Girl Scout Adventures

On March 12, 2022, Girl Scouts of the USA marked 110 years of building girls or courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place.

On July 13, 2022, after being apart during the pandemic years, we gathered in-person and celebrated our problem solvers, go-getters, dreamers, and doers, who are creating a better future for us all. We held a Girl Scout Gold Award and 110th Anniversary Celebration at The Legacy Castle in Pompton Plains, N.J. and celebrated the accomplishments of our Girl Scouts from the previous 3 years, including the following outstanding achievements.

Our Gold Award Girl Scout Aria Chalileh was a GSUSA 2022 National Scholarship Recipient for her Peer-to-Peer Vaping Awareness Campaign. Aria’s Gold Award project addressed the growing vaping epidemic in her community and its potential health consequences, specifically in youth. She utilized a peer-to-peer educational approach to inform youth about deceptive marketing and the harmful effects of vaping.

Working with local school officials and youth advocates she conducted virtual and in-person presentations for students at different schools. To increase adult awareness of this issue, Aria reached out to mayors, town newspapers, and libraries, and utilized social media. Social media was key in promoting her message. She recorded her presentation on YouTube, created trendy content for her @ditchthevape Instagram account, created a YouTube video entitled “Incorruptible,” and wrote and published the article, “Anatomy of the Vaping Epidemic.”

Audrey Pagan, a Girl Scout Senior from Morris Plains, reached a major hiking milestone during this year—one she achieved largely in part due to her membership in Girl Scouts of Northern New Jersey’s Trailblazers hiking and backpacking group. As a long-time Trailblazers member, Audrey had tackled 66 miles or nearly 90% of the New Jersey stretch of the Appalachian Trail, which spans 74 miles. Audrey’s participation in countless Trailblazers excursions helped her rack up most of her miles on the Appalachian Trail, and she completed her final stretch of the trail on June 28, 2022.

Not only did Trailblazers position Audrey to meet this impressive hiking milestone, it also taught her and her fellow group members valuable outdoor skills such as map reading, trail etiquette, packing for day and overnight hikes, knife safety, cooking and food storage, tent set-up and more. Our Trailblazers program reinforces the importance of time outdoors for girls, which is one of the four pillars of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience.

When Gold Award Girl Scout Valencia Julien was determining the focus of her Girl Scout Gold Award Project, she wanted to pick something close to her heart. Since witnessing the effects of Alzheimer’s on her grandparents firsthand, Valencia has become an advocate for Alzheimer’s awareness and education, especially for children, and has been a volunteer at the Alzheimer’s Association of Greater New Jersey. Knowing how difficult it can be for children to comprehend the toll the disease can take on their loved ones, she was inspired to write a children’s book titled, “Giselle Learns About Alzheimer’s” to explain the disease in simple terms and illustrate some of its effects.

Since African Americans are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease as older white Americans and less likely to be diagnosed in earlier stages of the disease, Valencia’s book is an especially powerful tool to enhance awareness of the disease and help educate children in African American communities and beyond whose loved ones may be impacted by Alzheimer’s. Recognizing her valuable contributions, the Morris County branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) honored Valencia with their 90th Anniversary Freedom Fund Youth Council Award. Since publishing the book, Valencia is amplifying the reach of her story, holding workshops to teach elementary aged children about Alzheimer’s. Valencia’s book can be downloaded for free on Lulu.com and an audio book is available on YouTube in several languages.