Seventeen‑year‑old Girl Scout Adana Pardo presented her Girl Scout Gold Award project to the City Commission of Sweetwater on Oct. 6, proposing sunscreen dispensers and QR‑coded educational plaques in parks to teach children about sun protection and skin‑cancer prevention.

Pardo told the commission her project, “SPF is my BFF,” pairs a comic‑style educational booklet accessible by QR code with mounted sunscreen dispensers near play areas so children can learn about—and apply—sun protection. She said the dispenser unit she demonstrated holds roughly 500 pumps and that the units she identified cost about $40 each at the time of her presentation.

Mayor Jose Diaz applauded Pardo’s initiative and said the administration will install the dispensers at Rosalindia and Carlo parks and keep them stocked. Commissioners praised the project as a community service and encouraged the mayor’s office and parks staff to share the story via city communications.

Action and direction: there was no vote required; the mayor committed the administration to place dispensers at named parks and to coordinate with the Girl Scout and the parks department to keep the units filled. Commissioners also offered to promote the project on social media and to support the student’s Gold Award pursuit.

Background: Pardo said she is a member of Girl Scouts of Tropical Florida Troop 552 and that the Gold Award is the organization’s highest youth achievement. She said the project developed from conversations with families affected by skin cancer and from an interest in encouraging lifelong sun‑protection habits among children.

Next steps: the mayor said staff will work with Pardo and her mother to install units in the parks and that the city will publicize the project once installations are scheduled.