Award Recognition Night
Chatham Girl Scouts
Ten Girl Scouts from Chatham received the prestigious Gold Award on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, during an event held at the Stanley Center. Girl Scout leaders, advisors, families and friends, local dignitaries, and fellow Girl Scouts came together to honor these accomplished role models.
The Gold Award is the highest honor that can be achieved by a Girl Scout. It culminates in an 80-hour service project that requires each candidate to demonstrate leadership, address the root cause of an issue in the community, ensure sustainability, have a measurable impact and identifies with national and global issues. This is no easy task, as only 5% of all Girl Scouts achieve this honor across the nation. These women who have earned their Gold Award are courageous leaders and visionary change makers.
The award ceremony, organized by Chatham Girl Scout troop leader Kathy Abbott, included remarks from several influential members of our town’s community including Chatham Borough Mayor Carolyn Dempsey, Assemblywoman Michele Matsikoudis and Girl Scouts of Northern New Jersey CEO Sandra Kenoff. The dignitaries spoke and commended these women for their powerful and influential achievement in Girl Scouting.
The Gold Award recipients included:
Rhea Agarwal: Rhea’s Gold Award project called “Removing the Filter” aims to metaphorically and literally remove the filter from images of teen girls and women on social media and all media. In revealing the unrealistic image distortions, Rhea reminds young girls to value their own self-worth. Rhea ran workshops about body positivity for girls at the Library of the Chathams and at the Chatham Girl Scouts Day of Service. Rhea also created a website that invites young women to anonymously post their experiences about body image and self-esteem to inspire others. Rhea was honored to be invited to speak at the Girl Scouts of Northern NJ’s Silver Award ceremony to inspire others to pursue a Gold Award. Troop 95732 Troop Leaders Kathy Abbott and Kathy Jenkinson.
Selena Bahl: Selena’s Gold Award focused on increasing awareness of the importance of supporting native pollinator insects. She focused on increasing the diversity of pollinators by encouraging people to plant herbs outside not just to eat, but to provide habitats for local pollinator insects. Selena also informed people about the negative impact of pesticides on bees’ and other insects’ ability to pollinate our native plants and food crops. Troop 95732 Troop Leaders Kathy Abbott and Kathy Jenkinson.
Katelyn Hoffhelder: Katelyn’s Gold Award Project aimed to improve the mental health of the children in families who face food insecurity by creating a book borrowing program at three local food banks. The Chatham community recycles their contemporary, gently used books for these children facing financial hardship, and the children look forward to the food banks as places to find enjoyment through reading. Troop 95732 Troop Leaders Kathy Abbott and Kathy Jenkinson.
Julia Nugent: Julia created a program titled the “Winter Ranger Program” to help young children and families in the community and beyond to get outside during the wintertime to help improve their overall physical and mental health during this colder time of year. The Winter Ranger Program can be accessed online and a certificate can be downloaded after completing three of the nine activities. In addition, she set up a snowshoe loaner program in conjunction with the Library of the Chathams, where four sets of snowshoes and poles are available to borrow and enjoy. Troop 95601 Troop Leader Carrie Nugent.
Manaal Qureshi: Manaal’s project aimed to reduce people’s trash in a local stream that starts at Southern Boulevard and runs across the property of Morris County’s Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center. To create public awareness about preventing water pollution, Manaal waded into the stream and collected dozens of pounds of trash from the stream to know what residents throw or lose on the ground that ends up in our waterways. Then she analyzed a Township storm water pipe map that shows how street trash enters the natural stream, which eventually feeds the Passaic River, the main source of Chatham Township’s drinking water. Troop 95732 Troop Leaders Kathy Abbott and Kathy Jenkinson.
Sofia Sorvino: Sophia’s Gold Award project was focused on ending period poverty on a local and statewide level. Menstrual products are a necessity not a luxury, they should be available to everyone, especially students in schools. A 2020 study showed nearly one in four teenagers throughout the United States struggle to afford menstrual products. Sofia partnered with the Flow Initiative and Local Girl Scout troops to expand the legislative laws. Sofia is happy to report that New Jersey becomes the twenty-third state in the country to provide menstrual products in schools. Sofia will continue to work on her project in college by asking legislators to extend products to colleges where most students have limited funds and are not working. Troop 95604 Troop Leaders Michele Sorvino and Lisa Finkelstein.
Diana Carbone: Diana’s project helps the Chatham Emergency Squad better treat Chatham residents by creating an essential health information form to keep visible in their house in case they need an ambulance. Nicole DiMaggio, the Captain of the Chatham Emergency Squad, said this data, such as prescriptions and primary care doctor, will save valuable time in an emergency. Diana is promoting this card at the Chatham Senior Center, Fishawack, and the Chatham Farmer’s Market. Troop 95732 Troop Leaders Kathy Abbott and Kathy Jenkinson.
Annie Alden: Annie’s Gold Award project, “Choking Is No Joking Matter,” helps prevent choking in young children. Choking is the fourth leading cause of unintentional death in children under the age of five. Annie is visiting preschools in the Chatham area to teach children ages 3-5 about how choking happens and how to prevent it. Before all her lessons end, Annie makes sure each of her young students learns the universal sign for choking. In addition to the lessons, Annie created a pamphlet with a video link to help parents and caregivers reinforce the message at home. Troop 96054 Troop Leaders Maria Alden and Pam Mancino.
Eva Morrison: Eva Morrison’s project helps make children’s experiences in pediatric hospital rooms more positive and enjoyable. Hospital stays can be very scary and overwhelming for children, whether they spend hours, days or weeks. Through research, she became very interested in the Jared Box Project to help hospitalized children beat boredom and ease fears and anxieties. She and her team raised awareness in the community about the issue, collected donations, and led 2 younger Girl Scout meetings to ultimately create and donate over 120 Jared Boxes to Overlook Medical Center. The boxes reached infants through teenagers, and included fidget toys, teething rings, activity books, play dough, sand, dress up items, Legos, and much more. Troop 96054 Troop Leaders Maria Alden and Pam Mancino.
Brooke Zidle: Brooke’s Gold Award Project aimed to encourage peers to get registered and to vote. Elections are a valuable opportunity for young people across the country to make their voices heard. As an active member of the Morristown Area League of Women Voters, Brooke gained awareness of the need to increase voter turnout. According to a 2022 study, only 20.6% of eligible 18–29-year-olds voted in New Jersey. To motivate peers to take action and vote, Brooke created a video and an informational Padlet of resources with links to voter registration, candidate profiles, polling locations, and sample voting ballots. Brooke will continue to share her video and Padlet through online links and emails sent to peers. Troop 96054 Troop Leaders Maria Alden and Pam Mancino.
Silver Award recipients
In addition, the evening recognized five Silver Award recipients. The Girl Scout Silver Award requires Girl Scouts to complete a Journey and a Take Action project as well as 50 documented hours working on a solution to address an issue they have identified in their community. Only 10% of Girl Scouts earn this award across the nation.
Meegan Carey and Julianna Falzarano whose project was titled Basketball Skills and Drills: Getting fit and building confidence in sports. Troop 96643. Troop Leader Andrea Caserta.
Caitlin Bolten, Skyler Chasalow and Jules McGrath whose project was titled Sustainability in Fashion: A path to a greener world, spreading awareness about sustainable fashion options to combat the growing waste issue of “fast fashion”. Troop 96323 Troop Leaders Carrie Nugent and Niamh Hillman.
The evening also recognized the Chatham Girl Scouts Graduating High School Seniors; Meredith Abbott, Rhea Agarwal, Selena Bahl, Diana Carbone, Ava Finklestein, Katelyn Hoffhelfer, Kelsey Jenkinson, Julia Nugent, Khushi Parekh, Manaal Qureshi, Sofia Sorvino and Julia Wilcox.
For more information on Chatham Girl Scouts go to chathamgs.org or contact us at chathamnjgirlscouts@gmail.com.
