June 21, 2007

CONTACT:  Mary Riherd Broomfield, Marketing and Public Relations Director
                (626) 445-7771, ext. 313, mbroomfield@gsmwvc.org


Eighty-five Girl Scouts Receive Gold Award
Over 5,500 hours of service contributed to community



Arcadia, CA— For her Gold Award project, Senior Girl Scout Jennifer Kang increased awareness about the treatment of women in Africa who are ostracized for a trauma they endured during childbirth. She hopes to one day turn her Gold Award project, the result of efficient planning, innovation, and extraordinary leadership skills, into a non profit organization. 

Kang and 84 fellow Senior Girl Scouts from Mt. Wilson Vista Council were awarded the highest honor in Girl Scouting, the Gold Award, for their achievements at a ceremony on Saturday, June 16, 2007.

Earning the Gold Award is the highlight of a girl’s Girl Scouting career, a two-year process in which a girl plans and implements a challenging, large-scale project that is innovative and of lasting value and that involves collaboration with other youth and adults.

“The lives of high school girls today are busy, competitive and fast-paced. Those committed enough to ‘go for the gold’  know personally what it means to commit to something important, juggle priorities, work tenaciously and achieve what they set out to do. Today, we celebrate the success of 85 exceptional young women who stepped up to the challenge,” said Brenda Berg, CEO, Girl Scouts - Mt. Wilson Vista Council.

Sierra Madre Chief of Police Marilyn Diaz, a dedicated public servant and accomplished woman in her own right, delivered a moving keynote address to the audience of Gold Award recipients, fellow Girl Scouts, family, friends and local public officials.

Chief Diaz, a 32-year veteran of the Pasadena Police Department, is the first woman in Los Angeles County to be appointed Chief of Police of a municipal city department.

Diaz discussed how women have embraced new opportunities in recent decades and have become successful in professions that were once considered beyond the capabilities of women. She credited the fact that so many women – as Girl Scouts – “go for the gold” or exhibit the courage, confidence and character of Gold Award Girl Scouts.

“As Gold Award recipients, you will have an advantage-- the advantage of self confidence gained from your Girl Scout experience to remain honest, compassionate, and courageous, no matter what the situation,” she said.

Girls are motivated to earn the Gold Award by a desire to give something back to their community, something they learn from an early age in Girl Scouting. The 85 Senior Girl Scouts from throughout the San Gabriel Valley contributed over 5,500 hours of service to the community, locally, nationally and abroad.  They selected projects based on their interests or needs they saw. Projects this year included aid for child refugees in Uganda, Africa; an edible garden planted at a local preschool with the help of the school’s 5-year-old students; a donor recognition mural at a local non profit organization; and an advocacy day that offered high school students the chance to interact with local politicians and learn about the political process, among other numerous projects benefiting the community.

“Your accomplishments demonstrate the power and strength of the Girl Scout mission: to build girls of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place,” said Debbie Williams, President of the Board of Directors of Girl Scouts – Mt. Wilson Vista Council.

Because of the leadership skills, organizational ability and community service demonstrated in earning the Gold Award, it is a tremendous asset on a girl's resume and college application. More than 50 universities offer scholarships specifically for Gold Award recipients. Recipients who enter military service are also immediately eligible for officer rank. A bonus for girls in Mt. Wilson Vista Council is that Senior Girl Scouts who earn the Gold Award have the opportunity to march in the Tournament of Roses Parade as part of the Tournament Troop. Members of the Troop carry the banners that announce the award-winning float entries.

Nationwide, 6% of Senior Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award. At Mt. Wilson Vista Council, that figure is traditionally greater than the national average.

Girl Scouts – Mt. Wilson Vista Council serves nearly 9,000 girls and young women, ages five to 17, throughout the San Gabriel Valley.  The Council is chartered by Girl Scouts of the USA, the world’s preeminent organization for girls.  Today, as when founded in 1912, Girl Scouts builds girls of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place.  For more information on how to register your daughter, volunteer your time or donate to the Girl Scouts, call (626) 445-7771 or visit the GSMWVC Web site at www.gsmwvc.org.