Girl Scout, Joy Mason, Earns Gold Award

Girl Scout, Joy Mason, earns Gold Award

Ambassador Girl Scout Joy Mason has been presented the prestigious Gold Award at the Girl Scouts of North East Ohio Gold Award Celebration on June 16, 2018. The Gold Award is the highest honor in Girl Scouting and is comparable to Eagle Scout for boys.

A Gold Award project requires at least 80 hours to complete, but once involved, it was hard for Joy to limit her time. She believed in her project’s message and went above and beyond the necessary requirements. Her Take Action Project focused on educating students about repetitive use injuries, such as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. With advancements in technology and the constant use of keyboards in school, at work, and at home, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome will be striking people at a younger age.

After extensive research and meetings with medical professionals, Mentor Public Schools current and previous superintendents, William Porter and Matthew Miller, and Mentor High School Principal Andrew Fetchik, Joy created an informative YouTube video and a web page to educate people about the syndrome and to demonstrate exercises that may help prevent or delay its onset. She recruited friends and family to assist with this endeavor. Sharing this information on the internet makes her project sustainable in the future and will hopefully help eliminate pain and disability. Joy agrees with the wise words of Jackie Joyner-Kersee, 3 time Olympic Track and Field gold medalist that “It’s better to look ahead and prepare than to look back and regret.”

In addition to Girl Scouting, Joy volunteers at Lake Health’s Tripoint Medical Center and at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center. At Mentor High School she participated in Model United Nations, Student Government, National Honor Society, Youth United Way of Lake County, Big Brothers/Big Sisters and more. She is a three-time graduate of Leadership Lake County. Also, Joy is a USA Roller Sports four-time national champion figure skater.

A 2018 Mentor High graduate, Joy will be attending Case Western Reserve University this fall. Her plan is to double major in Biochemistry and Medical Anthropology on a Pre-Med Track. Her ultimate goal is to become a cardiothoracic surgeon.

Joy joined Girl Scouts in Kindergarten as a Daisy and she rose through the Brownie, Cadette, Senior and Ambassador levels. Along the way she earned her bronze and silver awards, and now she has achieved the premier achievement in Girl Scouting, the Gold Award. She is grateful to two caring troop leaders, Lisa Petersen and Mary Gifford, who generously volunteered their time to make Girl Scouts fun while assisting in building the foundations of young women. Also, Gold Award Project advisor Mrs. Tracy Coleman, Carol Beasley, Gold Award Mentor, and Fallon Pulley, Manager, Girl Experience, provided project advice and encouragement.

The Girl Scout mission is to “… build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place.” By earning the Gold Award, Joy Mason exemplifies these characteristics. To learn more about becoming a Girl Scout, or volunteering as a troop leader, contact Girl Scouts of North East Ohio at www.gsneo.org, or call 1(800)852-4474