Girl Scout Troop 1316 in East Meadow recognized that many could find it challenging to express their feelings in a safe way, spurring them to create something meaningful for the community: The Stress Less Box, now on display at the East Meadow Public Library.
Troop 1316 is a Girl Scout Cadette troop comprised of students from Woodland and W.T. Clarke middle schools in the East Meadow School District. The Stress Less Box was created for their Silver Award project, the highest honor a Cadette can earn independently or in small groups. Girls must identify a community issue and create a sustainable project that addresses its root cause. Projects usually involve at least 50 hours of work.
“The whole idea is something that’s long lasting, that benefits the community, not just one time, but for a while,” Jeannie Cardali, who leads the troop with Alison Vardakis, told the Herald. “What the girls found is that people will keep in or harbor feelings, and not a lot of people have safe outlets to express (them). And when someone keeps in their feelings, those feelings are often negative, and those negative feelings can turn bad. The girls said they wanted to find a safe and anonymous way for people to vent.”
“We had to find a problem in the community,” Emily Cardali, Jeannie’s daughter and troop member, shared, “and we recognize that many people in our community carry a lot of unspoken stress and heavy emotions, and we wanted to just create a safe, healthy outlet for those feelings.”
So, they built The Stress Less Box, now on a stand inside of East Meadow library’s main entrance. The box comes with a small slit to drop notes, along with a pad of paper and pencils, and words of encouragement that tell users, “Take a breath, write it down, let it go.”
The box is locked and will be cleared out periodically. Messages are anonymous and will never be read.
Troop 1316 members include Emily Cardali, Holly Vardakis, Brielle Stephens, Hibah Farukh, Jeyla Gadirli, Lauren Ochtera and Sofia Yagman.
The box, Jeannie Cardali said, was entirely constructed by the Girl Scouts, who worked with a carpenter to design it and put it together. It was then painted and decorated and affixed with instructions as well as a QR code that provides a user with a positive affirmation.
Reflecting on the collaboration between the Girl Scouts to create their project, Emily Cardali simply said, “I love my troop.”
The Girl Scouts’ project was unveiled on June 8 at the library, where they were joined by Hempstead Town Clerk Kate Murray, Nassau County Legislator Tom McKevitt, Assemblyman John Mikulin and a representative from State Sen. Steve Rhoads’ office.
“The Silver Award is one of the highest awards a Girl Scout can earn,” Jeannie Cardali said at the unveiling. “It’s when Cadette Girl Scouts do something (that) makes a long lasting, positive impact on their community. As you can see, these girls hit the nail on the head. This project truly became a labor of love.”
Cardali extended thanks to the library for allowing the troop to install their vision and to the girls’ parents who supported their efforts.
For those interested in checking out The Stress Less Box, the library is located at 1886 Front St. in East Meadow.
Troop members collectively shared the following message at the unveiling: “As people visit the library, The Stress Less Box will be here for anyone who needs to let something go. You simply write down whatever is on your mind — a worry, a frustration, or a private thought of any kind — and drop it into the box, anonymously.”
