By Laura Lane
That¹s what happened when Salisbury resident Marie Fraioli and her daughter Donna came up with the idea of refurbishing the meeting room in the St. Brigid¹s Catholic School basement. The idea blossomed, getting many Girl Scouts involved as well as a local store, Lowe¹s.
The Fraiolis broached the subject while helping out at a St. Brigid¹s Saturday morning event. Once a month they help the school¹s youth group make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for Long Island soup kitchens.
Marie wearily looked over the meeting room, as she always did while making the sandwiches. It hadn¹t been painted in a decade, and she couldn¹t help but imagine how much nicer it would be if the room got a face-lift. ³There were murals on the walls that were a little scary,² Marie said. ³One mural of Jesus as you entered the room was not inviting.²
Even though the room had other non-frightening spray-painted images, like an eight-foot parrot, a tropical forest scene and a collage of New York City, Marie and her daughter thought it was dreary. Chatting with lifelong Salisbury resident Vince Buzzeo, Marie mentioned the possibility of painting the room. Buzzeo, the coordinator of the youth ministry, said he¹d wanted to change the look of the room for quite some time, but didn¹t have the supplies.
³Donna overheard me talking and said, ŒWhy can¹t we paint it?¹² Marie said. ³Vince thought it was a great idea. We decided to make this a community project for Donna¹s Girl Scout troop.²
Junior Troop 3087 comprises fifth-, sixth- and seventh-graders working toward their Bronze Award. The honor goes to Girl Scouts who have met a number of requirements, including a 15-hour service project.
Marie, a co-leader of the troop, helped Donna and sister scout Nicole Caprio brainstorm how to get the supplies needed to complete the project. Then she suggested that they request help from Lowe¹s, the hardware chain. ³Nicole and Donna wrote a letter and a project plan listing the items they¹d need to complete the project,² Marie said. ³Then they went to Lowe¹s and delivered it.²
Lowe¹s in Garden City was happy to accommodate the Girl Scouts. ³We try to help the community in different ways, and the Girl Scouts are one of the groups we help,² said Chris Lubowiecki, operations manager. ³We gave them around $1,100 worth of supplies, which is a pretty sizable amount for Lowe¹s. We were glad to help, because this project was important for the community and for the kids. Lowe¹s wanted to support the effort.²
The Junior Girl Scouts convinced many of their friends, and older girls, too, to join them, including the cadets from Girl Scout Troop 1310, who are Salisbury residents. In all, the girls worked a total of 28 hours during the Columbus Day weekend to transform the 6,000-foot room into a more inviting, cheerful meeting place.
³The girls saw the job through they were so dedicated,² said co-leader Brenda Kenny of Salisbury. ³Some of them were so small and still were using the 12-foot poles to paint.²
The Rev. Ralph Sommer, St. Brigid¹s pastor, is very pleased with the room¹s new look. ³What hits you when you walk in the room are the different shades of green, like the Girl Scout colors," he said. "I think what was great was that the volunteers gave their time and talent and received a sense of satisfaction that they helped others. What they did will be appreciated many years from now.²
Buzzeo said he took the opportunity to clean up the room, too, getting rid of things that had been lying around for years. He is planning to host a thank-you party for the volunteers.
³The majority of the kids that helped out were girls, which was impressive to me," he said, adding that his daughter Gabrielle was inspired to get involved, too. "They had such a good work ethic. What I think about, now that the job is done, is that you can¹t underestimate the power of the Girl Scouts. They put their minds to this project and got it done without incident.²
Comments about this story? LLane@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 236.
