Local Girl Scouts receive Gold Award
Five Girl Scouts from the Greater Memphis region of the Girl Scouts Heart of the South Council have received the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor for a graduating Girl Scout.
Rosemary Alter, Cathy Holmes, Alexis Lange, Caitlin McCurdy and Mara Scarbrough each received the Gold Award after completing community service projects throughout her senior year of high school.
Rosemary Alter came up with her project, Read With Your Ears, after realizing the inspiring effect of reading to nursing home patients. To maximize the efficiency of her efforts, she recorded herself reading many of the books beloved by the patients. That way, they could listen to the books aloud whenever they wanted. Alter says her biggest take-away from the project was learning how to recognize an issue and tackle it wholeheartedly.
Cathy Holmes loves camping and being outdoors, so her project, Camping 101 for Girls, was close to her heart. She set up a camp at Burt Ferguson Community Center focused around teaching girls important camping skills. She wanted them to see the fun and importance in things like setting up a tent or using a compass on their own, rather than expecting a leader or mother to do it for them. Holmes graduated from St. Benedict at Auburndale High School and just completed her first year at Christian Brothers University, where she in majoring in Mechanical Engineering.
Alexis Lange’s project, PineCrest Arboretum, was inspired by her love of nature and her love of building things. After working as a counselor for PineCrest camp, she was compelled to combine her two passions into enriching the camp by creating something that its visitors could enjoy and learn from for years. In addition to her Gold Award, Lange also received a $1,000 competitive scholarship. Lange graduated from St. Agnes Academy and plans to attend Benedictine College in Atchison, Kan., in the fall.
Caitlin McCurdy put together a so- cial event called the Musical Mixer for her Gold Award project, which took about two months of planning. Working closely with Christ United Methodist Church’s Special Needs Ministry, her goal was to create a fun environment for people with disabilities centered around socializing and meeting new friends. McCurdy graduated from St. Benedict at Auburndale High School and will be attending Birmingham-Southern College this fall.
Mara Scarbrough also worked with Christ United Methodist’s Special Needs Ministry for her project, Swim With My Buddy. She wanted to create a program to help educate teens on the value of interacting with and getting to know people with special needs. She worked with the director of the Special Needs Ministry to plan the event for July, and coordinated with the seniors at her high school, White Station. Scarbrough is attending Birmingham Southern College.
The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest award that a Girl Scout between the ages of 14 and 19 can earn, and commemorates each girl’s commitment to her community. The Gold Award Scholarship provides financial assistance to help facilitate the continuation of academic growth for Girl Scout Gold Award recipients, and is awarded based on achievement in Girl Scouting, academics, leadership and extracurricular activities. Gold Awards are awarded annually in the spring to Girl Scouts who choose to work toward and accomplish this milestone, and set the foundation for a lifetime of active citizenship. Amanda Lewis is a public relations coordinator for Sullivan Branding.