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Girl Scout Gold Award celebrates '100 Years of Girls Changing the World'

Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois will kick off the 2016 centennial celebration of the Girl Scout Gold Award by recognizing 12 local Girl Scouts, who will receive this prestigious award this year.

These amazing young ladies will be acknowledged at the annual meeting held on Saturday, April 23, at Elgin Community College, 1700 Spartan Drive in Elgin.

The event begins with a free breakfast at 8 a.m. Currently registered Girl Scout adults and girls over the age of 14 are invited to attend! Event registration is available at www.girlscoutsni.org/annualmeeting.

The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest and most prestigious award in Girl Scouting. Girls who pursue their Gold Award aspire to transform an idea and vision for change into an actionable plan with measurable, sustainable, and far-reaching results. Girl Scouts has been acknowledging the outstanding contributions of its members for 100 years. 2016 marks the centennial celebration of Girl Scouts highest award. Over the course of the last century, millions of Girl Scouts have positively impacted their communities and the world with their creative, impactful, and sustainable Take Action projects.

2016 Girl Scout Gold Award Recipients

• Jamie Fisher, 17, "Eat Right, Do Right": The St. Charles resident set up a series of workshops for people of various ages where she taught nutrition and how to cook healthy foods geared to different stages of life.

• Megan Kalafut, 18, "Shoebox STEM": The Lake Zurich resident created a hands-on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) curriculum for a local community center. The children attending the community center learned STEM is fun!

• Helen King, 18, "Helen's Natural Prairie Butterfly Garden": The Elgin resident created a native prairie plant garden at Advocate Sherman Hospital. The garden will provide much needed habitat to support pollinators whose populations have been on the decline due to habitat loss.

• Erin McDermott, 17, "The Butterfly Bench": The Kildeer resident planted a butterfly garden, restored a prairie, and built a sitting area at a local nature center to aid the awareness of the diminishing monarch butterfly habitat and its sole food source, milkweed.

• Katelyn Mitchell, 18, "Seeds for a Fruitful Future": The South Barrington resident planted apple and pear trees to provide fresh fruit to local food pantries. Families in need don't have reliable access to fresh produce.

• Amanda Rice, 19, "Project Harmony": The Batavia resident organized a group of musicians to play for residents living in senior assisted living facilities. These residents weren't often able to go out and enjoy concerts, so she brought the music to them.

• Lindsay Schwartz, 19, "Out of Site, Still in Mind": The Kildeer resident educated middle school students about the dangers of pornography and the long-term negative affects it can have on young people.

• Ashely Sherwood, 18, "Lending a Hand": The Machesney Park resident worked with the Harlem School District to divert 4,000 textbooks and workbooks from the landfill. The books were then provided to other students in need through local and global organizations.

• Kristin Sheyka, 18, "A Visit to the Hospital": The Barrington Hills resident worked with pediatric staff at Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital to develop a book to ease children's fears by explaining equipment they may encounter during their stay.

• Alexis Thomas, 19, "Clothe the Community": The Aurora resident developed a twofold project. She taught women at a transitional housing facility to sew. The clothes they made were sent to Haiti to help those in need there. The women plan to use this valuable life skill to help themselves and their families.

• Samantha Walter, 18, "Roamin' with the Classics": The Batavia resident created a club at her high school to foster an interest in Latin and associated works. She made sure the message was shared beyond the club by creating a related website.

• Katherine Witt, 18, "Dog (animal) Adoption Day": The North Aurora resident brought together multiple organizations to teach people about different types of dogs, their personality types, and the care needed to thrive in a home environment. Her event also highlighted animals that were available for adoption.

Girl Scouts builds independent and confident girls by allowing them to explore and develop their own interests through opportunities in the outdoors, career and interest exploration, development of practical life skills, and opportunities for travel. Girl Scouts provide girls with the freedom and positive support to customize their own experience. We are a girl-led organization that builds girls who embrace leadership and civic engagement. The Gold Award is a shining example of how Girl Scouts have acquired the skills, confidence, and knowledge to implement a project that improves their communities and the world around them.

According to the Girl Scout Research Institute's report, "The Power of the Girl Scout Gold Award: Excellence in Leadership and Life," Girl Scout Gold Award recipients receive grater lifetime benefits than their peers with regard to positive sense of self, life satisfaction, leadership, life success, community service, and civic engagement - thanks to their experience in Girl Scouting, including earning their Gold Award. To read the report, visit www.girlscouts.org.

It's not only Girl Scouts who understand the value of the Gold Award. Some universities and colleges offer scholarships to the award recipient, and girls who enlist in the U.S. armed forces may receive advanced rank in recognition of their achievements.

Since 1916, Girl Scouts have been making meaningful, sustainable change in their communities and around the world. The Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor a Girl Scout can earn, 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. They are our future, and it looks bright!

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