Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Aurora Smith of Hamburg, NY, as a 2022 Gold Award Girl Scout. Aurora is a member of Troop 38002.

What Aurora said about Girl Scouts

Girl Scouts has taught me how to be an effective leader and how to really make a meaningful difference in the lives of others.

Project: Summer Stamp Club

My Gold Award project is a pen pal program that connected my school district. I worked with all 4 Hamburg elementary schools and the Character Club at my high school to pair high school students with an elementary-aged pen pal over the summer months. This helped elementary students keep up their writing skills over the summer but also created connections among the students of Hamburg. Many participants in the program said that they enjoyed getting to talk to a high school student from their own community because it helped them make a new friend and feel connected within their school.

The Summer Stamp Club was designed to curb the summer slide in young students, which is defined as the loss of educational skills during summer vacation while they are not being practiced everyday in school. I chose this project because I want to be an educator as a career in the future and helping younger students succeed in school is a significant part of my life.

About the Girl Scout 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.