Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois (GSSI) is pleased to announce that Elizabeth Boehning from O’Fallon has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can receive.
For her Girl Scout Gold Award project, called Operation Find a Friend, Elizabeth helped youth who were new to O’Fallon to make friends. According to Elizabeth, this is a big military area and lots of new kids come into the community and she wanted to help them easily transition and make friends. As part of her Girl Scout Gold Award project, she implemented a Buddy Bench at the new playground at Laverna Evans School. She also organized a painting day and with the help of volunteers, repainted the games on the school’s blacktop. Finally, she held an assembly at the school and explained to students the purpose of the Buddy Bench and her Girl Scout Gold Award project.
This Girl Scout Gold Award project was a rewarding experience for Elizabeth. “Through my Girl Scout Gold Award project, I really learned how to coordinate a large project with many parts. I was able to stay organized and also improved my communications skills, Elizabeth added.”
Elizabeth is the daughter of Stephanie and Jonathan Boehning. She is currently a Junior at O’Fallon Township High School. Elizabeth has been a Girl Scout for 11 years.
The Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can earn, recognizes a Girl Scout's commitment to excellence as she develops skills and values to meet present and future challenges in her life. To earn the Girl Scout Gold Award, a Girl Scout Senior or Girl Scout Ambassador must design and carry out a project that fulfills a need within a girl’s community, creates change, and is sustainable. The project must be completed with a suggested minimum of 80 hours of work. Only about 5 percent of eligible girls earn the prestigious Gold Award.
