Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Julia Wasley of Sanborn, NY, as a 2021 Gold Award Girl Scout. Julia is from Troop 70059 and has been a member of Girl Scouts for 14 years.

What Julia said about Girl Scouts

Being in Girl Scouts has taught me how to be a leader, how to go outside of my comfort zone and learn new things, and has led me to choose my career path of being a teacher by working with young kids.

Project: Craft Cupboard at Intandem

For my Gold Award Project, I made directions for crafts and gathered all of the supplies and organized them in bins. I did this project for Intandem, an organization located in Niagara Falls for adults with disabilities that has workshops and a day program. I chose this project because my aunt is an attendee at Intandem. She would come home with crafts that she made so I wanted to give them some fun and easy crafts to do.

The purpose of this project was to give the attendees some fun crafts to do and to take some pressure off of the care providers and staff. The project has given Intandem crafts to do, especially during the pandemic where they are closed and are trying to reach out to their participants to help them stay stimulated and active. I made directions for 50+ crafts, gathered all of the supplies, and packaged the supplies into bins.

About the Gold Award

The Gold Award project is the culmination of all the work a girl puts into “going for the Gold.” A Girl Scout’s project should be something that a girl can be passionate about—in thought, deed, and action that encompasses organizational, leadership, and networking skills. The project should also fulfill a need within a girl’s community (whether local or global) and create change that has the potential to be on-going or sustainable. Approximately 80 hours of community service are involved in the project. Completion of the Gold Award also qualifies the Girl Scout for special scholarship opportunities and she can enlist in the military at a higher starting pay grade.

The Girl Scout Gold Award, the most prestigious award in the world for girls, acknowledges the power behind each recipient’s dedication to not only empowering and bettering herself, but also to making the world a better place for others. These young women are courageous leaders and visionary change makers.

The Gold Award requires a Girl Scout to identify an issue and investigate it to understand what can be done to address the problem. The girl then forms a team to act as a support system, including a project advisor close to the issue who is not a troop leader or family member, while she leads the project. The Girl Scout creates a plan to ensure they know what steps they must tackle while working on the project. The Girl Scout submits a proposal for her project to her local Girl Scout council. After acceptance, the girl begins to work through the steps of their plan utilizing the assistance of her support team where necessary. Lastly, the project is used to educate and inspire others about the cause they are addressing.

For more information on the Gold Award, click here.