RALLYING FOR READING: Grace Freundlich is shooting for the Girl Scouts’ highest honor with her program that places kids’ books at summer camps and community pools, then donates them to libraries that need them.

By Anne Levin

Scouting has been a part of Grace Freundlich’s life since she was in kindergarten. Now a senior at Stuart Country Day School of the Sacred Heart, the 17-year-old has had her eye on the prize — the Girl Scouts’ coveted Gold Award — for years.

“I always knew I’d do the Gold Award,” Grace said in a recent phone conversation. “At the end of my freshman year, I was on my way to a Scout troop camping weekend, and my Mom and I were brainstorming ideas. She asked me what my passions were, and I said reading, camping, and swimming. And I thought, what about a way of combining them?”

From that discussion came the idea for Bestow-a-Book, an initiative designed to help summer camps and community swimming pools set up special bookshelves. Kids can donate their own gently-used books to the racks, and pick out books donated by others. At the end of the summer, books that have been collected are donated to libraries in need of reading material for children.

Grace tested out her idea two summers ago while at Camp Mosey Wood, a Scout camp in the Poconos. She made an announcement about the program every week to fellow campers. “I got a lot of donations,” she said. “During my junior year, I worked on it. Then last month, I went to the National Girl Scout Convention [in Columbus, Ohio] and that inspired me to keep at it. I’ve been working on it since then, and I have gotten at least six sign-ups. I’m hoping to get more groups for the summer of 2018.”

Grace has been reaching out to camps and pools by email. She is also looking for libraries and literacy programs that might be interested in receiving donated books at the end of next summer. There is no charge for the service. “We try to find a book shelf if a camp or pool has one, or we find cheap shelves,” Grace said. “I have a store to sell stickers and tote bags and shirts to raise money for the program.”

This past summer marked Grace’s ninth at camp, where she has most recently worked as a lifeguard. When not in the Poconos, she has spent summer time off at Princeton’s Community Pool. “I watch kids when I’m there, and it seems like there is a lot of emphasis on social media,” she said. “Kids are on their phones a lot when they’re not in the pool. And they could be reading.”

A big fan of Harry Potter and Percy Jackson, Grace is an avid reader. Her current favorite book is A Walk in the Woods, by Bill Bryson. “There are so many benefits to reading,” she said. “During the year, kids get a lot of pressure to read at school. But in the summer, the pressure can be lifted and they can just enjoy reading what they want to read. There is so much enjoyment in that. And it helps a lot with communication and other skills.”

The Gold Award is the highest achievement within the Girl Scouts of the USA, earned by Senior and Ambassador Girl Scouts. Grace, who has earned Silver and Bronze Awards, would be among the only 5.4 percent of eligible Girl Scouts to earn the Gold if she reaches her goal.

“I’m trying to get up to the 80 hours that is recommended time for the award,” she said “I’ll submit the final paperwork and then it goes through the committee with Princeton Girl Scouts. Hopefully I’ll get it.”