Local Manhasset Teens Earn Prestigious Girl Scout Gold Award

MANHASSET, NEW YORK (JUNE 2022) — Girl Scouts of Nassau County recently honored Manhasset residents Justine Cuomo, Claire D’Ambrosio, Samantha Palmadessa, Sophia Stefanakis and Emily Theodosopoulos 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. Justine, Claire, Samantha, Sophia and Emily 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. The process of earning a Gold Award begins with a Girl Scout identifying a civic or social issue, 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.

To earn her Gold Award, Justine Cuomo exposed middle school girls to the variety of professions available to women today in her project “A Girl’s Guide to Careers.” She created a website to act as a virtual career fair for middle school girls, and then presented this website to girls in after-school programs, schools, and Girl Scout troops. Each career showcased on the website is complemented with a virtual interview with a woman in that profession. Justine wants girls to explore her website for encouragement to create their own career goals. Justine recently completed her freshman year at Fairfield University, where she is a Magis Scholar.

Through her Gold Award Project, “Saving the World One Craft at a Time,” Claire D’Ambrosio addressed the issue of environmental degradation, caused by the disposal of single-use plastics and an increase of textile and nonrenewable waste. She taught people of all ages how to reduce their carbon footprint by reusing, repurposing, and recycling waste and most importantly to make conscious purchases in the future.

Claire instructed her audience how to make various crafts using repurposed household waste, such as T-shirt yarn, old jeans, and paper. Claire’s Gold Award project will continue to educate individuals on how to make sustainable choices in their daily lives through her online brochures and YouTube videos. Claire will be a senior at Manhasset High School this fall.

For her Gold Award Project, Samantha Palmadessa reduced the global spread of invasive species. “Reduce, Restrict, Restore,” worked to prevent further growth of invasive species in Udalls Cove Park Preserve, Samantha removed Japanese Knotweed and girdled 25 invasive Norway Maple trees. She also increased the number of native species by planting eight Swamp Maple saplings. Samantha presented information on the dangers invasive species impose on our ecosystem and how we can prevent the spread of invasive species to civic associations and local Girl Scout troops. Her Gold Award is sustained through the Udalls Cove Preservation Committee and the Douglaston Civic Association, and she has petitioned to have the issue of invasive species included in Manhasset High School’s Biology curriculum. Samantha will be a senior at Manhasset High School this fall.

Sophia Stefanakis’ project was “Radiating Scientific Curiosity for All.” She instilled scientific curiosity in young children to earn her Gold Award. Partnering with the Coachman Family Center, she led virtual classes relating to STEM topics for over one hundred elementary school-aged students. Sophia also conducted scientific experiments and provided materials for students to enhance their learning experience. She created and coded her own website, which includes posts on “How Things Work” to inspire children to be curious about the science behind everyday functions. Sophia’s lesson plans are accessible and will be sustained through her website. Sophia is a recent graduate of Manhasset High School and will attend the University of Chicago in the fall.

Emily Theodosopoulos earned her Gold Award by effectively educating young children on the importance of protecting our environment through her project “Promoting Environmental Awareness.” She presented lesson plans that addressed crucial topics including recycling, deforestation, endangered animals, and energy conservation, and led different experiments with participants at a local summer camp. Emily’s resources for raising environmental awareness will be implemented in the summer camp’s annual activities for future campers. Emily will be a senior at Manhasset High School in the 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.