Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Margaret Pardee of Pittsford, NY, as a 2021 Gold Award Girl Scout. Margaret is from Troop 60982 and has been a member of Girl Scouts for 12 years.

What Margaret said about Girl Scouts

I have learned a lot about leadership and how to work with others through Girl Scout service projects, and I’ve been able to make a plan and stick to it because of the Girl Scout Gold Award. Most of all, however, I’ve made lifelong friends that I will always treasure.

Project: The Beauty of Butterflies

The monarch butterfly population has been rapidly decreasing over the past thirty years, and it is up to us to change that. I have always been invested in environmental awareness, so I decided to work within the Pittsford and Fairport communities to educate children on the issue and install butterfly gardens filled with native plants.

I built three butterfly houses and planted two gardens: one at Mendon Center Elementary (MCE) School and the other at Fairport United Methodist Church. I also spoke with the 4th graders at MCE and gave them instructions on how to plant their own gardens.

The goal of my project was to bring awareness to these environmental problems, and also to provide monarchs and other butterflies with habitats that support every part of their lifecycles. I’ve gotten feedback from teachers that the children are enthusiastic about starting their own gardens. By this spring, I hope to see an increasing number of monarchs in both locations.

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.