‘We can accomplish much more as a team’

LUNENBURG — All 10 Girl Scout troops in town are participating in the pancake breakfast and holiday craft fair this weekend that doubles as a food drive.

The event being held on Saturday, Dec. 13, from 9 to 11 a.m. in the Lunenburg Middle-High School cafeteria at 1079 Massachusetts Ave., will feature all-you-can-eat fluffy pancakes and warm maple syrup, and individual troops will be selling handcrafted items to raise funds for troop adventures. All money raised through admission collected at the door — $5 per person, kids under 3 free — goes to the troops, who are planning an overnight stay at Old Sturbridge Village in the spring.

In addition, nonperishable food items will be collected for the Lunenburg Food Pantry by Santa and Mrs. Claus, who will be set up for photos with families.

“One of the key things we focus on in Girl Scouts is serving our community,” said Lunenburg Girl Scouts Service Unit Manager Jess Glinski. “Right now, we know that food insecurity and cost is on the rise and the Lunenburg Food Pantry is always looking for donations. We can accomplish much more as a team than we can on our own and it’s a great way for us to have a hyper-local impact and serve the members of our community.”

She went on to say that they are advertising the food drive as part of the pancake breakfast event details “and the girls are working on driving awareness among friends and family as well.”

They also ran a food drive last spring as a Service Unit for the Lunenburg Food Pantry, with each troop collecting specific types of items like condiments, peanut butter, snacks, and coffee and tea that brought in over 1,000 items for the pantry.

“Individual troops in town are often do smaller projects like cookie decorating kits and birthday party bags throughout the year,” said Glinski, who is in her fourth year as Girl Scout troop leader in her hometown, currently leading Brownie Troop 65311, which her 8-year-old daughter Penny is a member of.

When asked what inspires them to give back by doing things like the food drives, Penny summed it up perfectly: “It’s important to help our community so that no one goes hungry and people can live a healthy, happy life.”

For more information, follow the Holiday Pancake Breakfast and Craft Fair Facebook event page.