A quick snack on the way to school
Silver Award Girl Scout builds little food pantry for anyone to access
February 20, 2026
SHELBURNE, NH – Hungry students and others who pass by a little free library on Willard Street in Berlin now have access to a free pantry of snacks and other food thanks to a caring Girl Scout. Wednesday Belanger, 13, of Shelburne has earned the Girl Scout Silver Award with her project, The Willard Street Food Pantry.
Local resident Kirstan Knowlton had been maintaining a little free library in front of her home and begun stocking it with snacks as well, which students walking to school would take.
“The kids were eating the snacks so fast, they couldn't keep up,” said Wednesday, saying that too many students either had no time for breakfast or didn’t have food available to eat.
It became clear to them there was a need that they could fulfill, so Wednesday set out to create a colorful, insulated, and water-tight box as a pantry for anyone in need. With her father’s experience in woodworking, the Girl Scout Cadette built the box and installed it on Willard Street. Having a box wasn’t the end, though; she organized a food drive to encourage awareness of the pantry and collect donations. The property owners have committed to keeping it stocked.
Wednesday hopes the public will support her effort.
“It does need to keep being restocked,” she said. “So, it would be helpful if people can donate.”
The Girl Scout Silver Award is the highest honor a Girl Scout in grades 6-8 may earn. It requires that she come up with a sustainable solution to a community issue. She not only made her community a better place, she learned valuable life lessons.
“I learned how to plan out all the different parts of something, and how those parts will come together,” she said. “I learned to use woodworking tools. I learned how to make a paint splatter effect. I learned that I am not allowed to use a table saw because it is very dangerous. I learned how to use Canva to create an advertisement.”
Girl Scouts everywhere are working to make the world a better place. Silver Award Girl Scout Wednesday Belanger has fulfilled that mission and looks forward to doing even more.
Families are encouraged to consider joining Girl Scouts as a way to help their girls become young women of courage, confidence and character. See more at www.girlscoutsgwm.org.
We Are Girl Scouts
Girl Scouts bring their dreams to life and work together to build a better world. Through programs from coast to coast, Girl Scouts of all backgrounds and abilities can be unapologetically themselves as they discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges—whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or advocate for climate justice, or make their first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors, and millions of alums, Girl Scouts lead the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them. To join us, volunteer, reconnect, or donate, visit girlscouts.org.
Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains serves girls throughout New Hampshire and Vermont through volunteer-run troops, events, and virtual programs. Visit www.girlscoutsgwm.org to learn more.
