Whiz Kid: Kaitlyn Furr

For those that know her, Kaitlyn Furr exudes kindness, generosity and concern for others.  At only 11 years old, this Southbury resident already has a very long list of accomplishments in service to her community and beyond.

Helping others is something Furr excels at and something that has opened her eyes to the world.

“It made me realize that I take things for granted,” Furr says. “I’ve learned that I have a lot more than other people and that makes me want to help.”

Through her membership in the Girl Scouts, Southbury’s Troop 64292, Furr has been able to put that desire to help others to very good use.

For her junior Girl Scout Bronze Award, Furr and members of her troop decided they wanted to help those who are hungry. And because the girls couldn’t decide whether the project should include people or animals, they decided to include both.

“Feeding the Hungry” became their title and the girls put in many hours of planning and executed a project that would include awareness of and raising money for the hungry people and animals in the greater Waterbury area.

For one part of this project, members of the Junior Scout Troop took to the streets last October for the Walk in Their Footsteps event of the St. Vincent DePaul Mission of Waterbury. The girls were among hundreds who came out to walk in the footsteps of a homeless person by visiting the Mission group’s soup kitchen, thrift store and the homeless shelter. The troop further helped out by making and donating fleece blankets as well as making and bringing sandwiches to the shelter. The girls also pitched in by helping to serve a hot meal to the homeless residents of the shelter.

The canine part of their project included their participation in a bake sale to benefit the region’s animal shelter and humane organization Animals for Life. The girls made items to sell and manned the bake sale at the annual Holiday Fair at Nonnewaug High School in Woodbury. The troop also culminated this project with a $100 donation to Animals for Life from the profits of their annual cookie sale.

“The money usually goes back into the troop, but the girls decided that they wanted to give that $100 to Animals for Life,” says Kaitlin’s mom, Karen Furr, who is also her daughter’s Girl Scout troop leader.

In addition, while still at Long Meadow Elementary School in early spring, Furr and her troop organized a school-wide collection of food and dog treats also to benefit Animals for Life.

“She is very much concerned with helping other people,” says Kaitlin’s mom, Karen. “She is caring and kind hearted and very mature. She cares very much for someone else rather than herself.”

Her mother adds that Kaitlin’s volunteering has opened her daughter’s eyes to everything that is out there. “If there is an opportunity out there, we do it. She really likes to volunteer her time.”

In addition to the community service offered to her by Girl Scouts, there are many other organizations where Furr has donated her personal time, in school, and at home in Southbury.

Her list includes helping at the Southbury Food Bank to stock and organize shelves following Southbury’s Postal Food Drive. She is also a member of the Junior Friends of the Southbury Library where she helps raise money through bakes sales and book sales for children’s programs there.

And up until she graduated from elementary school this June, she was a member of the fifth Grade Long Meadow Leaders. In this group, Furr was among a select group of fifth graders who were chosen by guidance counselors to represent the school. The kids gave guided tours to new students and their families, helped out at events at LMES and were the ones to guide incoming kindergarteners through the unfamiliar maze of elementary school.

Furr is also active in her church, St. James Lutheran in Southbury, where she and her family help out with fundraising for needy children in poor countries around the world.

One additional thing that Furr has been able to give to others is her hair. She has donated three times to organizations including Locks of Love and Pantene’s Beautiful Lengths program to help make wigs for cancer patients who have lost their hair due to treatments. Most recently she cut off 8 ½ inches of her hair.

While she is not helping others, Furr busies herself with dancing and gymnastics. She is a member of the competitive dance troupe Petite Elite at the Southbury School of Performing Arts where she went to two competitions last year. She performs jazz, ballet, lyrical ballet and tap.

She just joined Kinetic Kids in Oxford and made the competitive gymnastic team. She will begin competition in gymnastics in the fall.

With her busy and active schedule, Furr is still able to maintain an A+ average while at school, something her mom says is all Kaitlyn. “She is a high achiever and she doesn’t like to fail. She has the ability to juggle things,” Karen says.

With all the community service projects she has done, Furr maintains that it is the St. Vincent DePaul Mission in Waterbury that has touched her the most.

“It’s in Waterbury, here where I can help people that are most in need,” she says. “I like being able to help out my own community.”