By Lori Landino
Group Photo (from left): Jennifer Lipman, Girl Scout Co-Leader of Troop 15502, Adina Licht, Girl Scout Co-Leader of Troop 15502, Caitlin McCord, Service Unit Manager of the 36 local Girl Scout Troops, Jack Dilles, Mayor of Scotts Valley, Donna Lind, SV Council Member, Troop 15502 Girl Scouts Kylee Onken-Merrell, Livia Johnston, Caty Taylor, Morgan Lipman, Gianna Golino, Tara Bensen, Silver Award Project Lead, Mentor and Scientific Illustrator, Troop 15502 Girl Scouts Brianna Hull, Alex Baum, Naomi Q Licht, Maya Bensen, Tracey Neilsen, Principal, Vine Hill Elementary School and Derek Timm, SV City Council.
Scotts Valley Girl Scouts Troop 15502 recently identified a need at Vine Hill Elementary School and decided to go with a creative solution.
The idea was to address the importance of education and diversity in the community. The troop looked at murals done by others in the area, brainstormed ideas, made a few plans, prepped the wall near the school’s lost and found, then started painting.
The troop devoted two years and countless hours in creating the mural as their Silver Award Project.. The finished painting is a beautiful work of art and has been appropriately named The Lost and Found Mural.
In describing the project, Caty Taylor wrote: “We did this as our Silver Award because it is an easy thing for kids to understand — that no matter who you are or where you come from, that you can get a good education and become a successful human.”
The mural depicts that gender, money, race and religion should never matter when it comes to receiving an education at Vine Hill School. The troop intentionally did not assign gender to the animals in the mural to show that anyone and everyone is welcome.
In choosing to paint animals, Troup 15502 also wanted to acknowledge the importance of wildlife in the world. All of the animals in the mural are native to California.
What the chalkboard says: B=Be Respectful | E=Eager to Learn | A=Always Prepare | R=Responsibility | S=Solve Problems
“We used all California wildlife to make it familiar to all the kids at Vine Hill School,” explained Caty Taylor.
The mural was unveiled on August 25. Scotts Valley Mayor Jake Dilles joined other community leaders to celebrate the achievement.
“Having our leaders support this incredible troop, alongside the Mayor and the Principal and many teachers and the City Council and the Chamber of Commerce, meant a great deal to these hardworking artists,” wrote Adina Licht. “[Their] support shows [our Scouts] that their work is appreciated by the community. Thank you for making these Girl Scouts feel that their work matters!”
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For more info: https://www.vinehill.santacruz.k12.ca.us/
Photos Credit: Robert Aldana