Girl Scouts rally the community to give back

The Waltham Girl Scouts Service Unit marked its fifth annual Day of Service on the Waltham Common on Nov. 9, rallying scouts, families and community members to support local charities through hands-on projects and donations.

This outreach produced hundreds of useful and heartfelt items for area nonprofits, including the Diaper Depot, The Cat Connection. Donations were also collected for the Community Day Center of Waltham. Volunteers assembled:

• 175 snack packs with water, juice, granola bars and other snacks for the CDCW.
• More than 100 toiletry kits for the CDCW with toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant and handwarmers.
• More than 150 fleece knot cat toys for the Cat Connection.
• 100 art kits for the Diaper Depot.
• 100 flag keychains for veterans.
• 100 cards and snowflake ornaments for the Senior Center’s Meals on Wheels program.

In addition to the craft and assembly activities, the Service Unit collected donations for several community drives, including:

• Toys, art kits, water bottles and duffel bags for the Salvation Army Toy Drive.
• Socks for the CDCW, veterans and the Salvation Army.
• Canned goods for the Salvation Army.
• Halloween candy for the CDCW and veterans.
• Diapers, wipes and period products for the Diaper Depot.
• Cat food for the Cat Connection.
• Eyeglasses for the Lions Club.
• Coats for the Lions Club, WCDC and Diaper Depot.

The handmade flag keychains were distributed two days later during Waltham’s Veterans Day flag ceremony.