Gold Award Girl Scouts

Yasmine Mathew Merrick Service Unit

Troop 2358

Protect the Environment and Yourself: Making Masks to Last!

Yasmine Mathew’s Gold Award project was started during the COVID-19 pandemic, when she taught others the importance of masking and hygiene to prevent infections. Due to the high number of disposable masks that were thrown away, she taught students how to create their own reusable masks to reduce the environmental impact of disposable-mask garbage. She made a brochure, video, and hosted presentations at her parish to demonstrate some simple reusable mask-making techniques to Sunday school students and their families.

Yasmine completed her Bronze and Silver Awards while part of Troop 2358 in Merrick. She has participated in many council events like Girls Go the Distance, Camp Blue Bay weekends, Girls Speak, Girls Who Code, STEM, and other various badge programs. She also got to attend the Girl Scout Wicked program on Broadway and see the Rockettes with her troop. She has had many interesting experiences through Girl Scouts and completed various volunteer activities like book drives and food collection for charities. Yasmine will be attending Adelphi University in the fall of 2023.

Juliana Mitchell Garden City Service Unit Troop 1322

Using Social Media for Good

To earn her Gold Award, Juliana Mitchell addressed the issue of using social media for positive benefits. She partnered with SmartSocial.com, a website that provides resources about digital citizenship for teenagers.

Juliana developed a presentation and pamphlet called Social Media for Good, that highlighted how to use social media safely, appropriately, and purposefully to show one’s best self by focusing on academic, athletic, or extracurricular accomplishments. The information was distributed at meetings and fairs to parents and students. Juliana created a social media platform for the Garden City Service Unit of Girl Scouts to distribute Service unit information. Her project is sustained by having her presentation and pamphlet available at guidance departments and local libraries. The Garden City Girl Scout Instagram page continues to foster using social media for good.

Juliana is a rising junior at Garden City High School. She is a member of the marching band, Tri-M Music Honor Society, and numerous youth leadership organizations including the Girl Scouts of Nassau County’s Girl Leadership Committee. Her fondest Girl Scout memory is going to Walt Disney World with her troop.

Lauren McCarthy

Merrick Service Unit

Troop 2274

Period Positivity

Lauren McCarthy addressed the issues of menstrual stigma and “period poverty,” when women can’t afford to buy menstrual products, which are caused by false perceptions and taboos about menstruation. She taught young women how to maintain a positive and healthy outlook on their menstrual cycles and become advocates for underprivileged women. She provided information about the impact of menstrual stigma, the discrimination women face due to their menstrual status, and how to stay “period-positive” with their own prep kits. Lauren’s project will educate women on how to overcome menstruation challenges through access to her website and by creating a collection drive for feminine products at her school.

A graduate of Sacred Heart Academy, Lauren was a member of the speech and debate club, an executive member of the Women in Engineering Club, and the founder and president of her school’s chess club. Her fondest Girl Scout memory is building a lending library as a part of her Silver Award project. While earning her Gold Award, she learned that her passions truly lie in making a difference in her community. Lauren will be attending the University of Notre Dame.

Madeline Mitchell Garden City Service Unit

Troop 1322

Learning, Living, Loving: Growing the Game of Field Hockey

Madeline Mitchell partnered with USA Field Hockey and her club team, Lasting Legacy, to introduce and develop the game of field hockey for students in second through sixth grades. Madeline’s team helped initiate access to an instructional league which provided the opportunity to learn the sport through match play. She also hosted a clinic for Girl Scouts to learn while playing and interacting with volunteers from her school’s field hockey teams. Madeline created a pamphlet for players detailing the importance of providing community service “give back days.” Her project is sustained by her club team continuing the instructional league and the high school offering ongoing “give back days.”

Madeline is a junior at Garden City High School. She is a member of the varsity field hockey team, National Charity League, and the Girl Scouts of Nassau County’s Girl Leadership Committee. Her fondest Girl Scout memory is going to Frost Valley. While earning her Gold Award, she learned that stepping out of her comfort zone helped her reach her goals and build self-confidence.