Local Garden City Teens Earn Prestigious Girl Scout Gold Award

Girl Scouts of Nassau County recently celebrated 51 local Girl Scouts who are members of the 2024 Girl Scout Gold Award class who made a positive impact, addressing causes they care about in their communities. Garden City residents Abigail Jesberger, Aileen Sullivan, Carrie Schneider, Eva Vitale, Grace Dennis, Juliana Rom, Kiera O’Leary, Madeline O’Brien, Natalia Gargiulo, and Simone Oustatcher were among those Girl Scouts throughout Nassau County who reached this milestone.

“Every Girl Scout who earned their Gold Award this year demonstrated remarkable resilience, dedication, and passion in developing and implementing a plan to tackle a societal challenge. We are immensely proud and impressed by each one of them for achieving their goals and making a lasting impact on their communities,” said Rande Bynum, CEO of Girl Scouts of Nassau County. “Their commitment is undeniable, and their efforts have positively affected countless lives. This year, our Girl Scouts addressed critical issues such as environmental justice and sustainability, mental and emotional health, gender equality in sports, and more. We applaud each of them for their significant contributions.”

Girls in grades 9-12 begin their Gold Award journeys by identifying a civic or social issue that holds importance to them. Next, a Girl Scout builds a team to support her project with a mission to create a positive impact in her community. Gold Award projects are coordinated so that they can continue long after girls earn their award by establishing nonprofit organizations, publishing books to be added to school library collections, implementing classroom lessons to be taught for years to come or other initiatives to create lasting change. Through the process, Gold Award Girl Scouts become innovative problem-solvers, empathetic leaders, confident public speakers, and focused project managers, while educating and inspiring others. They learn resourcefulness, tenacity, and decision-making skills, giving them an edge personally and professionally. As they take action to transform their communities, Gold Award Girl Scouts gain tangible skills and prove they are the leaders our world needs.

Abigail’s mission was to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s disease and dementia and provide a resource to help people suffering from these diseases. Abby spoke to several community groups ranging from Daisy Girl Scouts to veterans. She also created memory books containing images from the 1960’s, 70’s, and 80’s showing pop culture, news events, fashion, television shows, movies, art, and sporting events to help stimulate long-term memories for people suffering from Alzheimer’s or dementia. Abby donated copies of these books to the Long Island Alzheimer’s and Dementia Center.

Aileen’s Gold Award project focused on educating people about the importance of sun safety and preventing skin cancer. She consulted with Mollie’s Fund, a nonprofit organization in Garden City that raises awareness about skin cancer safety and provides free screenings. She used the knowledge she gained there to create a presentation slideshow and tri fold display board, as well as a website and informational pamphlet. She then partnered with Crossroads Farm, where she shared her presentation with visitors and her pamphlet will be available for taking. Aileen also donated a freestanding sunscreen

station that will be accessible to all the employees and visitors. A link to her website has been shared on Crossroads Farm’s website.

Carrie developed materials to educate her community about life-threatening allergies and how to administer epinephrine, a life-saving medication. She also created a website that shares her project information along with allergy-free recipes. Carrie's project is sustained with her informational website and through a local nutrition and dietetics business called New Habit Health Coaching, who shares her materials with their clients. As a result of her project, Carrie learned that organizational and time- management skills are keys to success.

Eva’s mission was to educate her community about anaphylaxis, a common medical emergency and life-threatening allergic reaction. Eva has a nut allergy and is very aware of the risk it poses. She created a presentation and distributed flyers and pamphlets educating young people about allergic reaction symptoms and emergency responses. During her presentation, by demonstrating with a trainer EpiPen, she taught children how to use an auto injector that delivers life-saving medication called epinephrine. Eva’s project is now incorporated into the Garden City Library’s Intro to Babysitting class curriculum.

Grace worked to improve literacy in children. She created “Book Buddies,” knitted finger puppets that were bundled with books. She donated these to the Anna House, a childcare and early childhood education facility located at Belmont Park, so the children there could practice reading out loud to them. This mimics the beneficial process of reading aloud to a pet. She also created literacy kits with activities created to help younger children gain literacy skills. Additionally, she led “Books and Brownies,” a book club aimed to get more tweens interested in reading. The book club’s list of reading recommendations will be kept at the library where it can be used to find suggestions for reluctant readers.

Juliana’s Gold Award project addressed the anxiety faced by women and children during stressful times in underprivileged communities. She co-created calming kits for the women and children staying at the Bethany House, an organization with locations in Baldwin and Roosevelt, who are dedicated to supporting women, and women with children, experiencing homelessness. The kits contained items like fidget spinners and sensory toys, calming cards, essential oil sprays, and pamphlets identifying the signs of anxiety. The kits were co-created with residents of Bethany House. The project is sustainable through the pamphlets Juliana designed that will be available at the Bethany House locations and through social media posts.

Kiera showed appreciation for veterans. She interviewed veterans to learn about their personal experiences and created the Veterans Club at her high school. The club invites veterans to sporting events where they are recognized during halftime and given flowers as a token of appreciation. They also create holiday cards that are distributed to New Ground, a program that helps homeless veterans. Kiera also partnered with her local American Legion post to create flagpole banners honoring veterans that will be displayed around town.

After losing her beloved dog, Madeline wanted to help others cope with the loss of a pet. She established a memorial “Rainbow Bridge” garden where visitors can paint a stone on-site and place it in the garden as a memento honoring their pet. She partnered with a local nature preserve, the Garden City Bird Sanctuary, who provided an area for reflection in the preserve. She fundraised to obtain supplies and led a crew in building and planting the garden. She created a website that describes the project, discusses grief, offers tips to manage it, and provides links to resources.

Natalia addressed issues about ocean conservation with young children. She explained how a clean ocean protects marine life, provides safe food sources, and so much more. Through presentations, activity books, and an art exhibit, she discussed simple changes children can make to make a difference. Natalia worked with the Jones Beach Nature and Energy Center, and her project is sustained through social media content, her informative activity books, sculptural displays, and annual beach cleanups.

Simone’s Gold Award project was designed to empower young people to actively participate in their civic

responsibility to vote. She created posters, pamphlets, and a website with information on the voting laws and regulations of all 50 states. These materials were distributed at libraries, town halls, and high schools. Simone partnered with the Junior State of America organization to start a chapter at her school to ensure that teenagers understand the importance of educating themselves in subjects they’ll eventually vote on. The materials Simone created will continue to be distributed through club activities.

According to recent research, Gold Award Girl Scouts are more likely to fill leadership roles at work and in their personal lives and are more civically engaged than their non-Girl Scout peers. Eighty-seven percent (87%) of Gold Award Girl Scouts agree that earning their Gold Award gave them skills that help them succeed professionally. Seventy-two percent (72%) said earning their Gold Award helped them get a scholarship. Changing the world doesn’t end when a Girl Scout earns her Gold Award. Ninety-nine percent (99%) of Gold Award Girl Scout alums take on leadership roles in their everyday lives.

Girls in grades K-12 can begin their Girl Scout journey at any age. As girls grow with Girl Scouts, they learn hands-on leadership skills they’ll use to make their mark through the Gold Award and beyond. To join or volunteer, visit www.gsnc.org/join.

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We are Girl Scouts: Girl Scouts bring their dreams to life and work together to build a better world. Through programs in Nassau County, across Long Island, and from coast to coast, Girl Scouts of all backgrounds and abilities can be unapologetically themselves as they discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges—whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or advocate for climate justice, or make their first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors, and millions of alum, Girl Scouts lead the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them. To join, volunteer, reconnect, or donate, visit www.gsnc.org.