As a young child, Destiny V. Oakley found waiting rooms to be excruciatingly boring. Hoping to make that experience more bearable for young patrons of Naval Health Clinic Cherry Point, Oakley has begun an initiative to give children something constructive to do.

“The project I did today was to earn the Gold Award which is the highest award in Girl Scouts,” said the now 15-year-old  ambassador of the Girl Scouts of America.

Oakley created a kids’ corner, which includes a colorful bookshelf stocked with books and activities in the Naval Health Clinic Cherry Point pharmacy waiting area.

“I created it so that kids could understand the importance of reading and have something to do while they wait,” said Oakley.

Oakley worked with the Cherry Point community and Girl Scouts for the equipment she needed to fully furnish the corner.                

“The books that filled the book shelf were donated by the Officers’ Spouses’ Club through the Whistle Stop Thrift Shop,” said Oakley.

Oakley and her peers made an additional effort to furnish the corner by selling Girl Scout cookies.

“My Girl Scout troops and I sold cookies to raise money toward buying different things for my project,” said Oakley.

During the grand opening, Oakley received a visit from Navy Capt. Elizabeth Maley, the executive officer of the clinic, and other Sailors who admired the 15-year-old’s initiative.

“I’m always happy to see when we can engage our youngest patients,” said Maley. “We want their experience in health care to be as pleasant as possible. I think this reading room will make it a more fun experience for our junior patients.”

Oakley enjoyed making the corner and plans to create similar spaces wherever she goes.  

“I had fun and met a lot of interesting people while doing this project, and this is just the beginning,” she said.