Teen dedicated to helping victims of domestic violence

A Union High School senior is making a difference by developing sustainable solutions for problems facing our world.

Ashley-Marie Neto, daughter of Diana Neto (roots from Trinta, Guarda and Almada) and Nuno Neto from Mata dos Milagres, Leiria, Portugal,  a Girl Scouts Heart of New Jersey (GSHNJ) Girl Scout  decided to focus her Girl Scout Gold Award Project on helping women in local shelters. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the pinnacle of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience and the most prestigious award a Girl Scout can earn.

Through a website she created on her own, Neto works to educate and bring awareness of domestic violence to the community. She recognizes the need for feminine hygiene products in surrounding women’s shelters and decided to create and provide kits filled with reusable feminine products. The YWCA Union County Domestic Violence Shelter has been instrumental in promoting the project by providing access to Neto’s website and by distributing materials to make the kits.

“As a young female, I am determined to help, support, and empower other females,” Neto said. “My goal is to make people aware of some of the dynamics involved in domestic violence and to assist the women in shelters. I also hope that providing these women with kits will help them financially. They can use the money saved towards other necessities, like food.”

Neto has been part of Girl Scouts Heart of New Jersey Troop 20926 (Our Lady of Fatima Church in Newark) for 12 years. 

“Being a Girl Scout provides me with the opportunity to help and educate people, learn new things, create healthy relationships, develop life skills, and make a difference in the world,” she said.

“It is so wonderful to see our Gold Award Girl Scout using her project as a way to support women within her community,” added GSHNJ CEO Natasha Hemmings. “GSHNJ is an organization based on women supporting women and Ashley-Marie’s project is a perfect example of that.”

Neto’s website: https://femininehygienefordvsurvivors.weebly.com/about.html