Two Wilton Girl Scouts Receive Highest National Girl Scout Honor

Photos: Emma Gosden and Caroline Costello

Caroline Costello and Emma Gosden of Wilton, CT received their 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.

Caroline’s project was to work with the Connecticut Humane Society to help raise awareness about the importance for animal lovers to adopt or foster their pets. Caroline created holiday-themed decorated bins and placed them in three prominent locations with flyers. Caroline will attend Keene State College in the fall and is considering a career in elementary education.

Emma’s project provided educational resources for younger students to use while they were visiting the Wilton Historical Society. Emma created a photo scavenger hunt for children between the ages of four and eight, and an activity booklet for children between the ages of eight and 12. Emma will attend Western Connecticut State University in the fall to pursue a career in early childhood education.

“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.