Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Emily Bowers as a 2025 Gold Award Girl Scout.

Project: The Blessed Mother Garden

My Gold Award project involved restoring a damaged garden and water feature at a local retirement home, St. Columban’s. St. Columban’s is a keystone to our community, as it is a historic landmark, has been providing the local elderly community with care for over 50 years, and is a place of gathering for local youth groups, schools, families and church communities. The scenic grounds are something the people at St. Columbans take pride in, as they are a piece of local history, and they enhance the experience for the residents and community. This garden had been damaged due to weathering and unfortunate mistreatment from some visitors, and many of the community members and residents were upset by it. For my project, I raised over $10,000 to restore the garden and install a brand new water feature that would be more sustainable. Not only did this project help preserve an important historical site in our area, but it helped St. Columbans continue their mission of providing the highest quality care to their residents. The residents were overjoyed to see the garden restored, and during the process, I was able to draw awareness to the importance of respecting sites such as this one.

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.