By EMILY REED / Special to the Advertiser

Girl Scout Troop 337 recently participated in a local food drive to benefit food shelters across Alabama.

Twenty girl scouts from Chilton County participated with girls scouts of North-Central Alabama in “scouting” for food donations to fill community food banks across two-thirds of the state, according to a press release from the Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama.

More than 900 girls from areas including Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Huntsville, Guntersville, Florence, Scottsboro, Gadsden, Talladega, Anniston, Thorsby and Jemison were some of the cities involved.

Locally, more than 500 pounds of food was collected from the girl scouts in Troop 337, according to Terrie Childress, a volunteer with the troop.

“Scouting for Food took place at the end of October through Nov. 17,” Childress said. “There were two boxes located at the local grocery stores including one at Piggly Wiggly in Jemison and the other at Sav More or Associated Foods in Clanton.”

The girls decorated the boxes and left them at the grocery stores for those from the community to place donations in the boxes at designated times.

Childress said the girls were also challenged to collect five bags of canned or non-perishable food items, and passed out flyers explaining the details for Scouting for Food.

“These flyers were given out to friends, family members and within the community, explaining that people could fill a plastic grocery bag full of canned goods or non-perishable items. Once the bags were filled, the girls scouts were contacted to collect the donations.”

According to the release, because of the girl scouts involvement in Scouting for Food, at least 831 bags of food were donated to local food banks, making it over 6,000 pounds of food.

“I think the girls enjoyed helping those in need the most,” Childress said. “This was such a great learning experience for each of these young ladies. The best part was seeing the donations helping others within our own community.”

The Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama includes more than 13,000 members including 9,500 girls and 3,800 adults in 36 counties throughout Alabama.

The organization began more than 100 years ago with Girl Scout founder Juliette Gordon “Daisy” Low, who believed in the power of every girl, according to the release.

Low organized the first Girl Scout troop on March 12, 1912 in Savannah, Ga., and every year since, her vision has been made a reality, helping girls discover their “strengths, passions, and talents.”