Newton Girl Scout Working Towards Her Gold Award Through Love of Reading

NEWTON, NJ—Newton resident and recent graduate of Newton High School is working towards her Girl Scout Gold Award, the top rank in Girl Scouts,  with a special project.

Danielle Penny is a member of Girl Scout Troop 5688 and is collecting previously “loved Children’s books. The book drive is just Phase 1 of the Girl Scout Gold Award project and according to Penny is “a crucial component, as it lays the foundation for the remainder of the project, which will be focused on distributing the books.”

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“After 12 years in Girl Scouting I am finishing up my final year as an Ambassador Scout with my Girl Scout Gold Award Project,” Penny said. “Since I am an avid reader and book lover I really wanted to be able to use my Gold Award Project to be able to share my love of reading while making a positive impact on my community. I am excited to be able to combine the two with the creation of a literacy focused project entitled ‘Little Readers, Future Leaders’.”

The end goal of the project is to help educate the public about the role that book access and ownership within a child’s life plays in supporting literacy skills to help prepare kids so they can succeed in learning and throughout life.

Penny also plans on making these children’s books available at free “Book Adoption” events at various community events this summer.

“My hope is that by doing so, I will not only have a positive impact on literacy among young children here in Sussex County, but will also foster a lifelong love of reading among those children as well,” she said.

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The scout wants to collect 1,500 children’s books for reading levels pre-k through eighth grade and is almost halfway there thanks to the donations she has received through the collection box located at Newton-Sparta Pediatric Dentistry in Andover, who she has partnered with on this project.

“A HUGE thank you to everyone who has already so generously donated books to be distributed as part of my Girl Scout Gold Award Project. Your donations will support literacy and book access here in Sussex County and make a difference in the lives of children in our community," Penny posted on Facebook earlier this week.

According to Penny, Dr. Mike and the staff at NSPD have been huge supporters of her project and instrumental in the success of the book drive by offering their office as a collection site. Donations can be dropped off in their lobby throughout the month of July during regular business hours.

NSPD is currently holding a free Hershey Park prize pack drawing on their Facebook page and as an added incentive, they are offering an additional entry into the drawing to anyone who drops off book donations at the Andover office between now and July 28, according to Penny.

If anyone wants more information they can feel free to contact Penny by text or phone at 973-903-2930 or by email at bookdrivenorthernnj@gmail.com

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