Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois congratulates Alaina Smith from Ruma for becoming a Gold Award Girl Scout — a designation she earned by building buddy benches and educating others on how such benches can help increase friendship and belonging.
As a child, Smith often felt lonely and longed for ways to make friends more easily. She learned about schools installing buddy benches and hoped for one to be added at her school. Reflecting on that experience, she wanted her Gold Award project to give others the opportunity to utilize the benches – something she wished had been available to her as a child.
For more on Smith, please see this week’s print edition.