Girl Scouts of Kickapoo Council Honor Six Gold Award Recipients

GIRL SCOUTS OF KICKAPOO COUNCIL HONOR SIX GOLD AWARD RECIPIENTS

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I rise today to salute six remarkable young women who will soon be presented with the Girl Scout Gold Award by Girl Scouts-Kickapoo Council in Peoria, IL.

The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest achievement in Girl Scouting. It is presented to Senior Girl Scouts who have demonstrated outstanding accomplishments in the areas of leadership, community service, career planning, and personal development. Nationwide, less than 3 percent of Senior Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award each year.

To earn the Girl Scout Gold Award, a Girl Scout must satisfy several requirements. First, she must fulfill a series of preliminary tasks, including the completion of four Interest Project Patches, the Career Exploration Pin, the Senior Girl Scout Leadership Award, and the Senior Girl Scout Challenge. Upon completion of these four tasks, the Girl Scout then must design and implement a Girl Scout Gold Award project, integrating all of the skills and knowledge that she has gained through her years in Girl Scouting. The project must demonstrate a substantial commitment to community service and leadership and be carried out over the course of at least 50 hours.

Leslie Carter, of Girl Scout Troop 47, will be presented with the Girl Scout Gold Award for her service as a personalized aide for a student with special needs during the summer school term. Leslie's project involved planning lessons and activities that helped the girl improve her socialization skills, enabling the student to be more receptive to academic lessons, try new activities, and improve her abilities.

Tiffany Cremer, of Girl Scout Troop 47, will be honored with the Girl Scout Gold Award for her project which aimed to increase public awareness of Girl Scout events, service projects, and programming, by publishing articles and photographs in local newspapers across Fulton County, IL.

Kendall Juers, of Girl Scout Troop 555, will receive her Girl Scout Gold Award for her efforts to refurbish the collection of the Glen Oak Primary School Library. Kendall collected new and used books to be donated to the library and also made bags that the children will use to protect the books they check out of the library and bring home.

Alicia McCombs, of Girl Scout Troop 47, will receive her Girl Scout Gold Award in recognition of her role in codirecting a school play and fulfilling a variety of additional responsibilities, including set building, costumes, makeup, and lighting.

Diana Newlan, of Girl Scout Troop 555, will be presented with the Girl Scout Gold Award in recognition of her efforts to reorganize her school's music library, including cataloging, repairing, and replacing sheet music.

Sarah Rosecrans, of the Juliette Girl Scout Troop, will be honored with the Girl Scout Gold Award for her leadership in planning a councilwide event for Brownie Girl Scouts, enabling the younger girls to learn about and prepare for Junior Girl Scouts, the next level in Girl Scouting.

For each of these young women, I expect that the completion of the Girl Scout Gold Award is only the first step toward a lifetime of civic involvement. I take this opportunity to congratulate each of these young women for their hard work and dedication in earning the Girl Scout Gold Award and to publicly recognize them for their exceptional leadership and service to their communities.