A Young Role Model

Since the age of four, Johnston resident Gabriella Scarcella has been taking the challenge of learning the game of golf, and now, at 11 years old she continues to develop her golf skills at on the Johnston/Providence line.

This past summer was a memorable one, Gabriella's mother, Jeanette Scarcella, said during a recent interview.

"Gabriella got her first birdie playing in Button Hole's golf tournaments in the beginning of August," Jeanette recalled. "Button Hole gave us a copy of the card and framed it."

On August 22, Button Hole held their last golf tournament of the summer, as about 35 kids participated in a nine-hole competition, with the top four scorers advancing to a second nine-hole playoff.

For the kids outside the top four, Button Hole held a chipping and putting competition.

Gabriella competed in the chip-and-putt challenge and got the best shot out of four (called a scramble), on both the first and second holes.

When asked what she likes about golf, Gabriella said she likes to "swing the golf club and meet new kids from all over the state."

Over the colder months, Gabriella practices her swing at the Eagle Quest Golf Dome in Warwick.

Learning how to play golf is not the only challenge Gabriella has taken on — this past summer, she landed the lead role as a soccer player in a musical performance at the Artist Exchange in Cranston.

Gabriella is also no stranger to playing soccer, as she started learning at a young age with Johnston Lightning Youth Soccer — and now that she is a student at , she plans to try out for their soccer team and the chorus.

Golf, soccer, the arts — Gabriella has many talents, and there's really no telling where they'll take her.