Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Anna Riek of Sanborn, NY, as a 2023 Gold Award Girl Scout. Anna is a member of Troop 70097.

Project: Bee Sustainable WNY

In mid-July of 2022, the well-known and loved monarch butterfly had been declared endangered by the International Union of Conservation of Nature. I have always been very passionate about nature conservation and I knew my Gold Award project would exemplify that. After my discovery of the endangerment of monarchs, I began making a plan. I knew that as one individual, I couldn’t save the whole population of monarchs, but this rescue had to start somewhere. I decided that I was going to plant a butterfly garden to provide a safe habitat for butterflies to live and flourish. I had some background about plants, but I needed experts to guide me in terms of the flowers I would use and the best layout of my garden. I turned to Wheatfield Garden Club who generously gave me donations of butterfly attracting flowers and along with the knowledge I needed to plant them. However, I didn’t want to end my impact there. I also wanted to promote recycling. Although it seems like a very basic concept, not many know how to properly recycle which causes as much pollution as waste disposal. I painted flowers and butterflies along with the items that can be recycled on three recycling bins. I planted my butterfly garden and placed my recycling bins throughout Cambria Town Park. On August 22nd, I held a “Bee Sustainable WNY” Workshop where I talked about my Gold Award journey and ways you can be sustainable in your everyday life. I promoted my project through Instagram as while, with the hope of making an impact beyond my local community. The title of my project, along with being a play on words, shows where I aspire to make my next impact. Pollinators are essential to ecosystems. Bees are the most important species of pollinators and are endangered just like butterflies. Next summer, I want to create a bee garden on the nature trail at Cambria Town Park. There will be many signs and precautions put into to place to ensure the safety of my community.

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.