Elmont Girl Scouts Awarded Highest Honor

ELMONT, NY (July 9, 2018)—Girl Scouts of Nassau County recently hosted its annual Gold Award ceremony at Adelphi University. During the event, more than 70 local Girl Scouts earned their Gold Awards, including Asya Cobbs, Chyna Cobbs and Jade Elie of Elmont. The Gold Award program recognizes the power and dedication shared by an elite group of young women who earn the highest honor a Girl Scout can achieve. Each girl spent more than 80 hours over the past year planning, executing and presenting the results of her project, which aimed to make the world a better place for others as well as herself.

“These young women are among an exclusive group of leaders who have earned the highest honor a Girl Scout can earn. I commend each and every one of them for the countless hours they have spent dedicated to their project—not only to empower and better themselves, but to make the world a better place,” said Rande Bynum Chief Executive Officer, Girl Scouts of Nassau County. “Gold Award projects have positively impacted girls’ lives, their communities and the world for over one hundred years.”

The Gold Award Girl Scouts each tackled a project that held a deep significance to them. Their projects are described below.

Asya’s project, “Helping Paws” took on the challenge of giving homeless and orphaned kittens in her community a proper home. Noticing the overpopulation of cats and an increase in disease in these animals, Asya wanted to help make a difference and give them a chance at a better life. Through her Kitten Care club, Asya was able to educate her community on the importance of proper pet care, and took care of more than six kittens until they were of age, healthy and ready to be adopted. The club is now a BOCES program, helping Asya’s project to care for kittens in the community live on.

A recent graduate of Malverne Senior High School, Asya was a member of the National Honor Society, Key Club and high school marching band. She will attend the University of Delaware’s pre-veterinary program in the fall. Asya’s favorite Girl Scout memory is when her troop slept over at Atlantis Marine World where they spent the night sleeping next to sharks.

For her project, “Mechanical Girls,” Chyna wanted to educate her peers and community about the STEM field, knowing that the fields lack female leadership. Chyna wanted to inform the girls in her community about the many different careers available to them. She held educational and information sessions about the different areas in STEM including, biology, forensics and chemistry. Chyna hopes that her information sessions have encouraged attendees to learn more about STEM programs and fields. The website she created is available for anyone looking for information about the STEM field.

Chyna was a recent graduate of Malverne High School, where she was vice president of the National Technical Honor Society and vice president of the Community Service club. Chyna will be attending the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the fall. Her favorite Girl Scout memories are the trips her troop took to Atlantis Marine World and Splish Splash.

Jade wanted to share with others the importance of self-love and body positivity through her project, “Selfie Esteem.” After noticing the negative comments that are often featured on social media, Jade started active dialogue sessions on social media and hosted a series of workshops to promote a positive self-image. Jade created a page for her project that others can go to for tips on staying positive and spreading positive thoughts to others as well.

Jade is a rising senior at Floral Park Memorial High School, where she is an active member in the school community. She also enjoys volunteering her time at the Ronald McDonald House of Long Island. Her favorite Girl Scout memory is taking a trip to the Long Island Aquarium with her junior troop.

Approximately 1 million Girl Scout alumnae have developed Gold Award projects that addressed local or global issues. After identifying an area of interest, a successful Gold Award recipient performs hours of research and prepares a project proposal to be submitted for feedback and approval to the Girl Scout Council before embarking on her project. The Girl Scout presents her final conclusions as the last step of the journey.

Lifelong value comes with having earned a Gold Award. According to the Girl Scout Research Institute, Gold Award Girl Scouts display more positive life outcomes pertaining to sense of self, life, satisfaction, leadership, life success, community service and civic engagement. Recipients of the award who enlist in the U.S. Armed Forces may receive advanced rank for their achievements and can receive scholarships or other recognition from most colleges or universities.

We’re the Girl Scouts of Nassau County: We’re 23,000 strong – 17,900 girls and 5,000 adults who believe in the power of every G.I.R.L. (Go-getter, Innovator, Risk-taker, Leader)™ from Nassau County to change the world. Our extraordinary journey began more than 100 years ago with the original G.I.R.L., Juliette Gordon “Daisy” Low. On March 12, 1912, in Savannah, Georgia, she organized the very first Girl Scout Troop, and every year since we’ve honored her vision and legacy, building girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place. We’re the preeminent leadership development organization for girls. And with programs in Nassau County, across Long Island and throughout the United States and across the globe, Girl Scouts offers every girl a chance to practice a lifetime of leadership, adventure, and success.

We’re the Girl Scouts. To volunteer, reconnect, donate or join, visit www.gsnc.org or contact Donna Rivera-Downey at 516 741-2550.