Sunday, May 18th, the Girl Scouts of Eastern South Carolina honored Addie Ledbetter, Michelle Lussier and Sarah Graham for earning the Girl Scout Gold Award.
Addie Ledbetter earned her Gold Award with "You Text…You Next." Her project focused on helping educate others on the issues associated with texting while driving. At Fort Dorchester High School, the students were able to participate in a driving simulation that gave the students and faculty firsthand experiences on the difficulty of texting while driving. This project was so successful that Fort Dorchester High School has agreed in conjunction with the drunk driving/texting simulations, to show her PowerPoint presentation to the entire school. River Oaks Middle School and Alston Middle School have also agreed to show the students her presentation each year.
Michelle Lussier earned her Gold Award with "Fun, Food, &Fitness." Her project focused on the fact that nationwide, one in three children is either overweight or obese and in South Carolina, 31.7% of adolescents in grades 9-12 are either overweight or obese. To help combat this problem, Michelle wanted to educate the students at her school, and she wanted to focus on a group that normally would not get this type of opportunity. She worked with the Bishop England High School’s Options Program which taught students with disabilities. Michelle started an after school program and she taught the students how to read nutrition labels, she taught them about the foods that are both good and bad for them, she taught them how to eat a balanced diet, and she taught them the importance of physical activity. In continuing this project without Michelle, the teachers of the Options Program has agreed to incorporate some of Michelle’s program ideas into their curriculum.
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Sarah Graham earned her Gold Award with "Beauty and Baldness: The Naked Truth." Her project focused on bringing awareness to Traction Alopecia. Traction Alopecia is a form of gradual hair loss that is caused by wearing hair weaves, corn rows, or by wearing your hair too tight. Since this type of Alopecia is common among female dancers, Sarah decided to speak to girls at area dance studios about the causes of Traction Alopecia and she gave them different hairstyle ideas that they could wear for dance or in everyday life. She also did an event for local girls and their mothers that she called “Got Hair?” She spoke to this group about Traction Alopecia and then gave the mothers and daughters an opportunity to experiment and learn new hair styles which will help prevent this form of Alopecia.
By earning the Girl Scout Gold Award, Addie Ledbetter, Michelle Lussier and Sarah Graham have become community leaders. Their accomplishments reflect leadership and citizenship skills that set them apart.
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"Earning the Girl Scout Gold Award designation is truly a remarkable achievement, and these young women exemplify leadership in all its forms," said Loretta Graham, Chief Executive Officer of Girl Scouts of Eastern South Carolina. "They saw a need in their communities and around the world and took action. Their extraordinary dedication, perseverance, and leadership, is making the world a better place."
Some universities and colleges offer scholarships unique to Gold Award recipients, and girls who enlist in the U.S. Armed Forces may receive advanced rank in recognition of their achievements.