Troop 223G Good Turn Trip Reports

By AVAMEHR VAGHAIWALLA | 223G Eagle Scout ’21

Each term, the patrols of Troop 223G are expected to complete a Good Turn Trip led by their Patrol Leaders. The Good Turn Trip allows the Scouts to give back to their community through service and gain a better understanding of the inequities in our society. By the end of the term, each Patrol Leader must submit a written trip report with a reflection of their patrol’s service trip and experience.

For the 2023 Spring Term, Troop 223G had six patrols of about five Scouts each, in addition to three New Scout patrols. From solely their Good Turn Trips, the entire troop’s patrols cumulatively completed just under 50 hours of service total, and over 40 Scouts contributed to these community projects.

The Owl Patrol selected the Giving Spirit as their beneficiary, an organization that provides immediate aid and human connection to people experiencing homelessness by creating survival kits with necessities for daily life. Patrol Leader Cate Bunting reflects in her report, “These kits all contain friendship cards that contain uplifting messages that lets them know that people are there for them and that they are not forgotten. As a patrol we were able to make 21 of these cards.”

The Aye Aye Patrol decided to make brownies, ice cream, and cards for local firefighters at Station 23. Patrol Leader Tahrique Sarn mentions in her report, “We had fun making the brownies and decorating the cards to be as colorful as possible without using screens … I accidentally flipped the brownies over and they almost fell everywhere! Luckily, we saved them and made them look nice for the firefighters to enjoy.”

The Capybaras Patrol chose to make cards for hospitalized children at the UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital. Patrol Leader Julia Gallivan notes that her patrol had a lot of fun as she claims, “I brought supplies like construction paper, markers, and stickers, a speaker so we could listen to music as well as soft drinks and pizza that we ate after we made the cards.”

The Husky Patrol served Food on Foot, an organization that provides packaged food, hygiene products, and clothes for people experiencing homelessness. The Huskies helped by organizing the food and drinks out onto tables and then serving the drinks for a couple of hours. Patrol Leader Claire O’Brien states, “I’m glad I was able to arrange this trip for my patrol because I think it taught them the purpose of community service: the benefit and improvement of the lives of others.”

The Fox Patrol aided an organization with a similar mission, Meals on Wheels, which delivers food to those who are unable to get it themselves. Patrol Leader Meredith Corbin was proud to mention, “We delivered 9 meals to people who could not go and get them themselves.”

The Phoenix Patrol baked and sold cookies in order to raise funds to aid the victims of the recent earthquake in Turkey. Patrol Leader Francesca Corbell states they raised 80 dollars to donate to the victims of the earthquake in Turkey. She also notes, “We learned a little about marketing and how to pitch the cookies. Overall, we all learned something new and had a lot of fun!”

The Sea Otter, Hedgehog, and Baboon Patrols all participated in closet clean outs via Zoom where they donated their extra clothes to Goodwill. Sea Otter Patrol Leader Maya Sakhnini reflects, “It was a great way for us to bond while helping our community!”

Baboon Patrol Leader Lena Sakhnini states, “All the scouts did an amazing job cleaning out their closets on their own, giving me a lot of clothes and books to donate.” Hedgehog Patrol Leader Harper Cardenas concludes her trip report with, “As the adage goes; ‘one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.’”

We are very proud of our Scouts for all of their hard work and efforts to continue making our community and world a better place. Each of the Patrol Leaders have concluded their 2023 Spring Term and will move on to becoming Seniors in the 2023 Fall Term.

As Seniors, they will collaborate to run entire troop meetings with their learned leadership skills, while incoming Patrol Leaders will inherit their positions and plan their own Good Turn Trips next term.

To learn more or visit a 223 Troop meeting, please contact Greg Frost (frostfamily@frostinvestigations.com) for Boys or Scoutmaster Larry Kirven (lkirven@gmail.com) for Girls.