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Girl Scouts Work Annual "April Showers"

Area Girl Scouts on Saturday talked with shoppers at the WalMart Supercenter in Eureka, encouraging them to buy personal items for others in need. Donations via April Shower bags dropped off at homes will be picked up Saturday.

Area Girl Scouts were expecting April showers on Saturday when they handed out paper raindrops regarding personal care items needed for SNAP (formerly known as the Food Stamp Program), but instead they had blue skies for their annual "April Showers" event.

April Showers is a long-time Girl Scouts annual drive for personal care products, such as toothpaste, soap and shampoo, which cannot be purchased with SNAP benefits. Nearly 50,000 people in eastern Missouri have no cash income and rely on SNAP benefits only, according to Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri materials. Traditionally, Girl Scouts on one Saturday in April place bags at local residences and then return the next Saturday to pick up donations.

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This year's Girl Scouts hope to set a Guinness World Record by collecting more than 1 million personal care items in honor of the organization's centennial.

As shoppers entered the the in on Saturday, they were given a "wish list" of products and encouraged to buy those items and drop them off in specially marked barrels when leaving the store.

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By the afternoon, members of Cadet Troop 4217 indicated they already had collected three shopping carts full of soap, shampoo, paper goods and other personal care items. These items will be donated to local food outlets, such as the . Missouri food banks continue to report an increase in demand that ranges from 20 percent to 44 percent. The scouts also will volunteer at the food pantry to sort and store the items. All of the girls in this troop are sixth graders at in .

"I like working at charity events like these," said Girl Scout Madison Sargent. "We have really fun activities, too."

"These girls have been together since kindergarten," said Wildwood resident Linda Evans, the scout leader for the group. "Of course there were many more Girl Scouts in elementary school, but most girls drop out before middle school because they have so many other activities. Kali joined this year, in the 100th anniversary of scouting. We've had a positive impact at LaSalle Springs, and I feel the girls have gained a lot of confidence and leadership skills (from scouts). Andrea and Maria were just selected for National Junior Honor Society, and I really think their scouting experiences have been a factor in their success."

For more details about reactions from Troop 4217, . Connors stated Girl Scouts will continue collecting bags at residences through Sunday. Residents who do not receive a bag on their door and did not attend the "Showering the Community" event at Walmart have the option to purchase pre-packaged bags from or Dierbergs until April 28. Those who are unable to participate, or forget to donate during this week, may drop off items to any Dierbergs market through May 6.

Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri serves more than 58,000 girls, and is supported by more than 18,000 adult volunteers in St. Louis and 28 surrounding Missouri counties of Adair, Audrain (Van-Far School District), Clark, Crawford, Franklin, Iron, Jefferson, Knox, Lewis, Lincoln, Linn, Macon, Marion, Monroe, Pike, Putnam, Ralls, Reynolds, Schuyler, Scotland, Shelby, St. Charles, St. Francois, St. Louis, Ste. Genevieve, Sullivan, Warren and Washington.

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