Michael Lesnesky, band director, and Sophia Arscott, Girl Scout and band member, stand with the finished project.
Submitted Photo
Sophia Arscott enjoys playing the clarinet. She wanted to conduct her Girl Scout Silver award through the Abington Heights High School band program.
The Girl Scout requirements for a Silver Award is that the scout must be in sixth, seventh or eighth grade and be a registered Girl Scout Cadette. The scout also must complete a Cadette Journey.
She will be a freshman in the fall at Abington Heights High School.
She has been a Girl Scout since Brownies and wanted to join to be with her friends and her mom encouraged her to join. She is a member of Girl Scout Troop 50075.
“I have enjoyed being with my friends and learning many different things,” Sophia said. “I have had to work through so many different badges. My favorite may have been the babysitting badge with CPR training. I know I want to be a teacher, and I really like working with children. I am a counselor in Training at the Waverly Community House in the summer. This badge has helped me with babysitting and with Counselor in Training at the Waverly Community House.”
Sophia has been a member of the Abington Heights Marching Band since the seventh grade. She plays the clarinet in the marching band and bass clarinet in the concert band. She has been playing clarinet since fifth grade and bass clarinet since eighth grade.
She noticed that the Abington Heights Marching Band percussion locker was disorganized, and the instruments were at risk of damage. It took a lot of time to prepare drums and sticks/mallets for class or events. That gave her the idea for her Girl Scout Silver Award project.
She worked with Abington Heights Band Director Michael Lesnesky and her dad, Jim Arscott, to create a moveable unit that could be used to store them safely and more secure.
Michael Lesnesky is the Abington Heights band director for grades six through 12.
“I was incredibly impressed with Sophia’s Girl Scout project and I think she did an outstanding job,” he siad. “The marching percussion rack that she built will not only serve to help organize our percussion storage area, but it will also make our marching drums and harnesses more easy to access. Thus, requiring less work to put away, take out the drums when needed. The fact that she took the time to get exact measurements means that all the drums fit perfectly without sacrificing space. I am extremely grateful that she covered the wooden parts of the rack with carpeting so that the drums won’t get scratched or chipped when we store them It is something that I always wanted for our storage area.”
The project got approval from the Girl Scouts of the Heart of Pennsylvania.
Sophia learned how to measure and cut wood, safely use a drill with many different bits, sand wood and paint it, create drumstick and mallet holders out of PVC pipe and attached remnants of carpet using an electric staple gun.
It took about 60 hours to complete the project, which was then transferred to the band room.
“Mr. Michael Lesnesky, my mom and dad helped me with creating the project,” Sophia said. “My parents offered support and guidance as I learned so many things in design and construction. I really enjoyed doing this project to help my bandmates.”
She is the daughter of Jim and Karen Arscott.
She plays softball for Abington Heights and enjoys playing travel softball. She sings with the Wally Gordon singers and is very active in the Clarks Summit United Methodist Church where she is a member. At church, she participates in the choirs, helps with Sunday school and with fundraisers. She also enjoys being with family and friends.
“I’m very impressed with the creativity of this project,” said Girl Scout Troop Leader 50075 Cal-Meg O’Rourke. “Sophia definitely found a need in her community and came up with a solution. Her project not only provides organization for the Abington Heights band but helps to free up time with instrument storage so that members can spend more time learning and less time setting up and putting away.”
“It is a first step towards organizing the entire band area and now that we have it, we can use the space more efficiently and continue to organize our equipment,” said Lesnesky. “I am incredibly thankful that Sophia chose the Abington Heights Marching Band as the beneficiary of her project. I think she went above and beyond in her preparation, execution and even delivery of the storage rack. I am extremely proud of her and feel that she absolutely deserves the Silver Scout award for her work.”
