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East Tennessee Girl Scout troop adopts seniors as 'grandparents' ahead of the holidays

About one in three seniors report feeling isolated, according to the National Poll on Aging. The girl scouts and seniors are helping each other through tough times.

POWELL, Tenn. — For the past two years, 8-year-old Molly Phillips has visited Morning Pointe Senior Living. 

She enjoys meeting different people every time she goes — and the visits have changed a lot of lives.

"I love being kind to people and having them feel happiness and joy, even when they are sad, maybe mad," Phillips said. 

While she talks to dozens of seniors each trip, there's one person in particular she likes to see.

"Mr. Dan is really a nice and happy guy," Phillips said. "I’ve learned a couple things about him."

On Tuesday night, she and her fellow troop members "adopted" Mr. Dan and dozens of other seniors at Morning Pointe in Powell.

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"They're always exciting and got something new to tell me," 92-year-old Dan Kelly said. "[Molly] is especially vocal."

Kelly said he enjoys the girls visiting so they can exchange stories and relate to each other. He also teaches them important life lessons, like giving back.

"God has given us a lot of things," Kelly said. "We need to give back to others and help them along the way."

In this case, both the girls and seniors are helping each other through tough times.

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Tracy Jarnigan, the troop leader, started the program for her daughter.

"My own daughter lost her grandparents and we started coming to help ease her pain," Jarnigan said. "Then, we were easing their pain as well."

Now, Jarnigan visits every month with a group of Girl Scouts so they can forge those relationships.

"These are lifelong friendships," she said. "We don't want any of our girls to hurt or be sad during the holidays, and we don't want that for our seniors either."

Dan Kelly never had grandchildren of his own, but Molly and her fellow scouts help fill that void. 

"My favorite part about coming here is that I get to spend time with all these kind generous people that want to learn more about us," Molly said. "It feels really happy."

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