BALDWINSVILLE — When it came time for Dariyan DeWeese to choose a service project for her Girl Scout Silver Award, she needed look no further than her four-legged best buddies, Lexi and Freya, for ins-paw-ration. The 14-year-old dog lover decided to organize a golf tournament to benefit K-9 Caring Angels, a Virginia-based nonprofit that provides psychiatric service dogs for veterans.
“My troop leader, Nancy Fritcher, really helped. She told me about K-9 Caring Angels and I thought it was just an amazing organization,” DeWeese said.
The Silver Award is the second-highest honor a Girl Scout can achieve. DeWeese has been a Girl Scout since kindergarten; she is now in eighth grade at Durgee Junior High School and is a member of Troop 10127.
The Radisson resident had her work cut out for her: reaching out to local businesses for sponsorships, contacting media outlets and encouraging friends and family to join the tournament.
“I thought it was a great way to involve different groups of people and involve the community,” DeWeese said. “The support from the community has been so overwhelming and so amazing. It makes it a lot easier.”
Running a fundraiser can be challenging in a typical year, but the economic strain caused by the pandemic has made DeWeese’s job a little more difficult.
“Businesses have been hit harder this year than other years,” she said.
In addition to the opportunity to face off on the course in teams of four, golfers can enter a putting contest for $5 to win a box of Girl Scout cookies. For non-golfers, there is a dinner-only option.
K-9 Caring Angels founder Sonny Madsen is planning to travel from Virginia to attend Paws for Soldiers and Sailors.
“We’re really excited to have her,” DeWeese said.
DeWeese is hoping to make Paws for Soldiers and Sailors an annual event.
“I’m really excited to do it next year because I feel like it’ll be even easier to get the ball rolling next year,” she said.
Paws for Soldiers and Sailors takes place at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 13, at Foxfire Golf Course in Village Green. Registration is $90 per golfer; each team that donates an item for K-9 Caring Angels (such as collars, puppy-safe toys or puppy food) will receive a mulligan. Sponsorship opportunities are also available. For more information or to register, contact Dariyan DeWeese at 937-243-0056 or [email protected].
