Three Girl Scouts from South Windsor Earn Highest National Girl Scout Honor

Photos 1-2: Jennifer Newton, Emily Rizza and Erin Heneghan

Erin Heneghan, Jennifer Newton, and Emily Rizza of South Windsor, CT have received their Girl Scout Girl 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.

Erin’s project taught church members and members of a residential home how to make shawls of hope for those with cancer or other terminally ill diseases, including prayer shawls for residents with Alzheimer’s disease. Erin held a knitting drive to collect supplies, and donated the completed prayer shawls to a nursing home to provide comfort to residents. Erin plans on pursuing a career in nursing at Mount Saint Mary College in New York.

Jennifer’s project provided incoming freshman at her high school with information about the benefits of learning the Latin language. Jennifer created a Latin Club, recruited tutors, and created a display board of information for parents to learn more about Latin at open houses. Her project resulted in an increase in enrollment in Latin courses at her high school. Jennifer plans to study mechanical engineering.

Emily’s project was to create a website and Pinterest account that aimed to educate middle school girls at the local and national level about maintaining a high self-esteem. Emily conducted two workshops that addressed health, hygiene, and the media in relation to how girls can perceive themselves. She brought in yoga instructors, beauty artists, and media experts to help educate them. Her website is still available for girls to use. Emily is planning to study both elementary education and school counseling in college.

“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.