Girl Scout Project Benefits Fort Hunt Little League

The Fort Hunt Little League’s opening fall season AA game will take place Saturday at Darsey Baseball Field, where a local Girl Scout has installed a new walkway.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held Saturday at 9 a.m. at the field, which is located adjacent to the parking lot at Plymouth Haven Baptist Church, 8600 Plymouth Road, followed by a baseball game.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony and cake will be in recognition of the installation of the new walkway that was part of West Potomac junior Shea Ruffin’s Girl Scout Gold Award Project. A Gold Award project is the highest award a Girl Scout can earn.

Ruffin, 16, has been involved in Girl Scouts since about age 5, she said. She came up with the project because her younger brother played with the league and she found baseball piqued her interest. She trained as an umpire and even helped out with field maintenance.

The former walkway to the field was narrow, unkempt and made of aging boards, Ruffin said. With the help of friends and fellow volunteers, she tore down the old walkway and installed a new one made of pavers and stone dust, working on weekends over three weeks.

“I’m very proud of having completed it,” Ruffin told Patch. “I know that only three percent of Girl Scouts actually complete their Gold Award, so it was a big deal that I could commit the time and effort.”

The new walkway is 5 feet wide and 20 feet long. Ruffin is also making a video on field maintenance to be published on the league’s website.

Also, the league has installed new bleachers and a picnic table to make the fields more family-friendly. The event is free and open to the public.