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Overcast Valley Stream Girl Scout donates toys for tikes
Girl Scout second cadet Vanessa Herrera, 13, of Girl Scout Troop 2259 delivered about 150 bags of toys that offer sensory stimulation for kids to the Henry Waldinger Memorial Library on January 2. The community service project was part of earning her Silver Award. With her younger brother David in mind, who was three at the start of the pandemic and is now six, she decided to help children within his brother’s age demographic. Because children were missing out on the in-person programs at the library that Herrera enjoyed as a kid due to Covid-19 concerns, she decided to donate to families toys that their children would normally have access to at the library during storytimes led by Children’s Librarian Jaclyn Kunz, better known to the kids as Ms. K.
The project was a year and a half in the making. Herrera had to advocate for herself to receive donations, sent out streams of emails, tracked all her progress, and will soon be delivering a presentation of her work to her fellow scouts in her troop. The hard work paid off when after soliciting donations, she got a reply back from toy suppliers including Amazon Oriental Trading and Make Sure Learning whom agreed to send toys.
“I grew up loving to read. I still read to this day, and I love to play with toys. It’s a staple part of who I am and how I grew up,” Herrera said, further stating that the project is very personal to her. The supplies will be distributed to regular online viewers of Ms. K’s Read-Aloud and Toddlers, Tots, and Tykes Storytime and will also be available for pickup to interested parents.
For toddlers, the items will help with early developmental skills and language breakdown. Kunz said that when she does the stories, songs, and rhymes, she uses rhythm instruments like shakers or tossing beanbags because it helps with early literacy skills including phonological awareness. “The sounds that different words make when you make a sound [or] when you’re singing, helps kids break down language and helps them learn to read,” Kunz said. “Playing is a child’s work.”
Library Director Maime Eng explained how the storytime experience has changed for children after the pandemic. “When the children came to the library prior to the pandemic, the Children’s Librarian would distribute a scarf to each child and ask them to wave it at an appropriate time during a story. During the pandemic, this was not possible, but with the toy kits at home, the children will have a more enriched experience” during virtual storytime.
With many parents still cautious about in-person activities at the library for one of the most vulnerable populations, Kunz explained how Herrera’s contribution will add excitement to the virtual programs. “To give them something like this, I think it gives families and kids a little boost to know that you’re thinking of them, we’re thinking of them… that we can say, we thought of you, or the community thought of you.”
Herrera said the experience taught her many important lessons such as learning how to better manage time and how to be proactive. With her Silver Award secured, Herrera is already thinking of other community projects she would like to do and encourages her other scout companions to do the same. What’s more, she’s now brainstorming what to do for her Gold Award: a three to four-year-long undertaking that will involve more community involvement and leave a lasting mark on Valley Stream.
“There’s a lot I want to do right now…It’s great to see people who are my brother’s age happy with toys I would be happy with if I was that age, so I’m definitely going to continue doing things like this in the future,” she said.
It’s not the first time the Girl Scouts lent their creative leadership and support to the library. At the beginning of the pandemic, Girl Scouts taught a series of Saturday and Sunday STEM classes. For residents who are interested in getting involved at the library, Kunz encourages visitors to “spread the word about our programs and activities…because we’ve been struggling with foot traffic. And if anyone has ideas for projects like this or other ideas, we always want to hear it.”
