Girl Scout Ava Davis '18 Saw a Need—and Did Something About It

Springs senior and longtime Girl Scout Ava Davis ‘18 was awarded a $1,000 grant from Birmingham’s Awesome Foundation to construct a bus shelter along Georgia Road in the Woodlawn neighborhood. The project was completed in early October, and she’s since received an outpouring of community support, as well as multiple interviews with local television stations.

“I have been overwhelmed and surprised,” Davis says. “All over Facebook, people I don’t even know have been writing about how great the bus shelter is. At a Woodlawn meeting, a community member hugged me and told me how helpful and meaningful my project was.”

Davis came up with the idea, which served as her Girl Scout Gold Award project, last spring after noticing people standing in the heat and rain to catch the bus.

Now as she passes it on the way to school each morning, Davis sees bus riders waiting in the new shelter. The experience has been both humbling and rewarding after her efforts to obtain the necessary permissions and documentation for an original design. “I had to email, call, and meet with a lot of important people,” she says, “and I think my time at Springs has helped me do that.

 

“Springs has also taught me the importance of community, which was my main reason for doing this project,” Davis adds. She is currently writing guidelines detailing the construction process and cost of materials for a shelter like the one on Georgia Road. She hopes they will provide others with the information they need to follow her lead and make their neighborhoods a better place to live.

For media coverage by Iron City Ink, visit

http://ironcity.ink/neck-of-the-woods/woodlawn/high-school-senior-builds-bus-shelter-on-georgia-road1115/

For media coverage by ABC 33/40, visit

http://abc3340.com/news/local/teenager-builds-bus-shelter-for-birmingham-neighborhood

For media coverage by B-Metro, visit http://b-metro.com/funding-awesome/34410/