Local Bellmore Teens Earn Prestigious Girl Scout Gold Award

BELLMORE, NEW YORK (JUNE 2022) — Girl Scouts of Nassau County recently honored Bellmore residents Brigid Lamaze and Morgan Schaefer for earning their Gold Awards. The Gold Award is the highest and most prestigious award a Girl Scout can achieve, as it recognizes the remarkable dedication she has for improving their community and the world around them. Brigid and Morgan were presented with their Gold Awards at the Girl Scouts of Nassau County's 2022 Gold Awards Ceremony, joining an elite group of 53 young women from throughout Nassau County who earned the highest honor a Girl Scout can achieve.

“The recipients of this year’s Gold Awards have displayed diligence, compassion and altruism in approaching issues facing their communities,” said Randell Bynum, the chief executive officer of Girl Scouts of Nassau County. “Their efforts have not gone unnoticed in their communities and their impacts will leave an imprint for years to come. I applaud them for addressing topics like social justice, mental health, the environment and more, while putting forth solutions to create a better world.”

The Gold Award program is designated for girls in grades 9-12 and is intended to help girls explore civic and social issues they are passionate about pursuing, drafting a plan to approach the issue and, lastly, partnering with volunteers or community leaders to implement it. The plan implemented needs to be sustainable and reach beyond the Girl Scout’s personal community.

Brigid Lamaze’s project, “Healthy Bonds with Ponds,” informed her community about how water pollution negatively impacts the environment and what we can do to change it. Working with Nassau County and Town of Hempstead officials, Brigid installed a sign with a QR code near a creek that flows into Newbridge Pond. The QR code leads the public to her website on water pollution, the history of Newbridge Pond, and local plant and animal life. Local high school biology teachers will use her presentation to share the impact of her project with future generations. Brigid is a rising sophomore at Hofstra University, where she is a Biology major.

Morgan Schaefer’s “Perfectly Imperfect” tackled the topics of self-esteem, confidence, stress, and mental health. Morgan highlighted the importance of supporting one another by creating a program for middle and high school students that teaches them about mental health struggles through open discussions and hands-on activities. She created a resource guide for individuals to turn to for guidance, coping strategies, and inspiration. Morgan redefined what it means to be “Perfectly Imperfect,” spreading the message that everyone is beautiful as their unique selves. Her Gold Award project will be sustained through her Instagram and website. Morgan will be a senior at Mepham High School this fall.

According to the Girl Scout Research Institute, girls who have achieved their Gold Award, experience greater life success due to a greater sense of self, satisfaction, leadership, life achievements, community service and civic engagement. Gold Award Girl Scouts who enlist in the U.S. Armed Forces may receive a higher pay grade and can receive scholarships or other recognition from most colleges or universities.

For more information about the Girl Scouts of Nassau County and the Gold Award program, visit www.gsnc.org.

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We Are Girl Scouts: Girl Scouts bring their dreams to life and work together to build a better world. Through programs in Nassau County, across Long Island and from coast to coast, Girl Scouts of all backgrounds and abilities can be unapologetically themselves as they discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges—whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or advocate for climate justice, or make their first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors, and millions of alumni, Girl Scouts leads the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them. To join us, volunteer, reconnect, or donate, visit girlscouts.org.