Five local girls earn Girl Scouts' top honor
Crystal Lake residents Colleen Bransley, Sarah Clayton, Christina Nalepa, Abby Reich, and Heather Stolz were among 27 Girl Scouts in northern Illinois who earned the Girl Scout Gold Award in 2011. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest award a Girl Scout can earn.
Bransley coordinated an all-day community fair centered on important health issues. She partnered with healthcare professionals to educate fair attendees on blood pressure and other ways to increase well being.
“I have always loved learning about health,” says Bransley. “I wanted to combine this with helping the community, so this is why I chose to do a health fair.”
Clayton coordinated and held a blood drive at a health awareness fair which also included a food drive, career fair and health screening and information booths. There were six girls organizing the fair with each girl responsible for their own portion. It was a huge success with 40 donations of blood.
“I and my group wanted to give back to our community in the best way possible,” says Clatyon. “Giving people information, career ideas, and asking them to give blood and food back to their community was a great way of helping in many ways! “
Nalepa recruited area health professionals to discuss their jobs during a community health awareness fair. She connected with many different providers who educated girls and families on numerous types of health careers, including nursing, dentistry, dermatology, and nutrition.
“I chose this as my project, because I am interested in learning about health-related jobs,” says Nalepa.
Reich partnered with other girls to coordinate a health awareness fair. Her portion of the project included organizing the professional health career presentations. She worked with a number of different professionals in health career fields to produce five minute presentations about each career.
“I chose this project, because I wanted to bring about awareness of the different career paths that are not as well known,” says Reich.
Stolz worked with her troop on producing a health awareness fair. She organized a group of volunteers to donate their time and give free health screenings to the community. These volunteers also provided resources and materials participants could take home from the fair that would help them make better health decisions in the future.
“I chose this as my project, because I know one of the most important things is your health,” says Stolz. “I also know that I want to make my career in health, so I thought it would help me figure out if that is what I really want to do.”
Bransley, Clayton, Nalepa, Reich and Stolz were honored for their accomplishments at Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois' recent Young Women of Distinction event.
About the Girl Scout Gold Award
The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest award in Girl Scouts, and focuses on a 14- to 18-year-old Girl Scout's interests and personal journey through learning leadership skills, career exploration, self-improvement and service. For many girls, these skills, organizational proficiency, and sense of community and commitment that come from "going for the Gold" set the foundation for a lifetime of active citizenship.
About Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois
Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois serves over 20,000 girls and nearly 6,000 adult volunteers in parts or all of Boone, Carroll, Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Jo Daviess, Kane, Kendall, Lake, LaSalle, Lee, McHenry, Ogle, Stephenson, Whiteside, and Winnebago counties.
Through the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, girls in grades K through 12 are engaged in discovering themselves, connecting with others, and taking action to make the world a better place. Girls develop leadership potential by participating in age-appropriate activities that enable them to discover their values, skills, and the world around them. Activities in science and technology, business and economic literacy, and outdoor and environmental awareness provide girls with opportunities for fun and friendship while fostering the development of leadership skills and self-esteem.
To find out how you can become part of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, call 800-242-5591, or visit our website at www.girlscoutsni.org.
About Girl Scouts of the USA
Founded in 1912, Girl Scouts of the USA is the preeminent leadership development organization for girls with 3.4 million girl and adult members nationwide. Through membership in the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS), Girl Scouts is part of a worldwide family of 10 million girls and adults in 45 countries. Girl Scouting is the leading authority on girls' healthy development and builds girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place. The organization serves girls from every corner of the United States and its territories. Girl Scouts of the USA also serves American girls and their classmates attending American or international schools overseas in 90 countries. For more information on how to join, volunteer, reconnect, or donate to Girl Scouts, call 800-GSUSA-4-U (800-478-7248) or visit www.girlscouts.org.