Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Corinne Lapp of Amherst, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Lapps’s project, Miracle Masks, involved creating 100 face masks for public distribution as well as providing instructions on how to sew additional masks with machine or by hand.

Lapp stated that her goal was to help families stay safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. She was happy to assist her community in a way she found fun and that helped her improve on her sewing skills. To streamline her process she worked on the masks in a style similar to an assembly line by batching several through a single step before moving them all on to the next step in the process simultaneously. Below are the instructions she included with each mask. The steps are also available at bit.ly/lappgoldaward on YouTube.

Steps of sewing the masks:

You will need: Fabric, garden wire, elastic, scissors, ruler, pins/clips, and a sewing machine.

Measurements: Fabric= 6inchesx9inches; Garden Wire = 6.5 inches 

Elastic= 6.5 inches for a small, 7 inches for a medium, 8 inches for a large

1. Lay your 2 pieces of fabric so that both of the outside sides are touching and the wrong sides are on the outside. Line up the 9 inch sides and pin together
2. Sew the edge with a 1/8th inch seam allowance.
3. Flip the fabric so that the right sides are on top now and pin the wire into the seam.
4. Sew close to the wire or with a ¼ inch seam allowance.
5. Flip back over so the wrong sides are on top and pin together the other 9inch sides Sew. 
6. Press together with fingers or an iron
7. With the right sides on the outside, fold in the rough edges of the 6 inch side so that they are in the inside of the mask. 
8. Pin the elastic in the edges. Sew over elastic with zig zag stitch. Backstitch over elastic 5 times.
9. After sewing, add in pleats. Simply fold the middle together pin. The fold the top than bottom. Sew with a zig zag stitch. Press for permanence. 
10. Enjoy your mask and stay safe!

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Lapp will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls.

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.

Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Emma Smith of Pittsford, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Smith’s project, Mural for the Children at the Monroe County Visitation Center, involved working with multiple county agencies and painting her approved design at the visitation center in Rochester to welcome visitors, especially children, and foster a positive environment.

Smith collaborated with the Monroe County Department of Human Services, Society for the Protection and Care of Children, Girl Scouts of Western New York, and other individuals throughout the process.

She wanted to use her love and skills for art to make a difference for the children going through hard times at the Visitation Center. The project impacted her community by brightening up the environment for the children. She had to do research about foster care in Monroe County and how to paint a mural because she had never painted something so large before! Smith explained, “I submitted personal designs and got approval from the county to begin painting. I used the money I had earned in Girl Scouts selling cookies over the past ten years to fund my project and purchase the supplies I needed. Then there was the painting itself, which I did over a four-day period.”

Smith said, “Girl Scouts has benefitted me in my life by teaching me valuable lessons on how to use my skills to make the world a better place.”  

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Smith will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls. 

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.

Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Nora Klipfel of North Tonawanda, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Klipfel’s project, Happy Caps, involved sewing caps and donating them to children at Oishei Children’s Hospital of Buffalo.

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Klipfel got the pattern and instructions from the NYS Federation of Home Bureaus. She collaborated with Girl Scout Troop 30782 and the American Sewing Guild to receive donations of materials and for teams to sew the caps. Members of the St. Jude the Apostle Church also helped sew the caps.  

“I was able to coordinate a sleep-over for my Troop, I led them in an evening of working on the caps. I coordinated a presentation night with the American Sewing Guild. I then led a community service night that was like an assembly line and we were able to get hundreds of caps made to donate,” said Klipfel.

Klipfel stated, “Girl Scouts made me more confident in public speaking, in life skills, and has afforded me the opportunity to have wonderful friendships that will hopefully last a lifetime.”

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Klipfel will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls. 

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.

Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Avery Roberts of West Henrietta, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Roberts’ project is called Park Benches at Martin Rd. Soccer Park.

Roberts received donations from Home Depot and the Soccer Club so she could purchase the materials needed to create the park benches.

Roberts stated, “I’m happy knowing that the benches will be there for years to come and that I provided seating for both home and away teams.” Roberts created 24 benches from her donated materials and delivered them to the town park for immediate use.

“Girl Scouts has made a huge impact on my life. It has made me be a better person and I’m more aware of providing for my environment and want to service my community. I really enjoyed the feeling of being a part of such an amazing group of peers as we did things out in the community over the years,” said Roberts.

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Avery Roberts will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls. 

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.

Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Jessica Breth of Orchard Park, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Breth’s project, Totes for Turtles, involved creating 200 reusable bags to put into circulation, as well as educate the public on how to sew their own before the March 1, 2020, plastic bag ban in New York. She also wanted to reduce the amount of plastic that finds its way into waterways where it can severely harm the ecosystem and wildlife.

Breth explained, “My Girl Scout Gold Award Project was sewing reusable bags to reduce plastic bag usage in the community. Fabric was donated by the summer camp I attend, and from women in my Girl Scout Service Unit. I had help sewing from the people in my church, the Quilter’s Guild, and my Girl Scout troop. I also got donated wood from the Tuesday’s with Tools group at my church to be able to build three displays to feature my bags locally. I sewed about 200 bags which benefitted others by providing them free reusable bags so that they could consciously choose to make a more environmentally friendly choice. My project also included pamphlets that I handed out to people who took my bags, so they could learn about the impact of plastics in our waterways and oceans, and see what they were helping to fight against by using reusable bags. The pamphlet contained a template for the bags that I made so others could go home and sew their own and continue my Gold Award project unofficially.”

Breth stated, “My Gold Award project will be sustained through educating people in my community about what they could do to help the issue, and how it is as simple as using a reusable bag instead of a plastic bag.  Plastics in our oceans are not solely due to plastic bag usage, but plastic bags make up a large percentage of the waste in the oceans and waterways, so I wanted to make these reusable bags so that the amount of plastic bags being used would be reduced drastically.”

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Breth will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls.

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.

Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Ava Giangrasso of Clarence, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Giangrasso’s project, Music and Memories, involved visiting nursing homes to perform violin versions of songs popular during the residents’ youth in the 1950s and ‘60s to promote memory recall and improve their moods. She recorded videos of her performances to be replayed at any time and expand on the number of people she was able to reach. Giangrasso’s violin that she uses for the performances belonged to her great uncle who was a fighter pilot during World War II.

Giangrasso explained, “I learned about communication and interaction from my project. I also learned leadership skills when I had my Girl Scout troop perform with me on one of my holiday performances. I am extremely happy with how my project turned out and I’m very proud. The most successful part was improving the moods of the residents. It made me happy to see the impact my music was having on people’s lives.”

Giangrasso provided information to the nursing home residents and their caregivers that walked them through how to access her YouTube videos if they ever wanted to rewatch the performances. She was very excited any time she was able to provide a live performance, commenting that often residents would come up afterward to talk about how they used to play violin or mention that a particular song she performed was a favorite from a high school dance.

When asked what advice she would give to other Girl Scouts preparing to earn their Gold Award, Giangrasso stated, “You should really pick something you’re passionate about. This didn’t even feel like a project for me. I enjoyed going every week to play for the residents and it was a feedback thing for me. Don’t just go for your Gold Award just to get it. I think you actually have to have a drive to get something out of it.”

Visit bit.ly/avagoldaward to see Giangrasso’s Gold Award videos.

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Giangrasso will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls.

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.

Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Angelina Gonzalez of Buffalo, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Gonzalez’s project, Trees of Hope, donated living evergreen trees to children in need. The children were able to take care of the trees and use them for holiday celebrations if they wished.

Gonzalez explained, “I worked with an organization called Urban Christian Ministries for my project. My project consisted of me fundraising money to buy evergreen trees, creating an instruction kit package, then creating a presentation. The evergreen trees came with holiday decorations, winter-themed decorations, and a box of lights. The tree giving was an opportunity for all children to be able to take care of something on their own while learning about togetherness, as that is what the evergreen tree symbolizes.”

Gonzalez encouraged the children to use the trees to decorate their homes and enjoy them, even if they did not use them for holiday and wintertime celebrations such as Christmas or Dia De Los Reyes. Gonzalez discovered through U.S. Census Bureau data that 47.2-percent of Buffalo’s children live in poverty and the city’s poverty rate is ranked as the fourth worst among all of the nation’s major cities, and she wanted families to have the opportunity to decorate for the holidays or the season if they desired to.

Gonzalez stated that she hoped the project would have a further reaching impact, especially if families were able to plant the trees. She learned that one tree can produce nearly 260 pounds of oxygen per year. She hoped the trees could help the children feel a sense of responsibility for a living organism and a sense of pride with whatever they opted to use their trees for, whether decorating or planting them.

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Gonzalez will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls.

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.

Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Audrey Huff of Fairport, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Huff’s project, Girls on the Run 10-Hour Relay, was an event she used to fundraise for the purchase of running gear and running event fees for girls at Young Women’s College Prep (YWCP), a charter school in Rochester.

Huff explained, “For my Gold Award, I hosted a 10-Hour Girls on the Run Relay on the track at Our Lady of Mercy High School. All proceeds and donations from the relay went to buy sneakers, running socks, and to cover the end-of-the-season 5k entry fee for girls at YWCP. For the relay to be successful, the baton had to be in motion at all times around the track. This means that at least one person had to always be walking, skipping, running, or jumping around the track, with the baton in their hands during those 10 hours. My project directly served over 500 girls at YWCP. Those who donated to my event became aware of the economic disparity that women are facing in a school less than 15 miles away from my own. My Gold Award project addressed the inequality between men and women in athletics, especially for women in lower socioeconomic standings. Girls have 1.3 million fewer opportunities to play high school sports than boys and often have to look outside their school for opportunities. On average 14-year-old girls are dropping out of sports at two times the rate boys are. There are many reasons as to why teenage girls are less active than their male counterparts. A lot of it has to do with the embarrassment of being seen as unathletic or lack of ability to buy the equipment needed to participate. Through my project, I hoped to give more girls the chance to participate in athletics and relieve the social stigma around women being physically active.”

Huff stated “I wanted to show that women can be active too. Sports are not just for men. Today, women athletes are getting paid less than their male counterparts and female professional coaches are far and few. Exercise for teenage girls helps them manage emotions, improves relationships, creates optimism about the future, and fosters a stronger sense of self-worth. Exercise releases endorphins, lowers stress, helps sleep patterns, and increases body positivity. Exercise raises self-esteem making the girls more likely to accomplish their goals in the future. My project will be sustained by the Mercy Cross Country team as they already have plans to continue the relay next year.”

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Huff will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls.

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.

Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Caroline Kowalski of Orchard Park, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Kowalski’s project, Therapy and Rehabilitation Garden, which focused on creating two wheelchair-accessible garden beds. The beds are made of cedar wood, which is naturally bug and rot resistant, meaning they can last up to 15 years without wood treatment.

Kowalski explained, “I researched, planned, and executed the building of two wheelchair-accessible raised garden beds that were subsequently donated to The McGuire Group Garden Gate Health Care Facility in Cheektowaga for use by their Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, and Activity Departments. The garden beds I helped fabricate conform with the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines so that they can be used by wheelchair-bound residents. The beds also have caster wheels on them so they can be moved to be repositioned as well as brought inside during winter months for continuous use.”

Kowalski stated, “I chose this project for my Gold Award because of my interest in gardening and I plan to pursue a career in medicine. I am very interested in the connection between physical and mental health to wellness and its relationship to isolation and socialization in the elderly. My target demographic was the elderly population of Garden Gate with the intent to have the residents use the gardening beds as a way to decrease the isolation they may be experiencing, thereby increasing socialization through gardening. Social participation is important for brain health and may delay the onset of dementia, add years to life, help the elderly feel useful and needed, and stimulate the mind.”

Kowalski said that the project helped her learn woodworking, which is not a class offered in her school. This involved learning woodshop safety, using tools such as straight saws, rotary electric saws, and a jigsaw, plus skills like measuring and gluing wood. On top of this, she was able to reinforce life skills such as communication, leadership, delegation, time management, self-reliance, and organization.

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Kowalski will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls.

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.

Girl Scouts of Western New York is proud to announce Aniyiah Harris of Buffalo, NY, as a 2020 Gold Award Girl Scout. Harris’ project, Let’s Get School Supplies!, involved distributing school supplies to children in need in her community.

Harris explained, “I chose my Gold Award project because there are many children who don’t have access to school supplies. The root cause of the problem is that many houses are low-income in my community. I collected various items and put together packages with a book bag for everyone in various grade levels. I made 89 book bags. I wanted to do this project because there have been multiple times where my friends have not had anything that they needed to be their best in school.

Harris’ project took place at Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church in Buffalo. She commented that children left with their book bags and humongous smiles on their faces. She was grateful that her church assisted in helping her obtain enough donations to provide for so many children.

By earning her Gold Award during the 2020 Girl Scouting year, Harris will be included in a virtual acknowledgment this June. All 2020 Gold Award Girl Scouts will receive the option to be a part of the 2021 in-person Gold Award ceremony next year to receive their Gold Award pin. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the most prestigious award in the world for girls.

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.

To learn more, visit gswny.org.