Shelly Lemons of Lebanon is GSSI's June Pearl of the Month

 

 

GSSI is pleased to announce Shelly Lemons of Lebanon is the June Pearl of the Month. The Pearl of the Month Award recognizes a Girl Scout volunteer who has delivered service beyond expectations and helped to ensure that approximately 14,000 Girl Scouts in southern Illinois benefit from a premier Girl Scout Leadership Experience. Nominees must meet several criteria, including completion of all required training for his or her volunteer position as well as providing outstanding service to his or her Service Unit or the Council.

Shelly became a co-leader this year after previously serving as an active parent volunteer. In her first year she has stepped up to take trainings, became the Troop Cookie Manager, attends monthly meetings, and helped with the Thinking Day event. She makes sure activities are girl-led which keeps the girls excited and interested in the troop and helps to draw in new girls. She gets her entire family involved in events and is always willing to help plan, set-up, run, and clean-up! Shelly is a positive person and a great influence on the young ladies in her troop and the whole Service Unit.

Hannah Pavlisin Nominated for Girl Scouts' National Young Woman of Distinction Honor

Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois (GSSI) is pleased to announce that Hannah Pavlisin from Lebanon has been nominated for Girl Scouts of the USA’s 2014 National Young Woman of Distinction (NYWOD) honor.

Each Girl Scout council can submit up to three applicants for the NYWOD honor.  This prestigious honor is conferred by Girl Scouts of the USA on Girl Scout Gold Award recipients whose final projects demonstrated extraordinary leadership, had a measurable and sustainable impact and addressed a local challenge that related to a national and/or global issue.  Only ten girls throughout the country receive this special honor each year.

For her Girl Scout Gold Award project, Hannah wanted to help reduce the fear and isolation that many patients at St. Louis Children’s Hospital patients face by providing a fun event to take them away from their troubles for the night.   Her event, named Dare to Dream, offered hands-on activities, fun demonstrations and special guests.

“I’ve always loved interacting with kids and in college I will be studying Nursing,” said Hannah. “It seemed like a perfect fit for me and the hard part was narrowing down all of my ideas!”

First, Hannah transformed a playroom and cafeteria at Children’s Hospital into outer space and created a giant cardboard “above the clouds” castle for children to enjoy.  Next, she set up stations for activities that included making play jet-packs to go along with the space theme, painting art canvasses, decorating cupcakes and creating photo frames.  She also arranged for local firemen, police officers, a pilot, a pastry chef, professional artists and Olympians to talk with children about their jobs, give demonstrations and take photos (to place in the kids’ new photo frames).  At the end of the night, all of the children got teddy bears to take back to their rooms.

Along with fulfilling her desire to cheer up hospitalized children, Hannah was also able to hone her leadership skills by earning her Girl Scout Gold Award.  “I learned so much about myself and working with others,” she said.  “While leadership has always came naturally to me, recruiting and directing those older than me was a new challenge.”

If selected as a National Young Woman of Distinction, Hannah will receive a $5,000 academic scholarship made possible by the Kappa Delta Foundation and will be nationally recognized at the 2014 National Council Session/53^rd National Convention of Girl Scouts of the USA.

Hannah is the daughter of James and Pennie Pavlisin.  She is a GSSI Trifecta Award winner for earning her Girl Scout Bronze Award, Girl Scout Silver Award and Girl Scout Gold Award.   She is currently a senior at O’Fallon Township High School and plans to attend Bradley University to study Nursing in the fall.  

Bridget Ray from Lebanon Earns the Girl Scout Gold Award

Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois (GSSI) is pleased to announce that Bridget Ray from Lebanon has received the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can receive. 

Bridget dedicated her Girl Scout Gold Award project to designing an interactive sensory room for Route 21, a transition house at O’Fallon Township High School that helps autistic students become accustomed to life after school. 

“Resources in public schools are decreasing while the rate of autism diagnosis is increasing,” said Bridget.  “Nationwide, medical and education specialists are learning more and see that autistic students can gain from sensory environments.”

She first researched the therapeutic benefits of sensory room to plan her design and to create an instructional booklet for others who wanted to help in the future. Next, she secured donations so that she could create a library of sensory materials.  Bridget herself bought and donated a swing chair for the room and hung wind socks made of donated fabric.  As a final touch, she enlisted a local artist to paint a mural in the room.  To celebrate the room’s opening, Bridget also organized a party for Route 21 students and staff that was hosted by other teen Girl Scouts that she trained to run activity stations with the special needs students. 

Along with fulfilling her desire to make a meaningful difference, earning her Girl Scout Gold Award project also allowed Bridget to develop valuable skills such as organization, communication, conflict management and project leadership.  She also developed a greater sense of confidence in her ability to make a positive impact on the world.

 “It was a joy to spend time with the students at the transition house,” she said. “This project showed me that one person really can make a difference.  I hope to inspire others to get involved in their community.”

Bridget is the daughter of Brian Ray and Kathy Ray.  She is currently a sophomore at O’Fallon Township High School and a Girl Scout Senior in Troop #1123. 

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 6 percent of eligible girls earn the prestigious Gold Award.

Hannah Pavlisin From Lebanon Earns the Girl Scout Gold Award

 

 

Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois (GSSI) is pleased to announce that Hannah Pavlisin has received the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can receive. 

For her Girl Scout Gold Award project, Hannah wanted to help reduce the fear and isolation that many patients at St. Louis Children’s Hospital patients face by providing a fun event to take them away from their troubles for the night.   Her event, named Dare to Dream, offered hands-on activities, fun demonstrations and special guests.

“I’ve always loved interacting with kids and in college I will be studying Nursing,” said Hannah. “It seemed like a perfect fit for me and the hard part was narrowing down all of my ideas!”

First, Hannah transformed a playroom and cafeteria at Children’s Hospital into outer space and created a giant cardboard “above the clouds” castle for children to enjoy.  Next, she set up stations for activities that included making play jet-packs to go along with the space theme, painting art canvasses, decorating cupcakes and creating photo frames.  She also arranged for local firemen, police officers, a pilot, a pastry chef, professional artists and Olympians to talk with children about their jobs, give demonstrations and take photos (to place in the kids’ new photo frames).  At the end of the night, all of the children got teddy bears to take back to their rooms.

Along with fulfilling her desire to cheer up hospitalized children, Hannah was also able to hone her leadership skills by earning her Girl Scout Gold Award.  “I learned so much about myself and working with others,” she said.  “While leadership has always came naturally to me, recruiting and directing those older than me was a new challenge.”

Hannah is the daughter of James and Pennie Pavlisin.  She is a GSSI Trifecta Award winner for earning her Girl Scout Bronze Award, Girl Scout Silver Award and Girl Scout Gold Award.   She is currently a senior at O’Fallon Township High School and plans to attend Bradley University to study Nursing in the fall.  

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 6 percent of eligible girls earn the prestigious Gold Award.