Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Lacie Castile of Buffalo, NY, as a 2021 Gold Award Girl Scout. Lacie is from Troop 30134 and has been a member of Girl Scouts for 12 years.

What Lacie said about Girl Scouts

Girl Scouts has given me the space to be loud and make mistakes, which has made me a confident and strong girl. I also got the chance to be a leader. I got to be outdoors, which has sparked my love for the outdoors that I never would have gotten the chance to develop without being a part of Girl Scouts. I now have business, public speaking, and guidance skills all because of Girl Scouts.

Project: Diversity in Girl Scouts

My Gold Award Project started in Buffalo, NY, but focused on Girl Scouts of Western New York as a whole to educate leaders on the importance of diversity in their girls’ lives, to give Girl Scouts a voice about their diversity and the prejudice they face, and to highlight the safe space Girl Scouts is and should continue to be.

I picked this project because I saw a gap between some of the adults and girls in Girl Scouts and the challenges they faced around issues dealing with diversity. I gathered stories and compiled them to be shared with Girl Scout leaders with important diversity information for meetings that they can use to continue to make Girl Scouts a caring and accepting place.

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.