Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Shelby McGranaghan of Hilton, NY, as a 2022 Gold Award Girl Scout. Shelby is a member of Troop 60889.

What Shelby said about Girl Scouts

Girl Scouts has provided me a wonderful opportunity to make new friends, try new things, and make memories. I have found lifelong friends through my troop, and have fond memories of going camping or going to a self-defense class as a troop. Girl Scouts has also given me invaluable experience volunteering and has shown me how rewarding helping your community can be.

Project: D&D For Our Sanity

The purpose of my Gold Award was to try and maintain good mental health and connections during difficult times. When everyone was staying at home and not seeing their friends, it was easy to feel isolated and alone. In an effort to combat that, I started my Girl Scout Gold Award project in the spring of 2020. I had started a Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) campaign shortly before starting my Gold Award and decided to combine the two. My D&D campaign provided a weekly/semi-weekly time where my friends and I could get together on a video call and keep in touch, all while taking part in an interactive story. It kept us connected in difficult times and was an hour every week where we could just put everything else out of mind and have fun.

As time went on, I became more confident in my writing abilities and realized that even if my writing was not the best, my friends were enjoying themselves. I used project management, collaboration, presentation skills, time management, research, organization, risk taking, and innovation in my project. I had to manage the campaign as a whole, finding times to work on it between my daily schedule. I also had to do a lot of research, because this was something entirely new that I was attempting for the first time. It took me a lot of courage to present this campaign to my friends, because it was something I had never done before. I also had to organize all my notes as over time they grew to about 131 pages long. Finally, I had to collaborate with my friends to help them make their characters and the game as a whole required teamwork. I also made a website covering the basics of Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition to help anyone who was new to the game and wanted to learn more.

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.