Local Girl Scouts receive coveted Gold Award

Dana Kleiner and Ariana Adames, both Girl Scouts of East Meadow’s Troop 1073, earned the organization’s coveted Gold Award, for which they were honored by Town of Hempstead Supervisor Laura Gillen at a ceremony last week.

The Gold Award is the highest honor a Girl Scout could receive and goes to members who have committed to making their community a better place. Through completed a Gold Award project, scouts decide on a topic in STEAM, education, agriculture or medicine that follows seven steps, including

• Identifying an issue

• Investigating it thoroughly

• Garnering support or forming a team to tackle the issue

• Citing the cause of the issue and creating a plan of action

• Presenting their plan to the rest of the troop

• Carrying out the plan

• Recording the results and sharing it with others

Rande Bynum, the Chief Executive Officer of the Girl Scouts of Nassau County, said that Kleiner and Adames projects had what the organization refers to as “the Girl Scout difference.”

Supervisor Gillen said that she is the proud mother of a Brownie Girl Scout and is inspired by the efforts of the Gold Award winners. “I thank you for your selfless leadership and efforts,” she said. “But I know that this achievement that you have earned is not just about the positive change of one individual, but the change, as a leader, that you could make. It’s about how your vision could make positive change in our community.”

–Brian Stieglitz