Kennedy Gibson of Southbury Earns Highest National Girl Scout Honor

Kennedy Gibson of Southbury has received her Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

In order to earn the Gold Award, Senior and Ambassador Girl Scouts between grades nine through 12 spend at least 80 hours researching issues, assessing community needs and resources, building a team, and making a sustainable impact in the community. A Gold Award recipient’s accomplishments reflect leadership and citizenship skills that set her apart as a community leader.

Kennedy’s project helped create an online portal with bible study curriculum for children with disabilities within and outside of her parish. With her project, Kennedy’s goal was to establish a program that simplified well known, but abstract Christian ideas for children with disabilities.

Kennedy’s online portal will continue to exist and will be updated with additional lesson plans and bible studies by her parish. Kennedy is currently studying computer science and business at Boston College on an Air Force ROTC scholarship. She will be commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Air Force after graduation.

“On a national level, only four to six percent of Girl Scouts earn this prestigious honor, and I am beyond proud of our girls,” said Mary Barneby, CEO of Girl Scouts of Connecticut. “By earning the Gold Award, Girl Scouts set themselves apart as top achievers, and are incredible women of confidence, courage, and character, who make the world a better place. Next year, we are excited to celebrate our 100th year of encouraging girls to Go Gold!”

For more information about the Gold Award or how to become a Gold Award volunteer or mentor, visit http://www.gsofct.org/pages/GoldAward.php.