Published: November 11, 2008 09:55 pm            

SCOUTING: Newfane student's 'Lockout for Homelessness' drive successful

Bri Graham went without a home for a night last weekend, but it was for a good cause.

Graham held a clothing, bedding and canned food drive from last weekend at Newfane United Methodist Church on the corner of Main Street and East Avenue. Shoes, blankets, coats, hats, toiletries, and new socks and undergarments were collected. The drive also included an all night Lockout for Homelessness, in which Graham and about a dozen fellow volunteers stayed outside in boxes, regardless of weather.

“It went pretty well,” Graham said. “It rained a little, but it was fun.”

She added that it wasn’t too cold either, Friday night.

The drive got off to a good start even before last week. Graham had 25 large garbage bags filled with items, mostly clothing. All of the donated clothing went to the Buffalo City Mission, and the food went to the Newfane Food Pantry.

“We had a lot,” Graham said. “We filled up half of our basement.”

A senior at Newfane High School, Graham is a senior Girl Scout with Newfane Troop 72. Her clothing and canned food drive is for her Gold Award project, which is to raise awareness for the homeless. The Gold Award is the Girl Scout equivalent of the Eagle Scout rank in Boy Scouts — both are the highest award a Scout can reach. A Girl Scout needs 65 hours of community service and has to be approved by the Gold Award advisory board. Graham is still working on meeting the required total of hours.

According to the national Girl Scouts’ Web site, www.girlscouts.org, a Gold Award project should be something that helps everyone.

“The project is something that fulfills a need within a girl’s community,” the site said. “If it is a service, it should be something that creates change or action with long-term possibilities, empowering others besides just the girl.”

When talking about the drive and lockout, there was one more thing to add, Graham said.

“I just want to thank everyone involved,” she said.

        

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