Gold Award Spotlight: Writing Right

Advocating for those who need a voice and bringing awareness to things we all can do to help is part of the Girl Scout way. Girl Scout Ambassador Cassandra earned the Gold Award in her project, Writing Right by doing those two things! 

Cassandra worked with a licensed occupational therapist to write a children’s book, Writing Right, aimed to help students with dysgraphia, a learning disability that affects fine motor skills like writing, cope.

The main character of Cassandra’s book, Writing Right, is a third grader Noah, who has dysgraphia. Cassandra shares experiences of Noah as he goes through school and faces various challenges that other kids might not be aware of.

She hopes that her book will spread awareness of dysgraphia to readers by getting to know Noah as a person and a friend. Cassandra’s book was designed to help others, especially kids, understand more about this lesser-known disability and help those affected through resources at the end of the book.

Cassandra was able to donate 40 copies of her book to local schools and public libraries. In addition, Cassandra’s book was published and offered online at cost for a print version or free on Kindle.

Visit writingright.org for more information or to purchase or download a copy.

Gold Award Spotlight: Fire Safety at First Landing State Park

Our region is full of beautiful parks and historic landmarks. Some places, like First Landing State Park in Virginia Beach have both. Girl Scout Ambassador Ainsley earned her Gold Award by contributing to fire safety and park preservation at First Landing State Park.

First Landing has five historic cabins that were built in the 1930's

by the Civilian Conservation Corp. The cabins can be rented by visitors to the park and have fire circles for use outside. Unfortunately, bringing camp chairs or other portable camp furniture too close to a flame can easily cause them to ignite. In order to protect the cabins and grounds from fire damage, Ainsley created ten sturdy wooden benches for use around the campsites.

During her project, Ainsley worked right beside two benches that were under repair from previous fire damage. It was a reminder of how fast an accident can happen.

“The flames were contained quickly but could have easily damaged a historic piece of property. It’s a butterfly effect,” Ainsley said.

Ainsley did not stop there! To make a lasting impact, she designed brochures and a website that have blueprints and step-by-step instructions on how the benches are created. Ainsley’s project not only made the park better for visitors but she also has done her part to help preserve history.

Thank you, Ainsley!

Girl Scout Tara has earned her Gold Award

Girl Scout Tara of Suffolk's Troop 431 has earned her Gold Award. Tara has been a Girl scout for nine years and is a student at Nansemond River High School.

For her project, Tara created a Tourette Syndrome awareness campaign to teach her classmates and community members about the disorder. Tara was inspired to create the campaign because she lives with Tourette syndrome and had experienced some difficulties at school when some teachers did not understand her educational needs.

Tara's project, called "What Makes Me TIC," aimed to create a better understanding and acceptance of Tourette syndrome.

"I did this by conducting presentations for faculty at multiple schools," Tara said. "By educating teachers, not only am I impacting how they see the disorder, but I am able to reach all of the students they have in their classrooms going forward."

Tara hopes that by reaching out to teachers, other students living with the disorder would get the assistance they needed at school. She also hoped that by teaching other students, those who lived with the disorder would not be bullied by their classmates because of their tics.

Tara traveled throughout her school district to give the presentations. She also created an online support community called Teens that Tic. Tara's support community already has nearly 200 members in states and countries across five continents!

Tara's project will be sustained by the teachers she presented to, but after she graduates from Nansemond River High, another student has agreed to keep Teens that Tic online and active.

Click here to learn more about her project. 

Smithfield Girl Scout Katherine has earned her Gold Award

Girl Scout Katherine from Smithfield's Troop 5292 has earned her Gold Award!

Katherine has been a Girl Scout for 13 years. She currently attends Smithfield High School. She's been accepted into Virginia Tech's College of Engineering this fall.

For Katherine's project, she set out to teach local kids about STEAM—science, technology, engineering, arts and math—fields. To do that, Katherine created and educational program called "It's a STEAM Party." 

Through the hands-on activities and programs she designed, Katherine taught students at schools that don't currently have STEAM-related programs.

"Many opportunities to explore S.T.E.A.M. are available for upper and middle class families in my community," Katherine said. "The same opportunities were not available for children of less fortunate families." 

To teach students about STEAM fields and careers, Katherine designed activities such as launching balloon rockets, buildings structures out of various materials and building and launching catapults. Katherine said it made her happy and proud when she could see kids getting excited about learning the science behind each activity. 

After Katherine graduates from Smithfield High, her program will be sustained by a local YMCA afterschool program at Hardy Elementary School. The school has committed to continue using Katherine's program for weekly activities. 

Girl Scout Shannon helped immigrant families to earn her Gold Award

Girl Scout Shannon from Virginia Beach has earned her Gold Award! Shannon graduated from Kellam High School in 2017 and has been a Girl Scout for 11 years.

For Shannon's Gold Award project, she created a resource website for new immigrant families settling in the Virginia Beach area. The project is called H.I.F.I.V.E.: Helping Immigrant Families Integrate, Venture and Excel.

To create the website, Shannon completed hours of research and dozens of interviews to understand what information would be most helpful to immigrants.

Shannon's website includes a handbook with tips for families, information on free public services, a list of educational opportunities, materials to learn English and much more. The resources are even available in multiple languages—spanish, mandarin and english!

Shannon wanted to help immigrant families because of her own familial experience.

"I know the immigrant experience firsthand," Shannon said. "I moved to the United States from Taiwan when I was seven. I remember the challenges of adjusting to a new culture and living with a language barrier. I am passionate about helping new immigrants."

Shannon also created promotional brochures for her website and made many community connects to ensure that her website reaches the families who need it most.

Shannon hopes that through her online resource, immigrant families will be able to create better community ties and feel more welcome in Virginia Beach.

Gold Award Spotlight: Interactive Games at Equi-Kids

Larson has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award—the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

Larson has been a Girl Scout for 13 years.

To earn her Gold Award, Larson created an educational program called EquiQuad: Interactive Lesson Games. These games were implemented into horseback riding lessons at Equi-Kids, a local therapeutic riding program for riders living with disabilities.

Larson created four game stations for riders and their instructors to use while riding trails at Equi-Kids. The games provide riders with a new tool for interacting with their horses.

“People with disabilities often face adversity in their daily lives, on top of the daily physical or social challenges they encounter,” Larson said. “Equi-Kids can be a fantastic escape from the demanding outside world, and I wanted to make the experience in this safe place as engaging as possible.”

Before creating the games, Larson served as a volunteer at the organization for three years.

Larson developed and built each game station. She then gave presentations to students at Norfolk Academy and at a diversity conference about why she considers her project important— to “advance diversity in a multicultural world.”

Larson’s interactive educational program will be sustained by the riders and instructors at Equi-Kids.

She said she hopes the games will help everyone who uses them to always “remain lighthearted and optimistic while dealing with obstacles.”

Gold Award Spotlight: Band Aids for the Band Help New Students Get Involved

Carolina has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award. Carolina has been a Girl Scout for 13 years!

For her project, she created Band Aids for the Band—a training program that helps guide incoming freshmen through joining Great Bridge High School’s marching band program.

“I remember how stressful it was to start high school in the marching band,” Carolina said. “I wanted to make a difference to new members to become confident, understand what is expected in marching band, and gain a sense of belonging.”

It took almost 160 hours of hard work and dedication, but Carolina put in the necessary work. She designed a four-day mentorship camp to teach new band members all of the basics. Since its beginning, Carolina has run the program for two years.

Carolina also put her organizational skills to the test while creating the Band Aids for the Band program. She developed a system to organize the band room’s storage closet, which was full of sheet music, instruments and color guard equipment.

Because of Carolina’s new storage system, instruments in need of repair were brought back to life! 

After Carolina graduates from Great Bridge, the program will continue on. She has trained a fellow student to run the program. That student has also committed to training their own replacement to keep the mentorship program going.

The program worked so well that Carolina’s band director wants to tell other high school directors about it, Carolina said.

“Overall, I just wanted to see something that is so dear to my heart grow and thrive to be its best,” Carolina said.

Gold Award Spotlight: A Kayak Storage Rack for Veterans

Natalie has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award—the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

A graduate of First Colonial High School, Natalie has been a Girl Scout since she was in First Grade!

For her project, she raised more than $1,000 to build a kayak storage rack at LZGrace, a local organization that provides care for veterans and first responders.

To raise the needed funds, Natalie organized a community yard sale where she gathered donated items from friends, family and neighbors. Instead of putting prices on each item, Natalie simply asked for whatever donation each customer would like to give.

“I had many veterans that attended the sale and they were very excited to hear about what I was doing,” Natalie said.

After raising enough money, Natalie purchased the materials to make her plan a reality. Along with a small team, Natalie designed and built and the kayak rack herself!

With the addition of the kayak storage rack, veterans receiving care at the organization can now add kayaking to the list of activities to enjoy.

“There are many problems that these warriors go through,” Natalie said. “One of the more severe issues these warriors go through is suffering from PTSD.”

Natalie worked with the organization’s leaders to ensure the future maintenance of the storage rack. The addition of the rack has made it possible for LZGrace to purchase additional kayaks for their clients to use.

Gold Award Spotlight: Band Ambassadors Encourage Students to Continue Music Education

Brianna has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award—the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

Brianna graduated from Smithfield High School in 2017 and currently attend The College of William and Mary. She has been a Girl Scout for eight years.

To earn the Gold Award, Brianna created the Band Ambassadors program between Smithfield Middle and High Schools. The program enabled high school band students to encourage middle school band students to continue their music educations.

Because of the program, students were able to transition to high school much easier because they had already developed friendships with older students in the band program.

“I chose this project because I love playing music, and I wanted to share that live with other people,” Brianna said. “I also noticed that there were a large number of students dropping out of band programs throughout their school career, and I wanted to fix that problem within my community.”

Because of her love of music, Brianna also gave a presentation to students and parents about how important music education is and what some of the benefits of the band program are.

After Brianna graduated, many of the students who participated in the program as middle school students became mentors to younger students, ensuring that another generation of band students will benefit from Brianna’s hard work.

Gold Award Spotlight: Revolutionary Winter Guard Cadets

Virginia Beach Girl Scout Cheyenne has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

Cheyenne, who has been a part of color guard for seven years, wanted to raise awareness about the sport and give children an opportunity to try color guard. For her project, Cheyenne created a daughter program for the Revolutionary Winter Guard, a color guard program she was a part of. She hosted her program in the summer to prepare children ages six to 17 to participate in the junior winter color guard program. She held practices three times a week, and at the end of the program, the participants performed a show for their friends and family members.

“Color Guard is my passion, and I wanted to share it with my community,” Cheyenne said. “It benefitted the children who participated by giving them a new set of skills. It also benefitted local high school marching bands who gained two new members who marched in my program.”

Through her project, Cheyenne hopes that she enlightened children and her peers with a whole new world of art, music, dance and sports, all in one activity.

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Cheyenne to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.

Gold Award Spotlight: Mental Illness Through Art

Catherine, a Virginia Beach Girl Scout, has earned the Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

For her project, Catherine organized an art exhibit at Princess Anne High School dedicated to art created by teens that reflect mental illness. She invited students at her school to create art pieces to represent personal experiences they have had with mental illness, how they feel about the issue and how they have watched their peers struggle.

At the art exhibit, guests viewed the art submissions, learned about mental health from a representative from the National Alliance on Mental Health and took part in stress relieving activities, including coloring. There was also a display made by a member of the Psychology Club at Princess Anne High School about the government’s impact on mental health and how to contact government officials about mental health issues.

“Mental health is a sensitive topic for many people to talk about, making it hard to verbalize how they feel,” Catherine said. “The art exhibit was an opportunity for students to express emotions they might feel when handling anything related to mental health.”

Catherine also created a video that she placed online to help inform people about what they can do to advocate for mental health, as well as an overview of the art exhibit she organized.

Catherine has arranged for members of the Psychology Club to host a mental health art exhibit on an annual basis. As a senior, Catherine will be leading efforts to hold next year’s event and show younger students how to host the event after she graduates.

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Catherine to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.

Gold Award Spotlight: Lucy's Big Idea

Olivia, a Girl Scout from Suffolk, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

For her project, Olivia wrote and illustrated a children’s book, Lucy’s Big Idea. The book follows a little girl named Lucy who pursues a friendship with a girl who is hearing impaired. The book teaches children about friendship and kindness, as well as the importance of not being quick to judge others.

“I have been drawing all of my life, and I knew that I wanted to use my talent for my Gold Award project,” Olivia said. “Someone in my church is hearing impaired, and I wanted my project to speak on that subject and lead into the broader topics of kindness and acceptance.”

Olivia hosted story times at libraries in Suffolk, where she read her story to children, taught them basic signs from American Sign Language and led them in a coloring activity on bookmarks she designed featuring characters from her book. In addition, Olivia created a lesson plan to go along with her book that she shared with homeschool educators in her community, and she donated her book to two library systems.

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Olivia to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.

Gold Award Spotlight: Gates County Playground Project

Allison, a Girl Scout from Gates, NC, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting. 

For her project, Allison addressed the issue of inactivity, leading to poor health and obesity among children. To combat this issue, Allison led a team in building a playground at Abundant Hope Baptist Church. Prior to constructing this playground, there was only one other public playground in Gates County. Through her project, Allison aimed to create a safe place where children can socialize, exercise and express their creativity.

“Educators, doctors and child study teams all around the world recognize that play is important,” Allison said. “When I was growing up, I always wished that there was a playground close to me, and I wanted to help children be more active.”

Allison worked with members of the church congregation to ensure that the playground will be maintained for children to enjoy for years to come.

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Allison to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.

Gold Award Spotlight: Start Gay-Straight Alliance Across Hampton Roads

Madison, a Norfolk Girl Scout, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

For her project, Madison established Gay-Straight Alliance chapters at Maury High School, Grassfield High School and Western Branch High School. She also helped to restart a chapter at Granby High School, and worked with teachers and students at two additional high schools on their plans to start chapters. Through these Gay-Straight Alliance chapters, Madison worked to address discrimination faced by LGBQT students by creating safe places at schools for them to socialize and fight for equality with their straight and supportive classmates.

Madison also hosted a welcoming, inclusive prom for LGBQT high school students and their straight allies. Nearly 100 students from across Hampton Roads attended the prom, many of whom shared that they didn’t feel welcome to attend the prom hosted by their school.

“People are afraid of people that are different from them,” Madison said. “I wanted to create safer schools and healthier communities by increasing awareness and acceptance of LGBTQ high school students.”

Madison arranged for the local chapter of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) and the LGBT Center of Hampton Roads to continue to mentor chapters of the Gay-Straight Alliance and make her prom an annual event.

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Madison to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.

Gold Award Spotlight: Diamonds in the Rough

Emily, a Virginia Beach Girl Scout, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

For her project, Emily educated members of the community about the simple things that they can do to help reduce the human impact on diamondback terrapin, a native turtle species. She worked with Lynnhaven River NOW to create an educational brochure and website. Emily also hosted workshops at community events, including the Lynnhaven River NOW Fall Arts Festival and the Virginia Beach Parks and Recreation Winter Wildlife Festival, and she set up presentations at local libraries.

In addition, Emily delivered her brochure to local businesses and used social media to post facts and information about diamondback terrapins.

“These turtles face many threats, some of which can easily be controlled by our community,” Emily said. “Keeping dogs on a leash at the beach is one simple thing that people can do to protect turtle nests. Adding a Turtle Excluder Device to crab pots is another great way to make a difference.”

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Emily to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.

Gold Award Spotlight: Teen Driving While Under the Influence

Jennifer, a Chesapeake Girl Scout, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

Jennifer’s project addressed the issue of teens driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. She developed a presentation that she shared with more than 200 students in their driver’s education classes at Deep Creek High School. She also made a presentation to the members of Students Against Destructive Driving at her school.

Jennifer also distributed fliers about the dangers of driving under the influence, as well as bumper stickers that she designed with the message, “Driving Impaired Causes Fatal Consequences.” She also designed a retractable banner about the issue that she displayed at her school and a local AAA Club.

“I know teenagers that drink alcohol, take drugs and huff household chemicals before or while driving,” Jennifer said. “I wanted to make them aware of the fatal consequences of their bad decisions.”

After presenting to students at her school, Jennifer sent a copy of her presentation to the principals at each of the high schools in Chesapeake. In an accompanying letter, she explained her project and asked that her presentation is shared with students at the schools. Jennifer also created a website, where she placed resources and information for anyone to use.

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Jennifer to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.

Gold Award Spotlight: Volunteer Transportation for the Sullivan House

Grace, a Virginia Beach Girl Scout, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, which is the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouts.

Already a volunteer at the Sullivan House, a subsidized apartment home for seniors, Grace asked a social worker there about further needs at the home. After learning that approximately 40 percent of the residents do not have a reliable source of transportation, Grace created a volunteer-run transportation program. Grace set up a system so that after volunteers apply to drive and are approved, they are given access to a secure website where they can sign up to give rides to the residents at the Sullivan House who have posted a ride need.

To recruit volunteers, Grace developed a presentation that she shared at churches and community group meetings in her community.

“Since my grandparents live far away, I have always enjoyed getting the opportunity to spend time with residents at the Sullivan House,” Grace said.

In addition to the residents at the Sullivan House gaining a reliable transportation system, both they and the drivers developed meaningful relationships with one another.

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Grace to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.

Chesapeake Girl Scout Recognized as a 2017 National Young Woman of Distinction

GSCCC CEO Tracy Keller, Lea and
GSCCC Board Chair Carolene Goodwyn-Harris

Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast is excited to announce that Lea Bonner, a Girl Scout Ambassador from Chesapeake, was named by Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) as a 2017 National Young Woman of Distinction, the organization’s most prestigious honor. GSUSA selects 10 National Young Women of Distinction annually among candidates who have earned their Girl Scout Gold Award®, which represents the highest achievement in Girl Scouts.

Approximately five percent of all eligible Girl Scouts earn their Gold Award each year— and just 10 girls in this already-high-achieving group receive the National Young Woman of Distinction honor. Applications are judged by GSUSA executives, previous National Young Women of Distinction, leaders from a range of fields and a representative from the Kappa Delta Foundation, which provides the honorees with college scholarships.

For her Gold Award project, Lea established a recycling program for oyster shells from local restaurants in her community. With the help of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Lea created a sustainable system for the shells to be returned to the bay to create reefs to help the oyster population grow.

Lea joined GSCCC Board Chair Carolene Goodwyn-Harris and
CEO Tracy Keller on a visit to Rep. Scott Taylor to discuss issues
that impact girls and Girl Scouts, referencing the 2017 State of Girls
 report published by the Girl Scout Research Institute. 

To honor Girl Scouts’ National Young Women of Distinction, the Kappa Delta Foundation grants the selected girls a combined $50,000 in college scholarships, reflecting Kappa Delta’s commitment to girls’ leadership and pursuit of education. This includes $5,000 for Lea. An additional $100,000 in college scholarships, which includes $10,000 for Lea, is provided by Susan Bulkeley Butler, founder of the Susan Bulkeley Butler Institute for the Development of Women Leaders.

Lea will be honored during the Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast Volunteer Kickoff on Saturday, September 23 at Old Dominion University, where she will be featured as a keynote speaker. In addition, GSUSA will honor the National Young Women of Distinction at G.I.R.L. 2017, the largest girl-led event in the world, October 6–8 in Columbus, Ohio. In line with the theme of the event, “Experience the Power of a G.I.R.L.,” G.I.R.L. 2017 will provide every participating girl and girl supporter with amazing opportunities to celebrate achievements, build on aspirations, get inspired, and gain the tools girls need to empower themselves and create change in their communities―both locally and globally.

A Girl Scout Reflection

By Christiane, a Chesapeake Girl Scout

As I embark on my journey to college, I love looking back on my time as a Girl Scout. I first began Girl Scouts in kindergarten as a cute, little Daisy and have made the full journey to becoming a Girl Scout Ambassador as a high school graduate. Many people tend to think that Girl Scouts is just doing arts and crafts, camping and selling those delicious cookies! Boy, are they good! However, this is not the big picture. Girl Scouts is about working with each other to accomplish a common goal, having fun while learning new skills and having each girl discover who she truly is! Most of all, Girl Scouts is about supporting your fellow sisters and helping them to make the world a better place. 

Being a Girl Scout has allowed me to be a part of adventures and experiences I never could have imagined. Girl Scouts has helped me to develop the confidence to lead, the determination to reach my goals, the perspective to view the world in new ways and the ability to learn from setbacks.

This past year, I revitalized the outdoor classroom at Yorktown Elementary School, completing my Girl Scout Gold Award Project. The purpose of the project was to restore the outdoor classroom because it was damaged and in a state of decline. I built benches to replace those that were damaged by misuse, built and planted a flower bed and constructed two interactive work stations. The setback I experienced during this project was a delay due to construction that was occurring around the school. However, as I worked with the school’s administration and used my communication and leadership skills, my team and I successfully completed the project! Honestly, it was difficult, but it is a great feeling to know that I helped make a difference, especially for the students at Yorktown Elementary School!

Through Girl Scouts, I also met some of my best friends! We are not only a troop of sisters, but truly a family. We had so many great laughs as we would stay up at night playing board games during camping trips or singing silly songs and making gooey smores around the campfire. Yum! We also got down to business to make a difference in the world, one Take Action project at a time. Some of my favorite experiences completed in scouting include volunteering with the Norfolk Emergency Shelter Team to help set up beds and make lunches for the homeless, learning an Indian dance and making curry for the Girl Scouts’ annual World Thinking Day and traveling to Orlando with my troop for our last trip together before we all part our ways for college.

Girl Scouts has shown me to be more encouraging, braver, stronger, a risk-taker and leader! I believe that every girl should be part of the scouting movement, and I am proud to say that I will always be a Girl Scout!

Gold Award Spotlight: The Stories of the Brave

Kathleen, a Girl Scout from Williamsburg, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, which is the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouts.

The focus of Kathleen’s project was empowering students to be able to positively deal with bullying situations. Kathleen chose a book, “Smile” by Raina Telgemeier, and developed a discussion guide, resource bookmark and information about bullying that she donated in kits to the library. The kits can be checked out by any member of the library and be used in a book club setting. She then scheduled a discussion at the library for people to come and talk about the book and the issue of bullying.

Kathleen also held a book club meeting at a local middle school and donated five books to Hornsby Middle School and Berkley Middle School.

In order to raise awareness about the issue of bullying and her project, Kathleen sent a letter to the editor to let members of her community know about the new resource available at the local library and schools.

“I have experienced a great deal of bullying, which has taken its toll,” Kathleen said. “I wanted to find a way to provide empowerment to others who might also share my story.”

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Kathleen to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.