Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Danielle Jaeger of Lockport, NY, as a 2021 Gold Award Girl Scout. Danielle is a Juliette Girl Scout (independent of a troop) and has been a member of Girl Scouts for 13 years.

What Danielle said about Girl Scouts

Girl Scouting has taught me how to lead, and be a strong person. Girl Scouting has helped me to treat other people with kindness and help others when I can.

Project: The Importance of Mental Health

For my Gold Award, I worked with Compeer Niagara, a mental health association in Lockport, NY, to learn about what mental health is and why it’s important. The purpose of my project was to teach as many people as possible about mental health so that if they see signs of struggle in themselves or others they would be able to recognize what it is and how to get help.

Mental health is very important to me. My friend struggles with it and I wanted to learn more about it. I created a PowerPoint presentation that will be distributed throughout Girl Scouts. I’m hoping my presentation will reach as many people as possible. I also volunteered many hours helping and working at events at Compeer Niagara. I made posters for them to use and to hand out to people. I wanted to have the presentations in person but because of COVID, I wasn’t able to.

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.