Reflections from a Gold Award Girl Scout

At Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England, our mission to build girls of courage, confidence, and character is not something we take lightly. They are not just words on a page or something recited at the top of a monthly staff meeting. Each year for the past three years we have welcomed a Marketing & Communications Intern to come aboard and join our GSSNE staff team, allowing them to learn first hand that the sisterhood of Girl Scouts doesn't ever truly end regardless of their age.

This year, we welcome Sarah Goss, a former GSSNE Girl Scout and notably a Gold Award Girl Scout. She is a Communications Major at Rhode Island College and her enthusiasm, ambition and determination are just a sampling of the qualities she feels are attributed to her experiences as a Girl Scout. We invited Sarah as part of her work as a Communications Intern to contribute the below piece in her own words.

"It all began when my sister and I started Girl Scouts as Daisies in Riverside, RI. I don’t remember how I came to be interested, but I remember having lots of friends, and tons of fun. It was a great experience as a young girl, because I never felt left out. I stayed until 2nd grade, when my parents got divorced, and I moved to Bristol. My mother could no longer afford for us to do everything we wanted, and we had to choose between Girl Scouts and cheerleading. My sister and I had to agree, and she made the decision first. I didn’t want to start a fight, so we continued cheer. But, I never gave up the idea of being a Girl Scout.

In 7th grade I stopped cheerleading and joined theater, where I met a Girl Scout who was a year younger than me. Throughout the year we grew close, and towards the end of 8th grade I was able to convince my mom to let me rejoin Girl Scouts as a Cadette. I was so excited, and had a blast. The troop had different levels of Girl Scouts, so they ended up splitting off into two groups, Cadettes and Seniors.

I was put in the older troop with my leaders, Laura and Jean. They taught me about independence, confidence, strength, and leadership. Our troop began working on badges, even creating a few of our own. It was a small troop of about 8 girls, and they are still some of my best friends today. I learned so much from them. We went on field trips and I experienced what a group of girls could really do.

That year I decided I wanted to go to camp, so I worked extremely hard during the cookie sale. With my mom being a single parent, we always went to the town camp since it was the cheapest option. But that year I worked as hard as I could, and earned enough cookie credits to send myself to Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England’s Camp Hoffman for a week. I loved it so much (and still do!) because it was a beautiful area, and I made so many lifelong friends. I did the same thing the following year, choosing to participate in the Counselor in Training program and the Counselor in Training 2 program the next summer.

Most of the girls in my troop were a grade ahead of me, so the troop started aiming towards their Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can earn. To earn a Gold Award a Girl Scout has to decide on a problem in the community, and make a lasting, significant change. Only about 5 percent of Girl Scouts earn their Gold Awards, as it takes time, leadership skills, creativity, and independence. I couldn’t decide what I wanted to do. My possibilities seemed endless; at the time I was dancing, swimming, in the Color Guard, and starting a Mock Trial team.

When I turned 16 I decided. I wanted to help people feel safe in and around water. I became a certified lifeguard and a swim instructor. I quickly became aware how many people didn’t know about the most common of safety rules, especially for children. I waited until I was an Girl Scout Ambassador to send in my proposal. Once I sent it in, it was approved. It was then I decided to run a camp program at my local YMCA, and teach children about water safety and let them play in the pool. I needed to run a week long program several times, and provide evidence the children had key learnings from the experience. My program had to be suitable for ages 6-10, and most importantly I had to find a way to teach the rules while still allowing for FUN. I decided on a video, with tests to measure information learned, and developed other activities to use throughout the program. It was an immense amount of hard work, but probably one of the proudest moments in my life.

Earning my Gold Award was such an amazing opportunity for me. My experience taught me how to put myself out there, demand attention, and lead a group, even if they were my peers. I also learned how to work with children, which has been my job for five years now. Throughout the process of earning my Gold Award I really had to reflect on my time in Girl Scouts, realizing I had found a home that I still rely on today. Girl Scouts was a place where no one compared me to my sister, which I had never before experienced. I was encouraged to be my own person, instead of being told to be more like her. I made my own friends, and learned how to make myself happy, instead of needing others approval. I gained confidence and became a leader, a position I never thought I could be in. I also learned that it was okay to ask for help, a lesson that stuck with me, and helped me to overcome depression later in life.

When I returned from college I volunteered with a Girl Scout troop I helped to start back in high school. About two weeks later I was told we had girls who wanted to join, but no troop for them. I wholeheartedly agreed to run one, and it’s the best thing I’ve done so far. I finally get to give back to Girl Scouts what I got out of it. I hope that I can inspire my Daisy Girl Scouts the way my leaders inspired me to be so much more in life than I ever imagined."