Twenty-nine local girls earn prestigious Girl Scout Gold Award

Girl Scouts of NYPENN Pathways recently announced that 29 girls from across its council territory earned the prestigious Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest achievement in Girl Scouting, during 2019-2020. 

Since 1916, the Gold Award has stood for excellence and leadership. For the last century, millions of Girl Scouts have positively impacted their communities and the world with creative, impactful and sustainable Take Action projects. 

The council typically honors each “class” in-person during late fall. Due to the pandemic, the celebration was moved to early 2021 and re-imagined as a virtual recognition. It was held the evening of Saturday, Feb. 27, with attending recipients and their families, council staff, and board members. Keynote speaker was Girl Scout alum Alexandra Jacobs Wilke, a village trustee in Potsdam, N.Y., and director of public relations at SUNY Potsdam.

“Gold Award Girl Scouts change the world by tackling issues they’re passionate about while learning essential skills that prepare them for all aspects of life. They problem solve, inspire, advocate, educate, and make a difference. The benefits in their communities and beyond are of lasting, positive change brought about by their efforts. We applaud the commitment and dedication required to earn this award and are proud of our ‘Class of 2020’ Gold Award Girl Scouts. We know they each will continue to make the world a better place well into the future,” says GSNYPENN CEO Julie Dale.

The Girl Scout Gold Award is the mark of the truly remarkable. The standards required to earn it are demanding but the rewards are many. The award recognizes Girl Scout Seniors and Ambassadors (grades nine through 12) who demonstrate extraordinary leadership through sustainable and measurable take action projects. The Gold Award is the culmination of a girl’s demonstration of self-discipline, leadership ability, time management, creativity, initiative and a significant mastery of skills. Gold Award Girl Scouts are dreamers and doers who take “make the world a better place” to the next level. 

Each girl must dedicate a minimum of 80 hours to planning and implementing her project, which must benefit the community and have a lasting impact. The Gold Award acknowledges the power behind each Girl Scout’s dedication to not only empowering and bettering herself but also making the world a better place for others. Girls who earn the award tackle issues that are dear to them and drive lasting change in their communities and beyond. The Gold Award is key to opening doors to scholarships, preferred admission tracks for college, and career opportunities.

Three of the council’s “Class of 2020” Gold Award Girl Scouts were selected for special scholarships toward advancing their education at an institution of higher education. The award committee chose the girls because their projects demonstrated the highest levels of leadership, sustainability, measurability, and national / global links. Thanks to generous donors, the council presented a total of $12,000 in memory of three special Girl Scout sisters lost in 2019 who helped build girls of courage, confidence and character and who each made the world a better place.

The Marie Hepworth Scholarship ($5,000) was presented to Adeline Whitmore of Barton, N.Y. for her project, The Nichols Veterans Memorial Park. Hepworth dedicated her life to supporting girl development through her 20-plus years serving as executive director of GSNYPENN legacy council Indian Hills and various volunteer activities in her community of Johnson City.

The Kelly Perkins Scholarship ($4,000) was presented to Elizabeth Serafin of Oneonta, N.Y. for her project Together We Grow, Fox Community Garden. Perkins, a lifelong Girl Scout and GSNYPENN summer camp staff member, impacted the lives of campers and younger Girl Scouts in her community of Newark Valley.

The Kerrie Black Scholarship ($3,000) was presented to Dorothy (Dora) Donacik of Vestal, N.Y. for her project Promoting Creative Thinking at Vestal. Black, a lifelong Girl Scout, was a GSNYPENN Regional Support Manager for Broome and Delaware counties who served her volunteers with excellence and was always willing to lend a hand to her colleagues.

Girl Scouts of NYPENN Pathways “Class of 2020” Gold Award Girl Scouts, locally, include Catherine Deskur of Vestal, N.Y. for her Take Action Project: Robotics: Road to STEM; Dorothy (Dora) Donacik of Vestal, N.Y. for her Take Action Project: Promoting Creative Thinking at Vestal; Jennifer Jacoby of Owego, N.Y. for her Take Action Project: Saving the Black Tern, an awareness of how water pollution is affecting the black tern bird population in the Southern Tier; and Adeline Whitmore of Barton, N.Y. for her Take Action Project: The Nichols Veterans Memorial Park, in which she created a place in her community where veterans could be honored for their service and sacrifice. 

To learn more about Girl Scouts of NYPENN Pathways, Inc., visit gsnypenn.org.