Karma for Cara Foundation microgrant recipients have competed in an application process alongside other young people who have spearheaded exceptional service projects that benefit their communities. In order to qualify for a K4C award, an applicant must be 18 years of age or younger, and the project must take place in the US.
With two other Girl Scouts (Erin & Alexa) Karma for Cara microgrant recipient Melanie (8th) from Maryland completed an 8 hour course on the environment, the importance of clean air, weather, pollution and why trees are important. Based on what the Scouts learned and further research, they chose to call their service project 12 Trees for the 12 Apostles and planted trees at their school which is on a church property. Melanie, Erin & Alexa’s families & other troop members helped with the tree planting. Additionally, the girls met with their school’s after school program to provide six educational sessions to pre-K through first grade students on trees & the environment and conducted an educational game with younger Girl Scouts at a mall lock-in.
What inspired you to start this project? | At our campus, workers would chop down multiple trees, leaving our campus looking dull and uninviting. We and some of our old friends used to hang out at these trees a lot, and it made us feel somewhat uncomfortable with our old spots looking so bare. We thought about what we could do to not only add more trees to our campus but re-establish the natural beauty of our campus for future generations as well. |
While working on your project, what surprised you? | We thought the work would be easier, but it was actually quite unpredictable and even challenging at times. The weather never seemed to cooperate with our schedule, and hauling around bags of soil wasn’t really all that effortless. It also surprised us how many people actually wanted to help with our cause, including the campus landscaper with her planting advice, preschool teachers willing to let us educate their students, and our pastor for his undying support. |
What do you feel you learned from this experience? | We actually learned a lot about trees (unsurprisingly). We learned how to write a grant. We learned about types of trees. We learned how much 12 trees can actually impact a community. We learned more about tree-specific planting. |
How did Karma for Cara impact your project? | The fund provided over half of the share of money that was required to carry through with the project. We bought trees, gardening supplies, and a lot more. |
How will your project continue to impact others? | The tree will be around for years and years to come. Probably hundreds. People will look at our campus and see beautiful trees instead of dull patches of dirt which were once, before, blooming with life and greenery before the campus’ landscapers decided to chop them down. |
