eight years, and her two daughters are part of the troop. The older is a high school senior and the younger is a freshman.
“Sometimes in high school, all the activities get in the way, but I may get three more years as a leader,” she said. “The girls like to do the activities with their friends.”
Scouting is open to girls from kindergarten through 12th grade, and Selover said activities run the gamut from whittling and knot-tying skills to canoeing, kayaking, camping, and first-aid training.
While the Boy Scouts nationwide are accepting girls into their organization, having boys join the Girl Scouts “has not been an issue,” according to the local leader.
Nancy Fowler co-leads the troop with Selover.
Girl Scouts of America began March 12, 1912.
Anyone interested in joining the Girl Scouts as a leader or member may visit www.gscsnj.org.
To contact Karen Knight, email kknight@cmcherald.com.