Twenty-two Brownies of Troop 21221 gathered at Laning Avenue school on Friday to earn their Earth Is Our Home badge and create some environmentally themed gingerbread houses to enter into Essex County’s Sustainable Gingerbread House contest.
The meeting kicked off with the girls brainstorming ways they could help make the Earth a better place. These second graders offered up several creative answers, such as “don’t litter”, “plant a garden”, “save a tree”, “respect nature”, and “take care of animals” . The leaders built upon their answers and explained how many people take extra steps to better our Earthy by incorporating eco-friendly products and practices into their lives, such as solar panels, rain barrels, sustainable gardens and compost bins.
The Brownies’ enthusiasm rose as the leaders revealed the Troop’s big project: Decorating gingerbread houses. In small groups, the girls decorated their pre-made gingerbread houses and grounds with edible items. Using candy, pretzels, fruit roll-ups, and much more, the girls creatively made solar-paneled roofs, vegetable gardens, rain barrels, planters, compost piles, walkways and green lawns. The mess was a small price to pay for the fun these Brownies had making these educational houses.
The eco-friendly houses that the troop created will be on display at the Essex County Environmental Center in Roseland from Monday, December 5, through Wednesday, December 21. 
